19 July 2026 07:00 (UTC)
"I'm hopeful that we can move forward tomorrow"
Saturday delivered a full slate of NTT INDYCAR SERIES action at Nashville Superspeedway, with Qualifying positioned between morning and evening Practice sessions on the 1.33-mile oval.
Pato led the way for Arrow McLaren in Qualifying with a 195.154 mph two-lap average, resulting in a P12 starting position. Behind him, Nolan and Christian qualified P13 and P19, respectively. Christian will ultimately start P24 due to an engine-related grid penalty.
Each driver will aim to work their way to the front over the course of the 300-lap race on Sunday evening. The green Flag is scheduled for 5:40 p.m. ET on FOX following the conclusion of the FIFA World Cup final.
Location | Lebanon, Tenn. |
Race Date | July 19 |
Round | 12 out of 18 |
Total Laps | 300 |
Total Race Distance | 399 miles / 642.13 km |
Track Length | 1.33 miles / 2.14 km |
Number of Turns | 4 |
Practice 1 | P17 | 193.993 mph |
Practice 1 Laps | 16 | |
Qualifying | P12 | 195.154 mph |
Final Practice | P20 | 191.073 mph |
Final Practice Laps | 78 | |
Starting Position | P12 |
"It's been a long day, a difficult day just looking for performance and trying to get pace out of this race car. All three of us have been trying our best to keep maximizing to get to where we've been here in the past. It's just been tough to find, but I do feel like our race car is stronger than where our Qualifying car is, so I'm hopeful that we can move forward tomorrow."
Practice 1 | P9 | 195.276 mph |
Practice 1 Laps | 35 | |
Qualifying | P13 | 194.947 mph |
Final Practice | P13 | 192.006 mph |
Final Practice Laps | 45 | |
Starting Position | P13 |
"Up and down day for us in Nashville. I was happy about the execution in Qualifying, but the outright pace wasn’t quite what we thought it would be. So, in some ways happy, in some ways a bit disappointed, but we maximized the package we had. We just need to find a little bit more speed. We went into race mode during Final Practice, and I was a bit surprised with our balance shift with full fuel. I struggled a lot at the beginning of the session, but I'm very, very proud of the 6 stand for turning it around by the end. That was definitely the biggest shift in competitiveness that I’ve felt in a short session like that in a long time. So, we’re in a good spot for tomorrow."
Practice 1 | P19 | 193.400 mph |
Practice 1 Laps | 28 | |
Qualifying | P19 | 194.086 mph |
Final Practice | P24 | 187.452 mph |
Final Practice Laps | 54 | |
Starting Position | P24 |
“We were playing a bit of a guessing game all day with the car. We thought we had it at the end of Practice 1, but it obviously didn’t translate to Qualifying, and then we continued to chase the balance throughout Practice 2. Fortunately, we’ve got a lot of time to figure it out before green flag tomorrow afternoon. With the grid penalty, I’ve got my work cut out for me starting in P24, but I’m confident in our crew, and we’ll have some fun racing toward the front tomorrow."
Race Tune In | Sunday, 4:30 p.m. ET | FS1 |
Green Flag | Sunday, 5:40 p.m. ET | FOX |
