Josef Newgarden will open his 2024 NTT IndyCar Series campaign from pole position after putting up the fastest time in Saturday’s (March 9) qualifying session for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
Newgarden, the defending Indianapolis 500 winner, asserted his dominance on ovals last season, but he only had one podium finish on a road course with a second place at Road America. Now, Newgarden will be in an optimal position to chase his first non-oval win since Road America in 2022.
“No,” Newgarden told NBC’s Marty Snider when asked if he had expected to take the pole. “Gosh, I get jacked up every time I show up for an IndyCar race. You know, it’s an elevated level when you start out the year because you just don’t know. You have no idea if you’re going to keep coming back and producing results.
“It’s very difficult; you saw how tight it was. I didn’t know that this would come today. I just thought ‘Look, let’s get through round one, let’s get through round two and then see what we can make happen in the Fast Six … I’m happy to be back!”
Firestone Fast Six
Felix Rosenqvist and Romain Grosjean, both entering the season with small teams after leaving Arrow McLaren and Andretti Global, respectively, were the hot topic through the final round, both punching above their new teams’ normal weight and securing second and fifth-place starting positions.
The session ended in thrilling fashion, with only 0.0058 seconds between first and second.
Position | Driver | Number | Team | Time |
1 | Josef Newgarden | 3 | Team Penske | 59.5714 |
2 | Felix Rosenqvist | 60 | Meyer Shank Racing | 59.5772 |
3 | Pato O’Ward | 5 | Arrow McLaren | 59.6540 |
4 | Colton Herta | 26 | Andretti Global | 59.8189 |
5 | Romain Grosjean | 77 | Juncos Hollinger Racing | 1:00.0642 |
6 | Marcus Ericsson | 28 | Andretti Global | 1:03.5583 |
Round 2
After much speculation throughout the week that speeds would reach a new level on the streets of St. Pete, the track record was first broken by Herta during the second round. Soon after Herta set his then-record lap, Rosenqvist followed, breaking the track record with a time of 59.2706 seconds.
Eliminated from Round 2 were:
Position | Driver | Number | Team | Deficit |
7 | Rinus VeeKay | 21 | Ed Carpenter Racing | 0.0119 |
8 | Will Power | 12 | Team Penske | 0.0212 |
9 | Scott McLaughlin | 3 | Team Penske | 0.0359 |
10 | Marcus Armstrong | 11 | Chip Ganassi Racing | 0.0745 |
11 | Scott Dixon | 9 | Chip Ganassi Racing | 0.3101 |
12 | Christian Lundgaard | 45 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | 0.4790 |
Round 1 Group 1
The first session of the day passed without issue. Ericsson finished with the fastest time ahead of Armstrong and O’Ward.
Position | Driver | Number | Team | Deficit |
13 | Alex Palou | 10 | Chip Ganssi Racing | 0.1695 |
15 | Alexander Rossi | 7 | Arrow McLaren | 0.1962 |
17 | Tom Blomqvist | 66 | Meyer Shank Racing | 0.3766 |
19 | Linus Lundqvist | 8 | Chip Ganassi Racing | 0.3832 |
21 | Christian Rasmussen | 20 | Ed Carpenter Racing | 0.5819 |
23 | Kyffin Simpson | 4 | Chip Ganassi Racing | 0.6754 |
25 | Colin Braun | 51 | Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing | 1.6842 |
Round 1 Group 2
Round 1 Group 2 likewise passed with no major incidents. Herta set the fastest time, followed by Grosjean and Rosenqvist.
Eliminated from Round 1 Group 2 were:
Position | Driver | Number | Team | Deficit |
14 | Santino Ferrucci | 14 | A. J. Foyt Enterprises | 0.0242 |
16 | Callum Ilott | 6 | Arrow McLaren | 0.0971 |
18 | Kyle Kirkwood | 27 | Andretti Global | 0.1162 |
20 | Agustin Canapino | 78 | Juncos Hollinger Racing | 0.1368 |
22 | Graham Rahal | 15 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | 0.3013 |
24 | Sting Ray Robb | 41 | A. J. Foyt Enterprises | 0.6185 |
26 | Pietro Fittipaldi | 30 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | 0.7396 |
27 | Jack Harvey | 18 | Dale Coyne Racing | 0.7772 |
2024 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Qualifying Results
The 2024 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will take place on Sunday, March 9 at 12 p.m. ET with coverage on NBC.
About the author
Alex is the IndyCar Content Director at Frontstretch, having initially joined as an entry-level contributor in 2021. He also serves as Managing Director of The Asia Cable, a publication focused on the international affairs and politics of the Asia-Pacific region which he co-founded in 2023. With previous experience in China, Japan and Poland, Alex is particularly passionate about the international realm of motorsport and the politics that make the wheels turn - literally - behind the scenes.
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