Sato, Honda Claim Pocono Pole Qualifying Report
- Seventh career pole for Sato, second pole of 2017
- Honda drivers take seven of top 10 starting positions
- Second 500-mile race of the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series
Indianapolis 500 champion Takuma Sato completed a dramatic day of Verizon IndyCar Series qualifying Saturday at Pocono Raceway, claiming the pole for Honda in the final run of the afternoon, and just minutes after teammate Ryan Hunter-Reay crashed heavily in Turn 3.
After drawing the final spot in the qualifying order, Sato was waiting in pit lane as his Andretti Autosport teammate, Ryan Hunter-Reay, spun entering the final corner, making heavy contact with both the outside and inside SAFER barriers. He exited the car under his own power, but was later transported to a local hospital for further evaluation. As the next – and last – driver to qualify, Sato completed a flawless run of 219.639 mph over two laps of the Pocono tri-oval to claim his second pole of 2017, and the seventh of his career.
Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Charlie Kimball and Tony Kanaan claimed the second row of the starting grid in their qualifying runs, and will start third and fourth, respectively. Alexander Rossi will start sixth in his Andretti Autosport Honda, with Graham Rahal seventh. Scott Dixon and Max Chilton rounded out the top 10 for Honda. Television coverage of Sunday’s 200-lap race, the second 500-mile oval race of 2017, starts at 2 p.m. EDT on the NBC Sports Network.
Takuma Sato (Andretti Autosport Honda) Indianapolis 500 winner, pole qualifier today in Pocono: "I’ve always enjoy this track in the past years, but I've never had a win. But I always enjoy it. That's why the pole here is something very special, especially after Indy 500, coming to another 500 race, the entire crew from the #26 car did an outstanding job. Have to say big thank you to Michael and all Andretti Autosport. I am very happy."
ABC Supply Co., Inc. Pocono 500 Circuit: Pocono Raceway (2.5-mile oval) Long Pond, PA 2016 Winner: Will Power (Team Penske Honda) 180.198 mph average Weather: Sunny, mild, breezy, 78 degrees F
Top-10 Qualifying Results:
| Ps. |
Driver |
Team |
Manufacturer |
Speed mph |
Notes |
|
1. |
Takuma Sato |
Andretti Autosport |
Honda |
219.639 |
|
|
2. |
Simon Pagenaud |
Team Penske |
Chevrolet |
219.395 |
|
|
3. |
Charlie Kimball |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
219.369 |
|
|
4. |
Tony Kanaan |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
219.012 |
|
|
5. |
Will Power |
Team Penske |
Chevrolet |
218.688 |
|
|
6. |
Alexander Rossi |
Andretti Autosport |
Honda |
218.622 |
|
|
7. |
Graham Rahal |
Rahal Letterman Lanigan |
Honda |
218.099 |
|
|
8. |
Gabby Chaves |
Harding Racing |
Chevrolet |
218.020 |
|
|
9. |
Scott Dixon |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
217.819 |
|
|
10. |
Max Chilton |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
217.748 |
|
Other Honda Results
| 11. |
Ed Jones-R |
Dale Coyne Racing |
Honda |
217.565 |
|
|
12. |
James Hinchcliffe |
Schmidt Peterson Motorsports |
Honda |
217.556 |
|
|
13. |
Esteban Gutierriez-R |
Dale Coyne Racing |
Honda |
217.292 |
|
|
15. |
Sebastian Saavedra |
Schmidt Peterson Motorsports |
Honda |
216.943 |
|
|
16. |
Marco Andretti |
Andretti Autosport |
Honda |
216.801 |
|
|
21. |
Ryan Hunter-Reay |
Andretti Autosport |
Honda |
No speed |
Crashed in qualifying |
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