Following a hugely disappointing start to the 2026 IndyCar season, Felix Rosenqvist had a great day at Long Beach by qualifying on pole position. It is the second time in three seasons he has taken P1 on Saturday here.
Results of P12, P12, P19 and P13 to kick off this year, a Fast 6 appearance was already a step forward compared to the opening four rounds. Marcus Armstrong has held the upper hand inside MSR so far.
Rosenqvist on his IndyCar Long Beach pole position
P6 in final practice ahead of qualifying, the 34-year-old Swede revealed they made plenty of changes to the car ahead of it.
He also talked about his joy of getting to do single-car qualifying in the Fast 6.
“We actually didn’t change anything during qualifying. We did quite a lot of changes going into it.
“The first run we had a real good run. We kind of nailed our tyre prep. Then we just focused on executing what I could do in the car, kind of improved and improved. Yeah, it was pretty dialed in. Felt confident.
“I love the one-lap shootout. When they announced it, I was like ‘I really want to be part of that’ because I think it’s such a cool thing when you’re doing the one-lap dash. Watching it was nerve-wracking. That was probably the worst part of it.
“Super happy to be here. It’s amazing how I went into this weekend kind of we said we needed a little turnaround, kind of turn the year around a little bit because we haven’t been quick. Certainly worked well. Better than I dare expected.”
Taking pole thanks to a good but not great last corner
Throughout the sessions, Felix Rosenqvist was rapid. He was P1 in Round 1, Group 1. He followed that up with 3rd in Round 2, less than half a tenth away from David Malukas.
In the Fast 6, he outpaced Pato O’Ward by less than half a tenth to take P1. Throughout his lap, the Meyer Shank Racing driver was down on Alex Palou. However, a lock-up in the final corner cost the defending champion dearly, opening the door for the Swede to take P1.
Although he was not happy with his final corner either, it was enough for Rosenqvist in the end.
“I didn’t feel amazing about the last corner either. I was surprised to hear that.
“But he said, Alex, had a lock-up or something. Sounded like Pato wasn’t happy with his. Seems like we all kind of screwed it up. On one lap, it’s super hard to nail that one.
“Yeah, it was a clean lap. Yeah, it’s just so tight, man. One little mistake and you’re out of the mix. Yeah, unbelievable.”
An important pole but no guarantee of victory
Asked if he felt this was the most important track to take pole on the calendar, the one-time race winner felt it’s up there but overtaking is possible. Generally at the front of the race that comes through pit cycles at Long Beach.
Tyres are also a question mark. As Barber showed, knowing whether reds or blacks are the favoured one can change during the race as they learn over long stints.
“I think one of them. You can still pass here. It’s not the hardest track to pass on the calendar.
“Yeah, this is definitely one of them where if you can settle into the lead, it’s going to be huge. Any street course really.
“But it’s still pretty open with strategies. We’re not really sure about the tyres. It certainly indicated that the reds are pretty good, considering how well they went on the one-lap dash, and even yesterday on the rerun, they seemed pretty good.
“Yeah, just had to figure that out because it’s a completely different ballgame compared when I had pole here a couple of years ago and even last year.
“Full focus on the race now. Try to take in the moment a little bit, just push forward.”
Felix Rosenqvist on race pace focus ahead of IndyCar Long Beach contest
Saturday’s qualifying session was the seventh time Felix Rosenqvist put his car on pole in the IndyCar series, two of them coming at Long Beach.
However, in his previous six starts from pole in the series, he is yet to record a win, podium or top 6 finish. His best has been a P8 on the IMS road course.
Bad luck, incidents, a lack of race pace and general lack of aggression have been factors as to why he is yet to convert them into big results.
Speaking in the post-qualifying press conference, Rosenqvist explained that race pace has been a massive focus for himself and Meyer Shank Racing.
“I mean, I’m aware of that stat [failing to convert pole positions]. This is my seventh pole. I have only one win. It kind of speaks for itself.
“I think race pace is literally the only thing I’ve been focusing on all off-season, all season. Like qualifying, we always feel like the speed is there. We try to really maximise the time we have to figure out how to go quicker in the races.
“I’ll say we’ve done some good progress in that area, especially from second part of last year and even this year. I should say qualifying has been more of an issue this year.
“But yeah, we’re fully aware of that. I think just looking after the tyres has been a thing for me many times in the situation where I have to pit early.
“That’s definitely something you don’t want to happen. Just keep an eye on tyres, I think we’ll be good.”
