INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) -- Due to Saturday's continuous rain showers at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, all qualifying rounds for the Indy 500 have been pushed to Sunday.
The opening qualifying round begins Sunday at noon, the top-12 qualifying at 4:30, and the Firestone Fast Six at 6:00. IndyCar drivers reacted to the first qualifying round being postponed and shared what to expect for an action-packed Sunday.
"I've just been waiting around all day, unfortunate circumstances for sure, would have loved to run today," Christian Rasmussen said. "It is what it is, so we'll get it in tomorrow. It'll be a busy day, I'm excited for it. Indy 500 qualifying is something special."
No drivers were able to get on the track on Saturday, forcing several drivers to find ways to kill time during the prolonged rain delay. For what turned out to be a boring Saturday, Rasmussen found a way to have some fun on the track's golf course.
"I've played like eight holes over at the Brickyard, so it's been a long day, we're just trying to pass the time," Rasmussen said.
IndyCar driver Jacob Abel aims to make his first-ever appearance at the Indy 500. The 25-year-old shared his disappointment after a Saturday plagued with rain delays.
"You can't control it, to be honest," Abel said. "I feel really bad for the fans, definitely more frustrated for them. We'll get out there at one point or another, and they'll let us go through the order, and we'll get our qualifying run in. Just excited for that and staying relaxed and being prepared for when that comes."
Abel was asked if Sunday would be more intense with both qualifying rounds on the same day.
"I think so a little bit, especially if they try and pack the whole program into tomorrow, it's going to be really intense," Abel said. "Just with cooling the car off and all that. I think about everything. The only one attempt that I think is guaranteed to us is going to be really intense because you only have one chance to get it right."
Abel talked more about what to expect on Sunday.
"It puts a little bit more pressure on everyone to make sure the gearing's right, the downforce, all of that," Abel said. "You kind of get just one good guess, especially with the weather changing, the winds changing, temperatures changing like crazy. It'll definitely make it a bit more interesting."
All 33 drivers will begin Sunday's practice at 9:30 a.m. before the first round of qualifying at noon.
