Alex Palou will start the Sonsio Grand Prix from pole position for the third year in a row after the four-time NTT IndyCar Series champion squeezed his Chip Ganassi Racing No. 10 onto the front of the grid with a final-flying lap in the Firestone Fast Six. The Spaniard turned a 1:09.748 to head a packed shootout, and arrives on Sunday morning chasing what would be a fourth consecutive win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
Pato O'Ward led the early charge for Arrow McLaren and ended up second on a 1:10.296, with Felix Rosenqvist third for Meyer Shank Racing on a 1:10.454. Christian Lundgaard took fourth ahead of David Malukas and Louie Foster as the timing screens reshuffled in the final ninety seconds, leaving Palou in the same place he has been every time the series has rolled into Indianapolis in May for the last three years.
It was, however, anything but a smooth journey to the front. Palou and the No. 10 crew worked through scratchy practice sessions on Friday and into Saturday, and the Spaniard admitted he had to dig deep to find the lap when it counted.
"It's been a tough day, honestly," Palou said. "Practice 1 and Practice 2 wasn't amazing. Even the start of qualifying, too. So, really..."
The reigning champion grew more comfortable as the session matured. By the time the Firestone Fast Six rolled out, the DHL Honda was on rails. Palou's banker lap was good enough to slot into the conversation; his second push, on a fresh set of alternate tyres, was good enough to put a clear gap on a field that has been chasing him at this venue for three editions.
"It's tough to get the car in good windows like these guys have been doing, but it's a lot of work these guys at Chip Ganassi Racing are doing," Palou said. "Very happy to get the No. 10 on the pole once again here. The car was amazing."
There is one wrinkle for Sunday. Several teams in the Fast Six elected to save their final set of new alternate tyres for the race, judging that the rubber's qualifying gain would not survive the opening stints. Palou bolted on the new set to secure pole and is now into the race down a fresh option compared with several rivals.
"Not everyone was running on the new alternates so we might be at a disadvantage in the race, but I'm very happy to be starting on the pole for this race," Palou said.
The pole continues an extraordinary stretch at the IMS road course. Palou has won the Sonsio Grand Prix in 2023, 2024 and 2025 and now starts from the front for a third successive May. He has also been on the front row at every IMS road course race during that span. Honda's run of pole positions in the Sonsio era now extends to all of Palou's three poles plus several practice top spots ahead of the race.
The race begins at 12:30 p.m. local time on Sunday for an 85-lap run that traditionally rewards strategic patience and clean pit work. With Power, Newgarden and Dixon all starting outside the top eight after qualifying surprises, the door is open for Palou to extend his championship lead before IndyCar's attention shifts to the Indianapolis 500.
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*Originally published on [Motorsports Global](https://motorsports.global/article/palou-third-straight-sonsio-pole-indianapolis-road-course-2026). Visit for full coverage.*
