IndyCar
Indy 500: Justin Wilson Second Day Qualifying report
Justin happy with 15th in Indy 500 qualifying Justin qualified 15th for this year's Indianapolis 500, going one better than his rookie effort of 16th a year ago. The ...
Published: Jun 19, 2009, 7:54 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Justin happy with 15th in Indy 500 qualifying
Justin qualified 15th for this year's Indianapolis 500, going one better than his rookie effort of 16th a year ago. The #18 Z-Line Designs car will line up on the outside of Row 5 on the 33-car grid. Helio Castroneves took pole position for Team Penske and his team-mate Ryan Briscoe and Dario Franchitti (Chip Ganassi Racing) complete the front row.
The first 11 spots on the grid were secured on Saturday while Sunday's 6 hour qualifying window set positions 12 to 22. Having missed out on 11th spot by 0.2 mph on the very last qualifying run on Saturday, Justin's four-lap average qualifying speed of 222.903 mph set early on Sunday afternoon was good enough to hold on to 12th spot for much of Sunday afternoon. As the wind died down, three other cars jumped ahead, pushing Justin back to P15. Towards the end of the day the team contemplated withdrawing his earlier qualifying time and going out for another run, but in the end they decided against risking a guaranteed position to jump up one row.
"I really enjoyed being out there," said Justin. "The Z-Line Designs car was working well, and Dale Coyne Racing had the car to where it was comfortable and fun to drive. Each time we went out this weekend we were quicker. The run was fairly straightforward and things really worked out. I noticed straight away that I had more push than I was expecting, but I kept playing with the roll bars and weight jacker to cancel out the understeer. It usually gets worse lap after lap, but I was able to cancel it out with my adjustments. The more laps in the car, the more I enjoy this place and appreciate what it's about. Every time I came out of the corners, I had a big grin on my face!"
The Dale Coyne Racing team will now concentrate on setting up the car in race mode. "I think qualifying on the first weekend was a big advantage for us," said Justin. "We're comfortably in the race and can now start concentrating on working on simulated race runs."
"I'm very proud of Justin and the team's performance today," said team owner Dale Coyne. "Every adjustment we made to prepare for qualifying went in the right direction and we were rewarded today with an excellent starting position for Justin."
All sorts of activity will carry on at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway between now and the race on 24 May, including next Saturday's third day of qualifying and Sunday's "Bump Day" when the remaining hopefuls will compete for the final 11 spots on the grid.
-credit: justinwilson.co.uk
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Indy 500: Andretti Green Racing Second Day Qualifying report
Next article Indy 500: IMS pre-race ceremony news 2009-05-11
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Justin Wilson
Mick Schumacher gaining confidence on ovals after Phoenix test
IndyCar
IndyCar
Phoenix Raceway
Mick Schumacher gaining confidence on ovals after Phoenix test
Top 10: F1 feeder series kings who were overlooked the following year
FIA F2
FIA F2
Top 10: F1 feeder series kings who were overlooked the following year
Dale Coyne Racing signs veteran team manager Mitch Davis
IndyCar
IndyCar
Laguna Seca
Dale Coyne Racing signs veteran team manager Mitch Davis
More from
Team Penske
Ryan Blaney to skip events after suffering fall 'requiring medical attention'
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
6 h
Ryan Blaney to skip events after suffering fall 'requiring medical attention'
Who won the teammate battles of NASCAR Cup 2026?
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
8 h
Who won the teammate battles of NASCAR Cup 2026?
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
IndyCar
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
Latest news
Samantha Busch full speech as she accepts Kyle Busch's Most Popular Driver award
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup 24 min
Samantha Busch full speech as she accepts Kyle Busch's Most Popular Driver award
Kyle Busch posthumously wins NASCAR Cup Most Popular Driver Award
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Homestead-Miami
50 min
Kyle Busch posthumously wins NASCAR Cup Most Popular Driver Award
Jamie Little will not return to NASCAR broadcast booth in 2027
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup 4 h
Jamie Little will not return to NASCAR broadcast booth in 2027
Logano, Sargeant, and Muniz among Ford drivers taking part in Daytona exhibition race
General
Misc General 4 h
Logano, Sargeant, and Muniz among Ford drivers taking part in Daytona exhibition race
Feature
Discover prime content
How Spanish engineering and Alex Palou brought IndyCar to Barcelona
Feature
IndyCar
Feature
IndyCar
By Joey Barnes
How Spanish engineering and Alex Palou brought IndyCar to Barcelona
Inside AJ Foyt Racing’s transition: Hauger’s arrival, Ferrucci’s future, and the Pierson waiting game
Feature
IndyCar
Feature
IndyCar
By Joey Barnes
Inside AJ Foyt Racing’s transition: Hauger’s arrival, Ferrucci’s future, and the Pierson waiting game
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
IndyCar
By Joey Barnes
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
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.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe