Palou Captures Third NTT P1 Award at Indy GP

Alex Palou captures his third NTT P1 Award for the Sonsio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Photo: Anthony Sylvia | The Podium Finish).

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – As steady rains halted NTT IndyCar Series qualifying on Friday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the field was able to get in two crucial practice sessions to get their cars dialed in for an action-packed Saturday on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course.

Last years Indianapolis 500 champion, three-time defending series champion, and three-time Sonsio Grand Prix winner, Alex Palou picked up where he left off last year by dominating both practice sessions on the day as he aims for his fourth straight Sonsio Grand Prix trophy and third pole in 12 races.

And he did just that!

Palou beat out runner up Pato O’Ward in the No. 5 Arrow Mclaren Chevrolet by an impressive .5475 seconds to capture his third NTT P1 Award at the famed Brickyard.

“It’s tough to get the car in good windows,” Palou said. “It’s a lot of work that everyone is putting behind at Chip Ganassi Racing. Very happy to get that No. 10 on the pole once again here.”

Felix Rosenqvist will roll off third with his lap of 1:10.4548 in the No. 60 SiriusXM Meyer Shank Racing Honda with O’Ward’s teammate Christian Lundgaard starting fourth in the No. 7 Velo Arrow McLaren Chevrolet with a lap of 1.10.4751, marking the first time this season that Arrow McLaren had two cars in the Firestone fast six.

“Yesterday was a really, really tough day for the 5,” said O’Ward. “I want to thank my teammates for what they worked through yesterday. I had to bounce to what they found. I was, yeah, pretty pleased to see that it correlated and it translated to a better race car.”

Pato O’Ward crosses the famed “yard of bricks” in qualifying for the Sonsio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Photo: Anthony Sylvia | The Podium Finish).

Team Penske’s highest performing driver of 2026, David Malukas qualified fifth with a lap of 1:10.5660 in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Louis Foster rounding out the Firestone fast six with a lap of 1:10.9404 in the No. 45 Desnuda Tequila Honda.

Andretti Global drivers struggled overall in qualifying after a strong start to the season. Kyle Kirkwood led the team with a ninth-place starting spot in the No. 27 JM Bullion Honda while teammate’s Marcus Ericsson in the No. 28 Allegra Honda and Will Power in the No. 26 TWG AI Honda failed to make it past the first round.

The green flag for the 85-lap Sonsio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will wave this afternoon at 4:30 p.m. ET. Catch all the Indy action on FOX and IndyCar Nation SiriusXM Ch. 218.

Qualifying Results: