IndyCar News: Newgarden fastest in Thursday Practice at Indy

Two-Time defending Indy 500 champion Josef Newgarden, driving the #2 Penske Chevy, turned the fastest lap at 226.632mph on Thursday in practice for the 109th running of the Indy 500.

Chip Ganassi veteran Scott Dixon was 2nd, 0.207s behind Newgarden. All the top speeds were done with a tow, so they are absolutely meaningless with regard to how qualifying may turn out.

Kyle Kirkwood remains the fastest driver without a tow at 222.760 mph in his #27 Andretti Honda.

Christian Rasmussen ran out of talent and went for a spin in front of Kyle Larson but got lucky to avoid major damage. He likely soiled his pants.

RASMUSSEN SAVES IT! 😳 pic.twitter.com/f94I1yG7n2

— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) May 15, 2025

Speeds will jump during the next practice, from noon-6 p.m. ET on Fast Friday presented by Turtle Wax (noon-4 p.m., FS2; 4-6 p.m., FS1; FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). The Honda and Chevrolet engines that power the field will feature approximately 100 more horsepower due to increased boost levels that also will be available during PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying on Saturday and Sunday.

“Pretty solid week so far,” Newgarden said. “The team’s been doing a lot of great work. We’ve showed up really prepared. We’re still going through the motions – can’t get ahead of ourselves. We’re excited for Fast Friday.

“It’s going to be quite hot tomorrow, so we’re going to try to work around that and forecast the change going into Saturday and Sunday as the temperature is going fluctuate quite a bit from what we’re going to see on Fast Friday.”

Conditions today on the 2.5-mile oval changed from the first two days of practice, as air temperatures climbed to nearly 90 degrees with no rain after showers interrupted practice in cooler weather Tuesday and Wednesday.

Six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon was second at 225.457 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Dixon has ended up in the top four all three days this week as he seeks his second “500” victory and first since 2008.

Conor Daly continued his strong week in the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet by posting the third-fastest speed of the day, 224.893. After ranking 21st Tuesday, Daly has been in the top five the last two days.

Pato O’Ward, passed by Newgarden on the final lap of the race last year, was fourth at 224.467 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. 2014 Indy 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay rounded out the top five at 223.983 in the No. 23 DRR CUSICK WEDBUSH SECURITIES Chevrolet.

Drivers spent much of the day continuing to hone Race Day setups in traffic. But a few drivers began qualifying simulations later in the day, running without the benefit of an aerodynamic tow.

Two-time series champion Newgarden was the fastest driver on the no-tow list at 222.555. But Kyle Kirkwood cemented himself as a driver to watch on Fast Friday presented by Turtle Wax and in PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying this weekend, as he was the second fastest without a tow at 222.372 in the No. 27 Siemens Honda of Andretti Global after leading the no-tow chart the first two days of practice.

All 34 drivers attempting to earn one of the 33 spots in the starting field turned a total of 2,213 laps (5,532.5 miles) today.

Before the six-hour practice started today, Arrow McLaren Team Principal Tony Kanaan completed his refresher test in the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Arrow McLaren Chevrolet driven by 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson. 2013 Indy 500 winner Kanaan will be on standby to substitute for Larson in the car on Race Day, May 25 if a weather delay forces Larson to leave for his full-time NASCAR drive at Charlotte Motor Speedway before the Indy 500 starts.

Larson is attempting the “double” of racing in the Indy 500 and the NASCAR Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 25.

The 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is scheduled for Sunday, May 25.

Thursday Practice Results With Tow

Pos.	Car	Driver	Engine	Time	Speed	Diff	Gap	Best Lap	Total Laps
1	2	Newgarden, Josef	Chevy	39.7120	226.632	–.—-	–.—-	7	35
2	9	Dixon, Scott	Honda	39.9190	225.457	0.2070	0.2070	4	92
3	76	Daly, Conor	Chevy	40.0191	224.893	0.3071	0.1001	5	71
4	5	O’Ward, Pato	Chevy	40.0950	224.467	0.3830	0.0759	1	76
5	23	Hunter-Reay, Ryan	Chevy	40.1817	223.983	0.4697	0.0867	5	35
6	10	Palou, Alex	Honda	40.2763	223.456	0.5643	0.0946	48	112
7	26	Herta, Colton	Honda	40.3473	223.063	0.6353	0.0710	5	78
8	21	Rasmussen, Christian	Chevy	40.3921	222.816	0.6801	0.0448	66	82
9	4	Malukas, David	Chevy	40.4035	222.753	0.6915	0.0114	5	49
10	3	McLaughlin, Scott	Chevy	40.4081	222.728	0.6961	0.0046	4	22
11	20	Rossi, Alexander	Chevy	40.4139	222.696	0.7019	0.0058	2	102
12	77	Robb, Sting Ray	Chevy	40.4231	222.645	0.7111	0.0092	6	44
13	18	Veekay, Rinus	Honda	40.4241	222.639	0.7121	0.0010	7	57
14	66	Armstrong, Marcus	Honda	40.4488	222.504	0.7368	0.0247	12	78
15	06	Castroneves, Helio	Honda	40.4576	222.455	0.7456	0.0088	4	81
16	27	Kirkwood, Kyle	Honda	40.4728	222.372	0.7608	0.0152	63	76
17	17	Larson, Kyle	Chevy	40.5000	222.222	0.7880	0.0272	32	65
18	7	Lundgaard, Christian	Chevy	40.5611	221.887	0.8491	0.0611	14	80
19	30	DeFrancesco, Devlin	Honda	40.6045	221.650	0.8925	0.0434	25	29
20	51	Abel, Jacob (R)	Honda	40.6055	221.645	0.8935	0.0010	4	58
21	8	Simpson, Kyffin	Honda	40.6132	221.603	0.9012	0.0077	10	119
22	98	Andretti, Marco	Honda	40.6187	221.573	0.9067	0.0055	64	75
23	6	Siegel, Nolan (R)	Chevy	40.6234	221.547	0.9114	0.0047	27	95
24	12	Power, Will	Chevy	40.6784	221.248	0.9664	0.0550	28	29
25	33	Carpenter, Ed	Chevy	40.6785	221.247	0.9665	0.0001	7	74
26	45	Foster, Louis (R)	Honda	40.7320	220.956	1.0200	0.0535	6	34
27	28	Ericsson, Marcus	Honda	40.7333	220.949	1.0213	0.0013	5	64
28	24	Harvey, Jack	Chevy	40.7530	220.843	1.0410	0.0197	20	55
29	75	Sato, Takuma	Honda	40.7760	220.718	1.0640	0.0230	64	65
30	60	Rosenqvist, Felix	Honda	40.8040	220.567	1.0920	0.0280	15	66
31	90	Ilott, Callum	Chevy	40.8733	220.193	1.1613	0.0693	6	74
32	83	Shwartzman, Robert (R)	Chevy	40.9487	219.787	1.2367	0.0754	30	83
33	14	Ferrucci, Santino	Chevy	40.9781	219.630	1.2661	0.0294	16	27
34	15	Rahal, Graham	Honda	40.9825	219.606	1.2705	0.0044	3	31

(R) Rookie

Thursday Practice Result Without a Tow

Pos.	Car	Driver	Engine	Non-Tow Time	Non-Tow Speed	Diff	Gap	Best Lap
1	2	Newgarden, Josef	Chevy	40.4394	222.555	–.—-	–.—-	31
2	27	Kirkwood, Kyle	Honda	40.4728	222.372	0.0334	0.0334	63
3	3	McLaughlin, Scott	Chevy	40.5054	222.193	0.0660	0.0326	2
4	30	DeFrancesco, Devlin	Honda	40.6045	221.650	0.1651	0.0991	25
5	26	Herta, Colton	Honda	40.6160	221.588	0.1766	0.0115	10
6	12	Power, Will	Chevy	40.6784	221.248	0.2390	0.0624	28
7	76	Daly, Conor	Chevy	40.6929	221.169	0.2535	0.0145	62
8	28	Ericsson, Marcus	Honda	40.7333	220.949	0.2939	0.0404	5
9	77	Robb, Sting Ray	Chevy	40.7502	220.858	0.3108	0.0169	32
10	75	Sato, Takuma	Honda	40.7760	220.718	0.3366	0.0258	64
11	98	Andretti, Marco	Honda	40.8078	220.546	0.3684	0.0318	12
12	4	Malukas, David	Chevy	40.8113	220.527	0.3719	0.0035	40
13	5	O’Ward, Pato	Chevy	40.8605	220.262	0.4211	0.0492	73
14	83	Shwartzman, Robert (R)	Chevy	40.9487	219.787	0.5093	0.0882	30
15	45	Foster, Louis (R)	Honda	40.9822	219.608	0.5428	0.0335	22
16	15	Rahal, Graham	Honda	40.9825	219.606	0.5431	0.0003	3
17	18	Veekay, Rinus	Honda	41.0545	219.221	0.6151	0.0720	50
18	6	Siegel, Nolan (R)	Chevy	41.0620	219.181	0.6226	0.0075	89
19	23	Hunter-Reay, Ryan	Chevy	41.1038	218.958	0.6644	0.0418	20
20	24	Harvey, Jack	Chevy	41.1084	218.933	0.6690	0.0046	10
21	14	Ferrucci, Santino	Chevy	41.1364	218.784	0.6970	0.0280	23
22	8	Simpson, Kyffin	Honda	41.2039	218.426	0.7645	0.0675	3
23	51	Abel, Jacob (R)	Honda	41.2117	218.385	0.7723	0.0078	43
24	10	Palou, Alex	Honda	41.2906	217.967	0.8512	0.0789	72
25	90	Ilott, Callum	Chevy	41.2939	217.950	0.8545	0.0033	27
26	7	Lundgaard, Christian	Chevy	41.3240	217.791	0.8846	0.0301	40
27	17	Larson, Kyle	Chevy	41.3996	217.393	0.9602	0.0756	21
28	9	Dixon, Scott	Honda	41.4084	217.347	0.9690	0.0088	58
29	20	Rossi, Alexander	Chevy	41.4135	217.320	0.9741	0.0051	83
30	66	Armstrong, Marcus	Honda	41.5262	216.731	1.0868	0.1127	39
31	21	Rasmussen, Christian	Chevy	41.6146	216.270	1.1752	0.0884	30
32	60	Rosenqvist, Felix	Honda	41.6710	215.978	1.2316	0.0564	26
33	33	Carpenter, Ed	Chevy	41.7028	215.813	1.2634	0.0318	35
		(R) Rookie

Fastest For the Week Without a Tow

Pos.	Car	Driver	Engine	Session	Time	Speed	Total Laps
1	27	Kirkwood, Kyle	Honda	Practice 3	40.4023	222.760	102
2	2	Newgarden, Josef	Chevy	Practice 4	40.4394	222.555	51
3	3	McLaughlin, Scott	Chevy	Practice 4	40.5054	222.193	63
4	21	Rasmussen, Christian	Chevy	Practice 3	40.5194	222.116	57
5	30	DeFrancesco, Devlin	Honda	Practice 4	40.6045	221.650	81
6	26	Herta, Colton	Honda	Practice 4	40.6160	221.588	63
7	20	Rossi, Alexander	Chevy	Practice 3	40.6730	221.277	33
8	12	Power, Will	Chevy	Practice 4	40.6784	221.248	39
9	76	Daly, Conor	Chevy	Practice 4	40.6929	221.169	51
10	28	Ericsson, Marcus	Honda	Practice 4	40.7333	220.949	56
11	77	Robb, Sting Ray	Chevy	Practice 4	40.7502	220.858	22
12	75	Sato, Takuma	Honda	Practice 4	40.7760	220.718	45
13	98	Andretti, Marco	Honda	Practice 4	40.8078	220.546	27
14	4	Malukas, David	Chevy	Practice 4	40.8113	220.527	63
15	5	O’Ward, Pato	Chevy	Practice 4	40.8605	220.262	72
16	83	Shwartzman, Robert (R)	Chevy	Practice 3	40.8883	220.112	120
17	90	Ilott, Callum	Chevy	Practice 3	40.9509	219.775	81
18	8	Simpson, Kyffin	Honda	Practice 3	40.9541	219.758	105
19	45	Foster, Louis (R)	Honda	Practice 4	40.9822	219.608	90
20	15	Rahal, Graham	Honda	Practice 4	40.9825	219.606	84
21	33	Carpenter, Ed	Chevy	Practice 3	40.9915	219.558	39
22	9	Dixon, Scott	Honda	Practice 3	41.0191	219.410	21
23	18	Veekay, Rinus	Honda	Practice 4	41.0545	219.221	66
24	6	Siegel, Nolan (R)	Chevy	Practice 4	41.0620	219.181	159
25	51	Abel, Jacob (R)	Honda	Practice 3	41.0785	219.093	87
26	23	Hunter-Reay, Ryan	Chevy	Practice 4	41.1038	218.958	45
27	24	Harvey, Jack	Chevy	Practice 4	41.1084	218.933	33
28	14	Ferrucci, Santino	Chevy	Practice 4	41.1364	218.784	32
29	17	Larson, Kyle	Chevy	Practice 3	41.1970	218.463	54
30	17	Kanaan, Tony	Chevy	Practice 0 – Refresher	41.2250	218.314	34
31	10	Palou, Alex	Honda	Practice 3	41.2604	218.127	45
32	06	Castroneves, Helio	Honda	Practice 1	41.2753	218.048	10
33	7	Lundgaard, Christian	Chevy	Practice 3	41.2797	218.025	114
34	60	Rosenqvist, Felix	Honda	Practice 3	41.3519	217.644	33
35	66	Armstrong, Marcus	Honda	Practice 1	41.3731	217.533	16
		(R) Rookie