PORTLAND, Oregon – Marcus Armstrong delivered a statement run in Saturday morning’s 2nd practice for the 2026 OnlyBulls Grand Prix of Portland, leading a dominant showing by Chip Ganassi Racing and Meyer Shank Racing ahead of qualifying at Portland International Raceway.
Armstrong put the No. 66 Meyer Shank Racing Honda at the top of the timing charts with a 58.298-second lap on Firestone’s alternate tire, edging championship leader Alex Palou by more than three-tenths of a second.
Practice Results
The session provided a major change from Friday’s opening practice, when Palou led the field. This time, Armstrong showed the single-lap speed needed for qualifying while Palou remained the fastest driver on the harder primary tire.
Palou in the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda finished P2 overall at 58.610 seconds, followed closely by Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon in the No.9 Honda, who recorded a 58.640 lap. Meyer Shank Racing’s and Indy 500 champion Felix Rosenqvist in the No. 60 Honda completed the top 4 with a 58.669, giving the Ganassi-affiliated organizations the first four positions.
The result was particularly encouraging for Armstrong, who had been involved in a Turn 1 incident during Friday’s opening session. The New Zealander bounced back in impressive fashion, putting together the fastest lap of the weekend to that point when it mattered most.
Ganassi Shows Its Strength
Palou’s 2nd place effort continued what has been an exceptionally strong Portland weekend for the championship leader.
After topping Friday’s opening practice with a 58.5716, Palou again demonstrated that the No. 10 Honda has strong underlying pace on the Portland road course. His Practice 2 lap came on primary tires, making the performance even more significant as teams prepared for qualifying.
Dixon’s 3rd place result further strengthened Chip Ganassi Racing’s position at the front of the field.
With Palou and Dixon both near the top of the order on primaries, Ganassi enters qualifying with one of the strongest overall packages on both tire compounds.
Malukas Leads the Chevrolet Charge
David Malukas in the No. 12 Team Penske entry was the fastest Chevrolet-powered driver, placing P5 for Team Penske with a 58.746-second lap.
Marcus Ericsson followed in P6 for Andretti Global at 58.772, keeping the No. 28 Honda within half a second of Armstrong’s benchmark.
The tight margins suggest qualifying could produce a highly competitive fight for the front of the grid, particularly with the alternate Firestone tire expected to play a major role in the battle for pole.
“I think Armstrong did ourselves all a favor by going out here in the previous group on the reds and went P1,” Andretti Global driver Marcus Ericsson said. “I think that’s correct. I think that was really good for us to see that tire should be quicker over a lap.
“Obviously, the bigger question mark is tomorrow, the race tire. Is it a red or black race? I think that’s a big question mark we’re all going to have to try to figure out.”
VeeKay’s Turn 1 Trouble
Rinus VeeKay’s session was a mixture of speed and frustration.
The Juncos Hollinger Racing driver in the No. 76 Chevrolet showed strong pace early but became another victim of Portland’s difficult Turn 1, making contact with the inside barrier and damaging his car.
After repairs, VeeKay returned to the track and eventually posted a 58.931, good enough for P5 during the early full-field portion of the session before the late qualifying simulations reshuffled the order.
Will Power in the No. 26 Andretti Global Honda also showed strong pace during the opening portion of Practice 2. The two-time defending Portland winner briefly moved to the top of the charts late in the first 40-minute segment with a 58.828, ahead of Christian Lundgaard’s 58.840 in the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.
Power ultimately finished outside the overall top six once the split-group sessions and alternate-tire runs were completed.
Foster Continues to Impress
Louis Foster in the No. 45 RLL Racing Honda continued to be one of the surprises of the Portland weekend.
The Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing rookie led much of the opening portion of Practice 2 after finishing P5 in Friday’s first practice. Foster posted a 58.860 before the late-session qualifying simulations pushed him down the order.
Nolan Siegel also impressed early, briefly sitting second with a 58.903 as the young drivers continued to make their presence felt at Portland in the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.
Up Next: NTT P1 Award Qualifying, 7 PM/ET
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