Race Report: 2021 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama

Session Notes:

• Just prior to the start of the race, the ambient temperature at Barber Motorsports Park was 68 degrees under partly sunny skies. The track temperature was 115 degrees according to Firestone engineers.
• All cars started and were rolling on the grid after the command was issued at 2:38 p.m. CDT.
• O'Ward held the lead on the start, but a multi-car incident in Turn 5 on Lap 1 brought out the first full-course caution. Involved in the incident were Josef Newgarden, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Max Chilton, Felix Rosenqvist and Colton Herta.
• The race's second full-course caution came out on Lap 9 with Jimmie Johnson spun the No. 48 Honda in Turn 13.
• Alex Palou's victory was his first of 2021 and the first of his NTT IndyCar Series career in his debut race for Chip Ganassi Racing.
• Palou's effort marked the 114th Indy car victory for cars owned by Chip Ganassi. It was also CGR's first victory at Barber. The team had previously amassed six second-place finishes with Scott Dixon.
• Palou became the 14th driver to score an Indy car victory for CGR.
• Will Power's second finish marked his best finish at Barber since his victory in 2012.
• Dixon's third-place finish is his ninth podium at Barber in 11 starts.

Session Notes:

• Morning warm-up for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama was free of incidents.
• All 24 drivers participated and turned a total of 534 laps, led by a session-high 25 laps by Rinus VeeKay.
• The three rookies in the field — Romain Grosjean, Scott McLaughlin and Jimmie Johnson — found themselves spread throughout the final order, with Grosjean second fastest, McLaughlin in 13th and Johnson last.

Session Notes:

• Pato O'ward's pole position was his first of 2021 and the second of his NTT IndyCar Series career. He previously won pole at Race 2 at Road America in 2020.
• The achievement marked the ninth pole for Arrow McLaren SP.
• Both Alexander Rossi and Alex Palou had their best qualifying performance at Barber Motorsports Park. Rossi's previous best was eighth in 2018 and 2019, while Palou is enjoying his first race at Barber. Palou's third place starting position matches his previous best, when he started third at the second Road America race in July 2020.

Session Notes:

• At the conclusion of Round 2 qualifying, Pato O'Ward's 1:05.5019 established a new Barber Motorsports Park event qualifying record.
• The six cars that advanced to the Firestone Fast Six were separated by 0.19 second. Romain Grosjean missed advancing to Round 3 by 0.0690 seconds.
• Four teams advanced to the Firestone Fast Six comprised of four Hondas and two Chevrolets.

Session Notes:

• Two minutes into the session, James Hinchcliffe made contact with the barrier in Turn 5, bringing out a red flag for three minutes. Hinchcliffe lost his two fastest laps and was unable to advance for causing a red flag.
• Near the end of the session, Felix Rosenqvist went off track at Turn 17, bringing out a local yellow that cost him his fastest lap. Fifth at the time, the incident dropped him out of the top six.

Session Notes:

• At the start of qualifying, the ambient temperature was 73 degrees and the track temperature was 102 degrees according to Firestone engineers. Skies were partly cloudy.
• At the checkered flag, Alex Palou was the fastest of the group. His 1:05.9032 represented an event qualifying record at Barber Motorsports Park.

Session Notes:

• The second session of the weekend and the final practice before qualifying was 45 minutes in duration.
• The session was slowed by three red flags:
  • Sixteen minutes into the session, Dalton Kellett spun at the exit of Turn 5.
  • At the 24-minute mark, Colton Herta ran wide and mad contact with the barrier in Turn 2.
  • For minutes before the scheduled end of the session, Josef Newgarden stopped on course on the frontstretch.
• Due to the final red flag occurring so late int he session, INDYCAR extended the session to give all drivers one additional timed lap.
• The top 10 drivers at the session's conclusion were faster than the established qualifying record, a 1:06:6001 set in 2016 by Sebastien Bourdais in a KVSH Racing Chevrolet.

Session Notes:

• The first session of the two-day Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama weekend was 45 minutes in duration.
• Mostly free of on-track incidents, practice stopped once for Felix Rosenqvist, whose car stopped near the entrance to the pits after making contact with the outside pit wall barrier.
• The top four drivers at the session's conclusion were faster than the established track qualifying record, a 1:06:6001 set in 2016 by Sebastien Bourdais in a KVSH Racing Chevrolet.