IndyCar $1 Million Challenge – Qualifying Report; Rosenqvist, Palou score heat race poles

The NTT IndyCar Series is testing a novel structure for this weekend’s exhibition round at the Thermal Club, with two distinct short qualifying sessions scheduled for Saturday evening.

Felix Rosenqvist scored the fastest time in the opening eight-minute session, blasting his Meyer Shank Racing Honda around the twisty circuit ahead of Scott McLaughlin, Rinus VeeKay, and the rest of the group one drivers.

Alex Palou led Group Two, while Marcus Ericsson lost control of his Andretti Global Honda and crashed heavily into the tire barriers.
The qualifying order determines the grid for the two heat races on Sunday morning, with the top six finishers from each heat race advancing to the final money round.

The 10-lap heat races begin Sunday at 9:30 a.m. Pacific time, 12:30 p.m. Eastern, and the 20-lap main event follows shortly after.

IndyCar $1 Million Challenge – Rosenqvist, Palou score heat race poles.

Following two days of open testing, the IndyCar field headed to the Thermal Club track to set the starting grids for Sunday’s two heat races.

Drivers were divided into two groups at random, resulting in a significant disparity between the two qualifying performances.

The first group included drivers with 142 wins, while the second group had only 31 wins.
Regardless, each driver had the same goal: to establish the fastest time in a single eight-minute session while using Push to Pass and a fresh set of tires to start at the front.

Felix Rosenqvist raced to the lead in the first qualifying session, outpacing the other 13 drivers who were pushing the limits on the cooling track and continuing his strong start to the season.

He lapped the course in 1 minute 38.5831 in his Meyer Shank Racing Honda, which was just slightly slower than the quickest performances from the previous two days’ intensive test sessions.

Scott McLaughlin and Rinus VeeKay finished second and third in the group, respectively, and will start in the lead for their first heat race on Sunday.

Alex Palou set the quickest time in the second qualifying session, 1 minute 38.5675. He used a lull in the breeze to fend off the remainder of the field, despite not using all of his Push to Pass allocation.
Marcus Armstrong, his teammate, set the second fastest time, while Graham Rahal and Linus Lundqvist finished second in their heat race.

Marcus Ericsson spun after hitting a bump in the track during his fast lap effort in group two, and his Andretti Global Honda collided with the tire barriers harder than anyone else this weekend.

His crew will have a lot of work to do overnight, and Ericsson will have a hard challenge to come from behind in the second heat race.

With the orders decided, drivers will prepare for a few of races against their competition on Sunday.

Those who were in group one on Saturday will compete in the first heat race, while those in group two will compete in the second. Anyone who finishes in the top six of either heat race advances to the final round.

The final round will last 20 laps, and the driver who crosses the finish line first will receive a $500,000 bonus.