Rookie sensation Louis Foster pulled off a shock pole position at Road America, beating championship leader Alex Palou and a stacked Fast Six field to secure the top spot for Monday’s 2025 NTT IndyCar Series Round 9 race at Road America.
It was a dramatic qualifying session filled with chaos, comebacks, and crushing disappointment, particularly for New Zealand’s Scott Dixon, who was disqualified from his heat after a strong performance, and Marcus Armstrong, who was agonisingly bumped out late.
But it was fellow Kiwi Scott McLaughlin who kept New Zealand hopes alive, leading the way with a blistering charge through the first two rounds and ultimately securing P4 on the grid.
ROUND 1 – GROUP 1:
Qualifying got underway with Marcus Armstrong and Scott Dixon in Group 1. Early pace came from Kyffin Simpson and Pato O’Ward, but it was Palou who blew the field away with a 1:44.477, half a second clear of O’Ward.
Dixon looked out of sorts early, stuck at the bottom of the timesheets before briefly recovering to P7. Armstrong, too, was in danger, despite a flying final effort that launched him from 13th up to P6… temporarily.
Nolan Siegel bumped Armstrong back down, and then Graham Rahal’s late flyer pushed Siegel out, briefly rescuing Armstrong’s position. But in the final moments, Dixon hooked up a near-perfect lap and soared to third fastest with a 1:44.870 – but the celebrations didn’t last.
In a post-session twist, Dixon was penalised for impeding Devlin DeFrancesco, demoting him to last in the group. That handed the final transfer spot to Josef Newgarden. Armstrong finished the session P8 and was therefore eliminated.
Advancing: Palou, Rahal, Dixon, Ilott, O’Ward, Kirkwood*
(*Dixon later disqualified – Newgarden advanced)
ROUND 1 – GROUP 2:
Scott McLaughlin joined the fray in Group 2 and played the long game, sitting in the elimination zone as the clock ticked down. With tyres finally in the window, he launched a fightback.
Christian Lundgaard topped the session with a 1:44.740, and McLaughlin delivered when it mattered, leaping from 10th to second fastest with a 1:44.937. Behind him, David Malukas and Will Power also surged through in the dying seconds.
Advancing: Lundgaard, McLaughlin, Malukas, Power, Rosenqvist, Foster
ROUND 2:
With 12 drivers left, the field battled for a place in the Fast Six. McLaughlin set the tone early, but Pato O’Ward raised the bar with a 1:45.370. That didn’t stand for long—McLaughlin, Power, and Newgarden unleashed a Team Penske 1-2-3 in quick succession – but the Penske party was short-lived.
Palou returned fire with a sizzling 1:44.628, reclaiming the top spot. Rosenqvist and Foster both slotted into the top three, while McLaughlin’s earlier time held up for fourth. Power and Newgarden were both bumped into the elimination zone by Lundgaard and Rahal’s last-gasp efforts.
Advancing: Palou, Lundgaard, Foster, McLaughlin, Kirkwood, Rahal
Eliminated: Power, Newgarden, Ilott, Malukas, Rosenqvist, O’Ward
FAST SIX:
McLaughlin was the first driver out and set a benchmark lap of 1:46.755. Rahal quickly beat that, and then Palou flexed his muscles again with a 1:44.649. But it was rookie Louis Foster, on used tyres no less, who delivered the stunner, clocking a 1:44.514 to take provisional pole.
Lundgaard and Kirkwood fought hard, the latter grabbing P3 with a 1:44.852, while McLaughlin improved but couldn’t break the top three.
Foster’s lap stood tall, delivering the young Brit his first career pole in stunning style.
STARTING GRID – ROAD AMERICA TOP 6:
- Louis Foster – 1:44.5141
- Alex Palou – +0.115
- Kyle Kirkwood – +0.338
- Scott McLaughlin – +0.499
- Christian Lundgaard – +0.568
- Graham Rahal – +0.973
The green flag flies at Road America on Monday morning 5.30am NZT, where Foster will lead the field and McLaughlin will have a front-row view of the fight ahead. Will Palou extend his championship lead—or will a rookie rewrite the script again?
Header Image: Penske Entertainment – Joe Skibinski
