INDIANAPOLIS — The 33-car field is officially locked in for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Defending race champion and four-time IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou secured the pole position for the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, putting on a masterful display of speed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Driving the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, Palou clocked a blistering four-lap average speed of 232.248 mph during the dramatic Firestone Fast Six shootout. With the achievement, Palou becomes the first defending Indy 500 winner to claim the pole for the following year’s race since Hélio Castroneves accomplished the feat in 2010. It marks the second career Indy 500 pole for the Spaniard, who also started from the point in 2023.
Joining Palou on the front row is 2016 Indy 500 winner Alexander Rossi, who locked down a career-best second-place start with an average speed of 231.990 mph for Ed Carpenter Racing. Team Penske newcomer David Malukas will round out the front row in third after posting a 231.877 mph average.
While Felix Rosenqvist entered the final shootout as the heavy favorite after topping the earlier practice and Fast 12 sessions, his speed dropped off slightly in the stifling heat, leaving him to head Row 2 in fourth.
The final starting grid was slightly adjusted late Sunday evening following post-session technical inspections. IndyCar officials disqualified the No. 4 entry of rookie Caio Collet (who had originally cracked the top 10) and the No. 24 of Jack Harvey after discovering unapproved modifications to the cars’ energy management systems. Both drivers have been relegated to the final row of the grid.
The road to setting the grid was anything but smooth. Torrential rain on Saturday completely washed out the first scheduled day of qualifications, marking the first time since 2008 that an entire Saturday of time trials was lost to weather.
As a result, IndyCar officials compressed the entire multi-tiered qualifying format into a single, action-packed Sunday. Drivers had to contend with the hottest track temperatures of the week, severely limiting tire grip.
The slick track conditions caught several heavy hitters off guard. Two-time Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden missed the Fast 12 shootout entirely, qualifying a disappointing 24th. Andretti Global’s top championship contender, Kyle Kirkwood, also struggled in the heat, managing only the 25th starting position.
The Official 33-Car Starting Grid
Row 1
- Alex Palou (232.248 mph) – Chip Ganassi Racing
- Alexander Rossi (231.990 mph) – Ed Carpenter Racing
- David Malukas (231.877 mph) – Team Penske
Row 2
4. Felix Rosenqvist (231.375 mph) – Meyer Shank Racing
5. Santino Ferrucci (230.846 mph) – A.J. Foyt Racing
6. Pato O’Ward (230.442 mph) – Arrow McLaren
Row 3
7. Kyffin Simpson (230.883 mph) – Chip Ganassi Racing
8. Conor Daly (230.712 mph) – Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
9. Scott McLaughlin (230.577 mph) – Team Penske
Row 4
10. Scott Dixon (230.347 mph) – Chip Ganassi Racing
11. Rinus VeeKay (229.585 mph) – Juncos Hollinger Racing
12. Takuma Sato (230.995 mph) – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Row 5
13. Ed Carpenter (230.829 mph) – Ed Carpenter Racing
14. Helio Castroneves (230.811 mph) – Meyer Shank Racing
15. Christian Rasmussen (230.705 mph) – Ed Carpenter Racing
Row 6
16. Marcus Armstrong (230.701 mph) – Meyer Shank Racing
17. Marcus Ericsson (230.667 mph) – Andretti Global
18. Christian Lundgaard (230.661 mph) – Arrow McLaren
Row 7
19. Will Power (230.279 mph) – Andretti Global
20. Nolan Siegel (230.213 mph) – Arrow McLaren
21. Louis Foster (230.212 mph) – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Row 8
22. Ryan Hunter-Reay (230.202 mph) – Arrow McLaren / Legacy MC
23. Josef Newgarden (230.165 mph) – Team Penske
24. Romain Grosjean (229.791 mph) – Dale Coyne Racing
Row 9
25. Kyle Kirkwood (229.607 mph) – Andretti Global
26. Katherine Legge (229.456 mph) – HMD Motorsports / A.J. Foyt
27. Mick Schumacher (229.450 mph) – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Row 10
28. Graham Rahal (229.017 mph) – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
29. Dennis Hauger (228.982 mph) – Dale Coyne Racing
30. Jacob Abel (228.169 mph) – Abel Motorsports
Row 11
31. Sting Ray Robb (226.572 mph) – Juncos Hollinger Racing
32. Caio Collet (Disqualified – Moved to Rear) – A.J. Foyt Racing
33. Jack Harvey (Disqualified – Moved to Rear) – Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
Pre-race ceremonies will feature pop star Jordin Sparks performing the national anthem, while Jim Cornelison will return to deliver the traditional rendition of “Back Home Again in Indiana.”
The green flag for the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500 is scheduled to wave at 12:45 p.m. EST on Sunday, May 24, 2026. The sold-out race will be broadcast live nationally on FOX and live radio call on 1340 AM WBIW alongside Southern Indiana’s Classic Hits 105.5 WQRK.
