Second-year driver Kyle Kirkwood used a fresh set of alternate Firestone tires to take his first career NTT IndyCar Series pole and lead the field for Sunday’s (April 16) historic Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
“I’m just ecstatic at the moment,” Kirkwood told NBC. “Right there in the fast 12 where we transferred we did our lap on the first set on the used tires, and the car feels real good on lap 2 but feels hard to get it done on lap 1 which you saw in the fast 6. Our car is on fire this weekend.”
Kirkwood’s team, led by new race strategist Bryan Herta, made a critical decision to hold a set of fresh alternate tires for the Firestone Fast 6, hoping the speed was there on used ones in the Fast 12 to advance. The decision paid off as the new Andretti Autosport driver got his No. 27 AutoNation Honda on the pole in his 20th start.
Firestone Fast Six
The run for the pole came down to used vs. fresh alternate Firestone tires. Kirkwood waited until the last minute to make his qualifying run and on his second lap took the fastest time. Romain Grosjean and Pato O’Ward, who was fastest in the two practice sessions, were unable to match the time while trying to get more out of their used tires in the final round.
Round 2
Colton Herta was penalized early in the session when he caused a local yellow, requiring a drive-through since he did not have a timed lap yet. At the one-minute mark, rookie Marcus Armstrong ran into the barriers after locking up his tires entering turn 9, causing a red flag while others were on flying laps. This led to debate within the pits among teams on whether drivers would return on sticker or used alternates for the last minute, with IndyCar guaranteeing each team one timed lap.
When the green came back, strategy varied by teams and Grosjean leapfrogged O’Ward to lead the session. Herta was unable to defend his qualifying record run from the previous year and neither Scott Mclaughlin nor Josef Newgarden were able to get their Team Penske cars into the Fast Six.
Eliminated from Round 2:
7. Herta
8. Newgarden
9. Mclaughlin
10. Felix Rosenqvist
11. Alexander Rossi
12. Armstrong
Round 1 Group 2
Several drivers started Group 2 on the Firestone alternate tires, in a twist on the usual strategy of rolling out first on the primary tire. Armstrong used two sets of fresh alternates to move to Round 2. Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Callum Illot had a frustrating…
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