Alex Palou clinches fifth straight IndyCar pole at Road America

Series leader and four‑time champion Alex Palou earned his fifth consecutive NTT IndyCar pole at the XPEL Grand Prix in Road America, posting a best lap of 1:43.6615 in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. The performance marks his sixth pole of the season, the 18th of his career, and makes him the first driver since Alex Zanardi (1996‑97) to win five straight poles.

Palou will start ahead of David Malukas (Team Penske) in second and Marcus Armstrong (Meyer Shank Racing) third, with Felix Rosenqvist fourth, Marcus Ericsson (Andretti Global) fifth and Scott McLaughlin sixth. Championship rival Kyle Kirkwood qualified 18th after a difficult weekend. Grid penalties were applied to Santino Ferrucci and Alexander Rossi for unapproved engine changes.

The event, held at the 4.014‑mile permanent road course in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, also saw Andretti driver Marcus Ericsson qualify fifth and Will Power start tenth after a penalty. Team engineers highlighted tyre‑strategy uncertainty for the 55‑lap race, noting that “no one knows which tyre is best.”