Montoya Breaks Pocono Track Record

Juan Pablo Montoya Last Started on Pole at Surfers Paradise in 2000

It had been 5012 days since Juan Pablo Montoya won his last IndyCar pole position. A little past halfway through Montoya's return season to IndyCar, the Colombian will lead the field to the green flag for Sunday's Pocono 500. With a two-lap average of 223.871 MPH, Montoya defeated Team Penske teammate Will Power by 0.0525 seconds for his 15th career pole. On the outside of row three will be Colombian rookie Carlos Muñoz, the top Honda. Muñoz was the last car to break the 223 MPH, two-lap average.

It will be an all-Honda row two. Takuma Sato will start fourth with Andretti Autosport teammates Marco Andretti and James Hinchcliffe joining the Japanese driver. Brazilians Hélio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan qualified seventh and eighth respectively. Ryan Hunter-Reay qualified on the outside of row three in ninth.

Ryan Briscoe will be on the inside of row four. To his outside will be Schmidt Peterson Hamilton Motorsports teammates Simon Pagenaud and Mikhail Aleshin. The first four rows were covered by 0.9633 seconds. Ed Carpenter qualified thirteenth with fellow American Graham Rahal fourteenth. Defending Pocono winner Scott Dixon qualified fifteenth. The New Zealander started seventeenth last year on his way to victory. Justin Wilson was sixteenth quickest, sandwiched between the Ganassi teammates of Dixon and Charlie Kimball.

KV Racing teammates Sébastien Bourdais and Sebastián Saavedra were eighteenth and nineteenth. Carlos Huertas rounded out the top twenty. Josef Newgarden had an accident in qualifying and will start twenty-first. Jack Hawksworth did not make a qualifying attempt after an accident in second practice totaled the Brits chassis. He will start twenty-second.

NBCSN's coverage of the Pocono 500 begins tomorrow at noon ET. Green flag is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. ET.