The driver of Chip Ganassi Racing, Alex Palou, has achieved pole position for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix that will take place this Sunday.
Palou, reigning champion of the IndyCar Series and four-time title winner, clocked a time of 56.899 seconds on the provisional 1.7-mile urban circuit with 7 turns. This is his seventh pole of the season and the first since the race at Road America in June.
The Andretti Global driver, Kyle Kirkwood, finished in second place, 0.5668 seconds behind Palou. Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske secured the third position, 0.7207 seconds off the pace of the leader.
After stepping out of his vehicle, Palou expressed his satisfaction with the result. “Incredible, it’s a privilege to race here. The atmosphere is spectacular and the fans have been fantastic. Today there was a lot of traffic, but I was lucky in the Fast Six,” the driver commented, adding that he is excited for tomorrow’s race, which will consist of 250 miles.
Fast Six
Kirkwood was the first to go out in this qualifying phase, achieving a time of 57.4661s on a set of used alternate tires, while Palou, the second to do so, clocked in on his second attempt with a highlight of 56.899s.
McLaughlin was the third to go out, completing his lap in 57.620s. In fourth position, the Meyer Shank Racing driver, Marcus Armstrong, was unable to set a competitive time, finishing with a time of 58.8145s.
His Team Penske teammate, David Malukas, had a significant lockup at the first corner, ending with a time of 1:10.6709s, while Christian Rasmussen finished the phase in fourth place with 57.889s.
Round of 12
The competition for the transfer spot was intense, with several drivers posting times below 57 seconds. Kirkwood took the best lap of 56.6291s in the last second, beating McLaughlin by 0.0414s.
Palou finished third with a time 0.1055s off pole. Armstrong was fourth, while Malukas rounded out the top 5. Rasmussen secured the final transfer spot, beating Patricio O’Ward by 0.1151s.
Dennis Hauger of Dale Coyne Racing was the first eliminated driver, with Christian Lundgaard in ninth place and Felix Rosenqvist in tenth.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
