LIVE: Kyle Larson qualifies for 2024 Indianapolis 500 as Team ...

18 May 2024

The Indianapolis Star

LIVE Kyle Larson qualifies for 2024 Indianapolis 500 as Team

Positions 13-30 will be determined Saturday. The top 12 spots and positions 31-33 will be determined Sunday. One entry will fail to make the race.

Welcome to 2024 Indianapolis 500 qualifying. Positions 13-30 for the May 26 race will be determined Saturday, while the top 12 spots and positions 31-33 will be determined Sunday. One of the 34 entries will fail to make the race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 2.5-mile oval.

If Fast Friday is any indication, Team Penske's trio of Josef Newgarden, Scott McLaughlin and Will Power will put up front-row worthy speeds. They own the top three 4-lap qualifying simulation efforts.

Every driver is guaranteed one qualifying attempt Saturday, then the strategy begins. Here's how Indy 500 qualifying works. Follow Nathan Brown for IndyCar Series coverage all season, and we will have every qualifying attempt on Saturday here. Please remember to refresh.

First time through: Indianapolis 500 2024 qualifying order

Wall banger: Rinus VeeKay suffers crash in qualifying

With car number, driver, engine, team, 4-lap speed average in mph

(21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, Ed Carpenter, 231; VeeKay's run stands 29th and all 34 cars have completed qualifying runs. The last 4 at the moment (fastest to slowest): Marcus Ericsson, Katherine Legge, Graham Rahal, Nolan Siegel.

(28) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, Andretti, 230.342; he does not improve, remains 30th.

(5) Pato O'Ward, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 231.833; 19th among current qualifiers.

"You can't take this track for granted," a frustrated O'Ward said while walking toward Gasoline Alley. "One day looks good, and the next it's upside down."

(06) Helio Castroneves, Honda, Meyer Shank, caution waves after 3 laps; he remains 16th.

(75) Takuma Sato, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 232.472; he moves into 9th among current qualifiers.

(18) Nolan Siegel, Honda, Dale Coyne, 228.276; he improves by more than 1.5 mph but remains last among 33 qualifiers; Rinus VeeKay has not been on track since his crash. Team owner Dale Coyne says he believes the team can find more speed in Siegel's car.

3 p.m. track conditions: 81 degrees, partly cloudy; track temperature 119.7 degrees

(98) Marco Andretti, Honda, Andretti, waves off on Lap 1; he remains 15th among current qualifiers.

(66) Tom Blomqvist, Honda, Meyer Shank, 231.578; 22nd among current qualifiers.

(28) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, Andretti, caution waves on 4th lap; he remains 29th.

(78) Agustin Canapino, Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger, caution waves on 4th lap; he remains 18th.

(6) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 231.728; 19th among current qualifiers. His initial attempt was disallowed after the car failed tech inspection.

(9) Scott Dixon, Honda, Ganassi, 231.851; 17th among current qualifiers.

(77) Romain Grosjean, Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger, caution waves on 4th lap; his earlier attempt remains, which is currently 20th.

(27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, Andretti, caution flag waves during 4th lap; his earlier attempt remains, which is currently 5th.

(17) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 232.563; Larson stands 6th among current qualifiers.

"I'll definitely take that," Larson said on pit road. "It's good to be in the show."

(5) Pato O'Ward, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 229.840; he complains of issues changing gears.

(23) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Chevrolet, D&R/Cusick, 231.695

(7) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 232.962; that's the best of the non-Penske cars.

Track conditions: 80 degrees, mostly cloudy; track temperature 112.3 degrees

All drivers have had an opportunity to make a qualifying attempt, though Pato O'Ward, Scott Dixon, Alexander Rossi and Ryan Hunter-Reay are waiting to take a run. Kyle Larson did not complete his first run, Rinus VeeKay crashed and Callum Ilott's run was disallowed after his car failed tech inspection.

Team Penske again rules the track. Will Power (233.758 mph), Scott McLaughlin (233.332) and defending champ Josef Newgarden (233.293) top the 4-lap speed chart.

With car number, driver, engine, team, 4-lap speed average in mph

(06) Helio Castroneves, Honda, Meyer Shank, 231.871

(15) Graham Rahal, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 230.233

(33) Christian Rasmussen, Chevrolet, Ed Carpenter Racing, 231.682

(26) Colton Herta, Honda, Andretti Global, 232.236

(41) Sting Ray Robb, Chevrolet, AJ Foyt, 231.346

(75) Takuma Sato, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 232.140

1 p.m. conditions: 78 degrees, mostly cloudy; track temperature 105.8 degrees

(10) Alex Palou, Honda, Ganassi, 232.306

(60) Felix Rosenqvist, Honda, Meyer Shank, 232.574

(66) Tom Blomqvist, Honda, Meyer Shank, 231.403

(30) Pietro Fittipaldi, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 231.100

(24) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, Dreyer & Reinbold/Cusick, 231.243

(51) Katherine Legge, Honda, Dale Coyne, 230.244; she brushes the outside wall in Turn 4 on Lap 4 but continues to finish the run.

(20) Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, Ed Carpenter Racing, 232.017

(98) Marco Andretti, Honda, Andretti Global, 231.890

(8) Linus Lundqvist, Honda, Ganassi, 231.506

(28) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, Andretti Global, 230.603

(45) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, 231.465

(14) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, AJ Foyt Racing, 232.496

(18) Nolan Siegel, Honda, Dale Coyne Racing, 226.621

Noon ET conditions: 76 degrees, mostly cloudy; track temperature 104.4 degrees

(11) Marcus Armstrong, Honda, Ganassi, 232.183

(2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, Penske, 233.293

(12) Will Power, Chevrolet, Penske, 233.758

∎ Chip Ganassi Racing replaces the engine on Scott Dixon's car. Dixon seeks a record-tying 6th pole position. Ganassi's team has struggled to find its customary speed in practice.

(6) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, Arrow McLaren, 231.995; run is later disallowed for failing tech inspection

(78) Agustin Canapino, Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 231.847

∎ Kyle Larson, who is trying to complete the Indy 500-NASCAR double on May 26, suffers a mechanical issue on Lap 4 and pulls onto pit road without completing the run. He says he isn't sure what caused the issue.

(77) Romain Grosjean, Chevrolet, Juncos Hollinger Racing, 231.514

∎ Rinus VeeKay spins and crashes in Turn 2 before taking the green flag. He has a slight limp as he exits the car but is released from the infield medical center to drive.

VeeKay said he had fought understeer starting the run: "I had a huge moment really late. I don't really understand how that happened." While calling the incident a "huge leap backward," the driver says he is confident of making the field.

(4) Kyffin Simpson, Honda, Chip Ganassi Racing, 231.948

(3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, Penske, 233.332

(27) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, Andretti Global, 232.764

Conditions: 73 degrees, mostly cloudy; track temperature is 94.3 degrees.

Two more Chip Ganassi Racing cars take simulated qualifying runs: Alex Palou (232.336 mph) and Scott Dixon (231.148). Conor Daly also goes (231.570) and says afterward he is much more confident than yesterday. Nine of the 34 cars hit the track.

Just 6 of the 17 available drivers turn laps in the first round of practice. Chip Ganassi Racing's cars have been the busiest. Kyffin Simpson (230.385 mph) and Marcus Armstrong (231.323) make 4-lap simulated qualifying runs. Often the best-running Hondas, Ganassi's cars have lagged somewhat in practice.

Nolan Siegel, who crashed Friday, returns in what had been Jack Harvey's road course car. After exiting the car, Siegel acknowledges a bit of discomfort adjusting to the different car.

Drivers will have a 1-hour practice session, with half the field allowed 30 minutes each on track before qualifying. It was scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. ET, but visibility is poor because of fog. Track officials pushed back the session to 9 a.m.