Misplaced Pages

Race details
Date	March 24, 2024
Official name	$1 Million Challenge
Location	Thermal, California
Course	Permanent circuit 3.067 mi (4.936 km)
Distance	All-Star Race 20 Laps 61.34 mi (98.72 km)
Heat 1
Pole
Driver	Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing
Time	01:38.5831
Fastest Lap
Driver	Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing
Time	01:40.7795 (lap 3)
Podium
First	Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing
Second	Scott McLaughlin	Team Penske
Third	Josef Newgarden	Team Penske
Heat 2
Pole
Driver	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing
Time	01:38.5675
Fastest Lap
Driver	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing
Time	01:39.8051 (lap 3)
Podium
First	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing
Second	Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing
Third	Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Feature Race
Pole
Driver	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing
Time	01:38.5675
Fastest Lap
Driver	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing
Time	01:41.6145 (lap 12)
Podium
First	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing
Second	Scott McLaughlin	Team Penske
Third	Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing

The 2024 $1 Million Challenge was a non-championship round held as part of the 2024 IndyCar Series. The race was held on March 24, 2024 at The Thermal Club private race resort in Thermal, California. The feature race consisted of 20 laps and was won by Álex Palou. It was the sixth American championship open-wheel racing event in Riverside County, the first since the 1983 Budweiser 500km.

Entry list

No.	Driver	Team	Engine
2	Josef Newgarden	Team Penske	Chevrolet
3	Scott McLaughlin	Team Penske	Chevrolet
4	Kyffin Simpson  R	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
5	Pato O'Ward	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet
6	Callum Ilott	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet
7	Alexander Rossi	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet
8	Linus Lundqvist  R	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
9	Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
10	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
11	Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda
12	Will Power	Team Penske	Chevrolet
14	Santino Ferrucci	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet
15	Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda
18	Nolan Siegel  R	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda
20	Christian Rasmussen  R	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet
21	Rinus VeeKay	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet
26	Colton Herta	Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian	Honda
27	Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global	Honda
28	Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global	Honda
30	Pietro Fittipaldi	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda
41	Sting Ray Robb	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet
45	Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda
51	Colin Braun  R	Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing	Honda
60	Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda
66	Tom Blomqvist  R	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda
77	Romain Grosjean	Juncos Hollinger Racing	Chevrolet
78	Agustín Canapino	Juncos Hollinger Racing	Chevrolet
Source:

Qualifying

Qualifying started at 5:00 PM PT on March 23, 2024. The 27 entries were divided into two groups determined by a random draw, with each group competing in separate heat races. Drivers were permitted to use up to 40 seconds of push-to-pass, marking the first time competitors have been allowed to use PTP during an IndyCar quali session.

Heat 1 Qualifying

• Group 1

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Engine	Time	Final grid
1	60	Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda	01:38.5831	1
2	3	Scott McLaughlin	Team Penske	Chevrolet	01:38.6068	2
3	21	Rinus VeeKay	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet	01:38.6283	3
4	45	Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	01:38.6394	4
5	2	Josef Newgarden	Team Penske	Chevrolet	01:38.7926	5
6	12	Will Power	Team Penske	Chevrolet	01:38.8056	6
7	77	Romain Grosjean	Juncos Hollinger Racing	Chevrolet	01:38.8774	7
8	78	Agustín Canapino	Juncos Hollinger Racing	Chevrolet	01:39.5994	8
9	9	Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	01:39.7074	9
10	14	Santino Ferrucci	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet	01:39.7400	10
11	26	Colton Herta	Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian	Honda	01:39.8331	11
12	18	Nolan Siegel  R	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda	01:40.1218	12
13	27	Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global	Honda	01:40.1268	13
14	41	Sting Ray Robb	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet	01:41.5352	14
Source:

Notes

• Bold text indicates fastest time set in session.

Heat 2 Qualifying

• Group 2

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Engine	Time	Final grid
1	10	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	01:38.5675	1
2	11	Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	01:38.7575	2
3	15	Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	01:38.9723	3
4	8	Linus Lundqvist  R	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	01:39.0685	4
5	66	Tom Blomqvist  R	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda	01:39.0820	5
6	30	Pietro Fittipaldi	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	01:39.1117	6
7	7	Alexander Rossi	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet	01:39.1140	7
8	6	Callum Ilott	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet	01:39.2575	8
9	5	Pato O'Ward	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet	01:39.4293	9
10	4	Kyffin Simpson  R	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	01:39.9502	10
11	20	Christian Rasmussen  R	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet	01:40.2820	11
12	51	Colin Braun  R	Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing	Honda	01:40.7843	12
13	28	Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global	Honda	No Time	13
Source:

Notes

• Bold text indicates fastest time set in session.

Results

The event started at 9:15 am PT on March 24, 2024.

Each heat race was 10 laps or 20 minutes. The top six finishers from each heat advanced to the All-Star Race. The faster of the two heat winners in qualifying earned pole for the feature race, and determined grid positioning. The feature race was 20 laps, with a half-time break at lap 10.

Heat 1

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Engine	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid
1	60	Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda	8	13:30.9622	1
2	3	Scott McLaughlin	Team Penske	Chevrolet	8	+0.4971	2
3	2	Josef Newgarden	Team Penske	Chevrolet	8	+1.7664	5
4	45	Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	8	+6.3835	4
5	78	Agustín Canapino	Juncos Hollinger Racing	Chevrolet	8	+8.7479	8
6	26	Colton Herta	Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian	Honda	8	+15.8230	11
7	18	Nolan Siegel  R	Dale Coyne Racing	Honda	8	+16.4113	12
8	14	Santino Ferrucci	A.J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet	8	+17.0148	10
9	12	Will Power	Team Penske	Chevrolet	8	+17.8747	6
10	27	Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global	Honda	8	+21.4089	13
11	41	Sting Ray Robb	A.J. Foyt Enterprises	Chevrolet	8	+21.7870	14
12	9	Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	8	+25.7655	9
13	21	Rinus VeeKay	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet	0	Contact	3
14	77	Romain Grosjean	Juncos Hollinger Racing	Chevrolet	0	Contact	7
Fastest lap: Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing) – 1:40.7795 (lap 3)
Source:

Heat 2

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Engine	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid
1	10	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	10	16:50.6089	1
2	11	Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	10	+5.3375	2
3	15	Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	10	+18.0911	3
4	8	Linus Lundqvist  R	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	10	+18.9634	4
5	30	Pietro Fittipaldi	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	10	+19.7151	6
6	7	Alexander Rossi	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet	10	+20.3456	7
7	5	Pato O'Ward	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet	10	+21.0031	9
8	66	Tom Blomqvist  R	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda	10	+23.1783	5
9	6	Callum Ilott	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet	10	+23.3908	8
10	20	Christian Rasmussen  R	Ed Carpenter Racing	Chevrolet	10	+24.1938	11
11	4	Kyffin Simpson  R	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	10	+25.8233	10
12	28	Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global	Honda	10	+26.5815	13
13	51	Colin Braun  R	Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing	Honda	10	+28.8333	12
Fastest lap: Álex Palou (Chip Ganassi Racing) – 1:39.8051 (lap 3)
Source:

All-Star Race

Pos	No.	Driver	Team	Engine	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid
1	10	Álex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	20	39:30.2292	1
2	3	Scott McLaughlin	Team Penske	Chevrolet	20	+5.7929	4
3	60	Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing	Honda	20	+9.7587	2
4	26	Colton Herta	Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian	Honda	20	+13.1126	12
5	11	Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	20	+15.0938	3
6	8	Linus Lundqvist  R	Chip Ganassi Racing	Honda	20	+16.1064	7
7	7	Alexander Rossi	Arrow McLaren	Chevrolet	20	+16.5393	10
8	2	Josef Newgarden	Team Penske	Chevrolet	20	+17.6675	6
9	45	Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	20	+19.7073	11
10	78	Agustín Canapino	Juncos Hollinger Racing	Chevrolet	20	+20.4100	9
11	15	Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda	9	Mechanical	5
DSQ	30	Pietro Fittipaldi	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing	Honda		Disqualified	8
Fastest lap: Álex Palou (Chip Ganassi Racing) – 1:41.6145 (lap 12)
Source:

Footnotes

1. Pole position for the main race was determined by the fastest qualifying time of the two heat winners.

References

1. Gintz, Alex (March 24, 2024). "Alex Palou Maintains Control, Wins at Thermal Club". Frontstretch. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
2. Barnes, Joey (March 22, 2024). "IndyCar Thermal Club: Staft Times, How To Watch On TV, Entry List & More". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
3. ^ Chapman, Simon. "ULTIMATE GUIDE: Why IndyCar's $1 Million Challenge race has so much intrigue attached". Nine's Wide World of Sports. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
4. ^ "Qualification Groups" (PDF). indycar.com. March 22, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
5. Pruett, Marshall (March 14, 2024). "IndyCar sets Thermal race format". RACER. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
6. "Qualifications - Group 1" (PDF). indycar.com. March 23, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
7. "Qualifications - Group 2" (PDF). indycar.com. March 23, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
8. "Official Final Results Heat Race 1" (PDF). Indy Racing Information System. 24 March 2024.
9. "Official Final Results Heat Race 2" (PDF). Indy Racing Information System. 24 March 2024.
10. "Official Final Results All-Star Race" (PDF). Indy Racing Information System. 24 March 2024.

• 2024 in IndyCar
• 2024 in sports in California
• 2024 in American motorsport
• March 2024 sports events in the United States