James Hinchcliffe, the Canadian who missed the 99th Indianapolis 500 after a practice crash, will start the 100th Indy 500 on the pole after a four-lap average of 230.760 miles per hour on Armed Forces Pole Day.
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The Canadian driver who almost died a year ago from a life-threatening leg injury sustained during practice for the 500, survived two challenges in the final 25 minutes and barely held onto the top seed with a speed of 230.946 miles per hour.
Hinchcliffe will be joined on the front row for next Sunday’s centennial showcase by two Americans, Josef Newgarden and 2014 Indy 500 victor Ryan Hunter-Reay.
James Hinchcliffe, of Canada, celebrates with vehicle owner Same Schmidt after winning the pole during qualifications for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 22, 2016.
Schmidt Peterson Motorsports has a vehicle on the pole for the second time since 2011, when Alex Tagliani took the honors.
IndyCar driver James Hinchcliffe is lucky to be alive after wrecking in last season’s preparation for the Indianapolis 500, but now the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports driver will lead the field to the green flag in the 100th running of the prestigious race. He had almost died from injuries six days earlier in a crash at famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
After Newgarden was Ryan Hunter-Reay, Townsend Bell and Carloz Munoz.
Hinchcliffe now joins a growing list of Indy 500 personalities with their own stories to tell.
James Hinchcliffe, left, of Canada, celebrates with is father, Jeremy Hinchcliffe, after winning the pole for the Indianapolis 500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, May 22, 2016.
Row Three will feature Hinchcliffe’s teammate Russian Mikhail Aleshin and two more Penske drivers, Frenchman Simon Pagenaud, victor of the last three IndyCar races and Brazil’s Castroneves. Though his auto spun 5 1/2 times, he was quickly checked, released and cleared to drive by the infield medical center.
Defending champion Juan Pablo Montoya will start 17th after getting a controversial second chance in qualifying. There’s still one big thing to check off the box before we start talking “movie rights”, and that’s next Sunday. “I had three cars in the top then and to come out here today”.
That work starts at the top, Hinchcliffe said, lauding the leadership of Schmidt and co-owner Ric Peterson. New suspension parts should prevent drivers from getting gouged, which happened to Hinchcliffe a year ago at Indy.
Among the power teams, Team Penske has three drivers in the top nine, including Power, Simon Pagenaud (eighth) and Helio Castroneves (ninth).
BAND OF BROTHERS: Indy rookie Stefan Wilson, of England, will start 30th.
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For Newgarden, it will be his first career front-row start at Indy. He’s driving in honor of his late brother, Justin, who was killed last August after being hit in the head with debris during a race at Pocono.
