Indianapolis 500 Qualifying Honda Message Points

Speedway, IN

What to Watch for at Indianapolis 500 Qualifying

• Fast Friday FRO: Meyer Shank Racing's Felix Rosenqvist set the fastest time on Fast Friday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway—going 233.372 miles per hour in today's practice. The five-hour session utilized the increased boost levels that teams and drivers will run during the weekend's qualifying sessions for next week's 110th running of the Indianapolis 500. While Rosenqvist was the outright fastest, the Swede was also P6 on the no-tow speeds for the day. Takuma Sato was fourth fastest on outright pace, ahead of Marcus Ericsson and Alex Palou. Palou’s lap of 232.532 mph was not only good enough for sixth on the outright speed chart, he was also second on the no-tow speeds for the day.
• Rain, rain go away: Friday’s on-track running was delayed by two hours due to rain at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. While cars were able to get going at 2:00 PM, the delay shortened the session by an hour and gave the teams less time to practice with the qualifying boost levels. Rain looks to be a threat for the remainder of the weekend—particularly on Saturday—and could postpone or change the planned format of qualifying for next weekend’s Indy 500.
• No-tow Takuma: Takuma Sato set the fastest no-tow speeds in the week of Indianapolis 500 practice leading up to Fast Friday and qualifying—prior to turning up the boost. The two-time 500 winner (2017, 2020) returns this year with Rahal Letterman Lanigan racing to try and win the race for a third time. Last year, the Japanese driver qualified on the front row in his #75 Honda and led 51 laps en route to a ninth-place finish. Alex Palou was fourth for Honda on the combined no-tow speeds over the three days of practice at race-boost levels, and Kyle Kirkwood was seventh.
• Acura meets Indy: This week marked the first appearance of Acura on an IndyCar at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The #66 Acura Meyer Shank Racing Honda, piloted by Marcus Armstrong, celebrates 40 years of the Acura brand. While this is the brand’s first trip to IMS on an IndyCar, it is not Acura’s first foray into the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Acura first appeared on an Indy car in 1994 when Comptech Racing ran Acura branding on its Honda-powered Lola driven by Parker Johnstone. Acura also appeared on the car of Jack Harvey in 2019 to celebrate Acura’s title sponsorship of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and on Felix Rosenqvist’s Honda at Long Beach earlier this year. Armstrong was sixth on the combined practice speed chart during the week and turned a fast lap of 231.835 mph today.  

Honda Indianapolis 500 Qualifying History

• Honda has 14 poles in 26 Indianapolis 500 races, most recently with Palou in 2023. Prior to 2024, Honda drivers had qualified on the pole for the previous four consecutive Indianapolis 500s. The streak started in 2020 with Marco Andretti leading the field. Scott Dixon qualified on the pole in both 2021-22, followed by Palou in 2023.
• Other Honda Indy 500 pole winners include Buddy Rice (2004), Tony Kanaan (2005), Sam Hornish Jr. (2006), Helio Castroneves (2007, 2009, 2010), Scott Dixon (2008, 2017), Alex Tagliani (2011) and James Hinchcliffe (2016).

2026 Indianapolis 500 Honda Lineup

C—Series Champion I—Indianapolis 500 winner W—Race Winner R—Series Rookie

Where to Watch

• Television coverage of qualifying for the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500 will air as follows
• Saturday May 16th
• 8:30 AM — Practice, FS2
• 11:00 AM — Qualifying, FS2
• 2:00 PM — Qualifying, FS1
• 4:00 PM — Qualifying, FOX
• Sunday May 17th
• 1:00 PM — Practice, FS2
• 4:00 PM — Pole day qualifications, FOX
• Coverage of the 110th running of the Indianapolis 500 will air on Sunday May 24th beginning at 10 AM on FOX.

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