A pole position at Barber Motorsports Park is one of the most sought-after. The last two pole sitters have gone on to win the race, with Scott McLaughlin in 2024 and Álex Palou again winning there in 2025. Could this weekend prove to be the same?
After a previous crash in the practice session, Scott McLaughlin was utilising a back-up car. Although he was fine, the car was not. This qualifying session was no stranger to the crashes that are happening this weekend. It was on eventful session and all throughout a familiar name topped the timesheets.
Crash Galore
The cars just don’t seem to want to stay on the track this race weekend. A major crash at the beginning of the session called in a red flag. The one behind the wheel this time was Will Power. Faulty breaks brought him face-to-face with a barrier. He will be starting in 23rd on Sunday’s race.
The cars headed back onto track and no one was messing around with only five minutes remaining. Palou got the power down and got himself swiftly through to the Fast 12 stage with a 1:06.103 timing. Following behind was Lundgaard, Rahal, Armstrong, Rossi and Ferrucci.
The second group gave us Kirkwood shooting to the top of the timesheet with a 1:06.212 quick lap. He was followed by Malukas, Grosjean, Newgarden, Ericsson and, O’Ward.
Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin took to the track in his backup car after the terrifying crash this morning. He was the first to miss out and ended up seventh in his group.
Fast 12 Goes Smoothly
Thankfully, it was a clean fast 12 this session. With a minute on the clock, Kirkwood threw all his cards on the table and set the quickest lap of 1:06.077. This bumped Palou to second. Malukas, Armstrong, Rahal and Grosjean managed to transfer through.
Ferrucci narrowly missed the cut by 0.0117 whilst Ericsson and Newgarden placed eighth and ninth, ahead of Lundgaard, Rossi and O’Ward.
The Dominating Lap
The majority of the field opted for a warm-up lap and came in for new tyres, but Rahal stayed out and nailed down a lap of 1:06.740. Meanwhile, Palou took on a fresh set of sticker alternate tyres. Another near-crash brought us to the edge of our seats when Grosjean pushed just a little too hard. He bounced his way off the track in turn nine. Luckily, Grosjean recovered and got himself back into the swing of things.
Kirkwood’s threat for pole was no match for Palou’s scorching flying lap. Palou set a time of 1:06.234 and skyrocketed to the top of the timesheet. He stayed there until the chequered flag was out and scored himself the pole position.
Malukas elevated to second moments later, with Meyer Shank Racing’s Marcus Armstrong rolling to fourth, dropping Kirkwood and Grosjean down to fifth and sixth, respectively.
Álex Palou Takes Pole Position
Palou takes the pole position for the second year in a row at the Barber Motorsports Park. Last year, after getting pole, Palou went on to win the race with a 16 second lead. This year, however, no one on pole has converted the position to a win. Can he break this steak, or will the trend of a new race winner at each race continue?