Felix Rosenqvist ripped off a 233.372-mph lap on Fast Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the fastest of anyone in the field. That alone would be the headline. But the real story heading into qualifying for the 110th Indianapolis 500 is whether anyone will get to run at all this weekend.
Rain already stole two hours of Friday’s session, compressing five hours of critical track time into four. The forecast for Saturday looks worse. If the weather doesn’t cooperate, qualifying could be postponed or reformatted entirely, throwing preparation into chaos for teams that desperately need every minute at the higher boost levels used only during time trials.
Rosenqvist’s Meyer Shank Racing Honda topped the charts on outright speed, but strip away the tow and the picture shifts. Takuma Sato, the 47-year-old two-time Indy 500 winner, posted the fastest no-tow number across the entire week of practice at race-boost levels. The man refuses to age out of this place.
Sato qualified on the front row last year in his Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda and led 51 laps before fading to ninth. He’s hunting a third victory, which would put him in genuinely rarefied air among international drivers at Indianapolis.
Alex Palou, the reigning series champion and 2023 Indy 500 pole winner, showed up sixth on outright speed Friday but was second in no-tow trim. That’s the number that matters when you’re alone on the track for a four-lap qualifying run. Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing entry remains the Honda to beat when the serious running starts.
Honda is stacking the deck this year. Eighteen of the 33 starters will carry Honda power, and the manufacturer’s qualifying pedigree at IMS is formidable: 14 poles in 26 races. From 2020 through 2023, Honda swept four consecutive poles with Marco Andretti, Scott Dixon twice, and Palou. Chevrolet broke the streak in 2024, and Honda clearly wants it back.
The most intriguing car in the Honda stable might be Marcus Armstrong’s entry. The No. 66 carries Acura branding for the first time ever on an IndyCar at IMS, celebrating the brand’s 40th anniversary. It’s a marketing play, sure, but Armstrong backed it up with the sixth-fastest combined practice speed during the week and a 231.835-mph best on Friday. The New Zealander isn’t just along for the photo op.
The Honda lineup reads like a who’s who. Will Power, now at Andretti Global, brings his championship pedigree. Scott Dixon, 45 and still lethal, anchors Ganassi alongside Palou and Kyffin Simpson.
Romain Grosjean runs for Dale Coyne. Helio Castroneves, the four-time winner, returns with Meyer Shank for another shot at a record fifth.
Rain is the variable nobody can control. Saturday’s qualifying window opens at 11 a.m. on FS2, escalates to FS1 at 2 p.m., then hits the FOX broadcast network at 4 p.m. Sunday’s pole shootout is scheduled for 4 p.m. on FOX. If the weather cooperates.
That’s a significant “if.” Teams that nailed their setups during Friday’s abbreviated session have a real edge. Those still searching for speed lost precious time they can’t get back.
A rain-shortened or delayed qualifying weekend would compress everything further, amplifying mistakes and rewarding the prepared.
Rosenqvist was fastest. Sato was fastest without help. Palou lurks. And the sky over Speedway, Indiana, holds the cards. The 110th Indianapolis 500 qualifying weekend is shaping up as a test of readiness as much as raw pace. The green flag for the race drops May 24 on FOX.
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