Meira: Dark horse pole contender? (LAT photo) » More Photos

Two drivers who aren’t among the AGR/Ganassi/Penske stronghold – Meira and Scheckter – appear to have an outside shot at the pole. Meira has been fast during the limited practice time this week, notching the seventh-quickest lap overall in the No. 4T Panther Racing Dallara-Honda.

“I know we’re going to be quick tomorrow,” Meira said. “I don’t know where we’ll end up because there are a lot of fast cars out here, but we feel like we can get in the show.”

Two incidents marred Friday’s session. Alex Lloyd hit the wall and remained hospitalized late Friday with a possible concussion, and Danica Patrick’s car struck and injured a member of the Dale Coyne Racing crew. Chuck Buckman was not severely injured, but he was being treated at Methodist Hospital for a concussion and cuts to his face and scalp.

Also Friday, Jay Howard drew the No. 1 position in the qualifying order, with Briscoe in the No. 2 spot. Sarah Fisher drew the 61st and final spot.

The top 11 qualifiers at the end of the day Saturday will be locked in to the 33-car field. After 11 positions are filled, the bumping begins. With a full day of sunshine in the forecast, the final hour of the qualifying session could get interesting – and extremely busy.

“This is going to be such a mess,” Dixon said. “The problem isn’t running for the pole. The problem for those of us running for the pole is going to be the 20 or so cars running for the 11th spot. They’re going to clog up the lines, so we’re going for a safe one early on.”

Action begins Saturday with one final practice session at 9 a.m. ET. The qualifying session starts at noon and ends at 6 p.m.

Indianapolis 500 practice speeds – Friday:
Pos. Car# Driver Chassis-Engine Speed

1. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 226.968
2. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 226.710
3. (11) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 226.688
4. (6) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 226.143
5. (27) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 225.990
6. (10) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 225.674
7. (4T) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 224.811
8. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 224.744
9. (12) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 224.712
10. (17) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 224.125
11. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 224.016
12. (15) Buddy Rice, Dallara-Honda, 223.593
13. (16) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 223.549
14. (99) Townsend Bell, Dallara-Honda, 223.518
15. (06) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 223.291
16. (5) Oriol Servia, Dallara-Honda, 223.023
17. (2) A.J. Foyt IV, Dallara-Honda, 222.980
18. (14) Darren Manning, Dallara-Honda, 222.750
19. (20) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 222.559
20. (02) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 222.459
21. (8) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 222.311
22. (33) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 222.095
23. (67) Sarah Fisher, Dallara-Honda, 221.978
24. (22) Davey Hamilton, Dallara-Honda, 221.026
25. (18) Bruno Junqueira, Dallara-Honda, 220.923
26. (44) Max Papis, Dallara-Honda, 220.429
27. (25) Marty Roth, Dallara-Honda, 219.268
28. (23) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 219.030
29. (24) Jay Howard, Dallara-Honda, 218.971
30. (19) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 218.293
31. (96) Mario Dominguez, Dallara-Honda, 217.918
32. (36T) Jaime Camara, Dallara-Honda, 216.138
33. (36) Enrique Bernoldi, Dallara-Honda, 214.808