Josef Newgarden drove to the pole for Sunday’s NTT IndyCar Series race on the Raceway at Belle Isle Park. Photo: Penske Entertainment: Chris Owens
Josef Newgarden saved the best for last, winning the pole for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear on his final flying lap of qualifying Saturday at the Raceway at Belle Isle Park.
Newgarden’s top lap in the Firestone Fast Six was 1 minute, 15.2153 seconds in the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet. It was his first pole of the season and his first NTT P1 Award since the season-ending Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in September 2021. A different driver has won the pole at all seven NTT IndyCar Series races this season.
“I was loose, I was about hitting the wall every corner,” two-time series champion Newgarden said of his pole lap on the 14-turn, 2.35-mile temporary street circuit. “I think we needed two laps to get temperature (in the Firestone tires). I was just struggling to build temp.
“It was so loose, and I was like, ‘You’ve just got to stay in it.’ I knew the track was grippier. That was a good pole. Sometimes the car is just so good that it’s hooked up. I was loose today, and we put it together. I’m really proud of the team.”
Two-time Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato will join Newgarden in the front row of the race after his top lap of 1:15.3490, one of two cars from Dale Coyne Racing that made the Firestone Fast Six.
Simon Pagenaud led a Meyer Shank Racing monopoly of the second row, qualifying third at 1:15.3951. Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves will start fourth after his best lap of 1:15.4538.
Pato O’Ward will start fifth at 1:16.3301, while rookie David Malukas rounded out the Firestone Fast Six with a best lap of 1:16.6104. It was a career-high starting spot for Malukas, whose previous best was 13th last month for the Indianapolis 500.
Scott Dixon, Colton Herta, and Alexander Rossi were prevented from their final attempt to advance to the Firestone Fast Six when Romain Grosjean crashed in the final seconds of the second round of qualifying.
Grosjean’s No. 28 Honda clipped the barrier inside turn 12, breaking a toe link in the suspension and causing the car to spin and make contact with the barrier on the outside of the corner. Grosjean was unhurt, but the car suffered heavy damage.
“It was a decent hit,” Grosjean said. “We sucked. I don’t know why. We were really good in FP1 (Friday), really good this morning, and the car let go. I don’t know why.”
Herta will start seventh, Dixon ninth, and Rossi 11th. Rossi was quickest overall in pre-qualifying practice Saturday morning.
Another driver who missed out on the Firestone Fast Six was Marcus Ericsson, winner of last week’s Indianapolis 500. He will start eighth, a victim of the traffic jam of drivers trying to find track position for a final flying lap.
Kyle Kirkwood, Will Power and reigning series champion Alex Palou were the highest-profile drivers not to advance to the second round of qualifying.
Kirkwood will start 15th as his eventful weekend continues. He led practice Friday, but his No. 14 Chevrolet nosed into the tire barrier in turn 7 after side-to-side contact with Malukas during practice Saturday morning.
Power will start 16th, while Palou will start 18th.
NTT IndyCar Series
Raceway at Belle Isle Park – Detroit, MI
Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix – June 4, 2022
Saturday’s Qualifying Results
1. (2) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 01:15.2153 (112.477 mph)
2. (51) Takuma Sato, Honda, 01:15.3490 (112.278)
3. (60) Simon Pagenaud, Honda, 01:15.3951 (112.209)
4. (06) Helio Castroneves, Honda, 01:15.4538 (112.122)
5. (5) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 01:16.3301 (110.834)
6. (18) David Malukas, Honda, 01:16.6104 (110.429)
7. (26) Colton Herta, Honda, 01:15.1043 (112.643)
8. (8) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 01:15.2279 (112.458)
9. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 01:15.4057 (112.193)
10. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 01:15.8670 (111.511)
11. (27) Alexander Rossi, Honda, 01:16.2179 (110.998)
12. (28) Romain Grosjean, Honda, 01:16.9740 (109.907)
13. (20) Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 01:16.0154 (111.293)
14. (21) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 01:15.5482 (111.981)
15. (14) Kyle Kirkwood, Chevrolet, 01:16.1255 (111.132)
16. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 01:15.5731 (111.945)
17. (77) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 01:16.1390 (111.113)
18. (10) Alex Palou, Honda, 01:15.6121 (111.887)
19. (30) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 01:16.3068 (110.868)
20. (45) Jack Harvey, Honda, 01:16.8347 (110.107)
21. (29) Devlin DeFrancesco, Honda, 01:16.3374 (110.824)
22. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Honda, 01:17.5499 (109.091)
23. (15) Graham Rahal, Honda, 01:16.4265 (110.695)
24. (11) Tatiana Calderon, Chevrolet, 01:18.3657 (107.955)
25. (4) Dalton Kellett, Chevrolet, No Time (No Speed)
26. (7) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, 01:18.6291 (107.594)
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