QUALIFYING REPORT: Good Ranchers 250
Qualifying Notes
- The NTT INDYCAR SERIES returned to Phoenix Raceway for the first time in eight years this afternoon as the field took to the one-mile oval to set the starting lineup for tomorrow’s 250-lap race.
- Following a strong Practice 1 that saw Will Power post the fifth-fastest lap and Kyle Kirkwood finish ninth on the leaderboard, this afternoon’s qualifying session produced mixed results for the Andretti lineup. Kirkwood will start 11th, while Marcus Ericsson and Power will roll off 14th and 25th, respectively.
- The packed day of on-track action came to a close with a 90-minute Final Practice session saw Kirkwood finish sixth and Ericsson in eighth.
- Tune in for live coverage of the Good Ranchers 250 from Phoenix Raceway tomorrow at 3 PM ET on FOX as drivers take on the first oval race of the season.
Qualifying Results
Will Power
No. 26 TWG AI Honda
P25
| 2-Lap Average | 174.137 MPH |
- As the only driver in the Andretti Global lineup with prior race experience on the Arizona oval, Power was the first of the team’s drivers to take to make a qualifying run at Phoenix Raceway.
- Power’s first flying lap briefly put the No. 26 TWG AI Honda at the top of the leaderboard. On the second lap, the Australian driver spun in Turn 2 and made contact with the SAFER Barrier in Turn 3, causing damage to the rear of the car.
“I’m pretty sore, but nothing is broken or anything. I just don’t know what happened to the car. It felt so much looser than it was this morning. It’s very strange. The TWG AI Honda had been very comfortable there all day, so that was tough. It’s been a rough start to the year, for sure. These sorts of things happening are not good. We’ll see what we have for the race tomorrow.”
Kyle Kirkwood
No. 27 JM Bullion / Gold.com Honda
P11
| 2-Lap Average | 172.878 MPH |
- Going out 22nd in the single-car oval qualifying format, Kirkwood made his first qualifying run at Phoenix Raceway as the final Andretti Global driver to qualify.
- Kirkwood’s two-lap average placed the No. 27 JM Bullion/Gold.com Honda in Row 6 for tomorrow’s 250-lap event, leading the Andretti Global lineup in qualifying.
“Track conditions were definitely different in qualifying than they were this morning. Honestly, I’m not really sure why we were that far off. I felt like I was really quick through both corners, so I’m not sure where the lap time went. It was my first time running flat through Turns 1 and 2, but we just weren’t that quick. I’ll have to look at the data to understand it a little better. The JM Bullion / Gold.com Honda felt decent. We lost a little bit of pace from this morning, but not a lot. Nothing felt wrong with the car. I didn’t touch the wall or anything. I just did my laps, and that’s what we had. I’m excited to get out there and run in traffic tomorrow. It will be interesting to see how this place races now that there’s some natural rubber and guys are running different lines.”
Marcus Ericsson
No. 28 Delaware Life Honda
P14
| 2-Lap Average | 172.364 MPH |
- Like teammate Kirkwood, Ericsson made his first qualifying attempt at Phoenix Raceway this afternoon.
- The Swede completed his two-lap run on the one-mile oval and will take the green from 14th for tomorrow’s race.
“We felt like we lost a little bit of overall performance compared to this morning. The temperatures were a lot hotter this afternoon than they were earlier, so we tried to work on the car a bit to get it more in the window for the race. Overall, we’re kind of in the mix there in the middle of the pack. We’ll tune up the Delaware Life Honda tonight and try to have a good one tomorrow.”
Ron Ruzewski
INDYCAR Team Principal
“Qualifying was tough today. It’s unfortunate on what happened to the No. 26, but the good thing is Will is okay. Kyle and Marcus did a good job. They both fought a little bit of understeer, but from the middle of the pack we can win from there tomorrow.”
