After the tight practice sessions on Friday and earlier in the day on Saturday, an incredibly competitive qualifying session was to be expected.
Each session saw frantic action in the final minutes with blistering fast laps marking the fall of the previous track record (held by Gil de Ferran and Dario Franchitti) multiple times.
Round 1 of Group 1 was topped by Sebastien Bourdais. Behind him, advancing as the top six were Luca Filippi, Josef Newgarden, Will Power, Tony Kanaan, and Marco Andretti. Missing out from this opening session and not advancing were Graham Rahal, Simon Pagenaud, James Jakes, Sage Karam, Gabby Chaves, and Carlos Munoz.
Rahal was upset with Karam slowing down in front of him, ruining a fast lap at the end of the session.
Following the Group 2 session of Round 1, Scott Dixon, Charlie Kimball, Juan Pablo Montoya, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Helio Castroneves, and Jack Hawksworth advanced to Round 2.
Contesting the Fast 12 to determine the Fast 6 were Dixon, Kimball, Montoya, Bourdais, Filippi, Newgarden, Power, Kanaan, Andretti, Hunter-Reay, Hawksworth, and Castroneves.
Following the 10 minute session, the Fast 6 was set. Dixon, unsurprisingly, topped the session with an incredible track record that speaks to the impact of the aero kits in their first visit to the 2.258-mile natural terrain road course of the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Behind him, Power, Bourdais, Kimball, Newgarden, and Castroneves advanced to the final session of qualifying, the Firestone Fast Six.
Each that was set to contest the Fast 6 drove a Chevrolet-powered car. Ryan Hunter-Reay, after just missing out on the Fast 6, will start seventh as the top Honda-powered entry.
In the earliest stages of the Fast 6, only the Chip Ganassi Racing pair of Dixon and Kimball and Josef Newgarden of CFH Racing were turning laps on track. In the final two minutes, things began picking up. All six had taken to the track, and Dixon, upon finally embarking on setting flying laps, was repeatedly knocking down the track record that he and Kimball had been battling back and forth for earlier in the qualifying rounds.
At the checkers, Dixon's best lap of 1:04.5814 was a blistering-fast track record, and was good enough to earn him pole for tomorrow's 90-lap event.
"It's a combination," said Dixon on what makes the Target car so fast at Mid-Ohio. "Even on that lap I [made mistakes]."
"We're starting in the right position, but as we saw last year, anything can happen," he added.
Reigning series champion Will Power of Team Penske will start beside Dixon on the front row.
"I think we just left a bit on the table through the last sector," said the Australian.
The Verizon IndyCar Series will have a final practice from 9:45 - 10:15 am ET tomorrow morning ahead of the race.
Follow @VAVELIndyCar on Twitter for coverage of Sunday's on-track action from Mid-Ohio including live tweeting during the 90-lap Honda Indy 200.
Aaron Durant is the editor of the VAVEL USA Racing section. Follow him on Twitter at @DoubleA291.