Qualifying Report: Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

LEXINGTON, Ohio (July 4, 2026) -- Caio Collet continues to impress in qualifying as he advanced to the Fast 12 for the second straight time in the No. 4 Combitrans Amazonia Chevrolet this afternoon at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Collet will start 11th after posting a time of 1 minute, 5.1228 seconds (124.823 mph). It is his second best start this year which has seen him advance out of Round 1

three times in his rookie season. He was not satisfied with his car in the practice sessions, so the team made some adjustments for qualifying.

“From where we were this morning, a good improvement," said the 24-year-old Brazilian. "Very, very close, just a tenth (of a second) away from the Firestone Fast Six. I think we could have done a little bit better there, with maybe executing a little bit better in the last run in the Fast 12. Overall, very happy with how we progressed from this morning. I think we have very good pace for tomorrow.”

Teammate Santino Ferrucci was also not satisfied with his car so his team made changes which Ferrucci described as "rolling the dice" since there was no time to test it before qualifying. Unfortunately, the dice came up "snake eyes" and he will start 22nd in tomorrow's 90-lap race around the 2.258-mile road course.

Ferrucci's patriotic livery, which the 14 car carries all season long, was particularly suited for the Fourth of July weekend.

“Honestly, this weekend we have not been competitive at all," Ferrucci lamented. "We’ve been working very diligently to close the gap and to be honest, we did, kind of, just that. We’ve just been struggling to find a change in the car that will give us some reaction. But what it came down to in qualifying is we were on the wrong side of one tenth of a second, which is about the rate you blink your eyes. Honestly, It's just a bit of a bummer because instead of starting in the fast 12, we start 22nd—that’s just how close it is. We’re gonna have to drive through the field tomorrow and see what we can do.”

Christian Lundgaard won the pole with a lap time of 1 minute, 4.8778 seconds (125.294mph). Rounding out the Firestone Fast Six were Pato O'Ward, Will Power, David Malukas, Christian Rasmussen and Rinus Veekay.

Teams will have a morning warmup which will be on FS1 starting at 9 a.m. ET. The 203-mile race will be broadcast on FOX tomorrow afternoon starting at 12:30 p.m. ET.

In Race 1 of the INDY NXT by Firestone doubleheader this afternoon, Alessandro de Tullio started sixth and finished sixth while his teammate Nicholas Monteiro started 19th and finished 18th in the 35-lap event which was won by Enzo Fittipaldi.

"Tough day here at Mid-Ohio," said de Tullio, who will start second in tomorrow's Race 2. "In Race 1, we were on a different strategy. We were on used tires and everyone around us, for the most part, was on new so we were just holding onto them for the whole race. Struggled a little bit with the balance but the tire difference between the guys around me really made a difference. Tomorrow, we go into the second race with new tires and hopefully it stays dry, that way we have the advantage on our side tomorrow. Starting from second, we should have a shot at the win - yeah, full send tomorrow."

De Tullio was not in the thick of the action in Race 1 of the Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio but believes tomorrow will be a different story. (INDYCAR Photo)

Monteiro, who will start 19th tomorrow in Race 2, was involved in a mid-race incident with James Roe but both drivers were able to finish the race.

Monteiro had a tough go of it in Race 1 but survived a mid-race incident to finish the race. (INDYCAR photo)

"In Race 1 in Mid-Ohio, we started at the back but we got in an incident in the middle of the race trying to pass a car," the young rookie explained, adding, "but (it's) a positive weekend-- we are learning a lot. We've got a new chassis for the car, so we'll keep pushing and we'll be ready for Race 2 and for sure it'll be better. I hope it rains because that will be a fun race."

Race 2 will be on FS1 tomorrow morning starting at 10 a.m. ET.

 Army Sergeant (ret.) Josh Holm took in the action today for his first Indy car event.