Simon Pagenaud secured pole position, setting a new track record time of 58.9124 at an average speed of 109.14 mph (175.64 km/h).

[3] A second, more minor incident occurred in round 2 qualifying, when J. R. Hildebrand made contact with the wall in turn 8.

At the start, Hélio Castroneves managed to pass both Simon Pagenaud and Graham Rahal going into turn 1, giving him the lead of the race.

However, as cars approached turn 3, Dixon moved wide to avoid hitting the back of Rahal, in the process making contact with Power and forcing him into the outside wall.

Shortly thereafter, drivers began making their first pit stops, including Hinchcliffe, Alexander Rossi, and Josef Newgarden.

Several drivers began to make their second pit stops shortly thereafter, including Carlos Muñoz, Scott Dixon, and second-place running Kimball.

The running order remained the same until the leaders made their pit-stops at lap 54, when Newgarden led the entire top five into the pits.

The top five remained the same until lap 81, when Hunter-Reay ran wide at turn 7, allowing Pagenaud to move ahead for position.