2022 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

First round of the 2022 IndyCar Series
United States 2022 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
Race details
1st round of the 2022 IndyCar season
DateFebruary 27, 2022
Official nameFirestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
LocationStreets of St. Petersburg
CourseTemporary street circuit
1.800 mi / 2.897 km
Distance100 laps
180.000 mi / 289.682 km
Pole position
DriverNew Zealand Scott McLaughlin (Team Penske)
Time00:59.4821
Fastest lap
DriverUnited States Conor Daly (Ed Carpenter Racing)
Time01:00.9868 (on lap 53 of 100)
Podium
FirstNew Zealand Scott McLaughlin (Team Penske)
SecondSpain Álex Palou (Chip Ganassi Racing)
ThirdAustralia Will Power (Team Penske)
Motor car race

The 2022 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg was an IndyCar motor race held on February 27, 2022 at the Streets of St. Petersburg in St. Petersburg, Florida. It was the season opener of the 2022 IndyCar Series. The race lasted for 100 laps.

Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske scored his first pole in qualifying and claimed his first race victory in the series over Álex Palou, after leading the most laps in the race. Will Power, McLaughlin's teammate, finished third to complete the podium.

Background

In September 2021, it was announced that St. Petersburg, Florida would host the first race of the 2022 season on February 27, 2022. This marked the first February start for the IndyCar series since the 2004 season and the earliest the season has started since 2003 (at the same circuit).[1]

Colton Herta was the defending race winner, having won the previous Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in 2021.[2]

Entrants

26 drivers entered the race, with six of them classified as rookies for the 2022 season. Four rookies made their IndyCar race debut, two of them for A. J. Foyt Enterprises: Kyle Kirkwood made his debut with the team after winning the 2021 Indy Lights championship,[3] alongside former Super Formula and WEC driver Tatiana Calderón, who secured her seat after impressing the team after a test with the team in 2021.[4] 2021 Indy Lights runner-up David Malukas debuted for Dale Coyne Racing, while Canadian driver Devlin DeFrancesco, who had finished sixth in the 2021 Indy Lights championship, debuted for Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport.

Key Meaning
 R  Rookie
 W  Past winner
Driver Team Engine
2 United States Josef Newgarden  W  Team Penske Chevrolet
3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin Team Penske Chevrolet
4 Canada Dalton Kellett A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet
5 Mexico Patricio O'Ward Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet
06 Brazil Hélio Castroneves  W  Meyer Shank Racing Honda
7 Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet
8 Sweden Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
9 New Zealand Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
10 Spain Álex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
11 Colombia Tatiana Calderón  R  A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet
12 Australia Will Power  W  Team Penske Chevrolet
14 United States Kyle Kirkwood  R  A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet
15 United States Graham Rahal  W  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda
18 United States David Malukas  R  Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Motorsports Honda
20 United States Conor Daly Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
21 Netherlands Rinus VeeKay Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet
26 United States Colton Herta  W  Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda
27 United States Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
28 France Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda
29 Canada Devlin DeFrancesco  R  Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport Honda
30 Denmark Christian Lundgaard  R  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda
45 United Kingdom Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda
48 United States Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
51 Japan Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing Honda
60 France Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda
77 United Kingdom Callum Ilott  R  Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet
Source:[5]

Practice

Practice 1

Top Practice Speeds
Pos No. Driver Team Engine Lap Time
1 28 France Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda 1:01:0525
2 26 United States Colton Herta  W  Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda 1:01:1567
3 12 Australia Will Power  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 1:01:2282
Source:[6]

Practice 2

Top Practice Speeds
Pos No. Driver Team Engine Lap Time
1 3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin Team Penske Chevrolet 00:59.7342
2 26 United States Colton Herta Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda 01:00.0851
3 60 France Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda 01:00.0853
Source:[7]

Qualifying

Qualifying classification

Pos No. Driver Team Engine Time Final
grid
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3
Group 1 Group 2
1 3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin Team Penske Chevrolet N/A 00:59.5846 00:59.5157 00:59.4821 1
2 12 Australia Will Power  W  Team Penske Chevrolet N/A 00:59.3929 00:59.3466 00:59.6058 2
3 26 United States Colton Herta  W  Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda 00:59.4662 N/A 00:59.4051 00:59.7104 3
4 21 Netherlands Rinus VeeKay Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 00:59.8046 N/A 00:59.6232 00:59.8102 4
5 28 France Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda N/A 00:59.6267 00:59.5559 00:59.8116 5
6 60 France Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda N/A 00:59.7039 00:59.5881 01:00.2041 6
7 9 New Zealand Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 00:59.8106 N/A 00:59.7579 N/A 7
8 8 Sweden Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda N/A 00:59.8815 00:59.8241 N/A 8
9 2 United States Josef Newgarden  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 00:59.9148 N/A 00:59.8862 N/A 9
10 10 Spain Álex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda N/A 00:59.8956 00:59.9584 N/A 10
11 15 United States Graham Rahal  W  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 00:59.7760 N/A 00:59.9870 N/A 11
12 14 United States Kyle Kirkwood  R  A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 00:59.8534 N/A 01:00.2616 N/A 12
13 27 United States Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda 00:59.9931 N/A N/A N/A 13
14 4 Canada Dalton Kellett A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet N/A 00:59.9521 N/A N/A 14
15 30 Denmark Christian Lundgaard  R  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 01:00.0276 N/A N/A N/A 15
16 5 Mexico Pato O'Ward Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet N/A 01:00.0021 N/A N/A 16
17 06 Brazil Hélio Castroneves  W  Meyer Shank Racing Honda 01:00.1426 N/A N/A N/A 17
18 29 Canada Devlin DeFrancesco  R  Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport Honda N/A 01:00.0850 N/A N/A 18
19 77 United Kingdom Callum Ilott  R  Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet 01:00.2121 N/A N/A N/A 19
20 20 United States Conor Daly Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet N/A 01:00.1921 N/A N/A 20
21 7 Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet 01:00.3918 N/A N/A N/A 21
22 51 Japan Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing Honda N/A 01:00.2930 N/A N/A 22
23 45 United Kingdom Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 01:00.5333 N/A N/A N/A 22
24 18 United States David Malukas  R  Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Motorsports Honda N/A 01:00.4601 N/A N/A 24
25 11 Colombia Tatiana Calderón  R  A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 01:00.9391 N/A N/A N/A 25
26 48 United States Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda N/A 01:01.0273 N/A N/A 26
Source:[8]
Notes
  • Bold text indicates fastest time set in session.

Warmup

Top Warmup Speeds
Pos No. Driver Team Engine Lap Time
1 26 United States Colton Herta  W  Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda 01:00.3283
2 2 United States Josef Newgarden  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 01:00.5971
3 10 Spain Álex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 01:00.8311
Source:[9]

Race

The race started at 12:00 PM ET on February 27, 2022.

Race classification

Pos No. Driver Team Engine Laps Time/Retired Pit
Stops 		Grid Laps
Led 		Pts.
1 3 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin Team Penske Chevrolet 100 1:51:27.3466 2 1 49 54
2 10 Spain Álex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 100 +0.5095 2 10 1 41
3 12 Australia Will Power  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 100 +2.4671 2 2 1 36
4 26 United States Colton Herta  W  Andretti Autosport with Curb-Agajanian Honda 100 +15.8442 2 3 32
5 28 France Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda 100 +18.4525 2 5 30
6 21 Netherlands Rinus VeeKay Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 100 +20.6514 2 4 13 29
7 15 United States Graham Rahal  W  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 100 +21.4181 2 11 26
8 9 New Zealand Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 100 +22.0277 3 7 26 25
9 8 Sweden Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 100 +22.3674 2 8 22
10 51 Japan Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing Honda 100 +23.2743 2 22 20
11 30 Denmark Christian Lundgaard  R  Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 100 +24.4244 2 15 19
12 5 Mexico Pato O'Ward Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet 100 +26.2750 3 16 18
13 45 United Kingdom Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda 100 +31.6687 3 23 17
14 06 Brazil Hélio Castroneves  W  Meyer Shank Racing Honda 100 +33.5985 3 17 16
15 60 France Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda 100 +34.2147 3 6 15
16 2 United States Josef Newgarden  W  Team Penske Chevrolet 100 +36.2603 3 9 14
17 7 Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet 100 +39.0361 3 21 13
18 14 United States Kyle Kirkwood  R  A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 100 +58.1240 3 12 12
19 77 United Kingdom Callum Ilott  R  Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet 100 +58.7223 3 19 11
20 27 United States Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda 100 +59.1634 2 13 10 11
21 20 United States Conor Daly Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 100 +1:00.1358 3 20 9
22 29 Canada Devlin DeFrancesco  R  Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport Honda 100 +1:02.8613 3 18 8
23 48 United States Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 99 +1 Lap 2 26 7
24 11 Colombia Tatiana Calderón  R  A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 97 +3 Laps 4 25 6
25 4 Canada Dalton Kellett A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chevrolet 62 Gearbox 3 14 5
26 18 United States David Malukas  R  Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Motorsports Honda 23 Accident 1 24 5
Fastest lap: United States Conor Daly (Ed Carpenter Racing)– 01:00.9868 (lap 53)
Source:[10]

Championship standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos. Driver Points
Unchanged 1 New Zealand Scott McLaughlin 54
Unchanged 2 Spain Álex Palou 41
Unchanged 3 Australia Will Power 36
Unchanged 4 United States Colton Herta 32
Unchanged 5 France Romain Grosjean 30
Source:[10]
Engine manufacturer standings
Pos. Manufacturer Points
Unchanged 1 Chevrolet 91
Unchanged 2 Honda 72
Source:[11]

  • Note: Only the top five positions are included.

References

  1. ^ "NTT INDYCAR SERIES Announces 17-Race 2022 Schedule". IndyCar.com. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  2. ^ Ryan, Nate (2021-04-25). "Colton Herta beats Newgarden to win IndyCar St. Petersburg - NBC Sports". MotorSportsTalk | NBC Sports. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  3. ^ "Foyt signs Indy Lights champ Kirkwood full-time for 2022". www.motorsport.com. 10 November 2021. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  4. ^ "'Others should learn from IndyCar' - Calderon on debut test". The Race. 2021-07-07. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
  5. ^ "Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Entry List" (PDF). motorsports.nbcsports.com. February 25, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
  6. ^ "Practice - Results" (PDF). indycar.com. February 27, 2022. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  7. ^ "Practice - Results" (PDF). indycar.com. February 27, 2022. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  8. ^ "Qualifications - Results (Road Course Elimination)" (PDF). indycar.com. February 26, 2022. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  9. ^ "Practice - Results" (PDF). indycar.com. February 27, 2022. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  10. ^ a b "Race - Results (11inch) - Final" (PDF). indycar.com. February 27, 2022. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  11. ^ "Points - Indycar Engine" (PDF). motorsports.nbcsports.com. March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.

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