By: Spencer Neff
May 17, 2025

Qualifying Day 1 Results Live Grid

Chip Ganassi Racing and driver Alex Palou continued to leave their mark on the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. The current points leader was quickest during the first day of qualifying for next Sunday’s 109th Indianapolis 500.

Palou, who started on the pole in 2023, posted a best four-lap average of 233.043 mph. Following on the provisional grid were the duo of Scott McLaughlin and Josef Newgarden from Team Penske. McLaughlin started on the pole last season while Newgarden has won the last two runnings of the Indianapolis 500.;

Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward, runner-up in 2022 and 2024, was fourth. 2008 race winner Scott Dixon joins his teammate in tomorrow’s Fast 12. Robert Shwartzman and PREMA Racing continue to impress as they are sixth.

Shwartzman is the first full-season rookie to qualify for the Top 12 since 2020 (Rinus VeeKay and Alex Palou qualified fourth and seventh). Shwartzman is also the first Israeli-born driver to qualify for the race and eclipses his previous best qualifying of 18th in his INDYCAR career (St. Petersburg). Teammate Callum Ilott qualified 23rd as PREMA his locked into their first Indianapolis 500.

Rounding out tomorrow’s pole contenders were David Malukas in his first “500” with A.J. Foyt Racing, Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Takuma Sato, along with McLaughlin and Newgarden’s teammate Will Power, Andretti Global’s Marcus Ericsson and O”Ward’s teammate Christian Lundgaard.

Rosenqvist also boasted the fastest single lap of the day (233.334 mph-38.5713 seconds)

For Malukas and Lundgaard, it is their first appearance in the Fast 12 as they both mark their first entry in the race with their new teams. A wrist injury forced Malukas out of the car last year.

Treacherous conditions bit another driver in qualifying after Meyer Shank Racing’s Marcus Armstrong crashed in practice. Andretti Global’s Colton Herta spun win the south chute before getting airborne and sliding to a stop in Turn 2. He climbed from his car and was soon seen, cleared and released from the medical center.

Herta would qualify with just over an hour left in the day, posting a 230.192 mph average to vault himself into 29th.

After qualifying with a four-lap average of 231.596 mph, Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Conor Daly failed technical inspection, His qualifying runs as disallowed as a result.

Daly would alter go out and post a 231.221 mph average, placing him 21st. As the ceremonial pistol sounded at 5:50 p.m., Daly posted a four-lap average of 231.725 mph, good enough for 13th.

Louis Foster of RLLR in 22nd and Nolan Siegel from Arrow McLaren in 25th will also make their debut in the race eight days from now.

After getting bumped in 2023 and qualifying 33rd last year, Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Graham Rahal qualified 30th. It is the first time since 2021 that RLLR will not have a car starting on the last row. The drivers filing out Rows 5-10 are as follows (R) indicates rookie at the Indianapolis 500 and indicates former winner.

Row 5: Conor Daly, Alexander Rossi (W-2016), Kyffin Simpson

Row 6: Ed Carpenter, Santino Ferrucci, Devlin DeFrancesco

Row 7: Sting Ray Robb, Christian Rasmussen, Kyle Larson

Row 8: Louis Foster (R), Callum Ilott, Helio Castroneves (W-2001-02, 2009 and 2021)

Row 9: Kyle Kirkwood, Noah Siegel (R), Ryan Hunter-Reay (W-2014)

Row 10: Jack Harvey, Colton Herta, Graham Rahal

The field average is currently 231.663 mph, only eclipsed by 2023 and 2024 as fastest ever.

Andretti, VeeKay Armstrong and Abel head to Last Row Shootout

While 12 drivers will battle for the pole tomorrow, four drivers will look to make their way into the race. Andrettii Global’s Marco Andretti, along with Meyer Shank Racing’s Marcus Armstrong and the Dale Coyne Racing duo of Jacob Abel and Rinus VeeKay.

Abel is looking to make his debut at the “500”, while the other three have never started on the last row in a combined 25 previous starts (19 for Andretti, five by VeeKay and one by Armstrong).

Abel is currently the slowest of the four with a best four-lap average of 226.483 mph as the fastest three will make the race.

Up Next

On Sunday afternoon, the 12 drivers fighting for the pole will have practice from 1-2 p.m. Next, the drivers vying for the 11th row get their run at practice from 2-3.

The Top 12 will qualify again (4:05 p.m. ET), with 7-12 being locked in. Drivers in 31st-34th will also re-qualify at 5:15 p.m., with the slowest driver getting “bumped” from the field and the fastest three occupying the 11th row. On Sunday evening, the Fast Six from the earlier session will run for the pole at 6:25 p.m.

FS2 will have practice coverage while FOX hosts the final rounds of qualifying.

IndyCar1909 will be on-site and credentialed for all on-track activities. Stick with IndyCar1909 and our social media for the latest on the Indianapolis 500 and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. 

Header Image By Doug Mathews/INDYCAR