VeeKay qualifies for Indianapolis 500
Experiencing some tense moments at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Rinus ‘VeeKay’ van Kalmthout qualified for the 109th edition of the Indianapolis 500 at the last minute during Last Chance Qualifying, with the 24-year-old Dutchman securing P33.
After five races, the NTT IndyCar Series has arrived at its annual highlight, the Indianapolis 500. Before the world’s biggest one-day sporting event gets underway, the 34 registered drivers first had to decide among themselves who gets to start – after all, there are ‘only’ 33 places on the grid of Indianapolis’ world-famous oval. Traditionally, the weekend before the race is filled with qualifying sessions that determine the order of the starting grid.
In the past, VeeKay always showed up front during qualifying days at Indianapolis. In 2022, the Dutchman was first after the first day while he qualified on the front row on three occasions. In five participations, VeeKay reached an incredible average starting position of 3.8, as hisseventh starting position for the 2024 edition proved to be his worst qualifying result at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway so far.
During the very first of the qualifying segments for the 2025 race, however, it emerged that VeeKay, driver of the #18 askROI.com Dale Coyne Racing Honda, would not start at the front this year, as Dale Coyne Racing’s cars were simply unable to match the pace of the competition. Both VeeKay and his teammate Jacob Abel struggled to achieve high average speeds throughout the two-day qualifying event, despite both rarely taking their foot off the throttle pedal. To make matters worse, VeeKay suffered from technical issues on several occasions: on both Saturday and Sunday, his hybrid engine refused service on occasion.
The rule at Indianapolis is as simple as it is clear – whoever qualifies among the top 30 on Saturday is guaranteed a place on the starting grid, the rest will have to come back for Bump Day, the last chance to make it onto the grid. So along with former polesitter Marco Andretti and Meyer Shank driver Marcus Armstrong, VeeKay and Abel had to face a new challenge on Sunday.
Where Andretti and Armstrong quite easily reached average speeds above 229 miles per hour (368 kilometres per hour), VeeKay and Abel had to fight to produce laps above 227. So it turned into a brotherly battle at Indianapolis, one that was not decided until the closing minutes of Last Chance Qualifying. With just a few minutes left on the clock, VeeKay seized the opportunity to make a final qualifying attempt, and that attempt proved good enough for a place on the grid.
Teammate Abel’s run was slower than VeeKay’s, and thus the latter qualified for the Indianapolis 500 at the last minute, albeit in the 33rd and final spot on the grid. Teammate Abel was less fortunate – he will have to watch from the sidelines next week. Pole position surprisingly went to rookie Robert Shwartzman (Prema Racing).
“First of all, I am obviously relieved to be part of the show next Sunday,” VeeKay announced from Indianapolis. “I want to thank my crew, because even though they didn’t have an easy time, we made it. Obviously, it’s a double feeling. We qualified for the most important race of the year, but it’s at the expense of my teammate and friend Jacob. I feel bad for him that he has to miss the race.”
“I can be very brief about our qualifying days: we were just really slow. The gap to the others in Last Chance Qualifying is quite significant, not to mention the gap to the top of the times. Given our lack of speed, it was always going to be one of our (Coyne) cars that wasn’t going to make it, and I have to be honest that after my last attempt, I thought I would be that person, and not Jacob. Of course I am happy to be competing in the Indianapolis 500 for the sixth time in my career, but we really need to find some pace in the next few days.”
The 109th edition of the Indianapolis 500, in which Rinus VeeKay will start 33rd, will get underway next Sunday, 25 May 2025 around 18:45hrs Dutch time. The race can be followed live in its entirety via Ziggo Sport.