Sting Ray Robb adamant “it’s not impossible to have decent day” after qualifying nightmare
- James Scott
- 9 hours ago
- 4 min read
Sting Ray Robb’s qualifying on Sunday could not have gone any worse. After seeing the speed of teammate Rinus VeeKay’s qualifying attempt, Robb started the run thinking he had a shot at the Fast 12.
In the end, it was a miracle that he did not end up in the wall.
“Disaster does not sum it up enough” Robb told DIVEBOMB soon after his qualifying attempt. “We had everything, we had oversteer, we had understeer.”
“That’s the worst car I think I’ve ever driven around this place, which is unfortunate because if you had asked me how I thought my qualifying car was this morning, I would have said pretty good.”
Sting Ray Robb’s opening lap included a big lift of the throttle in Turn 3, but he crossed the line finishing the lap at a respectable 229.649 mph. The car clearly had speed, but as the tyres became more worn during the four lap run, the handling of the car became increasingly difficult. Robb had so little grip that he ended up lifting through Turns 2, 3 and 4 during his remaining laps.
“I felt confident that we were going to end up in the Fast 12, I have no idea what went wrong. I am concerned at the moment because I don’t have a reason [as to] why, I don’t know how we got it so far off track.”
Robb’s third and fourth laps were the slowest laps run during the entire qualifying weekend, as he averaged 225.399 and 223.859 mph on the final two laps respectively. He will start 31st after Jack Harvey and Caio Collect had their times removed after failing their post-qualifying technical inspections.
In the media bullpen, Robb said: “It wasn’t like we took a big risk I don’t think, there was no reason to. [I’m] really concerned at the moment.”
However, it was revealed on Media Day that Juncos Hollinger Racing (JHR) had put ultra-aggressive set-ups on both their cars. VeeKay used this to his advantage, advancing into the Fast 12, but this proved catastrophic for Robb, who ran later in the heat of the day.
Robb said “We had to take a risk in qualifying, running no strakes like the rest of the field. That was a bit of a mistake, in hindsight. I think that [for] Rinus [VeeKay], it really paid out for him, with the conditions being right and the time of day and [him] being one of the first cars to go out.”
“The track temperature went up, ambient temperature went up. We just didn't have it.”
After his disastrous qualifying run, Robb was also asked whether he had lost confidence in his race car as a result. Robb said: “I’m hoping that when we put the downforce back on the car it comes alive. We should have had a better car here today.”
Robb ran the most laps of the entire field during Monday’s incident and rain affected practice session. Attention had shifted to extended race running in large groups, and with more downforce on the car, Robb told DIVEBOMB that he was really comfortable in his race trim.
“Monday was great. I felt like we race pretty well, I felt like we had a decent pace. We put the strakes back on like a normal person would. The car has natural speed, sucks up well on the straights. Trying to find the balance in the turn was good once we had the downforce back in the car.”
“We were out of that window on qualifying day. We were too trimmed for the conditions. You have to be proactive on your tools, and even when I was proactive with the tools, you get both things [oversteer and understeer] in the same turn.”
“It's pretty frustrating to have a qualifying like that because it does dent your confidence. Only having one shot really screws with your head because you don't have the chance to go redo it.”
During his career, Robb has experienced being at both ends of the Indy 500 field. In 2023, he was involved in the last row shootout, battling with the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing trio of Christian Lundgaard, Graham Rahal and Jack Harvey for a place in the field. He made the field, qualifying in 32nd.
In 2024, Robb cycled to the front after pitting under a caution. He led 23 laps, and eventually finished 16th. Robb says that his experiences at both the front and rear of the field have helped him become a more adaptable driver.
“[In] 2023, I was happy to be inside the 33. When we were in the last row, Bump Day with Jack and Graham, I remember just thinking like, please, Lord, let this happen. I just want to be in the race. I don't care where I start. We snuck it in. Obviously the race didn't go to plan because we just really lacked speed, and our balance was really bad.”
“2024 was the exact contrast. We started mid-pack, but I had a great car, great strategy, led laps.”
“I've seen both ends of the field, it seems like here, and I know that we have the potential to do well. It's unfortunate we're starting in the last row, but it's not impossible to have a decent day.”
Robb hopes to leave qualifying behind him and move forward from his 31st place starting spot in the 110th Indy 500 on Sunday.
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