IndyCar: Ryan Hunter-Reay takes pole for 2018 IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma

By Asher Fair | Sep 15, 2018

SONOMA, CA - SEPTEMBER 15: Ryan Hunter-Reay, driver of the #28 Andretti Autosport Honda, on track during pracrtice for the Verizon IndyCar Series Sonoma Grand Prix at Sonoma Raceway on September 15, 2018 in Sonoma, California. (Photo by Jonathan Moore/Getty Images) /

Ryan Hunter-Reay took the pole position for the IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma, the 17th and final race of the 2018 IndyCar season.

With his final lap in the third and final qualifying session for the 2018 IndyCar season finale, the IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma, at Sonoma Raceway, Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay took his first pole position since he took the pole position for the 2014 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on the streets of Long Beach, California.

Hunter-Reay took the pole position for the 85-lap race around the 12-turn, 2.385-mile (3.838-kilometer) Sonoma Raceway road course in Sonoma, California by recording a top lap time of 77.6277 seconds (110.605 miles per hour) in his #28 Honda in the Firestone Fast Six.

Qualifying alongside Hunter-Reay on the front row was Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, the driver of the #9 Honda who leads the championship standings by 29 points over Andretti Autosport’s Alexander Rossi.

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Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden is the highest qualifying Chevrolet driver of the race. He qualified in third place in his #1 Chevrolet. Andretti Herta Autosport’s Marco Andretti qualified alongside him on the second row in fourth in his #98 Honda.

In his first career IndyCar qualifying session, Harding Racing’s Patricio O’Ward, who drove for Andretti Autosport in Indy Lights this season and won nine races en route to securing the 2018 championship, qualified in fifth place in his #8 Chevrolet as the highest qualifying non-Team Penske Chevrolet driver for the race. Rossi qualified alongside of him on the third row in sixth in his #27 Honda.

Team Penske teammates Will Power and Simon Pagenaud, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Graham Rahal and Andretti Autosport rookie Zach Veach are set to round out the top 10 on the starting grid after qualifying in seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th place in their #12 Chevrolet, #22 Chevrolet, #15 Honda and #26 Honda, respectively.

The race itself is scheduled to take place tomorrow evening at 6:40 p.m. ET. It is set to be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Here are the full qualifying results for the 2018 IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma at Sonoma Raceway.

Qualifying Results

1st – Ryan Hunter-Reay

2nd – Scott Dixon

3rd – Josef Newgarden

4th – Marco Andretti

5th – Patricio O’Ward

6th – Alexander Rossi

7th – Will Power

8th – Simon Pagenaud

9th – Graham Rahal

10th – Zach Veach

11th – Sebastien Bourdais

12th – Takuma Sato

13th – Pietro Fittipaldi

14th – Ed Jones

15th – James Hinchcliffe

16th – Jack Harvey

17th – Spencer Pigot

18th – Tony Kanaan

19th – Colton Herta

20th – Santino Ferrucci

21st – Max Chilton

22nd – Carlos Munoz

23rd – Matheus Leist

24th – Charlie Kimball

25th – Jordan King

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Be sure not to miss the live broadcast of the 2018 IndyCar season finale tomorrow evening at 6:30 p.m. ET. Which driver will be crowned champion when the IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma is in the books?