Felix Rosenqvist completed his first full race with new team Arrow McLaren SP in Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, taking 12th place in round two of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.
Rosenqvist started the Florida street race from 17th on the grid after a difficult qualifying session, but made up some ground in the 100-lap event to get his 2021 campaign properly underway following last week’s first-lap pile-up at Barber Motorsports Park.
In what marked a challenging day all-round for Arrow McLaren SP, with team-mate Pato O’Ward taking 19th, Rosenqvist at least racked up important mileage to draw from in the coming races.
“It wasn’t a spectacular race, but that’s where we were today,” says Felix Rosenqvist. “I think I got the most out of it in this race, to be honest. It’s hard when you start too far back, but that’s the pace we had.
“Still, it was positive to do the full race distance, work with the team, and go through all of those procedures. We know we have some work to do, but we will continue to push and improve.”
The INDYCAR field now heads straight on to Texas Motor Speedway, the first oval of the season, where action resumes with a double-header event next weekend.
RESULTS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | Rd. 2
Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
St. Petersburg (USA)
1: Colton Herta (USA), Andretti, 100 laps
2: Josef Newgarden (USA), Penske, +2.493s
3: Simon Pagenaud (FRA), Penske, +6.149s
4: Jack Harvey (GBR), Meyer Shank, +8.083s
5: Scott Dixon (NZL), Ganassi, +8.949s
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12: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), AMSP, +18.563s
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
NTT INDYCAR SERIES | After 2/17 races
1: Alex Palou (ESP), Ganassi, 67 p.
2: Will Power (AUS), Penske, 65 p.
3: Scott Dixon (NZL), Ganassi, 65 p.
4: Colton Herta (USA), Andretti, 62 p.
5: Simon Pagenaud (FRA), Penske, 54 p.
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18: Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), AMSP, 27 p.
