The Starting Grid is Set for the Indy 500; Sato to Start 13th, Foster 22nd, Schumacher 28th and Rahal 30th

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

110th Running of the Indianapolis 500

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

QUALIFYING NOTES / QUOTES – May 17, 2026

THE STARTING GRID IS SET FOR THE INDY 500; SATO TO START 13TH, FOSTER 22ND, SCHUMACHER 28TH AND RAHAL 30TH

1) Alex Palou 4-lap avg. speed of 232.248 mph

13) Takuma Sato 4-lap avg. speed of 230.995 mph

22) Louis Foster 4-lap avg. speed of 230.212 mph

28) Mick Schumacher 4-lap avg. speed of 229.450 mph

30) Graham Rahal 4-lap avg. speed of 229.017 mph

GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 United Rentals Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “It had no speed from the start (on qualifying run) and this morning it had a lot of speed which just doesn’t really make a lot of sense. We went out this morning, and, fairly conservatively on the engine mix, the car was quick so our expectation was to put four consistent laps in. The balance wasn’t very good, but also the first lap was two miles an hour slower than I think we expected, and so it’s quite shocking really. On paper, it should have been a mid-31 or high 31 (231 mph) so, I think we’re all in a little bit of shock. The first lap was flat and it’s only a 229.7 or whatever. That’s shocking, honestly. We have to take a look at our data. I can’t say that I understand where any of that speed loss comes from in two hours (between the practice session and qualifying).”

FAST FACTS: Rahal was 6th on the timesheets Tuesday and 4th Wednesday… Will be his 19th Indy 500. His best qualifying position in the Indy 500 is fourth in 2009 with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing and best finish is third with Service Central Chip Ganassi Racing in 2011 and RLL in 2020. Detailed information is available upon request… Has SIX INDYCAR SERIES wins (2008 – St. Pete street course; 2015 – Fontana Super Speedway, Mid-Ohio road course; 2016 – Texas Super Speedway; 2017 Detroit Race 1, Detroit Race 2) and FIVE poles (2009 – St. Pete street course, Kansas oval; 2017 – Detroit Race 1 street; 2023 – IMS road, Portland) and his highest series season-ending standing is fourth place in 2015… He is 9th in INDYCAR SERIES point standings with 141 and his pit crew leads the Firestone Pit Stop Challenge.

LOUIS FOSTER, No. 45 Droplight Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “I thought it was decent. We seem to be struggling a little bit here today as a team. I was running quite light on downforce there. We were trying to see what we could get away with, and we just probably went a touch too far. I think three of the corners were great and just Turn 3, the tail wind was pushing me wide on the exit there and that really hurt us with being able to transfer into the Fast 12 today. That was our goal. We had a fast car all week. So yeah, just to fail at the final hurdle is frustrating, but, we’re in the big show, we’re racing. We can race with that.”

FAST FACTS: Will be Foster’s second Indy 500. In 2025, he qualified 20th and finished 12th. His best series start to date is pole at Road America in 2025 and his best finish came at the previous race — the Sonsio Grand Prix – of seventh place… He is ranked in 19th place in the point standings with 86.

MICK SCHUMACHER, No. 47 ENVE Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “We wish we would have been a little faster. I’m not quite sure where the speed went from this morning. I think this morning looked pretty good, so we’ve got to understand that. The car felt good (in qualifying), but maybe it’s not the best thing that the car feels good. Maybe you want it to be a bit edgy but overall, we’ve just got to get after it, understand it, and hopefully have a good car for the race. I was just saying to everybody here how privileged I am to be able to work with such a great crew and such great team. Everybody on the 47 car, and everyone on the whole Rahal Letterman Lanigan team did an amazing job so far. It’s been a great experience so far, and I’m just very excited to go into the race now.”

FAST FACTS: This will be his first Indy 500. His best INDYCAR start came on the Phoenix oval with 4th place and his best series finish also came there with 18th place despite having an issue with a wheel gun on a pit stop. He is ranked third in the Rookie of the Year standings and 25th in series standings with 54 points.

TAKUMA SATO, No. 75 AMADA Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “I’m extremely disappointed with the result. The entire team and crew worked so hard to prepare and I’m really happy with that part. It showed the potential and good speed. But today, as a whole team, we made a mistake choosing a package that we thought was good for this (weather) condition, and the car was very draggy and couldn’t pull the speed. Now we need to focus on Monday’s practice to make a strong car for the race.”

FAST FACTS: Sato missed being in the top-12 that would progress to Round 2 to fight for a Fast Six starting position by a mere 0.101 over a 4-lap average… The two-time Indy 500 champion earned his second front-row start for the team (third overall, after 2020) with a career-best starting position of second. He led the first 51 of 88 laps — the most in the race — before a pit error dropped him to a ninth-place finish. Despite the setback, he was the highest-qualifying Honda-powered driver among the 15 Honda entries, starting second. In 2024, he started 10th for his 15th Indy 500 and finished 14th. He competed for RLL full time in 2012 and from 2018-2021 and won the Indy 500 with RLL in 2020. He has earned six NTT INDYCAR SERIES wins, four of which have come with RLL, including the team’s second Indy 500 win in 2020. Sato competed in oval races with Chip Ganassi Racing in 2023. Other Indy 500 highlights with RLL include the 2012 where he was alongside eventual winner Franchitti in Turn 1 on the final lap but his race ended due to contact after he was squeezed down on the apron and lost control of his race car. He also finished third for RLL in 2019 and was a contender in the final laps… Has SIX INDYCAR SERIES wins (2013 – Long Beach street course, 2017 – Indy 500 oval, 2018 – Portland road, 2019 – Barber road, Gateway oval; 2020 Indy 500 ) and 10 poles (2011 Iowa oval, Edmonton street; 2013 Houston Race 1 street; 2014 St. Pete street, Detroit Race 2 street; 2017 Detroit Race 2, Pocono oval; 2019 Barber road, Texas oval; 2020 St. Louis – Race 2).

NEXT UP: Final practice before Carb Day is scheduled to take place tomorrow from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.