Clear skies and warm spring temperatures greeted the teams for qualifying for the Thermal Club INDY GP (Monday morning NZ time) and Round 2 of the 2025 season.
The all-important high-deg track surface is yet again a talking point, along with what tyre to run. The dusty gravel edges of the circuit add to the overall conditions this venue presents. Put a foot off, and clouds of dust arrive. It may not claim you, but the debris you leave behind will hinder others.
Group 1 in the opening round of qualifying was clearly the tough group to be landed in, with all three Kiwis within it. In the case of Team Penske, all the team cars are the same for MSR and Ganassi. Teammate and current championship leader Alex Palou joined Dixon. So, there are plenty of very heavy hitters, with only six to advance to the round of 12.
McLaughlin was the first casualty, suffering a spin and never fully getting back into the groove, as the Team Penske car lacked handling.
”Yeah, we will be fine; tomorrow is the day. It’s a bit too tight tonight, but we will be there”. said McLaughlin
This came after practice when the team left one of the cooling fans attached to the rear of the car as McLaughlin went onto the track. He starts the race tomorrow from position 25 with a time of 01:41.5133, so there is a big road ahead.
Scott Dixon and Marcus Armstrong advanced to the round of 12 and the next qualifying phase, but that was as far as their journey was to go. In the always-expected mega-close performance in the cutthroat qualifying series, they both fell fractionally short but have shown good car pace overall. They came out of the round of 12 to give themselves starting positions of 7th for Marcus Armstrong with a time of 01:40.6824 and 11th for Scott Dixon, stopping the clock at 01:41.2319.
In a positive Kiwi twist, McLaren locked out the front row with Pato O’Ward (pole number 6th and first since 2022) with a time of 01:39.9567 and Christain Lundgaard at 01:40.1245. Then, in China, McLaren starts today’s Grand Prix from the front row with Piastri on pole and third for Norris on the grid.
What do we look at for the race ahead? The tyre is all the talk, and just like the opening round back in St Petersburg, it may control the race.
Ward implied at the post-qualifying press conference;
“Maybe the morning warm-up will give an indication, but equally, there will be a huge 40F temperature difference, so there are many unknowns, including will it be a 3-stop or 4-stop race?” said Ward
Equally, the heavier car with the hybrid unit, which has not been run here before, proves that the weight makes a big difference in handling this Southern Californian circuit.
The McLaren pair certainly feels the strength of being together, pushing each other, and seeing the results.
The Thermal Club INDYCAR race kicks off at 8.00 am NZT Monday morning.
