Written by Archie O’Reilly
It had been a long time since AJ Foyt Racing had a car starting on pole position. Team president Larry Foyt knows the feeling of the wait far too well.
“I was in my 30s,” he says, recalling the last time he saw a Foyt car on pole.
But with his first career pole ahead for his 74th IndyCar race, at Portland International Raceway, Santino Ferrucci has ended a decade-long run without a pole for the team he joined last year. The last time Foyt had a driver starting on pole? Takuma Sato in Race Two at Detroit’s Belle Isle Circuit in 2014.
It is a momentous moment for the team emblematic of an astronomical rise in 2024…
How Ferrucci went quickest (twice)
Ferrucci put his No.14 Chevy on provisional pole with one run remaining. But you can never settle in the Fast Six and crossing the line last can often be invaluable. Ferrucci did not need his final run in the end but laid down yet another marker to go even quicker.
His margin to Team Penske’s Will Power in second was ultimately over one-tenth of second - a statement performance on a track where having 10 cars within that same margin would not be seen as an abnormality.
“We fuel for three laps, so I was going to use them all, regardless if we ran out or not,” Ferrucci said. “It’s pretty awesome. It’s my first career pole in the series - too come on a road course like Portland where it’s so tight, it’s so competitive, it just felt great. That lap felt amazing.”
Recording top-10 finishes on three other road courses, Ferrucci had targeted Portland as an opportunity to deliver. And the team rolled off the truck with a strong car. Foyt said a pole was beyond expectation but a first Fast Six appearance for the team since 2021, and particularly making a second road-or-street Fast 12 appearance of the year, was always possible.
“The second tyre runs is where I knew we had something,” Ferrucci said. “So in my head, when Larry told me we had advanced into the Fast Six, I knew that if I just stayed calm and hit my marks, we could really be a threat to contend for a pole.”
The feeling of sitting on pole
Ferrucci knew he was leading the way at the start of his final lap given the telemetry available in the car. But he also knew he needed to consolidate his lead position.
“I just put my head down,” he said. “I felt like the car was in a perfect position. I just drove as hard as I could. When I got on the back straight out of Turn 7, that’s when I keyed up the radio because they have more telemetry than anybody else - I was asking them if I’m going to make it.
“I knew we were quick. I knew it was a hell of a lap - I just didn’t know how good. At the line, we kind of knew. We were just waiting for [Alex] Palou. Once we came down pit road, we had it.”
Ferrucci’s main feeling was hunger once he realised he was atop the time sheets. He knew there was still more lap time in his run.
“When you see it there and you know you’ve got more lap time that you can wring out of the car and yourself as a driver… I saw I was already negative on the dash - I just wanted to push as hard as I could to see what I could actually do,” Ferrucci said. “You’re still going to end up in the Fast Six. At that point there’s no pressure to not push.”
The pre-qualifying practice session saw 14 drivers finish within two-tenths of a second of one another on the time sheets. To come out on top in a field so tight is extremely gratifying.
“It’s so hard to compete against everybody here,” Ferrucci said. “Everybody’s so talented. On any given day as a driver, as an athlete, if you get everything right, it’s a chance and an opportunity to excel. We had the car - today was the day for me in qualifying to nail the lap, to get it right, especially when it counts.”
A reward for Foyt’s big improvement
AJ Foyt Racing had only one top-10 finish in the entirety of 2023 - Ferrucci in the Indianapolis 500 - and only once recorded a non-oval finish inside the top 15.
But after finishing 19th in the standings last year, Ferrucci has seven top 10s to his name and only three finishes outside the top 15 in 13 races in 2024. With four races remaining, including starting from pole in Portland, he is teetering on the edge of the top 10 in points.
“There’s so much that goes into it between just the alliance [with Penske] and working with everybody,” Ferrucci said. “Our engineering staff is unreal - we have some really overqualified guys here. They’ve worked together so well. It’s one of those things to where it’s kind of created a perfect storm for us where everybody has just gelled seamlessly.
“We found good setups throughout the year. We found a lot of speed at a lot of different tracks, a lot of different disciplines. Working with Chevrolet and some of the other things that we get as being a Chevy team really prepared us well for this event and it shows.
“This is definitely a glimpse into the future for the team.”
Foyt struck up a technical alliance with Penske for the 2024 season, which has been credited for part of the team’s upturn in form. It has been an educational process for even the most experienced heads too.
“We’ve been fortunate to bring in some really great people that have helped - all the way from Michael Cannon to a lot of the other engineers,” Foyt said. “A lot of people have stuck with us through the hard times and a lot of new people have come in and been a great addition. The Penske alliance has been great. They’re a great company to work with.
“We go back so far. AJ [Foyt] and Roger [Penske] go way back. Obviously Tim Cindric, working with him and Ron has been great. Certainly has been a benefit to help us get to where we’re headed. Can’t say enough about everyone on the team. That alliance has been very helpful.”
Foyt described the pole as a “huge” moment for the team.
“You can just see how happy everybody is because a couple years ago it was a struggle,” he said. “We’ve just kept building this team, kept adding better people. It’s led to all this.”
Does Ferrucci have a Foyt future?
Sitting beside Ferrucci in a post-qualifying media call, Foyt was effusive in his praise.
“Having some consistency with Santino, man, everyone is just really happy,” he said. “This whole year, even fighting for a top 10 in the championship was a huge step up. The qualifying pace: ‘Don’t say you’re not a good qualifier!’ We have such a good group working together from engineering, mechanics and a hell of a driver.”
But so far for 2025, the only confirmed Foyt driver is Meyer Shank Racing’s David Malukas. Though the Ferrucci-Foyt relationship is seemingly not one that the parties involved want to see come to an end.
“When is warm-up? How long do we have?” Ferrucci joked when asked if he could have a contract by the end of the day. “It’s good. I don’t think it’s any secret that I very much found a home here with Larry and AJ Foyt. I want to stay.
“That’s kind of in the cards here. Obviously there’s a lot that needs to happen - still a pretty big off-season. Getting pole today definitely doesn’t hurt.”
Now having been with Foyt for the best part of two years, Ferrucci has enjoyed having as much continuity as at any point in his career.
“It’s been a very interesting two years,” he said. “I think me and Larry have worked really well together. That [Malukas] news is honestly a huge stepping stone for the team. Obviously for me it’s a bit of an unknown. Things like today help. The Indy results that we’ve had during the 500 help. Being 10th in the championship helps.
“We’ve really brought it together. Regardless of the news, I never really found it demoralising because of how much we’ve been able to accomplish in the last two years. I don’t see it as a negative. I see it as a massive positive for something like that to come along.
“It’s exciting for the future - I can’t wait to see what unfolds.”
Foyt is similarly keen to work something out.
“This whole season is a big tribute to a lot of what Santino brings to the table,” he said. “Fighting for us to get top 10 in the championship - first time in two decades that this late in the season we’re fighting for that. That’s a big testament to a lot that he’s done.
“We have a great relationship. I’m sure things will work out the way they should.”
Starting alongside Penske ally Power
Ferrucci will start on the front row alongside a Penske stablemate in Power - IndyCar’s all-time leading pole-sitter.
“It’s definitely going to make it interesting,” Ferrucci said. “At the end of the day we are kind of our own team. We’re fighting our own championship. The championship doesn’t really matter as much to me as getting a win.
“If we can help out some of our Penske alliance friends, to help Will with the championship in any way with how we do things, then we’re obviously going to - it’s what teammates do, how things work. By no means am I going to start and pull over and let him take the lead into Turn 1.”
Power was immediately on hand to congratulate Ferrucci in pit lane after qualifying.
“I’m good friends with Santino,” he said. “We go-kart together, go to dinner, so on. I was upset that I didn’t get pole - I really wanted it here. I wanted it badly. I was a little bit upset. Couldn’t be happier for Santino - he’s driving extremely well.
“And Foyt, it’s a great partnership for those guys. It’s good stuff. A fiercely competitive field. As you’ve seen, you never know who is going to get pole, you never know who will be in the top six, you never know who is going to win the race.”
Power described Ferrucci as being a possible “great asset” in terms of taking points off championship leader Alex Palou, who starts in third for Chip Ganassi Racing. Following World Wide Technology Raceway, Power dropped from second to fourth and 66 points back from the title lead.
“I can certainly be aggressive with [Palou] because he has a lot more to lose than me,” Power said. “Just got to keep finishing ahead of him. I’ll drive like [Max] Verstappen - give him a little bit of pressure.”
Power does not want to do anything untoward to gain an advantage in the championship. He holds his own fears that starting anywhere other than on pole leaves you susceptible to being caught in strife in the tight Turn 1.
“I race as clean and fairly as possible,” Power said. “Never want to win a championship in a way where you’ve taken someone out. But I can race him a little harder because it’s not just me that he’s racing. If we both went out, it would be bad because there’s a lot of people coming as well around my points.
“I have to finish ahead of him, it’s as simple as that. It’s the only way I’m going to have a shot at the championship.”
If he is to finish behind Palou, Power feels things will start to look more challenging, even with three oval races - Penske’s big strength - remaining. Sunday’s race is critical for him.
“It’s almost a little less than a quarter of the races to go, four races,” Power said. “A lot of points, a lot of stuff can happen. I would have to say if he finishes ahead of me tomorrow, it starts to look very, very tough.
“We have to have a good day, at least finish ahead of him, see where we come out in points there. Then doubleheader at Milwaukee, a lot on offer. Our goal is to get as close as we can to him by Nashville.”
Comments