'What they're saying' from Indianapolis 500 Qualifications Day 2

Results of qualifying Sunday for the 100th Running of Indianapolis 500 Verizon INDYCAR Series event on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with rank, car number in parentheses, driver, aero-kit/engine, time and speed in parentheses, and quotes:

1. (5) James Hinchcliffe, Honda, 02:36.0063 (230.760)

"I came into this month really hoping that we would have a new story to talk about after what happened last year (crash in practice) and I think we did it. I can't believe it. Honestly, I'm kind of at a loss for words which, as you know, is rare for me. But the Arrow Electronics car was just an absolute smoke show out there. It was right on the edge. (Lead engineer) Allen McDonald, all my engineers, did such a great job. Everybody at Schmidt Peterson Motorsports. Sam Schmidt, Ric Peterson. These guys worked so hard. Three Schmidt Peterson Motorsports cars in the top 10, it's incredible.

Now we've got the best seat in the house for the start of the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500." (What is like knowing you have a car to do it?): "It's crazy. Obviously, this race always has more pressure than anywhere else and, it being the 100th, there's a little more attention as well. Obviously, we've done something right as a team. It's a long race. Ten miles is one thing. You've got to hold your breath for that whole thing. But 500 is a very different deal. You've got to be patient. You've got to breathe. You've got to know when to push and when to relax.

At least we've got a good starting spot, the best starting spot and we can kind of go from there." (About his parents): "A year ago, they came here for a very different reason. They were out of the country when I had my accident last year. I can't imagine what that plane trip must have been like for them. Mom moved in on May 1. She said she wasn't missing a single minute of on-track action just in case I tried to kill myself again and, luckily, that wasn't the case. We're here. These two have been everything in my life and my career. I couldn't have done any of it without them."

2. (21) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 02:36.0470 (230.700)

"I got going up the gears; I went fifth, sixth on the frontstretch and it was just on the limiter and with this headwind normally you downshift on the backstretch. I was just holding six on the limiter all the way through Turn 2. I was like, 'What is going on, this thing's super quick!' It's the quickest the car's been all month. It was a good time to peak. This is the pinnacle; this is the greatest event that you can be a part of in racing so it's just cool to be here. I was so happy to see our speed on that first lap and I got really hopeful that it might be enough to hang on, but it wasn't. I'm happy for James (Hinchcliffe). It was a great run by them and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports has done a fantastic job. We lost the battle today but I'm hoping we can win next weekend."

3. (28) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Honda, 02:36.0821 (230.648)

"We left all we had in the DHL Honda on track today - it was on rails. Perfect qualifying run, just came up short. We have a great car - the crew has done a tremendous job putting together an incredible car. It's great to start on the front row of the 100th Running of the Indy 500."

4. (29) Townsend Bell, Honda, 02:36.1950 (230.481)

"It was great to get back out for qualifying today - it's the 100th Running of the Indy 500 and I had a shot at the pole, maybe even the front row. I'm a little bummed we're not up there but we have a fast car. Our last practice run this morning, I about left the car in the dumpster. It was as close as it can possibly get here and to still drive away, I was really lucky. The California Pizza Kitchen/Robert Graham car is one of the best I've ever had here. It's not just the car, though, it's the team, the approach. Working with (engineer) Craig Hampson has just been terrific and he has given me a great car along with the whole Andretti Autosport and Honda crews."

5. (26) Carlos Munoz, Honda, 02:36.3264 (230.287)

"Now that qualifying is finished, we are focused on the race. I expected a little bit better today. It wasn't the best run, we could've done better. These United Fiber & Data guys work really good - my mechanics, my engineers, everyone. For sure, it would've been nice to be on the front row for the race, but qualifying is what's nice for the show - the race is the most important thing. I think we have a good car for the race and now that's what we will focus on."

6. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 02:36.7471 (229.669)

"Well, I just couldn't get the Verizon Chevy up to speed. We were wide open all of the way around. The conditions were a little harder, so we added some downforce and, unfortunately, it just wasn't fast enough. Despite that, I'm still proud of the Verizon Chevy team and very happy with the run and getting into the Fast Nine. It was fun to be there and now we're looking forward to the race."

7. (7) Mikhail Aleshin, Honda, 02:36.8205 (229.562)

Quote not available

8. (22) Simon Pagenaud, Chevrolet, 02:37.1096 (229.139)

"Well, we didn't do as well as we would've liked. It was a little difficult being the first car out, but we ended up eighth and we're happy with that. It's actually a pretty good starting spot. We came here to win the race and that obviously is still our focus. I couldn't be prouder of the whole Menards Chevrolet team. Everybody has worked so hard to give me a great car and I'm really excited for the race next week."

9. (3) Helio Castroneves, Chevrolet, 02:37.1265 (229.115)

"In the end our Pennzoil Chevrolet had great balance but we didn't have the speed to get us on the front row. You don't need to be up front to win, thankfully. I'm looking forward to getting the Chevrolet where we need to be and focus on the race ahead."

10. (77) Oriol Servia, Honda, 02:37.1638 (229.060)

"It really was a tough one. These windy and heat conditions make it tough. Drivers, for sure, but especially the engineers to find the right balance. We struggled yesterday. We have a very fast car, but we just couldn't balance it for four laps. This morning, we put more downforce in it and we still couldn't balance it. We couldn't put four laps together. They were scratching their heads (and made some changes) and it worked. I had a fantastic car for four laps. It was very consistent. I'm happy. There's no choice, You put it all out there. It's a matter as if the car can handle it or not, because you're not going to back off. That's why I'm so happy they did a good job and gave me a great car."

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