LEBANON, Tenn. — On a day when the heat and humidity were sweltering, Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Global grew up in those conditions.
The NTT IndyCar Series driver of the No. 27 Honda from Jupiter, Florida beat the heat with two blazing fast qualification laps to win the NTT P1 Award for Sunday’s Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix. Kirkwood’s two-lap average was 196.852 mph including a first lap in 23.7104 seconds and a second lap in 23.8381 seconds.
“Maybe that’s an advantage, even though I know Josef Newgarden was talking about the humidity, but I tell you what, Florida is cooking right now,” Kirkwood said. “I was just down there. So, I’m maybe a little bit more acclimated than him.”
“It’s hot here, too. Don’t get me wrong. It’s cooking here, too.
“But to my point, what I’m trying to say is maybe it will create an advantage for us, then tomorrow I’ll be saying something different.”
It was Kirkwood’s first IndyCar pole of the season, the fourth of his career and his second at Nashville.
“It was really good,” Kirkwood said. “Quick in practice. Quick again in qualifying there. Happy that our pace has stayed true over the past three years that we’ve run around this place.
“I got more poles here now than anywhere else. A rare thing for me to say. People tend to think I’m a street course driver, so…
“Happy with our performance. Car has been very fast every year we’ve shown up here. Hopefully continues tomorrow.”
Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden of nearby Hendersonville, Tennessee was on the pole before Kirkwood knocked him off. Newgarden’s two-lap average was 196.642 mph in the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet.
“I think we did what we could today, and got a good viewpoint for tomorrow, which is great, with the Astemo car,” Newgarden said. “
The race distance for Sunday’s Borchetta Bourbon Musica City Grand Prix has been extended to 300 laps, 399 miles, making it the second longest race on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule second only to the 200-lap, Indianapolis 500-Mile race. The previous two IndyCar Series races on this track were 225 laps in 2025 and 206 laps in 2024.
“I think it was a great show here last year, that’s how I feel about it,” Newgarden said. “This is a great oval to showcase IndyCar racing for people. The only way I look at it is they get more of it, more action, a little longer format. I don’t think it will dramatically change the way we approach it.
“Obviously, the pit stops will be different. There will be a slight difference on the strategy. I don’t foresee a big change in our philosophy, if you will.”
Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin was third with a two-lap average of 196.087 mph in the No. 3 Chevrolet followed by NTT IndyCar Series points leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing with two laps averaging 196.050 mph in the No. 10 Honda.
Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing rounded out the top five with a two-lap average of 195.802 mph in the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda.
Team Penske’s David Malukas was involved in a hard crash in Turn 2 in the Saturday morning practice session and was transported by private vehicle to a local hospital. At one point, it appeared Conor Daly was set to replace Malukas in the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet if the Team Penske driver was not cleared to return by IndyCar Medical.
The team did not have the backup car ready and decided to not qualify the car and start 24th in the 25-car field. The extra time was to make sure the car was complete in time for Saturday evening’s final practice session.
Malukas was later cleared to compete and returned to the track in his backup car. The only reason the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet did not start last in the 25-car field is Graham Rahal had an electrical issue that caused his engine to lose fuel pressure, and he was not able to make a qualification attempt. Because Malukas is higher in IndyCar points than Rahal, he got the advantage.
Up front, Kirkwood will lead the field to the green flag following the FIFA World Cup Championship Match between Spain and Argentina. IndyCar and FOX won’t start the IndyCar Series race until the conclusion of the World Cup Championship ceremony.
If the World Cup is delayed by rain, the IndyCar race will still start after the full World Cup championship.
Combine that with a longer race, and it creates some interesting possibilities for the NTT IndyCar Series drivers.
“Quite honestly, I think people are going to look at this as an Indy 500,” Kirkwood said. “Keep your nose clean, try to stay at the front of this thing, tee yourself up for the end of the race. Not falling in the trap of racing too hard and get caught up in something that doesn’t matter in the first hundred laps is going to be a focal point of everybody.
“It’s going to be hot, it’s going to be physical – not only for me as a driver, but everyone on pit lane for two-plus hours. Five stops are not easy on all the guys and girls out there on pit lane.
“Everything about this race is going to be tough tomorrow.”
