Meyer Shank Racing Duo Lead Honda Qualifying Runs in St. Louis - Speedway Digest

The Meyer Shank Racing pair of Felix Rosenqvist and David Malukas headed Honda qualifiers today at World Wide Technology Raceway, in preparation for Saturday night’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500. The 260-lap contest will be the fourth of seven oval races on the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule.

Rosenqvist’s two-lap average of 179.796 mph was second fastest of the day, behind only pole qualifier Scott McLaughlin, but the Meyer Shank Racing driver will have a nine-position grid penalty for an unapproved engine change prior to the start of the weekend. Teammate Malukas then will start on the outside of the front row, second, after recording a two-lap average of 179.503 mph.

In his #26 Andretti Global Honda, Colton Herta appeared to be in contention for the pole with a first-lap speed of 179.909 mph, but a half-spin followed by wall contact ended his run and Herta will start 25^th.

The Bommarito Automotive Group 500 will be the fourth weekend and fifth race with the new INDYCAR SERIES hybrid system—known as the Energy Recovery System or ERS – introduced earlier this year at the Honda Indy 200 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Bommarito Automotive Group 500 Honda Qualifying Results

2^nd Felix Rosenqvist Meyer Shank Racing Honda
3^rd David Malukas Meyer Shank Racing Honda
6^th Kyle Kirkwood Andretti Global Honda
7^th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
9^th Marcus Ericsson Andretti Global Honda
10^th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
13^th Marcus Armstrong Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
16^th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
17^th Pietro Fittipaldi Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
19^th Linus Lundqvist-R Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
22^nd Kyffin Simpson-R Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
23^rd Christian Lundgaard Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
25^th Colton Herta Andretti Global Honda
26^th Jack Harvey Dale Coyne Racing Honda
27^th Katherine Legge Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes

David Malukas (#66 Meyer Shank Racing Honda) qualified 3^rd, will start on the outside front row, 2^nd:“We definitely did a really good job with the setup. Missed it a little bit, but it’s so hard to judge, with the temperature changing and the track being so green. There’s a little bit more time in it, but coming from practice one, it was pretty good. [On using every inch of the racetrack] It was definitely getting a little bit close! On that exit from Turn 2, I had to delay the deployment of the hybrid, I was really pushing it, getting close to those walls – and that’s what it takes to get a good lap.”

Felix Rosenqvist (#60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda) qualified 2^nd, will start 11^th:“It was a pretty solid run, no major mistakes. I had a little bit of understeer on the first lap so I tweaked the car a little bit for the second lap. We have a nine-place grid drop [due to changing engines] so we need to be up there, so I gave it everything I had. It felt like it was a solid run, it’s a solid car, so we’ll hang tight and see where we end up.”

Fast Facts

Scott Dixon is the defending race winner at WWTR, as the six-time series champion came from 16^th in the starting field at last year’s event to dominate in the closing laps, scoring the second of his five 2023 race victories by an impressive 22.2-second margin.

Dixon also scored his 50^th career win in 2020 at World Wide Technology Raceway, in the opening race of a double-header weekend. He went on to claim his sixth NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship at the end of the 2020 season; with Honda recording a third consecutive Manufacturers’ title.

Alex Zanardi recorded Honda’s first victory in St. Louis in 1998, driving a Reynard-Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing.

Where to Watch

Live coverage of the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 on the USA Network and NBC Peacock begins at 6 p.m. ET Saturday, August 17. Additional coverage can be found on the INDYCAR Radio Network and on Sirius/XM satellite radio.

Honda Racing PR