Speedway, IN

  • Five Honda-powered drivers make the Top 12 round of qualifications tomorrow
  • Colton Herta bounces back from scary accident to lock himself in to the 500

Alex Palou led the way in day one of qualifying for the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500. The reigning and three-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion set a blistering four lap average of 233.043 MPH in his one and only full run in today's first round of qualifications.    

The Spaniard is hoping for his second Indy 500 pole position—after leading the field to green in 2023—to set himself up to fight for his first Indianapolis 500 victory and fifth win in six races to start the 2025 season.

Palou's speed locks him into the Top 12 round of qualifying, where he will be joined by fellow Honda drivers Scott Dixon, Felix Rosenqvist, Takuma Sato and Marcus Ericsson as the quintet of Honda drivers vie to make the Firestone Fast Six and ultimately fight for pole at Indianapolis.

While the Top 12 will have to re-set their qualifying speeds tomorrow, positions 13-30 are locked in for next Sunday's 500-mile race. Other Honda drivers that have locked themselves in the field include Kyffin Simpson (P15), Devlin DeFrancesco (P18), rookie Louis Foster (P22), Helio Castroneves (24), and Kyle Kirkwood (P25).

The final two qualifiers in today's qualifying for the Indy 500 were Colton Herta and Graham Rahal. After suffering a scary accident in his first attempt at qualifying for the race, Herta's Andretti Global team built a brand-new car for the Californian, emerging on pit lane with just over an hour left to run in the session. Through the hard work of the team and heroics of the driver, Herta was able to complete a four-lap run at 230.192 MPH, putting him in the show and 29th on the grid.

He will start just ahead of Rahal Letterman Lanigan's Graham Rahal, who makes the Indianapolis 500 on the first day of qualifications for the first time since 2022. 

Indianapolis 500 Qualifying Day One Results

1st Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
5th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
8th Felix Rosenqvist Meyer Shank Racing Honda
9th Takuma Sato Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
11th Marcus Ericsson Andretti Global Honda
15th Kyffin Simpson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
18th Devlin DeFrancesco Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
22nd Louis Foster - R Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
24th Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
25th Kyle Kirkwood Andretti Global Honda
29th Colton Herta Andretti Global Honda
30th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes
Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) fastest on day one: "Number one! It was a tough day with the wind, and we struggled a little bit in the morning with the balance of the car and just finishing a full qualifying run. It was incredible that we were able to go back out in slightly worse conditions and be still fast later on. Great job by the CGR team and HRC. We struggled a little bit for speed last year, and I think both sides stepped it up amazingly this year."

Felix Rosenqvist (#60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda) eighth fastest on day one: "It was a long day here in qualifying. It went pretty good for us, we ended up P8. Little bit of a tough day for the team with a lot of work in the garage after Marcus [Armstrong]'s accident. It seems a bit little extra nervy today with tricky conditions, but I think we did a good job and got through it. I think the car is quite a bit quicker than P8, so I'm pretty excited to go back tomorrow with a new attempt."

Louis Foster (#45 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda) qualified 22nd: "It was good. We've walked out of our second qualifying attempt in P22, which I think is pretty strong. We've been struggling a little bit on the #45 car with pure straight line speed the last few days. Big props to my teammates. Sato is up there in ninth, and Devlin ended up in the top 20. I think this was a strong day."

Colton Herta (#26 Andretti Global Honda) qualified 30th: "The accident was no fun, but the crew did everything for me. I thought there was zero chance to get back out today, just because the car is literally brand new. From tip to toe, new suspension, new chassis. The Honda engine stayed the same, but everything else, from the gearbox, all four corners, front, rear wing, all had to be changed. To do that from another bare chassis, carbon tub to a complete race car in four hours. I was talking to some people that have been around for thirty, forty years and they said they've never seen that done. This Andretti crew made my day. We weren't supposed to have a good day, and they made up for it and they pulled through and they made sure that we had a good day."

Honda Indianapolis 500 Qualifying History

  • Honda has 14 poles in 25 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).

Where to Watch

  • Sunday's Top 12, Fast Six and Bump Day qualifying will air on Sunday, May 18th on Fox beginning at 4 PM ET.

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