Felix Rosenqvist smashes 233mph barrier as Indy 500 speeds surge on Fast Friday
Fast Friday finally unleashed full Indianapolis 500 qualifying pace as Felix Rosenqvist topped a rain-delayed session ahead of Penske, Alex Palou and Alexander Rossi
Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb Agajanian Honda
Photo by: Brandon Badraoui / Lumen via Getty Images
Felix Rosenqvist soared to the top on Fast Friday for the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500.
Rain delayed the original noon ET start to the day by two hours, which led to the session, which featured an added boost of 100 horsepower, being extended to 7p.m.
With just over an hour left in the day, the ‘Speedy Swede’ Rosenqvist wheeled his #60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda to an ultra-quick flying lap of 233.372mph and set the fastest single-lap pace on the day.
The #20 ECR Chevrolet of Alexander Rossi, the 2016 Indy 500 winner, was second at 232.932mph. Rossi was fourth on the no-tow list.
Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin was third overall at 232.674mph, which also happened to be the fastest no-tow speed in the session.
“It’s better than going upside down,” said McLaughlin.
“That was the last time I was here on this boost level. I’m really proud of the execution. The Pennzoil Chevy was solid. The guys (teammates David Malukas and Josef Newgarden) ran before, so we sort of knew what balance we needed to hit. We got a really good test point there for the team.
“We’ll go back and scratch our heads a little bit more. It’s only going to get harder as the weekend goes on. It’s going to get hotter and with rain coming as well. We’ve got to make every run count, and I felt like that was my best run of the weekend. Really happy to do, at that boost level.”
Two-time Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato was fourth on the overall standings with a speed of 232.655mph in the #45 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda. He was ahead of 2022 Indy 500 winner Marcus Ericsson (Andretti Global), who nailed a best lap of 232.622mph in fifth.
Reigning and four-time IndyCar Series champion Alex Palou, also the defending Indy 500 winner, was sixth overall but second on the no-tow list at 232.532mph.
ECR driver/owner Ed Carpenter, a three-time pole-sitter of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” was seventh at 232.470mph. The #5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet of Pato O'Ward ended up eighth (232.427mph), ahead of Rinus VeeKay #76 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet in ninth (232.417mph). VeeKay’s pace was also third on the no-tow list.
Arrow McLaren’s Nolan Siegel took the final spot of the top 10 with a run at 232.416mph.
McLaughlin and Malukas, who was 16th overall (232.110mph) on single-lap pace, logged the fewest number of laps with seven. Jack Harvey, driving the #24 Chevrolet for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, ran the most laps at 42 and was 15th (232.124mph) on the overall leaderboard.
The most crucial run needed in qualifying this weekend, though, is the four-lap average runs.
Rosenqvist was quickest there, too, with a four-lap average run at Rosenqvist 232.828mph. McLaughlin’s 232.572mph run was second, directly ahead of Rossi at 232.543mph.
O'Ward was fourth with a 232.248mph four-lap average. In fifth was Palou’s 232.026mph run, with Malukas sixth at 232.024mph.
There were no on-track incidents during the session.
Photos from Indy 500 - Friday
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Indianapolis 500 - Friday, in photos
Free Practice 5 - 'Fast Friday'
| Cla | Driver | # | Laps | Time | Interval | Mph | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  F. Rosenqvist Meyer Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian |
60 | 29 |
38.5650 |
233.372 | |||
| 2 |  A. Rossi Ed Carpenter Racing |
20 | 23 |
+0.0729 38.6379 |
0.0729 | 232.932 | ||
| 3 |  S. McLaughlin Team Penske |
3 | 7 |
+0.1158 38.6808 |
0.0429 | 232.674 | ||
| 4 |  T. Sato Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing |
75 | 20 |
+0.1189 38.6839 |
0.0031 | 232.655 | ||
| 5 | M. Ericsson Andretti Global |
28 | 34 |
+0.1243 38.6893 |
0.0054 | 232.622 | ||
| 6 |  A. Palou Chip Ganassi Racing |
10 | 30 |
+0.1393 38.7043 |
0.0150 | 232.532 | ||
| 7 | E. Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing |
33 | 26 |
+0.1497 38.7147 |
0.0104 | 232.470 | ||
| 8 |  P. O'Ward Arrow McLaren |
5 | 22 |
+0.1569 38.7219 |
0.0072 | 232.427 | ||
| 9 |  R. van Kalmthout Juncos Hollinger Racing |
76 | 24 |
+0.1585 38.7235 |
0.0016 | 232.417 | ||
| 10 |
N. Siegel Arrow McLaren
|
6 | 22 |
+0.1587 38.7237 |
0.0002 | 232.416 | ||
| View full results | ||||||||
Share Or Save This Story
Watkins Glen win “feels a bit surreal” as Jack Aitken extends podium streak
AO Racing survives late thriller at Watkins Glen for first LMP2 win of 2026 season
Laurin Heinrich left "disappointed" to lose ground in championship despite podium rally
Yamaha confirms Fabio Quartararo and Alex Rins will leave at end of 2026 MotoGP season
Adrian Newey hopes Aston Martin upgrades keep Fernando Alonso "in the cockpit for another season"
Could Max Verstappen mount a title challenge? "We still have too many issues"
"Slowed down overnight": Rivals show sympathy for AMG frustration
How Palou showed his usual brilliance amid raging debate in IndyCar
How Colton Herta is chasing his F1 dream
Alex Zanardi’s top 10 moments
How Alex Palou made a perfect start to his IndyCar title defence after a winter of discontent
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments