IndyCar driver Carlos Munoz had to be lifted from his car and was placed on a stretcher after crashing during qualifying at Phoenix International Raceway on Friday.

Helio Castroneves had the fastest qualifying lap during a day of records. He had the final of six track-record runs on the mile oval, turning a lap at 192.324 mph for a two-lap elapsed time of 38.2604 seconds for his 46th career pole.

Munoz lost control of his car in Turn 1, spinning it up the banking into the wall. The back end of Munoz’s No. 26 Andretti Autosport car slammed hard into the wall.

Munoz was alert when medical personnel arrived, but the Colombian appeared to be in considerable pain as he was lifted out of the car onto a stretcher and taken to the infield medical center.


Munoz was released after being evaluated for soft tissue injuries to his legs. He said his knees were sore, but he was looking forward to getting back into the car.

Tony Kanaan will start on the front row with Castroneves in Saturday night’s 250-mile race, the first at PIR since 2005.

IndyCar driver Helio Castroneves celebrates Friday after winning the pole for the Phoenix Grand Prix. (Christian Petersen / Getty Images)

Juan Pablo Montoya, winner of the season opener at St. Petersburg, qualified third after originally breaking the track record on both his qualifying runs.


Charlie Kimball qualified fourth, Ed Carpenter fifth and Scott Dixon sixth. More than half the field unofficially eclipsed Arie Luyendyk’s 20-year-old track record during practice.