Takuma Sato has pipped reigning champion Simon Pagenaud to pole for the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway, after an utterly thrilling qualifying session around the 2.5-mile superspeedway.
Each participating driver completed two laps throughout the season in a bid to qualify for the 200-lap race, with their average speed across both laps dictating the overall classification.
As the session drew to a conclusion Andretti Autosport team-mates Marco Andretti, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Sato were the last three drivers to complete their laps, with many tipping the outfit to be extremely competitive.
However, Andretti suffered a poor run after a mistake during his warm-up lap, while Hunter-Reay was prevented from translating his superb pace in practice earlier in the day after he lost control of his car at Turn 3 and slammed into the wall.
Hunter-Reay was evaluated by IndyCar medical officials after his crash and has been transported to a local hospital for further checks.
Despite these events Sato remained calm and collected, and after the short delay following Hunter-Reay’s incident wasted no time in taking to the track and posting an average lap time of 219.639mph to secure his second pole of the season after Detroit.
Pagenaud was therefore forced to settle for second on the grid, after the Frenchman surprised many by slotting into provisional pole position during his qualifying run.
Charlie Kimball will start from P3 for Chip Ganassi Racing, after yet another impressive display of pace from the 32-year-old on an oval.
Tony Kanaan was also on fine form for Ganassi, with the Brazilian veteran keeping team-mate Kimball company on the second row in fourth.
Will Power managed to improve massively after an uninspiring start to the weekend in practice earlier in the day, with the 2014 champion set to start from P5 on the grid.
Alexander Rossi was the only other Andretti Autosport racer who managed to qualify towards the sharp end of the order, with the 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner settling for sixth.
Graham Rahal was one of the luckiest drivers on the grid during qualifying, after a right-rear puncture was discovered on his car shortly after the completion of his two laps.
Despite this puncture Rahal managed to complete his run without incident, and will line-up P7 on the grid for RLL Racing.
Gabby Chaves once again impressed many with Harding Racing, as the newest team to the IndyCar grid managed to raise eyebrows by out-qualifying the likes of Scott Dixon and James Hinchcliffe in only its third race, with Chaves occupying eighth on the grid.
Four-time champion Dixon and former Formula 1 racer Max Chilton rounded out the top 10, with Dixon in particular completing the first run at the start of the session.
Further down the order Ed Carpenter was unable to partake in the session, with the team owner missing the technical inspection line despite his team repairing his car after his incident in practice.
Carpenter will be joined at the back of the grid by Helio Castroneves and Hunter-Reay, with both drivers making contact with the barriers.
Castroneves lost control of his Penske at Turn 1 on his first lap, slamming into the wall and preventing him from completing an official qualifying run.
Points leader Josef Newgarden will start from a low-key 14th place.
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