IndyCar cancels qualifying, Kanaan tops Texas practice

The grids for the IndyCar Series’ double-header at Texas Motor Speedway will be set by entrant points after qualifying was cancelled due to inclement weather.

Series leader Alex Palou will start today’s Genesys 300 from the pole position for Chip Ganassi Racing alongside Team Penske pilot Will Power.

Palou’s team-mate Scott Dixon will line up on the inside of the second row with Andretti Autosport’s Colton Herta on the New Zealander’s outside.

Simon Pagenaud (Team Penske), Jack Harvey (Meyer Shank Racing), Sebastien Bourdais (AJ Foyt Enterprises), Rinus VeeKay (Ed Carpenter Racing), Marcus Ericsson (Chip Ganassi Racing), and Josef Newgarden (Team Penske) will make up the top 10 starting order.

Scott McLaughlin, the sole rookie in this weekend’s double-header, will start from 15th for Team Penske.

Qualifying was to consist of a two-lap run with Lap 1 and Lap 2 deciding the grids for the 212-lap Genesys 300 and 248-lap Xpel 375 respectively.

The grid for the Xpel 375 will be set based on the entrant points after the Genesys 300.

The weekend’s only practice was hit by rain, the 90-minute session initially postponed two hours due to bad weather.

IndyCar then cancelled qualifying, rescheduling practice in its place to give drivers a lengthy hit-out before the evening’s race.

Series returnee Tony Kanaan wasted no time getting up to speed, ending the session on top for Chip Ganassi Racing.

Kanaan, who this weekend has replaced seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson in the #48 entry, was followed by Arrow McLaren SP driver Pato O’Ward.

Kanaan will start the first race from 23rd on the grid, courtesy of Johnson’s placing in the entrant points.

Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato was third for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing while Dixon was fourth.

Pagenaud, Ericsson, Felix Rosenqvist (Arrow McLaren SP), Newgarden, James Hinchcliffe (Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport), and Graham Rahal (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing) completed the top 10 running order. Dual pole-sitter Palou was 11th fastest.

Power was 16th fastest while McLaughlin ended the session 20th out of 24 cars.

The start of the Genesys 300 at Texas Motor Speedway has been brought forward by 35 minutes due to the threat of rain and will get underway this morning a 09:10 AEST.

Results: IndyCar Series Genesys 300 Practice