Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato captured the pole for Sunday’s ABC Supply 500. Here are the complete qualifying results for the IndyCar race at Pocono.
Takuma Sato snagged the pole position for IndyCar’s ABC Supply 500 on Saturday, ensuring that an Andretti Autosport car will be up front for the team’s home race.
Sato was more than two-tenths faster than defending series champion Simon Pagenaud to get what was also Andretti’s first pole position of the 2017 season.
“I’m really happy. I always have enjoyed Pocono in the past years. I’ve had a difficult experience, but I’ve always enjoyed it,” reflected Sato through a league statement, as he looks for his first podium since winning the Indy 500 in May.
“We haven’t had a win here yet and hopefully we can get that with [sponsor] Expedite Home Loans this weekend. That’s why putting down on pole here is something very special.”
Unfortunately, ABC Supply 500 qualifying didn’t go as well for many of the series’ biggest names. Current points leader Josef Newgarden will start 14th, with four-time champion Scott Dixon barely in the Top 10.
“We had a decent run, but not what we were looking for,” Newgarden said. “The No. 2 Fitzgerald Glider Kits team is going to be working hard on the car to try and gain some more speed. We’re going to try out a few things in the next practice session and see what happens.”
Three other drivers, including Sato’s teammate Ryan Hunter-Reay and championship runner-up Helio Castroneves, failed to qualify and will start from the rear.
Hunter-Reay and Castroneves had incidents on track, while Ed Carpenter missed tech inspection and wasn’t allowed to make a qualifying run. Watch the day’s highlights below:
Below are the complete ABC Supply 500 qualifying results:
1. Takuma Sato, Honda, 219.639 MPH
2. Simon Pagenaud, Chevrolet, 219.395 MPH
3. Charlie Kimball, Honda, 219.369 MPH
4. Tony Kanaan, Honda, 219.012 MPH
5. Will Power, Chevrolet, 218.688 MPH
6. Alexander Rossi, Honda, 218.622 MPH
7. Graham Rahal, Honda, 218.099 MPH
8. Gabby Chaves, Chevrolet, 218.020 MPH
9. Scott Dixon, Honda, 217.819 MPH
10. Max Chilton, Honda, 217.748 MPH
11. Ed Jones, Honda, 217.565 MPH
12. James Hinchcliffe, Honda, 217.556 MPH
13. Esteban Gutierrez, Honda, 217.292 MPH
14. Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 217.235 MPH
15. Sebastian Saavedra, Honda, 216.943 MPH
16. Marco Andretti, Honda, 216.801 MPH
17. Conor Daly, Chevrolet, 215.964 MPH
18. Carlos Munoz, Chevrolet, 215.115 MPH
19. JR Hildebrand, Chevrolet, 214.988 MPH
20. Helio Castroneves, Chevrolet, no speed
21. Ryan Hunter-Reay, Honda, no speed
22. Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, no speed
Next: Marco Andretti discusses history with Pocono
The ABC Supply 500 takes place Sunday, Aug. 20 at 2 p.m. ET and will be televised on NBCSN. For the latest IndyCar news throughout race weekend, follow the Motor Sports category at FanSided here.