IndyCar: 2021 Long Beach qualifying – Full starting lineup

The starting lineup for the 2021 IndyCar season finale on the streets of Long Beach is set following Saturday’s qualifying session.

For the 16th consecutive season, the IndyCar championship battle is set to be decided in the season finale.

This year’s finale on the streets of Long Beach, California caps off a 16-race season and a three-race stretch to end the year which included three tracks which were all wiped off the calendar last year as a result of COVID-19-related restrictions.

Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden took the pole position for this 85-lap Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach around the 11-turn, 1.968-mile (3.167-kilometer) temporary street circuit on the streets of Long Beach by recording the top lap time in the Firestone Fast Six qualifying session for the race.

He took the pole position by recording a lap time of 68.2241 seconds (103.846 miles per hour) behind the wheel of his #2 Chevrolet in this third and final round of qualifying.

Newgarden is one of the three championship contenders, though he is a longshot to win the title. Even with the bonus point he earned for taking the pole position, he trails points leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing by 47 points.

Arrow McLaren SP’s Pato O’Ward sits 12 points ahead of Newgarden and 35 points behind Palou. O’Ward is set to start in eighth place behind the wheel of his #5 Chevrolet while Palou is set to start in 10th behind the wheel of his #10 Honda.

No matter what else happens, a top 12 finish for Palou would clinch him the 2021 title.

Set to start alongside Newgarden on the front row is Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon in second place behind the wheel of his #9 Honda.

Our friends at WynnBET have Newgarden listed as the favorite at +275, while Dixon is listed as a close second at +325. O’Ward is listed at +1000 and Palou is listed at +1100.

The second row is set to feature Meyer Shank Racing’s Helio Castroneves (+1000) in third place behind the wheel of his #06 Honda and Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud (+1300) in fourth behind the wheel of his #22 Chevrolet. The former Team Penske teammates are believed to be on their way to becoming teammates at Meyer Shank Racing in 2022.

Make your pick now on WynnBET.

The other two drivers who made it to the Firestone Fast Six were Arrow McLaren SP’s Felix Rosenqvist (+1700) and Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing rookie Romain Grosjean (+1200). They are set to start in fifth and sixth place behind the wheels of their #7 Chevrolet and #51 Honda, respectively.

Here is the full starting lineup for the 2021 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Starting Lineup
1st – Josef Newgarden
2nd – Scott Dixon
3rd – Helio Castroneves
4th – Simon Pagenaud
5th – Felix Rosenqvist
6th – Romain Grosjean
7th – James Hinchcliffe
8th – Pato O’Ward
9th – Ed Jones
10th – Alex Palou
11th – Ryan Hunter-Reay
12th – Will Power
13th – Scott McLaughlin
14th – Colton Herta
15th – Alexander Rossi
16th – Takuma Sato
17th – Marcus Ericsson
18th – Callum Ilott
19th – Graham Rahal
20th – Charlie Kimball
21st – Conor Daly
22nd – Sebastien Bourdais
23rd – Max Chilton
24th – Rinus VeeKay
25th – Jack Harvey
26th – Dalton Kellett
27th – Jimmie Johnson
28th – Oliver Askew

Tune in to NBC Sports Network at 3:00 p.m. ET this afternoon for the live broadcast of the 2021 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach from the streets of Long Beach, California. If you have not begun your free trial of FuboTV, now would be a great time to do so!