Team Penske dominates Indianapolis 500 Mile Qualifying

Team Penske dominated the first day of qualifying for the Indianapolis 500. Penske drivers took the top three positions among the 12 who will compete for the NTT P1 Award on Sunday.

Will Power, a two-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion and winner of the 2018 edition of this race, achieved the best four-lap average with 233.758 mph in his Chevrolet. Josef Newgarden, the defending champion and two-time series champion, was second with 233.332 mph. Scott McLaughlin completed the Penske trio in third position with 233.293 mph.

On Sunday, the 12 fastest drivers will compete in the Top 12 qualifying session from 3:05 to 4:05 p.m. ET. The top six from that session will advance to the Firestone Fast Six, which will determine the pole position from 5:25 to 5:55 p.m. Between these sessions, Marcus Ericsson from Andretti Global, Graham Rahal from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Katherine Legge, and rookie Nolan Siegel from Dale Coyne Racing will compete for the last three spots on the 33-car grid in the Last Chance Qualifying.

Team Penske's dominance under a clear sky was expected. Newgarden, McLaughlin, and Power were the fastest during the "Fast Friday" qualifying simulations. All three Penske drivers benefited from favorable positions in the qualifying draw and made their four-lap qualifying attempts in the first hour of the six-hour and 50-minute session when track and air temperatures were cooler.

In addition to the Penske trio, competing in the Top 12 session will be Alexander Rossi from Arrow McLaren, Kyle Kirkwood from Andretti Global, rookie Kyle Larson from Arrow McLaren/Rick Hendrick, Felix Rosenqvist from Meyer Shank Racing, Santino Ferrucci from AJ Foyt Racing, Takuma Sato from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Pato O’Ward from Arrow McLaren, Rinus VeeKay from Ed Carpenter Racing, and Ryan Hunter-Reay from Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.

Rinus VeeKay made a notable entry into the Top 12. The Ed Carpenter Racing team rebuilt his car after a crash in turn 3 early in the session. VeeKay made a successful attempt of 231.166 mph in the afternoon, before a final run secured his place among the top 12.

Graham Rahal attempted to qualify just before the session closed but withdrew due to a lack of speed in his United Rentals team Honda. It will be the second consecutive year that Rahal competes in the Last Chance Qualifying after failing to qualify last year, although he participated as a substitute for the injured Stefan Wilson.