Honda Racing Report
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
Circuit: Bayfront Park (1.8-mile temporary street circuit) St. Petersburg, Fla.
2013 Winner: Will Power(Team Penske) 93.572 mph average
Weather: Sunny, mild, 67 degrees F
Top-12 Qualifying Results:
| Ps. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Best Time | Notes |
| 1. | Will Power | Team Penske | Chevrolet | 1:00.6931 | 106.767 mph [new record] |
| 2. | Simon Pagenaud | Team Penske | Chevrolet | 1:00.7252 | +0.0321 seconds |
| 3. | Helio Castroneves | Team Penske | Chevrolet | 1:00.8356 | Fast six shootout |
| 4. | Juan Pablo Montoya | Team Penske | Chevrolet | 1:00.8532 | Fast six shootout |
| 5. | Takuma Sato | A.J. Foyt Racing | Honda | 1:01.1496 | Fast six shootout |
| 6. | Sebastien Bourdais | KV Racing Technology | Chevrolet | 1:01.1545 | Fast six shootout |
| 7. | Tony Kanaan | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 1:01.1182 | 2nd round qualifying |
| 8. | Ryan Hunter-Reay | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 1:01.1670 | 2nd round qualifying |
| 9. | Scott Dixon | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 1:01.2285 | 2nd round qualifying |
| 10. | Josef Newgarden | Carpenter Fisher Hartman | Chevrolet | 1:01.2478 | 2nd round qualifying |
| 11. | Simona de Silvestro | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 1:01.3657 | 2nd round qualifying |
| 12. | Marco Andretti | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 1:01.4765 | 2nd round qualifying |
Other Honda-powered Results
| 14. | Carlos Munoz | Andretti Autosport | Honda | 1:01.4890 | 1st round, Group 2 |
| 15. | Graham Rahal | Rahal Letterman Lanigan | Honda | 1:01.5742 | 1st round, Group 1 |
| 16. | James Hinchcliffe | Schmidt Peterson Motorsports | Honda | 1:01.5780 | 1st round, Group 2 |
| 20. | James Jakes | Schmidt Peterson Motorsports | Honda | 1:01.8323 | 1st round, Group 2 |
| 21. | Jack Hawksworth | A.J. Foyt Racing | Honda | 1:02.0095 | 1st round, Group 1 |
| 22. | Gabby Chaves-R | Bryan Herta Autosport | Honda | 1:01.9705 | 1st round, Group 2 |
| 23. | Francesco Dracone-R | Dale Coyne Racing | Honda | 1:04.2654 | 1st round, Group 1 |
| 24. | Carlos Huertas | Dale Coyne Racing | Honda | 1:01.9716 | 1st round, Group 2 |
Sato to start fifth for Honda at St. Petersburg
- Leads Honda qualifying at St. Petersburg for second consecutive year
- Andretti Autosport places three drivers in top 12
- First Indy car race of 2015 starts Sunday at 3 p.m. EDT
Takuma Sato led the Honda contingent Saturday in qualifying for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, and will start Sunday’s season-opening Verizon IndyCar Series race from fifth in the 24-car field. It is the second consecutive year Sato has paced the Honda qualifying effort at St. Petersburg, as the A.J. Foyt Racing driver started from the pole in the 2014 event.
Reaching the second of three rounds of Indy car “knockout” qualifying, Ryan Hunter-Reay will start tomorrow’s 110-lap race from eighth, with Andretti Autosport teammates Simona de Silvestro and Marco Andretti qualifying 11th and 12th, respectively.
The opening round of the 16-race 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series starts Sunday at 3 p.m. EDT, with live television coverage on ABC.
Takuma Sato (#14 A.J. Foyt Racing Honda) qualified 5th for the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg: “We did everything we could today. Obviously, we’re not on the front row, but we’ve made significant gains throughout the weekend and I’m happy with our qualifying performance. Team Penske is very strong here, and has been in recent years, but thanks to all of the hard work from Honda, HPD and the Foyt team, we are in very good shape for tomorrow’s race.”