9 August 2025 21:13 (UTC)
"It really couldn't have worked out any better"
Papaya on pole in Portland has a nice ring to it.
But even better, it was an Arrow McLaren 1-2 in qualifying Saturday at a road course that has previously given the team plenty of challenges in the past.
Christian secured his first pole position with the team but will start in P7 due to a grid pentalty for an unapproved engine change. Pato, who qualified second, will take that position and lead the field to green in Sunday's 110-lap race.
Nolan qualified P10 in Group 1 and was dealt an unlucky hand as a red flag came out while he was pushing for a strong lap time.
Location | Portland, Ore. |
Qualifying Date | August 9 |
Round | 15 out of 17 |
Total Laps | 110 laps |
Total Race Distance | 216.04 mi / 347.68 km |
Length | 1.964 mi / 3.161 km |
Number of Turns | 12 |
Practice 2 | 58.6313 | 7th |
Qualifying - Round 1, Group 2 | 58.3279 | 5th |
Qualifying - Round 2 | 58.2548 | 2nd |
Qualifying Result - Firestone Fast 6 | 58.3939 | 1st |
Final Practice | 1:00.2901 | 24th |
Starting Position | P7 (after six-place grid penalty) |
"Honestly, as I crossed the line, I still didn't really expect pole. I just felt like I had a big push in Turn 5, a big push in Turn 6, and I knew I was slower than the Fast 12, so I didn't really think that was it. But, and we were discussing this, it's the best case scenario for us with the six place grid penalty. I'm just proud of this team. We've had a week off and everybody is kind of recharged. Another front row lockout for the team except only one of us will start there. I'm happy that we at least could help Pato out in that sense."
Practice 2 | 58.7228 | 11th |
Qualifying - Round 1, Group 2 | 58.2420 | 1st |
Qualifying - Round 2 | 58.2820 | 3rd |
Qualifying Result - Firestone Fast 6 | 58.5343 | 2nd |
Final Practice | 1:00.0495 | 19th |
Starting Position | P1 |
“It's a bit of a surprise considering where we were in the practices. We were still inching away trying to make it better. Christian did great job on getting the fastest lap time there, and the 5 car had strong runs each qualifying session. I was super happy with that, and the car just came alive. Tomorrow, we'll have the best view into Turn 1, and I'm super proud of the team and all the hard work that's gone into it because this was really our toughest road course last year, so today is a great step forward."
Practice 2 | 58.6988 | 10th |
Qualifying - Round 1, Group 1 | 58.7105 | 10th |
Final Practice | 1:00.0740 | 20th |
Starting Position | P19 |
"We got caught on the wrong end of that red flag in our group, so I’m disappointed where we’ll start tomorrow. We have a fast car given that Christian and Pato are up there, so we’ll put it all together to move forward tomorrow."
Race Tune In | Sunday, 3:00 p.m. EDT | FOX |
Green Flag | Sunday, 3:22 p.m. EDT | FOX |
