Newgarden, Kirkwood deal with rough days in Indianapolis 500 qualifying

Josef Newgarden found some solace in his inexplicable qualifying run.

At least he has a better starting position in this year’s Indianapolis 500 than last year.

Kyle Kirkwood endured a much rougher day.

His car was slow, his team was shut out of Indy’s 12-car pole shootout, making it even less likely he can cut into Alex Palou’s 27-point lead during next Sunday’s race.

Yes, it was an abysmal afternoon for the two American drivers and others on a challenging day that had the hottest air temperatures of the week, soaring track temps and some of the windiest qualifying conditions Kirkwood could remember at the Brickyard’s 2.5-mile oval.

Newgarden qualified 24th and Kirkwood will start 26th.