With the IRL IndyCar Series preparing for pole qualifying at Indianapolis, ESPN's Marlo Klain breaks down what to expect.

What does winning the pole mean?
It's the first race to win here during the month of May. It's a race in and of itself. Obviously, there are a certain number of teams every year you know are going to make a run for the pole.

There's going to be someone who kind of surprises you and jumps up there, like Greg Ray did a couple of years ago when he had that great run going when he ran out of fuel and ended up having to qualify another day and started back in the field. There's always that surprise of pole day and there are always those teams that put a lot of effort into it because when you talk about the pole, you're the person who has the bragging rights for two weeks before the race.

That's a big deal to these guys. You're the guy who is interviewed constantly. 'You're the pole-sitter, you're the pole-sitter, you're the pole-sitter.' It is a big deal. It's the first race to win here during the month of May.

What race-day advantage does starting from pole provide?
Nothing. You can win Indy from the middle of the last row. It's such a long race that you can work your way back up. So as far as where you start this race -- starting from the pole doesn't make that much of a difference.

What have we learned from practice this week?
Chevrolet is as far behind as everyone expected. Toyota and Honda are the ones that came here well-prepared -- they have the horsepower going into the pole and going into the race.

The Chevy teams are absolutely struggling at this point. They are very frustrated. I talked to Sarah Fisher on Wednesday and she said she had absolutely the worst day of her career in the car. The Chevy teams are frustrated. They are trying to get the most out of what they have, what they've been given.

I think what they are lucky about now is that the car count is very low going into this race. I talked to one Chevy driver Wednesday who said, 'You know what? We don't need any more Toyotas or Hondas coming out of the woodwork, because that's just one more Chevy that's not going to make the field.' Those are the cars that are going to get knocked out.

Can Chevy improve in two weeks?
There are some teams that claim Chevy has found something -- or are hoping they have found something. Obviously, they can hope for all they want. But that's the same time that Toyota and Honda have on the track also to make gains. So I think they are in a very difficult position right now going into qualifying. The race could be a whole different matter.

Any surprises? Ray was fourth in practice Wednesday
I think with Greg Ray -- he'll always get the speed. That's not a problem for him. He's also got a Honda engine. This is the old Blair Racing team and Treadway. Treadway has had a lot of success here in the past. His engineer is the guy who engineered Scott Sharp's pole-winning car here.

I think he's got a good foundation of people with that team. This is only going to be their second race, but there is a lot of experience on that team. And if there's someone who can be an owner and driver and get it done, it's Ray. He's a very intense person and I think he can make that happen.

	Kanaan, right, could find his way to the pole in an Andretti Green car.

Anything to watch for this weekend?
I think it's going to be a very interesting pole run. You have Gil de Ferran, who is running very fast after being injured and having to sit out Japan and testing here. I think de Ferran has a good shot at the pole.

You can look at any of the Andretti Green guys. You certainly have to watch out at Sharp, who has been quick here all week. Potentially, this could be the most wide-open in a couple of years in terms of having a couple teams battling for the pole. But within those teams there are a lot of drivers who could win the pole.

As for a pole-winner, I'm torn between de Ferran and Tony Kanaan.

How much would a pole mean to de Ferran after his bad luck?
He's so businesslike. It would mean a lot for him to win the pole here, but he has the race on his mind. It'd be great to sit on pole, but he's one guy who wouldn't say, 'Yeah, that's the most awesome thing!' His attention would be all on the race.

With injuries and replacement drivers, Michael Andretti's been thrown into the ownership fire. How has he done thus far?
I've been unbelievably impressed by him as an owner. I even asked Andretti when he announced he was becoming an owner, 'Why would you do this?' If someone had said he's going to retire, I wouldn't have said, 'I'm sure he's going to want to be in the office every day and doing all the little ownership things.'

I think in the end, they have a really good mix with that team where Andretti still lives at home in Pennsylvania. He does come to the office. He's not an absentee owner by any stretch of the imagination.

But with what that team has dealt with this year -- they got off to an amazing start with Kanaan winning the pole at Homestead. Then they admitted they needed to figure things out in regards to tire wear, which is what cost them the race there. Kanaan then won the pole and race in Phoenix. They then went to Japan where Kanaan was battling for the lead and having another strong race -- before crashing. They've been unbelievably impressive.

They've dealt with the Dario Franchitti situation. Then Andretti puts his dad in the car and he has this amazing flip, which I think definitely shook up Michael more than it did Mario. I have been impressed by Andretti and how he has held the team together. You walk into that garage and you have four different crews, a lot of different drivers -- they have extra ones, standby ones, the regular drivers -- it's a great atmosphere every time you walk in that garage.

The one thing I'll say about Andretti is that I've now covered him for several years and this is the most relaxed I've ever seen him. You would think he'd more intense because he's got his ownership duties and his farewell tour in Indianapolis, where he's going into his last race. But he is so relaxed. He's got a smile on his face every time you walk in there.

That's what I'm more impressed with him than any other time because of how he's managed to keep it together. But he also has Kim Green, who has been around the team for a while. Barry Green is walking around here. And Kevin Savoree. It just seems to be working for them.

Marlo Klain covers open wheel racing for ESPN.