Tony Kanaan posted a four-lap average of 227.566 m.p.h. to win the pole for the 89th running of the Indianapolis 500. It was Kanaan's first Indy 500 pole, his first pole of the season and sixth of his IndyCar career. "Its a good start, but what I want is on May 29th," said Kanaan. "This team worked so hard and I have to thank everybody. We have good race cars and we keep working together." Scott Sharp was the first driver to post a qualifying time, going out just five minutes into the session. His speed was 227.126 m.p.h. Sam Hornish Jr. was the next out and he could only put up a mediocre speed of 225.847 m.p.h. Kanaan then put up the laps to beat - a stunning 227.566 m.p.h. All eyes turned to the eighth driver out - Danica Patrick, who had been one of the fastest cars all month. But on her first lap the No.16 Honda got loose and the lap came in at just 224.920 m.p.h. She gathered herself and put together three great finishing laps for a final average of 227.004 m.p.h. Good enough for a provisional third on the grid. "We just missed it a little bit," said Patrick after the run. Its frustrating because I've been quick and I want to be pole, I don't want to be third." Fortunately under the new qualifying rules, Patrick and all the drivers got to make three qualifying runs per day, if they wish, instead of the old rules which allowed a maximum of three runs for all four qualifying sessions. Others took their aim at Kanaan, but none could better his time. Helio Castroneves (227.077) was the only other driver to break the 227 m.p.h. barrier. After about an hour with no one making an attempt, Sam Hornish Jr. went out for a second try. This time was much better - 227.273 m.p.h. and second-best overall. Two other drivers were so dissatisfied with their runs that they withdrew their times. Dario Franchitti, who was seventh at the time, decided to take another stab at a pole. He came up short, but jumped up one spot to sixth. Then just before the deadline, Castroneves decided he really wanted to sit on the pole and withdrew his fourth-best time. He gave it his all, but slipped one position to fifth behind Patrick. Under the new format, positions 1-22 were determined today. The slowest qualifying speed came from Alex Barron, who earned the last spot with a four-lap average of 221.053 m.p.h. "The big thing here, and what everybody's going to be fighting for, is nobody wants to be 23rd," Fernandez Racing managing director and co-owner Tom Anderson said. "You want to get in the first week of qualifying. That 22nd spot is going to be important, so there's tremendous drama added to the format this year." Positions 23-33 will be set on the third day, May 21st, and "Bump Day" will take place the following day. Dan Wheldon, who leads the 2005 IndyCar title chase through the first four events with 184 points and three wins, was just 16th fastest. Last year's pole and Indy 500 winner Buddy Rice did not attempt to qualify this weekend after crashing on Wednesday afternoon. The No.15 Rahal-Letterman Racing Honda won the 2004 pole with a four-lap average speed of 222.024 m.p.h. The race is scheduled for Sunday, May 29th.