Category: NTT Indy

Monterey, Calif. – (6 September 2023) –Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) will wave the checkered flag on the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar Sunday, as a trying season reaches its conclusion at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca with the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey (2:30pm ET, NBC, SiriusXM Ch. 160).

The season comes to an end on one of the most fabled tracks on the 17-race schedule as the Ohio-based squad will visit the newly repaved 2.238-mile Laguna Seca layout, which has hosted world-class open-wheel and motorcycle racing for more than 65 years.

The event will be the last for veteran Helio Castroneves (No. 06 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda) as a full-time INDYCAR SERIES driver, although the popular Brazilian has already inked a deal with MSR that will allow him another chance at becoming the only five-time Indianapolis 500 winner in history next season.

As he has done all year, Castroneves will draw from his deep well of experience to help himself and teammate Tom Blomqvist (No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda) navigate the tricky 11-turn course which features the Corkscrew turn (turns 8 and 8A) that is one of the most well-known corner complexes in motorsports.

Laguna Seca was the site of Castroneves’ third-ever series victory as he led 81 of 83 laps on his way to the win in the 2000 season. Last year, the MSR duo of Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud qualified both cars in the top 12 for the race.

Although making just his third INDYCAR SERIES start, Blomqvist has experience of his own on the Monterey layout. The Englishman has three starts there in IMSA competition including a 2022 event with MSR’s Acura DPi where he would both start and finish second in the Acura ARX-05.

The 95-lap event will get underway Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Eastern and can be seen live on NBC, Universo and Peacock. The grid for the season finale will be set by Saturday’s qualifying, which can be seen on Peacock and heard on SiriusXM Channel 160 with the start coming at 5 p.m. Eastern.

Driver Quotes:

Helio Castroneves:

“Laguna Seca is a track where I still hold the track record at. However, they did do a little bit of a resurfacing, so my track record might be in jeopardy, but hopefully it will be in jeopardy from me. I am going to try to beat my own record. It’s going to be a lot of fun and we are looking forward to closing out the season.”

Tom Blomqvist:
“Once again. it’s going to be another experience-gaining weekend for me at Laguna Seca. It was great to get a full race distance under my belt in Portland and I come into this round with more understanding and knowledge to lean on. Laguna Seca is a legendary circuit, especially within INDYCAR, so I’m extremely excited to take to the track. Unlike Toronto and Portland, I’ve actually raced here before so that gives me some bearing to work with. Obviously, stepping into an INDYCAR is a different challenge compared to the DPi, but it’s nice to have some experience to lean on.

I’m confident I can do Mike, Jim and the entire team proud this week and continue to make progress with every session so I can go into winter break with more knowledge on the series ahead of 2024!”

Race-winning veteran joins expanded INDYCAR effort in multi-year program

Pataskala, Ohio (5 September 2023) – Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) will expand its NTT INDYCAR SERIES program in 2024, and has signed Felix Rosenqvist to a multi-year agreement with the team. Rosenqvist will bring his pace and experience as he teams up with Tom Blomqvist for MSR’s full-season two-car INDYCAR campaign. MSR is also growing its program to support a third entry for the 2024 Indianapolis 500 for Helio Castroneves.

In addition to Castroneves’ Indianapolis 500-only effort, the team recently announced that the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner has joined the MSR ownership group as a minority partner, serving as driver coach and team ambassador.

Since joining the INDYCAR SERIES in 2019, Rosenqvist has established himself as a proven race winner who will look to continue to build his racing resume with MSR starting in 2024.

“I’m super excited to start the next chapter of my INDYCAR career together with MSR,” said Rosenqvist. “This will be a great opportunity for myself and MSR to elevate and get to the next level together. I’m also pretty excited to get to work with my old friend Tom (Blomqvist) again. I’m ready to start working together and getting the next season started.”

Next year’s INDYCAR season will see MSR have a complete reset with an all-new driver lineup as the Ohio-based team sets its sights on a successful 2024 season and beyond.

“We’re very excited to have our 2024 INDYCAR plans finalized and to welcome Felix (Rosenqvist) to the team,” said Mike Shank. “Felix has been someone that has been on our radar for quite some time now and everything lined up this year to work something out with him. It’s no secret that we’ve had a difficult season, with some things out of our control and some things in our control. I think we are all looking forward to resetting completely, starting over and getting to work. I think Tom and Felix will work great together and really feed off of each other. We will also have Helio with us at every race to provide his feedback and advice which will be an added bonus, so I think we’re in for a solid year ahead.”

Meyer Shank Racing will close out its NTT INDYCAR SERIES campaign this coming weekend with the series finale at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Blomqvist will make his third INDYCAR start this weekend onboard the No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda in place of Simon Pagenaud at Laguna with Castroneves finishing out his final full-season INDYCAR race in the No. 06 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
BITNILE.COM GRAND PRIX OF PORTLAND
PORTLAND, ORGON
TEAM CHEVY POST RACE REPORT
SEPT 3, 2023

FELIX ROSENQVIST PUTS CHEVROLET ON PODIUM IN THE BITNILE.COM GRAND PRIX OF PORTLAND

o Felix Rosenqvist raced his No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet to a second-place

o finish in today’s BITNILE.com Grand Prix of Portland

o Chevrolet drivers have led 1,179 of 1,934 laps to date at since 2018

o return; total of 1,924 after today’s 11 lap race

o Five Team Chevy drivers finished in the top-10 including Rosenqvist:

o Pato O’Ward 4th

o Josef Newgarden 5rh

o Rinius VeeKay 6th

o Scott McLaughlin 9th

o Since INDYCAR and Chevrolet returned to Portland International Raceway, Team Chevy has captured two wins (Will Power – 2019, McLaughlin – 2022), two pole awards (Power – 2018, McLaughlin – 2022), three podium finishes, all while leading 224 laps around the 12-turn, 1.964-mile natural terrain road course in Portland, Ore.

o Chevy powered divers scored 306 podiums in V6 era to date and 23 podiums thus far in 2023

PORTLAND, OREGON (September 3, 2023) – After qualifing11th, Felix Rosenqvist marched forward through the 27 car field to battle for the win. With only two cautions, teams and drivers relied on strategy, pit stops and smooth performance on track. It is his first of the season.

Front row sitter Scott McLaughlin had very fast race car and high hopes for race, but strategy didn’t play out to weather conditions.

Josef Newgarden brought home a strong fifth place finish after missing a melee on lap one from his 12th place starting spot.

Alex Palou won the race and clinched his second NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship. Scott Dixon was also in top-5

The NTT INDYCAR Series 2023 season concludes at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seda near Monterey, California Sept. 8-10, 2023. The green flag waves live at

TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 RACE RESULTS:
Pos. Driver
2nd Felix Rosenqvist
4th Pato O’Ward
5th Josef Newgarden
6th Rinus VeeKay
9th Scott McLaughlin

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (QUOTES)

Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Chevrolet at Team Penske:

“It was a tough day. I put us in a hole yesterday was my mistake in qualifying, and our car was clearly a lot quicker than starting 12. So, you know, I think at the start here, too, we definitely went even further back. This first time I’ve seen I felt like I was kind of getting into a wreck, so I just kind of bailed out. And then yeah, just took the escape road and probably didn’t even need to, but yeah, I just felt like I was about to get into one which is very possible here in Portland.

“So we fought back and the team did an amazing job. Like just so proud of the team, they were unbelievable in the pits, made the right calls all day and at a super fast car. So I you know, I’m just very thankful to the team for all their hard work and effort. And I think most importantly, today, just want to congratulate Alex and his team, very deserving champions. So, you know, tough year for us. But they did a great job super deserving, and we’ll come back next year. So that’s probably a good thing. I think so. It’s constant. You know, we’re always trying to evolve and you know, it’s trying to make a step this weekend, just evolution of how we’re going to approach things and you know, it’s always going to be the same game. It’s going to be one race at a time trying to maximize the weekend and by, you know, by far we did not maximize the weekend. No, thanks to me. So, you know, if we can clean stuff like that up, we get, you know, a little bit of the tide turn our way more so in the year than then I think we can definitely be in another championship run.”

Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Chevrolet at Team Penske:

“An unfortunate day for the Freightliner Chevy today at Portland. I thought we were very quick today, but we just started on the wrong tire. The primaries were the preferred tire with the red alternates really falling off over a stint. Once we had to pit earlier for tires and got overcut by the drivers that started on the primaries, you find yourself stuck in the back and your day is pretty much done. Those that started with the black tires really moved forward. It’s still another top 10 for this team. We’ll keep pushing forward and finish strong next weekend at Laguna Seca.”

Will Power, No. 12 Chevrolet at Team Penske:

“Just a rough day for the Verizon 5G Chevy. I’m pretty disappointed in myself for making that mistake. I was just trying to keep (Alexander) Rossi behind me because he was on reds, and I expected them to fall off quickly. Just unacceptable because if we have a normal race we are likely fighting for a podium or top-five finish. Just have to try and move on and get a win at Laguna to finish the season.”

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“I wouldn’t have changed anything with the strategy. I was very happy and comfortable with the car, and I felt like I drove a really good race. It’s just frustrating; it’s the same story every time. As soon as we get to lapped cars, it’s always a race to get by them. They really destroy and diminish your chances to fight for a better position. In this case, it was a podium position. We had the pace for that, but when someone in front of you is doing everything in their power to block you, blowing their push to pass so you use yours, that shouldn’t be happening in a series like this. I hope to see the rules change in the future. But for now, we’ll settle for a P4. I’m bummed because the team deserved more today with the performance we had in pitlane, the strategy and lap times we were putting out.” just rolling our way, which it’s been awhile since it’s felt that way. The flow was just there throughout the race. That was good fun; I really enjoyed that.”

Felix Rosenqvist, No. 6 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“We didn’t get the win, but to me, that was kind of a comeback. We had a really good strategy. Team Chevy gave us really good power, and everything was just rolling our way, which it’s been awhile since it’s felt that way. The flow was just there throughout the race. That was good fun; I really enjoyed that.”

Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

”I think we were recovering from a bad first stop due to the sequence of cars coming in when we were trying to leave, and we were on for a fifth, sixth-place day. I was overtaking Marcus Ericsson when he moved in the straight, broke our front wing and that was our day. It’s a shame. We struggled this weekend to really get the balance right, but the race was probably the best part of the weekend, and it was going to be a pretty good day for the team. It still was, obviously, but it’s a shame we weren’t also able to get a result.”

Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 20. Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

: “It ended up being a tough day. It would have been nice to start where we qualified. Unfortunately, starting at the back with the engine penalty put us behind from the start. We tried an alternate strategy that ultimately did not work in our favor. The positive was we had good pace, but downside was we really couldn’t use it today because of how the race shook out.”

Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

“It was very nice to use our speed to move forward! Kudos to the No. 21 BITNILE.COM Chevrolet crew! The car felt really good and allowed me to drive aggressively. It really suited my driving style and allowed me to pass cars, which you have to be able to do here. We weren’t incredibly lucky today, we got to the front on pace. Everyone has seen it, we’ve had a very tough season. We’ve not been happy with our pace in general so to be able to make this kind of progress before the end of the season is very nice. A great big thank you to Ed Carpenter Racing! And, it’s great to have my best finish of the season so far at the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland!”

Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“Long race-Fighting a little bit of understeer here and there, but overall, pretty happy with the performance of the car. It’s a good step moving forward. I think we definitely could have had the top 15 had we not got spun on the final restart, but on to Laguna and just keep building.”

Benjamin Pedersen, No. 55 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“Honestly it was one of our best races We just got caught out by the yellow by literally a lap. We pitted and then two laps later the yellow came out.”I think a top 15 was looking very realistic,” he contined. “Just trying to have a really good day and it was looking really good. I think it was one of our best races from my point of view, and the team also, with pit stops. We just got a little unlucky with strategy. I would say the car has come a really long way from our road course setup, so that’s very promising. Crazy there’s only one race to go, so we’ll look to finish really strong.”positive energy and work as hard as I can. It just really sucks in the moment.”

Callum Ilott, “It was a tough race for us. We got pushed in turn seven of lap one. And then unfortunately, as I’m stuck on the curb dust everywhere another car hit me. I think there’s quite a bit of damage from that but able to continue. Luckily, we got away with it. To be honest, I struggled a lot on the first set of tires on the ultimate couldn’t really get anywhere, lost a lot of ground. First off, and then yeah, tried to make up a bit from there. We had good pace in the in the end, we improved the car on the pitstops and got it back into the window. It definitely wasn’t the easiest car to work with. But once we got it back and kind of figured out what we needed to do with it. Yeah, we had good pace to just unfortunately we didn’t really put everything together and stuff was starting in the top 10 You need to put everything together so kind of a race that could have been lots of learn from the weekend. Quite a few positives. Yeah, just need to put it together and Laguna next week.

Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

PORTLAND, Ore. (Sunday, Sept. 3, 2023) – Louis Foster avoided a Lap 1 pileup and led all 35 laps to win the INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Portland on Sunday at Portland International Raceway.

Rookie Foster, from England, started from the pole and earned his second victory of the season in the No. 26 Copart/USF Pro Championship car fielded by Andretti Autosport. He captured his first career victory in the INDYCAR development series in early July at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Foster won by 7.8583 seconds over fellow rookie Nolan Siegel in the No. 39 HMD Motorsports with DCR car. Siegel earned his best finish since winning in June at Road America. Danial Frost placed third in the No. 68 HMD Motorsports with DCR machine, his best result since winning the season opener in March at St. Petersburg.

“The boys gave me an amazing car,” Foster said. “I can’t thank them enough. I was just turning laps out there, to be honest. Once I had a comfortable gap that I knew I couldn’t be closed down from, I was just saving my tires, to be honest. I’m really looking forward to Laguna next weekend now.”

Christian Bogle finished fourth in the No. 7 HMD Motorsports with DCR car, tying his career best set last season at Detroit. Championship leader Christian Rasmussen finished fifth in a damaged No. 6 HMD Motorsports with DCR machine after a strong recovery from being collected in the first-lap fracas.

Rasmussen leads second-place Hunter McElrea, who also was involved in the early collision, by 65 points with just the season-ending doubleheader Sept. 9-10 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca remaining. Rasmussen can clinch his first title if he leads by 54 points or more Saturday after the race.

“Wow – good recovery,” Rasmussen said. “That’s all I can ask for today, extending the championship lead going into Laguna. Very happy about that. We just basically have to finish the races at Laguna, and we’re champions.”

Qualifying on pole always has its advantages, but perhaps nowhere greater than Portland. The 12-turn, 1.964-mile road course features a tight chicane in the front straightaway as Turn 1, the site of numerous flashpoints on starts in the past.

Mayhem unfolded again in Calamity Corner at Portland on Lap 1, as the cars of Reece Gold, Josh Pierson, Kyffin Simpson, McElrea, Jacob Abel and Victor Franzoni were involved in a chain-reaction collision. Rasmussen’s machine was hit from behind in the incident, damaging its floor and punting it into a spin in Turn 1, but Rasmussen was able to continue.

That incident triggered the only full-course caution of the race, and Foster had no trouble pulling away on the restart on Lap 5.

Foster expanded his gap over Frost to 2.4788 seconds by Lap 10 and 5.3202 seconds by Lap 20.

While Foster ran away out front, there was a spirited joust for second on the final lap. Siegel stayed close to Frost in the closing laps before pouncing with an outside move in the Turn 1 chicane on the final lap to take second place.

INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Portland Results

1. (1) Louis Foster, 35, Running
2. (7) Nolan Siegel, 35, Running
3. (8) Danial Frost, 35, Running
4. (11) Christian Bogle, 35, Running
5. (3) Christian Rasmussen, 35, Running
6. (16) Jamie Chadwick, 35, Running
7. (14) Ernie Francis Jr., 35, Running
8. (12) James Roe, 35, Running
9. (17) Matthew Brabham, 35, Running
10. (10) Yuven Sundaramoorthy, 34, Running
11. (6) Victor Franzoni, 34, Running
12. (13) Jagger Jones, 33, Running
13. (4) Kyffin Simpson, 33, Running
14. (5) Reece Gold, 33, Running
15. (2) Hunter McElrea, 29, Contact
16. (9) Jacob Abel, 0, Contact
17. (15) Josh Pierson, 0, Contact

Race Statistics
Winner’s average speed: 102.593 mph
Time of Race: 00:40:12.0978
Margin of victory: 7.8583 seconds
Cautions: 1 for 4 laps
Lead changes: 0

Lap Leaders:
Foster, Louis 1 – 35

PORTLAND, Ore. (Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023) – Louis Foster led an Andretti Autosport sweep of the front row for the INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Portland during qualifying Saturday at Portland International Raceway, earning his series-leading fourth pole of the season.

Foster, a rookie from England, set a track record with a best lap of 1 minute, 2.6302 seconds in the No. 26 Copart/USF Pro Championship car. He broke the previous record of 1:02.8074 set by current NTT INDYCAR SERIES star Pato O’Ward in qualifying in 2018.

“We waited a bit longer than the others,” Foster said of managing traffic. “Everyone else got a lap more than me or two laps, I think, maybe. We made it work. Andretti gave me an amazing car.

“It was quite difficult. I was struggling throughout the session. I made a few mistakes but managed to just put in one lap at the end that was good enough. We’ll take it.”

Teammate Hunter McElrea will join Foster on the front row for the 35-lap race Sunday (1:10 p.m. ET, Peacock, INDYCAR Radio Network) after his best lap of 1:02.7924 in the No. 27 Smart Motors car.

Championship leader Christian Rasmussen qualified third at 1:02.9115 in the No. 6 HMD Motorsports with DCR machine. Rasmussen, who has won three of the last four races, leads McElrea by 50 points in the standings with three races remaining.

Rasmussen can’t clinch the title this weekend, but he can go a long way toward getting his hands on the championship trophy during the season-ending doubleheader Sept. 9-10 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

“When you’re not pole, it’s never good enough,” Rasmussen said. “But I think that’s what we had today. Figuring out the traffic out there was a little bit of an issue. P3 is OK. We were right there.

“With the gap that I have, I don’t have to win every race for the rest of the season. So, I’m just kind of focusing on getting the most out of it.”

Kyffin Simpson will join Rasmussen in Row 2 after qualifying fourth at 1:03.0048 in the No. 21 HMD Motorsports with CGR car.

Reece Gold qualified fifth at 1:03.0057 in the No. 10 HMD Motorsports with DCR car. Victor Franzoni fills out Row 3 after qualifying sixth at 1:03.2201 in the No. 75 Juncos Hollinger Racing machine.

PORTLAND, Ore. (Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023) – Graham Rahal earned two poles in an INDYCAR SERIES season for the first time in 14 years, and he also gave the rest of the field something to think about entering the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland on Sunday.

Rahal turned a top lap of 58.3195 seconds in the No. 15 PeopleReady Honda fielded by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing to add an NTT P1 Award to the one he won last month for the Gallagher Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. And unlike the other five drivers in the Firestone Fast Six, Rahal turned his best lap on Firestone primary tires, which are supposed to be slower but more durable than the Firestone alternate red-sidewall tires.

“Yesterday, we really struggled on the red tires,” Rahal said. “This morning we saved a set of blacks (primary tires) compared to everyone else, and it just worked out to be able to go to the new blacks (in qualifying). Everybody has pushed real hard to get our team back to this point, and it’s nice to have two poles here at the end of the year.”

This was the fifth career pole of Rahal’s INDYCAR SERIES career. His first two came in 2009, on the streets of St. Petersburg and at Kansas Speedway. Rahal was 18th of 27 drivers in practice Friday and improved to fourth in practice Saturday morning, avoiding running on a set of primary tires that ended up being his secret weapon in the Firestone Fast Six.

Reigning race winner Scott McLaughlin qualified second at 58.3525 in the No. 3 Freightliner Team Penske Chevrolet. He won this race from the pole last year, leading 104 of 110 laps.

“We have a great car,” McLaughlin said. “It was the same car we ran last year, so hopefully we’ll be OK.”

Live coverage of this year’s 110-lap race starts at 3 p.m. ET Sunday on NBC, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

Colton Herta qualified third at 58.4576 in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda of Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian. Rahal’s speed on primary tires led Herta to mull over strategy for the race Sunday on the 12-turn, 1.964-mile road course. Each team has six sets of Firestone primary tires and four sets of alternate tires for use during an event weekend, and all drivers must run the primary and alternate tires during the race.

“That’s one set that he’s taken off the table for the race tomorrow, too,” Herta said of Rahal’s decision to use primary tires in the Firestone Fast Six. “It’s a cat-and-mouse game, and you have to be willing to give up a little bit, strategy-wise, to get that pole.

“We thought the reds were going to be better. I think for us, (the alternate tire) probably was the best. Our Gainbridge car has come a long way this weekend.”

Scott Dixon qualified fourth at 58.5803 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda as he tries to keep alive his faint hopes for a record-tying seventh championship. Dixon trails teammate Alex Palou by 74 points entering this race and must trim that gap to 53 points or less after the race tomorrow to carry the title race to the season-ending Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on Sunday, Sept. 10 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

But Palou kept the pressure on his legendary teammate by qualifying fifth at 58.6492 in the No. 10 The American Legion Honda. And in bad news for Dixon and the other 25 drivers in the field, Palou was the only driver to end up in the top five in each of the first three on-track sessions this weekend.

Pato O’Ward rounded out the Firestone Fast Six at 58.6737 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.

The last two Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winners, Josef Newgarden and Marcus Ericsson, and reigning series champion Will Power were eliminated in the second round of qualifying.

2023 Indy 500 winner Newgarden’s chances to advance to the Firestone Fast Six ended early in the Round of 12 when the left tires of his No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet ran over the rumble strips and into the dirt exiting Turn 11, sending his car nose first into the tire barrier in Turn 12. Newgarden was unhurt, but his car suffered moderate damage. He will start 12th.

Ericsson will start 10th in the No. 8 Huski Ice Spritz Honda of Chip Ganassi Racing. Power dipped a wheel into the dirt on his final flying lap of the Round of 12 in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, and he will start seventh.

The unpredictable, ultra-competitive nature of qualifying in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES was magnified in the first round when the respective two quickest drivers from Friday’s practice, Christian Lundgaard and Kyle Kirkwood, failed to advance to the second round.

Lundgaard was slowed by traffic at the end of the first round of qualifying and will start 17th in the No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. The setup that Kirkwood used to end up second Friday didn’t translate to qualifying conditions and Firestone alternate tires, and he will start 16th in the No. 27 AutoNation Honda of Andretti Autosport.

BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland
Qualifying Results

1. (15) Graham Rahal, Honda, 58.3195 (121.236)
2. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 58.3525 (121.167)
3. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, 58.4576 (120.949)
4. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 58.5803 (120.696)
5. (10) Alex Palou, Honda, 58.6492 (120.554)
6. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 58.6737 (120.504)
7. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 58.3779 (121.114)
8. (77) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, 58.4973 (120.867)
9. (7) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, 58.5023 (120.857)
10. (8) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 58.5479 (120.763)
11. (6) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, 59.3053 (119.220)
12. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, No Time (No Speed)
13. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 58.3240 (121.226)
14. (11) Marcus Armstrong, Honda, 58.6652 (120.521)
15. (28) Romain Grosjean, Honda, 58.3522 (121.168)
16. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, 58.6835 (120.484)
17. (45) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 58.3678 (121.135)
18. (30) Juri Vips, Honda, 58.7454 (120.357)
19. (20) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Chevrolet, 58.6529 (120.546)
20. (78) Agustin Canapino, Chevrolet, 58.7753 (120.295)
21. (29) Devlin DeFrancesco, Honda, 58.6748 (120.501)
22. (06) Helio Castroneves, Honda, 58.8006 (120.244)
23. (14) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 59.0633 (119.709)
24. (18) David Malukas, Honda, 58.9016 (120.037)
25. (51) Sting Ray Robb, Honda, 59.2642 (119.303)
26. (55) Benjamin Pedersen, Chevrolet, 59.2175 (119.397)
27. (60) Tom Blomqvist, Honda, 59.4364 (118.957)

PORTLAND, Ore. (Friday, Sept. 1, 2023) – Christian Lundgaard reaffirmed his status as one of the breakout stars of the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season by leading the first practice Friday for the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland at Portland International Raceway.

Lundgaard, from Denmark, was quickest with a top lap of 58.1776 seconds in the No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda fielded by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Lundgaard, in his second full season in the series, earned his first career victory in July at Toronto and is eighth in the standings with two races remaining after finishing 14th last season en route to Rookie of the Year honors.

“The 45 Hy-Vee Honda car is fast, but I think we knew that coming in here,” Lundgaard said. “It’s just nice to have it proven once again. We seem to be very strong on road courses, and I can’t think this team enough for the progress that we’re making on certain tracks.

“I’m a little disappointed in some of the performances we have, but it’s looking promising, and I think we’re there.”

Lundgaard, 22, has finished in the top nine in the last five road and street-course races, including the victory in the Honda Indy Toronto. The RLL team’s only stubbed toes this summer have come on ovals, where Lundgaard finished 20th and 13th, respectively, at the Iowa Speedway doubleheader in late July and 17th last Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway.

Fellow young star Kyle Kirkwood was second at 58.3246 in the No. 27 AutoNation Honda fielded by Andretti Autosport. Kirkwood, also in his second season like Lundgaard, has won two races this season, at Long Beach and Nashville.

Championship leader Alex Palou was third at 58.3555 in the No. 10 The American Legion Honda of Chip Ganassi Racing. Palou, who leads teammate and closest pursuer Scott Dixon by 74 points, only needs to lead by 54 after this race to clinch his second title in the last three seasons.

Arrow McLaren drivers took the fourth and fifth spots on the time sheet in the 75-minute session, which was slowed by three red flags for minor incidents. Pato O’Ward was fourth at 58.4098 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, while Felix Rosenqvist ended up fifth at 58.6428 in the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.

Dixon, the only driver who can catch Palou for the title, ended up 19th out of 27 drivers at 59.0457 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

Up next is practice at noon ET Saturday, followed by NTT P1 Award qualifying at 3:30 p.m., with both sessions live on Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network. NBC, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network will begin live coverage of the 110-lap race at 3 p.m. ET Sunday.