IndyCar

Will Power and Takuma Sato share pole for Gateway IndyCar double-header

Will Power scored his 59th IndyCar Series pole position for the first of two races at Gateway, while Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato topped the times for Sunday’s second race.

IndyCar opted to use the two-lap qualifying format first trialled at Iowa for the 1.25-mile Gateway oval, with the first lap setting the grid for Saturday evening’s race and deciding Sunday’s second race.

Run in reversed championship order, Team Penske driver Power was the 15th driver to complete his qualifying run, and was the first to break the 182mph barrier, lapping at an average speed of 182.394mph.

The 2014 series champion improved slightly on his second lap to 182.474mph, but was betted when Sato’s Rahal Letterman Laningan Racing entry ran three cars later.

Following a 181.286mph flyer on his first lap to secure fifth on the grid for the opening race, the two-time Indy 500 winner found 0.2s on his second tour and lapped at 182.499mph to secure his tenth pole in the category.

Power still had enough speed to finish third, one place behind team-mate and reigning series champion Josef Newgarden.

The Penske driver was the penultimate driver to run, and was 0.022mph shy of Sato’s benchmark. He will start race one from sixth, just behind the Japanese.

Pato O’Ward starred for Arrow McLaren SP, taking second behind Power for the first race – the Australian only 0.3mph faster than the Mexican rookie – and fourth for the second race, having improved on his second lap at 182.280mph.

O’Ward will line up for race one just ahead of championship leader Scott Dixon and his Chip Ganassi Racing team-mate Marcus Ericsson in third and fourth.

Dixon, the last driver to run courtesy of his championship position, slipped to sixth on the grid for the second race behind Meyer Shank’s Jack Harvey, the Brit improving from seventh in the opening race.

Ericsson will again start just behind his team-mate from seventh in race two, ahead of Simon Pagenaud (Penske), the third Ganassi car of Felix Rosenqvist and leading Andretti Autosport driver Colton Herta.

While Sato took a pole position, team-mate Graham Rahal struggled and will start last for race two, having qualified only 22nd for race one.

Results: Gateway Race 1 qualifying

Pos Driver Team Gap
1 Will Power Team Penske 24.6718s
2 Patricio O’Ward Arrow McLaren SP 0.0431s
3 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 0.0526s
4 Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing 0.1402s
5 Takuma Sato Rahal Letterman Lanigan 0.1508s
6 Josef Newgarden Team Penske 0.1596s
7 Jack Harvey Meyer Shank Racing 0.2018s
8 Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport 0.2306s
9 Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport 0.2320s
10 Colton Herta Andretti Harding 0.2382s
11 Alex Palou Dale Coyne Racing 0.2455s
12 Felix Rosenqvist Chip Ganassi Racing 0.2873s
13 Simon Pagenaud Team Penske 0.3097s
14 Rinus Van Kalmthout Ed Carpenter Racing 0.3185s
15 Oliver Askew Arrow McLaren SP 0.3208s
16 Conor Daly Carlin 0.3302s
17 Ed Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing 0.3949s
18 Charlie Kimball A.J. Foyt Enterprises 0.4187s
19 Marco Andretti Andretti Autosport 0.5811s
20 Santino Ferrucci Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser Sullivan 0.5824s
21 Tony Kanaan A.J. Foyt Enterprises 0.6570s
22 Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan 0.8103s
23 Zach Veach Andretti Autosport 0.8943s

Results: Gateway Race 2 qualifying

Pos Driver Team Gap
1 Takuma Sato Rahal Letterman Lanigan 24.6577s
2 Josef Newgarden Team Penske 0.0030s
3 Will Power Team Penske 0.0034s
4 Patricio O’Ward Arrow McLaren SP 0.0296s
5 Jack Harvey Meyer Shank Racing 0.0948s
6 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing 0.1036s
7 Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing 0.1053s
8 Simon Pagenaud Team Penske 0.1416s
9 Felix Rosenqvist Chip Ganassi Racing 0.1511s
10 Colton Herta Andretti Harding 0.1817s
11 Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport 0.2283s
12 Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport 0.2567s
13 Oliver Askew Arrow McLaren SP 0.2621s
14 Alex Palou Dale Coyne Racing 0.2647s
15 Conor Daly Carlin 0.2905s
16 Santino Ferrucci Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser Sullivan 0.3150s
17 Zach Veach Andretti Autosport 0.3714s
18 Rinus Van Kalmthout Ed Carpenter Racing 0.5256s
19 Tony Kanaan A.J. Foyt Enterprises 0.5341s
20 Marco Andretti Andretti Autosport 0.5435s
21 Charlie Kimball A.J. Foyt Enterprises 0.5813s
22 Ed Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing 0.6619s
23 Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan 0.7944s

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