By: Spencer Neff
May 17, 2026
Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist led the way after the first round of Indianapolis 500 qualifying for the second time in four years. Rosenqvist, who led Day 1 qualifying and the Fast 12 in 2023 before his best start of third, also led the second round of qualifying in 2025.
He would be the lone Honda among Sunday afternoon’s eight fastest drivers. Chevrolet would grab seven of the next 11 spots for the Fast 12.
Rosenqvist was the only driver to finish with a four-lap average of 232+ mph.
After drawing first on Friday night, 2008 race winner and five-time pole winner Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing set the early benchmark with a 231.411 mph until he was displaced by VeeKay (231.591 mph) and McLaughlin (231.623 mph) early on.
McLaughlin’s teammate David Malukas would rank best among Team Penske’s three drivers as he and McLauughlin advanced. 2023 and 2024 Indianapolis 500 winner starts 24th.
Caio Collet finished the first round in seventh and is guaranteed as the fastest rookie qualifier in 2026. Mick Schumacher (28th), Dennis Hauger (31st) and Jacob Abel (32nd) will also make their first Indianapolis 500 start.
Despite showing no-tow pace during the first three practices, Andretti Global would place only 2022 winner Marcus Ericsson in the first six rows (18th). 2018 race winner Will Power starts 20th and current NTT INDYCAR SERIES points runner-up Kyle Kirkwood in 26th.
Sting Ray Robb of Juncos Hollinger Racing starts 33rd in next Sunday’s race, posting a four-lap average of 226.572 mph,
24 drivers posted a four-lap average exceeding the 230 mph barrier. The current 33-car field average of 230.454 mph would be fifth-best in history.
Here are the drivers who did not make the Fast 12. They start as listed (Inside Middle Outside):
(R) denotes Indianapolis 500 Rookie
indicates previous Indianapolis 500 winner
Row 5: Takuma Sato Ed Carpenter Helio Castroneves
Row 6: Christian Rasmussen Marcus Armstrong Marcus Ericsson
Row 7: Christian Lundgaard Will Power Nolan Siegel
Row 8: Louis Foster Ryan Hunter-Reay Josef Newgarden
Row 9: Romain Grosjean Kyle Kirkwood Katherine Legge
Row 10: Mick Schumacher (R) Jack Harvey Graham Rahal
Row 11: Dennis Hauger (R) Jacob Abel (R) Sting Ray Robb
Up Next
Spotter Guide Track Activity Schedule
Qualifying concludes with the Fast 12 at 4:00 (positions 7-12 locked in) followed by the Fast Six (positions 1-6 locked in).
Monday practice after qualifying is set for 1:00 p.m. ET on Monday, May 19. Final Practice will be held on Carb Day (Friday, May 22) at 11:00 a.m (FS1). with the annual Pit Stop Competition at 2:00 (FOX).
Pre-Race begins at 10:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, May 24th (FOX) with the green flag for the 200-lap race on the 2.5-mile oval at 12:45 p.m. Stick with IndyCar1909.com and our social media platforms for all the latest on the NTT INDYCAR SERIES.
Header Image By Paul Hurley/INDYCAR
IndyCar1909.com 