Although Team Penske-Chevrolet looked somewhat off the ultimate pace through practice, no one expected Josef Newgarden to be eliminated in the first segment of qualifying, and Rinus VeeKay of Ed Carpenter Racing had also looked very strong in practice yet fell at the first hurdle.
With a 27-car field, even Q1 Groups can have 13 or 14 cars on track at the same time, and around St. Petersburg’s one-minute / 1.8-mile course, that can spell disaster for anyone on a hot lap.
