Felix Rosenqvist will start next Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 from a career-best eighth on the grid following a strong run in qualifying for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ blue-riband event.
Rosenqvist comfortably progressed from the opening day of qualifying on Saturday, recording the third fastest four-lap average around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval at 232.775 mph (374 km/h).
That effort yielded Rosenqvist a slot in Sunday’s Top 12 segment, where the Swede carried hopes of battling for the most prestigious pole position on the schedule.
An untimely technical glitch did little to help his cause, however, with Rosenqvist averaging 232.182 mph (373 km/h) in the Sunday session to settle for P8 – still providing him with his best grid slot to date in The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
“A bit of mixed feelings,” Felix Rosenqvist admits. “We had an issue this morning in practice and had to go to Plan C for qualifying, changing our gearing to match the lower speeds that the problem caused. We don’t know what happened yet, but it was quite obvious that we wouldn’t make the Fast 6 and I’m actually pleasantly surprised that we are P8 instead of P12.”
Rosenqvist will share the third row of the grid with Arrow McLaren SP team-mate Pato O’Ward (Mexico) and France’s Romain Grosjean when the 200-lap race gets underway next Sunday, 29 May.
“We did everything we could, put it on the line, and it was good fun,” Felix Rosenqvist concludes. “We’re on the third row for the Indy 500, and you can definitely win from there. We’re all good; I can’t wait for the race next Sunday. We have every chance to go for it.”
All cars will be back on track on Monday for a two-hour practice session to start off race week.
WHEN IT HAPPENS: Full Indy 500 time table
RESULTS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | Rd. 6
106th Indianapolis 500 – Qualifying
Indianapolis Motor Speedway (USA)