IndyCar News: Colton Herta wins pole for Detroit GP
Colton Herta won the pole for Sunday’s Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear with a time of 1m00.5475s in his #26 Gainbridge Andretti Honda.
Herta also topped Practice 2 earlier this morning.
“A complete 180 and just super happy for the team,” Herta said of his rebound from Indianapolis disappointment. “They worked their tails off in the Month of May. To come back with some redemption, it feels good.”
The pole continued a strong weekend for Herta. He led practice Saturday morning and set a track record with his session-leading lap of 1:00.2304 in the Round of 12 qualifying that preceded the Firestone Fast Six. Andretti Global teammate Kyle Kirkwood set the previous track record of 1:01.5305 in June 2023, the first year for this nine-turn, 1.645-mile temporary street circuit in downtown Detroit.
Alex Palou, the championship points leader, will start second with a time of 1m00.6995s, 0.152s behind Herta.
Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden and his Penske Chevy teammate Scott McLaughlin will start third and fourth respectively with times of 1m00.9607s and 1m01.3344s, 0.4 and 0.79s behind Herta respectively.
Chip Ganassi’s Scott Dixon, making his 100th appearance in the Firestone Fast Six, will start fifth tomorrow after a time of 1m01.3905s, 0.84s behind Herta.
Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood will start sixth, with a time of 1m04.2926s.
Pato O’Ward
Pato O’Ward (Photo by Joe Skibinski | IMS Photo)
In the Fast 12 session, Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward received a red flag after losing power and pulling off in Turn 5, allowing Kyle Kirkwood to continue his fast lap. The young Mexican was upset with the issue, which was caused by a brake fire.
Reflecting on the intense competition, O’Ward remarked, “The field is so tight. You can’t be playing around this gaps, whether it is me or Will Power.”
Formula 2 champion Pourchaire just missed earning a spot in the Firestone Fast Six for the first time by 0.0287 of a second. His previous best starting spot was 18th at the Sonsio Grand Prix last month on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
2024 Detroit GP Qualifying Results
|
Rank |
Car |
Driver Name |
Engine |
Time |
Speed |
Session |
|
1 |
26 |
Herta, Colton |
Honda |
01:00.5475 |
97.808 |
Round 3 / Firestone Fast Six |
|
2 |
10 |
Palou, Alex |
Honda |
01:00.6995 |
97.563 |
Round 3 / Firestone Fast Six |
|
3 |
2 |
Newgarden, Josef |
Chevy |
01:00.9607 |
97.145 |
Round 3 / Firestone Fast Six |
|
4 |
3 |
McLaughlin, Scott |
Chevy |
01:01.3344 |
96.553 |
Round 3 / Firestone Fast Six |
|
5 |
9 |
Dixon, Scott |
Honda |
01:01.3905 |
96.464 |
Round 3 / Firestone Fast Six |
|
6 |
27 |
Kirkwood, Kyle |
Honda |
01:04.2926 |
92.110 |
Round 3 / Firestone Fast Six |
|
7 |
6 |
Pourchaire, Theo (R) |
Chevy |
01:00.7342 |
97.507 |
Elimination Round 2 / Top 12 |
|
8 |
12 |
Power, Will |
Chevy |
01:00.7612 |
97.464 |
Elimination Round 2 / Top 12 |
|
9 |
28 |
Ericsson, Marcus |
Honda |
01:00.8505 |
97.320 |
Elimination Round 2 / Top 12 |
|
10 |
14 |
Ferrucci, Santino |
Chevy |
01:01.0351 |
97.026 |
Elimination Round 2 / Top 12 |
|
11 |
45 |
Lundgaard, Christian |
Honda |
01:01.1663 |
96.818 |
Elimination Round 2 / Top 12 |
|
12 |
5 |
O’Ward, Pato |
Chevy |
01:03.0479 |
93.929 |
Elimination Round 2 / Top 12 |
|
13 |
20 |
Rasmussen, Christian (R) |
Chevy |
01:01.3930 |
96.461 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 1 |
|
14 |
15 |
Rahal, Graham |
Honda |
01:01.1336 |
96.870 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
15 |
77 |
Grosjean, Romain |
Chevy |
01:01.4933 |
96.303 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 1 |
|
16 |
30 |
Fittipaldi, Pietro |
Honda |
01:01.3684 |
96.499 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
17 |
7 |
Rossi, Alexander |
Chevy |
01:01.5905 |
96.151 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 1 |
|
18 |
78 |
Canapino, Agustin |
Chevy |
01:01.5566 |
96.204 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
19 |
21 |
VeeKay, Rinus |
Chevy |
01:01.6040 |
96.130 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 1 |
|
20 |
11 |
Armstrong, Marcus |
Honda |
01:01.7406 |
95.917 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
21 |
8 |
Lundqvist, Linus (R) |
Honda |
01:01.6297 |
96.090 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 1 |
|
22 |
60 |
Rosenqvist, Felix |
Honda |
01:01.7441 |
95.912 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
23 |
4 |
Simpson, Kyffin (R) |
Honda |
01:01.7770 |
95.861 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 1 |
|
24 |
41 |
Robb, Sting Ray |
Chevy |
01:01.8454 |
95.755 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
25 |
51 |
Vautier, Tristan |
Honda |
01:02.2091 |
95.195 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 1 |
|
26 |
66 |
Castroneves, Helio |
Honda |
01:01.9687 |
95.564 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
27 |
18 |
Harvey, Jack |
Honda |
01:02.1185 |
95.334 |
Elimination Round 1 / Group 2 |
|
(R) Rookie |
Lucille Dust reporting live from Detroit