Scott McLaughlin makes his 100th NTT INDYCAR SERIES start in Sunday’s Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C.

It’s a fitting spot for the New Zealand native, who always dreamed of calling America home.

McLaughlin (photo, top) grew up a New York Knicks fan after watching NBA games as a youth. He was thrilled to see the Knicks win the NBA Finals in June.

He’s equally thrilled -- and a little astonished -- to make his 100th INDYCAR SERIES start in Sunday’s 147-lap, 250-mile race.

“It’s crazy,” McLaughlin said. “I only got reminded of that (stat) this week. It’s pretty awesome. I’ve almost been in INDYCAR longer than I did Australian V8 Supercars. I found a home here, and I love it. I’m an open-wheel driver, and I love that.

“I’ve really enjoyed myself and had a lot more success in Australia, but it’s a lot harder here. At the same time, it’s so rewarding here, as well. Not that it wasn’t in Australia, so I love it.”

McLaughlin had 56 victories and three championships in 256 Supercars Championship starts.

He has seven wins in 99 INDYCAR SERIES starts. McLaughlin is riding a 33-race winless drought, the longest of his professional racing career.

“It’d be unreal,” McLaughlin said of ending that drought Sunday in front of this audience. “I’m very proud of this race purely because I’m a new American citizen, and I don’t take that lightly. I’m very proud to be here with my family, give my family an opportunity to be here.”

McLaughlin, 33, became an American citizen in a naturalization ceremony at Indianapolis Motor Speedway prior to Opening Day for last year’s Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.

He and his wife, Karly, have a daughter, Lucy, and are expecting their second child.

McLaughlin is proud to have bought a house in North Carolina, become a dad and an American citizen. Now, he’s looking to add another milestone Sunday.

He starts third in the No. 3 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet.

“This is an Indy 500 on the street track,” McLaughlin said.

Kirkwood Pondering Palou’s Edge

Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood was pleased to qualify his No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda second.

He starts alongside Alex Palou on the front row. Palou and Kirkwood are the top two in points entering Sunday’s race, with Palou holding a 133-point advantage.

“Happy day,” Kirkwood said. “It didn’t hit the wall. That’s a good start because I did that last weekend.”

Kirkwood was caught out by a caution during qualifying last Saturday in Markham and qualified 16th. He then took a six-position grid penalty for an engine change and started 22nd.

He climbed to second on speed alone, he believed, before crashing on Lap 53 and finishing 21st.

Kirkwood had plenty of speed Saturday in Washington. He was quickest in the opening practice session and second in the second session.

Palou beat Kirkwood by .5668 of a second for the NTT P1 Award in the No. 10 OpenAI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

“Maybe some tire warmers because I thought I did everything as well as I could,” Kirkwood said when asked what he needed. “He just… yeah, I don’t know how they go as fast as they do on cold tires, but it’s been all weekend. They’ve been really strong on out-lap pace and first laps, which is typically something that we’ve been really good at.

“But it seems like they’ve been really good at it, so we’ll get back to the drawing board on that. But we’re fast nonetheless once we’ve crossed a handful of laps, which is what the race is going to be tomorrow.”

Tire warmers are prohibited by the INDYCAR SERIES rulebook. Palou said Chip Ganassi Racing isn’t using them and explained that his advantage came from qualifying in the Firestone Fast Six with no car ahead of him.

The first two rounds of the knockout qualifying format are group qualifying. The final round consists of one attempt for each car, running alone.

Palou said that was the first time all weekend he didn’t trail another car. He was second quickest in the first practice session and quickest in the second.

Marcus Armstrong

Palou Meets Artemis II Commander

Reid Wiseman, who served as commander of NASA’s Artemis II mission around the moon that captivated the world in April, will ride in the Fastest Seat in Sports on Sunday.

Wiseman met several teams and drivers Saturday, including points leader Palou.

“I’ve been lucky enough to meet two astronauts in one year,” Palou said. “Such cool guys. It’s incredible what they do for this country.”

Jeremy Hansen, a Canadian Space Agency astronaut who also was part of the Artemis II mission, attended the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge as a special guest. Palou made time to meet him in May.

Foster Driving Hurt

Louis Foster is wearing a special shoe for a bone injury on his left foot and a carbon-fiber brace on his thumb following injuries suffered in a crash in last Sunday’s race on the streets of Markham.

Foster started from the pole and led 32 laps before crashing in Turn 3 on Lap 42. He’s still feeling the effects a week later.

The British driver starts 18th in the No. 45 Desnuda Organic Tequila Honda for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

Foster said he’s dealing with skier’s thumb, an injury in which ligaments are damaged at the base of the thumb.

It’s painful, and he said the bumps of the Washington, D.C. street circuit have forced him to drive at about 70 percent.

“I don’t mind that being out there so people don’t think I all the sudden suck,” Foster said with a laugh.

Graham Rahal

Odds and Ends

  • Barry Wanser, Palou’s longtime strategist, was pleased with the pole but even more pleased with the bonus point for earning the top starting spot and first pit stall selection for next week’s doubleheader weekend at the Milwaukee Mile.
  • Santino Ferrucci has been busy this week spreading awareness of Homes For Our Troops, a nonprofit that builds homes and rebuilds lives for severely injured post-9/11 veterans. He appeared Thursday on “Special Report with Bret Baier” on FOX News. A team representative said Saturday morning that donations poured in following the segment.
  • Ferrucci has a six-position grid penalty for an unapproved engine change following the race on the streets of Markham on Sunday, Aug. 16. He qualified 22nd but will start last, 25th, because of the penalty.
  • A total of 10 championships and six Indy 500 wins are between the 13th to 17th placed starters Sunday with Will Power, Scott Dixon, Marcus Ericsson, Josef Newgarden and Alexander Rossi, respectively.
  • More than 300 guests took laps around the circuit in a Chevrolet Corvette Z06, featuring a naturally aspirated V8 engine. Sunday marks the third race at which the Chevrolet hypercar has brought the field to the green flag, joining the 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge and the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix.
  • Honda has won all five street races this season and swept the top three finishing positions in each of the last four street events. The only exception was the St. Petersburg season opener, where Palou finished ahead of Chevrolet drivers McLaughlin and Christian Lundgaard.