J.R. Hildebrand records 228.776 mph in Fast Nine shootout Sunday
California native disappointed in Sunday run, but set for May 25
Photo by: Jay Alley
J.R. Hildebrand still had a smile on his face after qualifying ninth Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the Fast Nine Shootout for the 98th Indianapolis 500-Mile Race set for May 25.
The 26-year-old driver of the No. 21 Preferred Freezer Services Chevrolet was hoping for a chance at the front row in the unique “one shot” qualifying show when he was the first driver to make a four-lap attempt in Sunday’s shootout. But the car didn’t handle like Saturday’s 230.027 average and the California native had to settle for the outside of the third row starting sport in next Sunday’s 200-lap Classic.
His Dallara chassis wasn’t to Hildebrand’s liking Sunday as he recorded laps of 229.492, 230.060, 228.527 and 226.850 for an average of 228.726 miles per hour. J.R.’s teammate, ECR team owner Ed Carpenter won his second straight pole position Sunday at 231.067 m.p.h.
The 2011 Indy 500 runner-up was still upbeat despite the disappointing run, as he feels good about his and Ed’s race cars for the Indy 500 next Sunday.
"I'm super disappointed,” Hildebrand said. “I think maybe just in some of the adjustments for the conditions something just ended up being amiss. There was plenty of speed in the car, but the balance was way off. We'll have to go back and just figure out what happened. We're locked in the Top 9. I'm glad we her able to accomplish that. It's really unfortunate when we know we've got the speed to not be able to lay it all out there."
The ninth starting position is the best for Hildebrand in his four years of competition in the Indy 500.
“While today’s qualifying run was off, I’m still very pleased with how we moved through the week with the race setups,” J.R. explained. “I think Ed and I have worked hard with our engineering staff to formulate a good baseline with the race cars. We have similar likes with the settings and we have worked in different directions during the week. I think we found some very good things for the race now.”
Ed Carpenter Racing
Be part of Motorsport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Newgarden fastest in rain-shortened first day of Indy 500 Open Test
askROI partners with VeeKay for select 2024 races, including Indy 500
GuyCare joins Ed Carpenter Racing for 2024 IndyCar Series season
2024 NASCAR at Dover schedule, entry list, and how to watch
The plot twist that gave Arrow McLaren’s Ward his first win as team principal
WRC looking to add F1-style team radio to TV broadcasts
Formula E’s new Gen3 Evo car breaks cover
The apprenticeship that will aid Ilott's IndyCar to WEC switch at Jota
The long evolution of Dallara's Indy 500 winner
Nigel Mansell’s greatest F1 and Indycar drives
Ranking the top 10 IndyCar drivers of 2021
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments