By Austin Lawton, Staff Writer
Scott McLaughlin is keeping his late-season form going by taking pole for Sunday’s Mission Foods Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca with a 01:09.1363 lap time. Saturday’s pole position also marks Chevrolet’s 250th pole in the series.
McLaughlin was able to best five-time series champion, Alex Palou (01:09.1540) by just one hundred seventy-seven ten-thousandths-of-a-second (0.0177). This was the New Zealander’s first pole at the California road-course and second pole of the 2026 campaign.
“Since the thing left the hauler, this thing has been unreal,” McLaughlin said about his car. “So stoked to get Chevy their 250th pole, but I’ve got to try and transition this into a win.”
For McLaughlin, book-ending his season with a pole on a road course, only makes the work of race engineer Raul Prados and the entire No.3 crew worth it as they have looked to improve the road course package.
“He’s [Prados] just a lot more comfortable with the tire, with the car, how the tracks change, temperature adjustment,” McLaughlin said. “There’s been a couple times where we’ve had pretty good pace and we’ve missed the Fast 12. It doesn’t show our pace. I’m so happy to have qualified well for him today and prove that the trajectory, where we’ve been going with the car is great. Like I said, this is his pole more than anything.”
Palou already clinched another IndyCar championship last weekend in Milwaukee, but the Spaniard is looking for a third win in-a-row at Laguna Seca and will be able to do so from the front row.
“It kind of hurts a little bit, but at the same time it’s so cool that we’re starting the front row tomorrow,” Palou said.
In what will be his final race for Meyer Shank Racing, Felix Rosenqvist put the No.60 Honda in a respectable third (01:09.1931). It’s been an emotional weekend for the Swede, who has been consistently quick all weekend, as he will re-join Arrow McLaren starting in 2027.
“I think it’s just been a home, a family to me the last three years,” Rosenqvist said regarding the emotions of leaving MSR. “We had a lot of just fun moments really outside of driving the car, which, at the end of the day, you spend so much time together. I’ve always been a big believer in having fun. Obviously you need to be very focused to do this. Everyone in the team needs to be.”
SEE: Mission Foods Grand Prix of Monterey Starting Grid
Alexander Rossi piloted the No.20 ECR Chevrolet to fourth (01:09.3247), his second best starting position in 2026. Starting up this high in the field is a huge positive for the 2016 “500” champion, as he and teammate Christian Rasmussen have experienced bad luck all season long.
“The No.20 Java House Chevrolet has been through a lot this season, so it’s nice to get a decent qualifying on the books before the year comes to a close,” Rossi said. The group behind me is an amazing group who just keeps pushing forward each weekend. Tomorrow is a great opportunity for ECR to end this season in a really special way.”
Arrow McLaren’s Christian Lundgaard put his No.7 Chevrolet in fifth (01:10.2227) in what will be his final ride with the team. The Dane is poised to join Chip Ganassi Racing in 2027, replacing the legendary Scott Dixon in the No.9 Honda.
Lundgaard and sixth place starter David Malukas (01:12.8461) are locked into a battle for second position in the championship, along with Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood. Malukas will be in for a long day on Sunday, as the young driver is nursing a flare up of a past wrist injury, something that has bothered him since Mid-Ohio on July 4th weekend.
“These races take a toll,” Malukas said. “We’re doing what we can. Tomorrow [Sunday] is going to be about surviving. Hopefully this wrist can take one more. The team has done a good job and hopefully we can finish it off on a high note.”