Emotional Exit: Jacob Abel Out After Tense Last-Chance Duel at Indy
A dramatic 60 minutes of last-chance qualifying for the 2025 Indianapolis 500 came to an end late on Sunday afternoon, and when the dust settled, it would be Dale Coyne Racing rookie Jacob Abel remaining as the odd man out. Abel and DCR teammate Rinus Veekay traded the bottom spot on the timing charts throughout the majority of the session, with the Louisville native finding himself unable to emerge on top, and ultimately bumped from the Indy 500.
Just on the right side of the cut, Veekay described his emotions as “relieved but no real happiness,” after qualifying over 20 spots lower than his previous worst start for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
“We were just very slow, both Jacob and I,” Veekay told FOX Sports shortly after the conclusion of the session. “Unfortunately, it was one of the two that was gonna go out. You know, Jacob’s not just a teammate, he’s a really good friend, so I feel bad for him.”
For the second straight year it would be a rookie for Dale Coyne’s team being eliminated from contention for the Indy 500 a week early, with the team now only having one driver qualify inside the top 30 since 2023, being David Malukas, who set a speed good enough for 23rd back in 2023. For Coyne, seeing his pair of drivers pitted against one another for the final spot was a hard thing to watch, and a hard thing to manage as an owner.
“This is like playing chess with yourself,” Coyne told FOX Sports. “They didn’t have (hybrid system) regen the first qualifying run. So, we thought they’d go a little quicker with the regen, but we went a little slower.”
The curious decision to send Veekay out for a second run when he was provisionally fast enough as it was temporarily caused concern that he might end up being knocked out. Fortunately for the Dutchmen, his teammate was also slower on the second attempt than the first, several miles per hour off what the majority of the field was setting.
Marco Andretti and Marcus Armstrong also participated in the shootout for the final spots in the race, both advancing through in a singular run after rough starts to the weekend. Though far from smooth, they were able to put together better runs than the Coyne duo, locking themselves into 31st and 32nd for the race respectively. The situation, though far from ideal for 2020 polesitter Andretti, left him feeling thankful to be in the Indy 500 at all.
“Never thought I’d be happy with 31st but today I am,” Andretti posted on social media. “Proud of the 98 group!”
For Abel, the focus now begins to shift towards the remainder of his rookie campaign. Though off to a rough start, Abel proved in the Indy NXT by Firestone series last season that he has the ability to make vast improvements with time. As for the other 33 drivers now officially in the 109th Indianapolis 500, it’s full speed ahead to race day next Sunday, where only one can win the battle at the Brickyard.
writtn by Owen White / Media Credit: Penske Entertainment