Palou Dominates Qualifying at Sonsio Grand Prix
Indianapolis, IN – Alex Palou continued his impressive 2025 campaign by securing pole position for Saturday’s Sonsio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, recording a blistering lap time of 1:09.3417 seconds. This marks Palou’s eighth career pole and second of the season, reinforcing his status as the championship frontrunner.
The key to Palou’s success was a fresh set of soft tires. "We had a bit of an advantage there with a set of brand-new soft tires," Palou noted, referring to his decision to use new tires during the qualifying rounds. “The #10 DHL car was amazing; it’s been super fast all season."
The qualifying session saw a significant performance from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLLR), with all three of their drivers making it into the Fast 6. Graham Rahal achieved a commendable second place, his best starting position since qualifying first in Portland in 2023. Rookie Louis Foster secured third, marking his first appearance in the Fast 6, while Devlin DeFrancesco matched his career-best qualifying effort in fifth.
“Everybody watching knows this, we needed this,” Rahal commented. “To see it come together with three cars in the top five feels amazing for our team.”
Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin split the RLLR drivers in fourth, with Josef Newgarden completing the Fast 6 in sixth. Notably, reigning champion Will Power could not advance beyond the Fast 12, qualifying seventh.
The Fast 12 session was characterized by dramatic laps, with drivers setting their fastest times as the clock expired. However, Felix Rosenqvist faced difficulties, going off-course during a critical moment.
Eliminations included prominent drivers such as Power, Pato O’Ward, Alexander Rossi, and Scott Dixon. Dixon expressed frustration post-qualifying, stating, “The car feels quite good, but I don’t know what we’re missing.”
In contrast, Andretti Global’s drivers struggled significantly, with none making it into the Fast 12. Championship contender Kyle Kirkwood summed up the team’s performance by stating, “I don’t really have any positive things to say here, if I’m being honest.”
The results of this qualifying session set the stage for an exciting race, with Palou’s dominant performance underscoring his championship aspirations as the series continues its Month of May festivities at Indy.
