IndyCar News: Lundgaard wins pole, O’Ward to start 1st in Portland

Arrow McLaren teammates Christian Lundgaard (pictured) and Pato O’Ward produced the two quickest laps, respectively, during the Firestone Fast Six qualifying session Saturday for the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland presented by askROI.

O’Ward, clinging to his NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship hopes by a thread, will start from the pole because Lundgaard will be forced to move back six places on the grid to the seventh starting spot due to a penalty for an unapproved engine change after practice Friday. Both drivers improved considerably on Firestone alternate tires from practice this morning, when Lundgaard was seventh quickest and O’Ward 11th on Firestone primary tires.

“It’s a bit of a surprising qualifying considering where we were in practice,” O’Ward said. “We were still kind of inching away at trying to make it better. So many changes where we were last year to where we are. Christian, great job getting the fastest lap time there.

“The car just came alive. I don’t really have an explanation for it. We didn’t really change anything from practice, but sometimes that’s just the story with these Firestone tires.”

Lundgaard earned the third NTT P1 Award of his career and his first with Arrow McLaren, which he joined before this season, with a best lap of 58.3939 seconds in the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. His last pole came in July 2023 for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing at Toronto, a race he won.

“As I crossed the line, I didn’t really expect it,” Lundgaard said. “I had a big push in Turn 5 and a big push in Turn 6. I didn’t really think that was it.

“This is the best-case scenario for us, obviously, with a six-place grid penalty. I’m just proud of the team. Another front-row lockout for the team, except only one of them will start there. I’m happy that we could at least help Pato on that side.”

O’Ward’s best time in the Firestone Fast Six was 58.5343 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. Felix Rosenqvist will join him on the front row for the 110-lap race Sunday after his best Fast Six lap of 58.5583 in the No. 60 SiriusXM Honda of Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian.

“It was kind of a weird Quali,” said Rosenqvist. “I thought it was hard to feel the tires. Sometimes they’re in, sometimes they’re not. In Q2 we had a really good lap, and I couldn’t really do the same in the Firestone Fast Six. Someone went off in front of me, so it was kind of a scrappy run. But P3, effectively front row after penalties. It was a good day for us.”

Starting third will be reigning Portland winner Will Power, who is driving for his job at 58.6424 in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. David Malukas will start fourth after his lap of 58.6557 in the No. 4 Gallagher Insurance Chevrolet of A.J. Foyt Enterprises.

Championship leader Alex Palou received a small bonus by earning the fifth starting spot in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Palou went off track and nosed into the tire barrier in Turn 11 late in the Firestone Fast Six, losing his best lap for causing a local yellow that affected another competitor and ending up last in the final segment of qualifying.

Palou, who has won eight of 14 races this season, needs to lead O’Ward by 108 points after the race Sunday to clinch his third consecutive series championship and fourth title in the last five years. Palou leads O’Ward by 121 points entering this race on the 12-turn, 1.964-mile road course.

“Happy that we had pace,” Palou said. “Obviously not happy that I went looking for mushrooms there in the Fast Six.”

BITNILE.COM Qualifying Results