Dixon Grabs the Provisional Pole for the Indianapolis 500

Scott Dixon, the series 2020 Champion,  captured the provisional pole for the the 105th running of the Indy 500 and held that position all day.  Under cloudy skies with temperatures in the 80s, the 2008 winner was the first off of pit lane this afternoon.

Colton Herta, the Andretti Autosport number 26, took the second spot.  The 23 year old was less than .200 of a second off of Dixon’s four lap average.

Dixon’s teammate, the 2002 Indy 500 winner, Tony Kanaan turned the 3rd fastest speed to get a spot in the top nine qualifiers.  Kanaan in the number 48 entry is driving only the oval races this season, filling in for Jimmie Johnson.

Ed Carpenter, who has qualified in the fast nine in the last eight years,  captured the 4th fastest slot.  Carpenter, a local favorite in Indianapolis, has been on the pole three times in the last 8 races.

 

Alex Palou, the Chip Ganassi Racing number 10 entry, caused a yellow flag with 2 hours and 15 minutes left to go.  The Barber winner smacked the safer barrier and demolished his entry.   The frustrated driver was upset with himself and offered to stay with his team and help them get his race car ready for tomorrow for the fast nine qualifying.

There also was drama at the opposite end of the field, as 2018 Indy 500 winner Will Power was relegated to Last Chance Qualifying on Sunday after his two runs were too slow to make the top 30.

You forget how stressful this is,” Dixon said. “It’s the first time I’ve ever gone first. It’s pretty interesting. Huge credit to everyone on the PNC Bank Grow Up Great car.

“It was a fairly smooth run. I made a mistake on Lap 2, which probably cost us a tenth or two from the average.”

2008 Indianapolis 500 winner Dixon will make the last attempt in the Firestone Fast Nine Shootout, which determines the NTT P1 Award winner for pole and the starting order for the first three rows, as the nine fastest cars from today start in inverse order in the one-shot format. The Shootout takes place from 3-3:45 p.m. on the 2.5-mile oval and will be televised live on NBC and Peacock.

Dixon will be the favorite to earn his fourth Indy 500 pole, but the powerful Ganassi team will have four chances to take the coveted top spot. CGR drivers Tony Kanaan (third, 231.639, No. 48 The American Legion Honda), Alex Palou (seventh, 231.145, No. 10 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) and Marcus Ericsson (ninth, 231.104, No. 8 Huski Chocolate Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) also made the Shootout.

“Tomorrow will be a different day; it’s going to be different conditions,” Dixon said. “Hopefully all four of us can hit it right.”

But Ganassi’s day lost some of its sparkle at 3:35 p.m., when Palou crashed in Turn 2 while making his second qualifying attempt. Palou didn’t withdraw his first run, preserving his spot in the Shootout, but still was trying to improve his position when the rear of his car got loose and made heavy right-side contact with the SAFER Barrier, inflicting significant damage.

Palou climbed from his car without injury, but the Ganassi team will face a long night repairing the car for the Shootout on Sunday.

Other drivers participating in the Shootout are Colton Herta (second, 231.648, No. 26 Gainbridge Honda), Ed Carpenter (fourth, 231.616, No. 20 SONAX Chevrolet), Rinus VeeKay (fifth, 231.483, No. 21 Bitcoin Chevrolet), three-time “500” winner Helio Castroneves (sixth, 231.164, No. 06 AutoNation/SiriusXM Honda) and 2014 Indy winner Ryan Hunter-Reay (ninth, 231.139, No. 28 DHL Honda).

Alexander Rossi not good enough to make the Fast Nine for Sunday.  He will start 10th

Saturday Qualifying Results

Pos No Name Speed Diff Status Engine Team
1 9 Scott Dixon 231.828 38.6973 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Chip Ganassi Racing
2 26 Colton Herta 231.648 0.0351 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Andretti Autosport
3 48 Tony Kanaan 231.639 0.0377 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Chip Ganassi Racing
4 20 Ed Carpenter 231.616 0.0558 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Ed Carpenter Racing
5 21 Rinus VeeKay 231.483 0.0815 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Ed Carpenter Racing
6 06 Helio Castroneves 231.164 0.1990 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Meyer Shank Racing
7 10 Alex Palou 231.145 0.1310 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Chip Ganassi Racing
8 28 Ryan Hunter-Reay 231.139 0.1758 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Andretti Autosport
9 8 Marcus Ericsson 231.104 0.1220 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Chip Ganassi Racing
10 27 Alexander Rossi 231.046 0.1951 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Andretti Autosport
11 18 Ed Jones 231.044 0.1574 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser Sullivan
12 5 Pato O’Ward 230.864 0.1908 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Arrow McLaren SP
13 51 Pietro Fittipaldi 230.846 0.1726 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Dale Coyne Racing w/Rick Ware Racing
14 7 Felix Rosenqvist 230.744 0.2224 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Arrow McLaren SP
15 30 Takuma Sato 230.708 0.1988 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
16 29 James Hinchcliffe 230.563 0.2458 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport
17 3 Scott McLaughlin 230.557 0.2377 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Team Penske
18 15 Graham Rahal 230.521 0.2977 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
19 47 Conor Daly 230.427 0.2792 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Ed Carpenter Racing
20 60 Jack Harvey 230.191 0.3604 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Meyer Shank Racing
21 2 Josef Newgarden 230.071 0.2898 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Team Penske
22 1 JR Hildebrand 229.980 0.3372 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises
23 45 Santino Ferrucci 229.949 0.3404 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
24 86 Juan Pablo Montoya 229.891 0.2982 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Arrow McLaren SP
25 98 Marco Andretti 229.872 0.3010 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Andretti Herta-Haupert w/Marco & Curb-Agajanian
26 22 Simon Pagenaud 229.778 0.3644 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Team Penske
27 14 Sebastien Bourdais 229.744 0.3951 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises
28 25 Stefan Wilson 229.714 0.4344 Qualified – Opening Day Honda Andretti Autosport
29 59 Max Chilton 229.417 0.3987 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy Carlin
30 4 Dalton Kellett 228.323 0.4747 Qualified – Opening Day Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises
31 12 Will Power 229.228 0.5114 Bumped Chevy Team Penske
32 24 Sage Karam 229.158 0.5168 Bumped Chevy Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
33 12 Will Power 229.052 0.5114 Bumped Chevy Team Penske
34 60 Jack Harvey 225.496 0.5979 Bumped Honda Meyer Shank Racing
35 47 Conor Daly 230.273 0.2363 Failed – Opening Day Chevy Ed Carpenter Racing
36 26 Colton Herta 230.229 0.0351 Failed – Opening Day Honda Andretti Autosport
37 98 Marco Andretti 229.870 0.3010 Failed – Opening Day Honda Andretti Herta-Haupert w/Marco & Curb-Agajanian
38 86 Juan Pablo Montoya 229.737 0.2982 Failed – Opening Day Chevy Arrow McLaren SP
39 25 Stefan Wilson 229.694 0.3548 Failed – Opening Day Honda Andretti Autosport
40 25 Stefan Wilson 229.632 0.3548 Failed – Opening Day Honda Andretti Autosport
41 11 Charlie Kimball 228.401 0.6039 Failed – Opening Day Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises
42 16 Simona De Silvestro 228.395 0.3989 Failed – Opening Day Chevy Paretta Autosport
43 16 Simona De Silvestro 228.173 0.5834 Failed – Opening Day Chevy Paretta Autosport
44 16 Simona De Silvestro 228.013 0.3989 Failed – Opening Day Chevy Paretta Autosport
45 75 RC Enerson 227.283 0.8382 Failed – Opening Day Chevy Top Gun Racing
46 4 Dalton Kellett 229.250 0.4747 Withdrawn Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises
47 10 Alex Palou 231.623 0.1026 Waived Off Honda Chip Ganassi Racing
48 30 Takuma Sato 230.714 0.1988 Waived Off Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
49 45 Santino Ferrucci 230.571 0.3362 Waived Off Honda Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
50 24 Sage Karam 229.016 0.4891 Waived Off Chevy Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
51 24 Sage Karam 228.880 0.5168 Waived Off Chevy Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
52 06 Helio Castroneves 228.453 0.1990 Waived Off Honda Meyer Shank Racing
53 75 RC Enerson 227.410 0.8341 Waived Off Chevy Top Gun Racing
54 11 Charlie Kimball 227.053 0.6039 Waived Off Chevy AJ Foyt Enterprises