Josef Newgarden and Kyle Kirkwood fall out of the pole mix early during Indianapolis 500 Pole Day

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Josef Newgarden took some solace in his inexplicable qualifying run. At least he has a better starting position in this year's Indianapolis 500 than last year's.

Kyle Kirkwood endured a much rougher day. His car was slow, his team was shut out of Indy's 12-car pole shootout and it became less likely he'll cut into Alex Palou's 27-point lead during next Sunday's race.

It was an abysmal afternoon for the two American drivers and others on a challenging Pole Day at Indianapolis Motor Speedway because of hot temperatures, soaring track temps and and some of the windiest qualifying conditions Kirkwood could remember at the Brickyard's 2.5-mile oval.

“That’s the speed she wants to go,” Newgarden said after posting a four-lap average of 230.165 mph. ”I’m happy with the car and race trim, but that's what she had. I’m ready to go racing."

He qualified 24th — the outside of Row 8 — and it's a big improvement over last year when he was trying to become the first driver to win three consecutive 500s.

That attempt was derailed when Newgarden and his then-teammate Will Power were penalized for making unapproved changes during qualifying weekend to the rear attenuator on their cars, a safety device designed to absorb and reduce the force of impacts. Series officials made the assumption those changes gave the two Team Penske cars an aerodynamic advantage in qualifying and responded by sending drivers to the back of the 33-car starting grid, taking away their qualifying points and pit box selections and suspending their team strategists. Newgarden started 32nd with only Power behind him.

By comparison, almost anything would have been better — even on a weekend where Newgarden was the only Penske car absent from the shootout and nearly 1 mph out of the No. 12 spot.

“This place giveth and taketh,” he said. "Everyone has been working hard on the Shell team, and we’ll keep working hard until next Sunday. I’m ready to go racing.”

But for Andretti Global, not much has gone right since series officials gave each car a boost of about 100 horsepower Friday.

Each of the team's three drivers struggled in that first practice with the faster cars then waited, watched and wondered what would happen after the rainout. It wasn't good.

All three — 2022 Indy winner Marcus Ericsson, Kirkwood and 2018 Indy champ Will Power — all missed the shootout and only Ericsson, who qualified 18th at 230.667, and Power made it into the top 20. Power will start 20th after going 230.279 before the track really heated up.

Kirkwood was not as fortunate with the 23rd qualifying spot and winding up No. 26 on the grid at 229.607. Even worse, Palou managed to sneak into the pole battle despite taking the third-to-last run in Round 1 of qualifying and then went on to win his second Indy pole with an average speed of 232.248 that even surprised Palou..

All Kirkwood, Ericsson and the two former teammates — Newgarden and Power — can do now is hope they're better next Sunday in IndyCar's biggest race of the season.

“We’re good on low boost,” Kirkwood said before addressing his team's woes. "We work hard to be as fast as we possibly can. It’s unexpected, but we've got good people down there to produce fast cars. Unfortunately, today we struggled a little bit.”

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Takuma Sato, of Japan, climbs into his car during practice for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Ryan Hunter prepares to drive during practice for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Alex Palou, of Spain, drives through the third turn during qualifications for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

FILE - Kyle Kirkwood leans on a tool box as he waits for is turn during qualification for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, May 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Alex Palou had his best qualifying attempt on his final four-lap run Sunday and took his second career Indianapolis 500 pole with an average speed of 232.248 mph. He's the first defending champion to claim the No. 1 starting spot since 2010.

He's the only starter on the 33-car starting grid with a qualifying average topping 232. Alexander Rossi will start a career-best second after going 231.990. He'll start between Palou and Team Penske driver David Malukas on the front row in next Sunday's sold-out race. Malukas went 231.877.

Felix Rosenqvist was in position to become Indy's first pole-winner from Sweden after he posted the fastest averages in the first two rounds of qualifying. But he finished the third and final round with a 231.375 and will start fourth.

Palou is trying to become the seventh driver in race history to win back-to-back 500s. The Spaniard with Chip Ganassi Racing has dominated this season and in recent years — winning three of IndyCar's first six races this year and 11 of the last 23 overall, and he leads the series points standings as he chases a fourth straight series title and the fifth of his career.

Rossi is on Indy's front row for the first time since his second Indy start in 2017. The 2016 race winner has never started higher than third in the 500.

Rosenqvist looked like the favorite to take the top spot after producing an average of 232.599 on the 11th qualifying attempt of the day, and then after watching the other 22 drivers fail to bump him out of the No. 1 spot posting the best average, 232.065 on the final attempt in the semifinal round. But the Meyer Shank Racing driver who had posted the fastest overall lap and fastest four-lap average in practice Friday when series officials gave each car a boost of about 100 horsepower came up just short on his final run on the 2.5-mile oval.

Katherine Legge cleared the initial step in trying to complete racing's “double” by qualifying 27th. She's also hoping to qualify for next weekend's Coca-Cola 600. She's trying to become the first female to attempt the one-day, 1,100-mile marathon in Indianapolis and Charlotte.

Helio Castroneves, the Brazilian driver with Meyer Shank Racing, will start his quest for a record-breaking fifth Indy win from the No. 15 starting spot, the outside of Row 5. Indy rookie Mick Schumacher, the son of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, will make his first start from No. 28.

But it was much tougher for two-time Indy winner Josef Newgarden and Kyle Kirkwood, who trails only Palou in this season's points chase.

Newgarden was the only Team Penske driver to miss the shootout and wound up qualifying 24th with a 230.165. It's still better than starting 32nd as he did in last year's 500 following a penalty that sent two Penske drivers to the back of the field.

Kirkwood and each of his Andretti Global teammates were shut out of the shootout, too. Marcus Ericsson, the 2022 Indy champ, will start 18th, while 2018 race winner Will Power earned the No. 20 starting spot. Kirkwood is starting 26th.

Race organizers revised the schedule after heavy rain washed out the first scheduled qualification day — the first time since 2008 a full day of Indy 500 qualifications was lost. When drivers returned Sunday, they competed in the hottest temperatures of the week on a track with less grip than they had in practice.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Conor Daly drives through the third turn during qualifications for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

David Malukas drives through the third turn during qualifications for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Felix Rosenqvist, of Sweden, drives through the third turn during qualifications for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)