Law Takes Pole for California's Grand-Am Cup 250

Law Takes Pole for California's Grand-Am Cup 250

FONTANA, Calif. (March 22, 2002) -- Darren Law picked up his first Grand-Am Cup Street Stock Series pole during qualifying for Sunday's inaugural running of the Grand-Am Cup 250 at California Speedway. Law, who will also race in the Rolex Sports Car Series Grand American 400 on Saturday, piloted the G&W Motorsports #01 Jennifer Fund Porsche GT3 Cup to a 1:47.994 lap at 94.171 mph. Defending driver champion Devon Powell will start Sunday's race on the outside pole position after recording a 1:47.825 lap (94.153 mph) in the Powell Motorsports #11 Sunoco/Encompass Corvette. 

"The track is getting better as the weekend goes on. It is getting some rubber laid down," Law commented. "The corners are so tight.  Strategy will play a major part."

Sylvain Tremblay will lead the Grand Sport II class to the green flag after clocking a 1:52.408 lap at 90.314 mph in the #63 SpeedSource Porsche 911. "The car was a really good piece. It was really interesting out there. At one point, I saw three sides of a car. It added to the excitement," Tremblay remarked. 

Max Q Motorsports scored the second spot in the class when Emil Assentato drove the #63 Zippo/Tradition Mustang Cobra R to a 1:53.601 lap (89.365 mph). 

Andy Lally earned the top spot in Sport Touring I after taking the #3 Team Lexus IS300 to a 1:56.117 lap at 87.429 mph. "It is great to be on the pole.  The car is running super.  We have to keep our heads cool and enjoy the weekend," said Lally, who will co-drive with Law in the Rolex Series race. "I like California Speedway a lot.  It has a good mix of high speed and slow speed stuff. It is going to be a blast going two, three wide into turn one."

Villaconn International's #34 BMW Z3 Coupe will start second in the class thanks to Beau Buissonn's 1:56.952 lap at 86.805 mph. 

Bill Fenton's quest for his second-straight Sport Touring II victory will start at the front of the class. His #27 Acura Integra LS clocked a 2:03.840 lap (81.977 mph) to lead ST II during the qualifying session. "I knew I had to go for it, or I was not going to get the pole.  So, I threw it into every corner," Fenton admitted. "With the sun setting, you could not even see turn three. I had to drive by memory. The car was fantastic. I pushed it more than I had, but it hung in there.  This facility (California Speedway) is as good as I have ever seen."  

Wayne Nonnamaker recorded the second-quickest time in the class in the #41 HRPworld.com Acura Integra LS.  

The 250-mile Grand-Am Cup race will kickoff the racing excitement on Sunday, March 24, at 8 a.m., prior to the start of the Yamaha Indy 400 at 12:30 p.m. Tickets for the event weekend are currently available online at www.californiaspeedway.com or by calling the Speedway ticket office at 800-944-RACE (7223). Additional information about the Grand-Am Cup Street Stock Series can be found online at www.grandamcup.com. 

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EDITORS NOTE:
Photos and results are available on the Grand American media-specific website at www.grand-am.com/media. 
Additional information may be requested from: 
Grand American Road Racing Association 
Christie Hyde (386) 681-4182; email: CHyde@grand-am.com