Shortly after Kyle Kirkwood claimed his maiden IndyCar pole award, his team owner Michael Andretti has labeled the sophomore driver ‘the real deal.’
Kirkwood held off five other drivers in the final Fast 6 round of qualifying at Long Beach, including his team-mate Romain Grosjean.
A key strategy call to give the Florida-native fresh tires on his final run certainly helped seal the deal, but he had been near the front of the field since his car rolled off the truck on Friday.
Andretti was pleased with the performance of his newest driver, and let it be known that he had no doubts about the capabilities of the 24-year-old
“Yeah, he’s the real deal,” said Andretti. “Happy for him. He’s been a pleasure on the team. We’re really excited, really happy for the results.
“I think the whole thing is when you feel like you have a competitive car, that’s easy to get out of that mood and get into where he is. Yeah, I had no worries about that, to be honest with you.”
Kirkwood is in the midst of his second IndyCar season, having advanced up through the series’ feeder ladder at blazing speed.
He spent his first year with AJ Foyt Racing while he waited for a seat to open up at Andretti Autosport, and joined the team having a year’s worth of experience under his belt.
Now having claimed pole in just the third race with the powerhouse team, that arrangement looks to have worked out perfectly.
“I think it was huge, to be honest with you,” continued Andretti, talking about Kirkwood’s year-long stint at Foyt. “A rookie is definitely going to make mistakes and things like that, just because you’re learning, right? By him having that year, coming to us, it worked out perfect for us.
“You see it right away, he’s competitive. Hopefully he can win a bunch of races.”
Kirkwood’s best IndyCar finish came at Long Beach last season, when he finished 10th. He will look to improve upon that on Sunday when he leads the field to the green flag for the first time.
