VeeKay shines at Indianapolis. From P24 to P9
Rinus ‘VeeKay’ van Kalmthout passed as many as 15 rivals in the Sonsio Grand Prix, as the 24-year-old Dutchman stormed from 24th to 9th place in the fifth race of the NTT IndyCar Series.
VeeKay and his team Dale Coyne Racing were on a high after the fourth race of the IndyCar season, held at Barber Motorsports Park last weekend, the combination claiming a stunning fourth in Alabama. With the Sonsio Grand Prix ahead, Dale Coyne Racing and VeeKay held out hope for another top result. After all, VeeKay managed to win once at the Road Course of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that would host the fifth race of the 2025 season.
However, the Dutchman failed to get much practice time, as VeeKay had to stand by idly during free practice when his #18 askROI.com Dale Coyne Racing Honda stalled because of an issue with the ECU, as it turned out. As a result, the Dutchman went into qualifying with his hands tied behind his back. In a competitive qualifying group, he had to settle for 12th, which meant 24th on the grid.
Because of that, Coyne and VeeKay decided to rigorously alter the setup of the blue and white car for Saturday morning’s warm-up – and to good effect. The final session before Saturday afternoon’s 85-lap race left VeeKay feeling confident. From 24th on the grid, it would be a tall order to drive all the way to the front, but by no means impossible.
VeeKay started the race in typical fashion, since many as seven rivals saw the back of him on the opening lap, with the Dutchman coming through in 17th place. A successful early first pitstop, swapping the hard tyre for the soft rubber, put VeeKay in the perfect position to take advantage of the undercut. VeeKay subsequently put in a strong chase by producing stunning lap times.
Halfway through the Sonsio Grand Prix, VeeKay found himself up in tenth spot – and when the second pitstop also proved to be immaculate, VeeKay was able to maximise the free air. After his late (and mandatory) third pitstop – as all IndyCar drivers had to complete two stints on hard tyres and two on softs – VeeKay held on after a late caution period to cross the finish line in ninth. It marked his third top-ten finish in five races for Dale Coyne Racing. Also, VeeKay’s comeback race was awarded the Jostens Biggest Mover Award.
“Another great race!” said a beaming VeeKay from Indianapolis. “From 24th to ninth, wow. The strategy worked perfectly: we executed it exactly as planned, and enjoyed that a lot. After a difficult qualifying session, we were left unsatisfied with the car, so we made major changes before warm-up. Those turned out to work perfectly, so I had a super-fast car in the race.”
“The Honda engine is so incredibly good in terms of fuel economy that we knew it was possible to execute our strategy. Going in early, use the free air and then producing the fast laps. Three top-ten finishes in the first five races is a great score in this highly competitive 2025 NTT IndyCar Series field.”
“Dale Coyne Racing has once again given me a fantastic car and it has paid off with this result. We are now tenth in the championship, a nice bonus from the good performances in recent weeks. We started the Month of May with a fourth and a ninth, so now our attention shifts to the Indianapolis 500. On to the biggest spectacle of the year,” VeeKay concluded.
The Month of May is in full swing and that means the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will now serve as the centre of the motorsport world. Next week, practice sessions start for the most important race of the year, for which qualifying will take place next weekend. On Sunday 25 May next, the 109th edition of the Indianapolis 500 will get underway at around 18:45hrs Dutch time.