40 and 41 Texas qualifying report

STERLING MARLIN / JIMMY SPENCER
CHIP GANASSI RACING WITH FELIX SABATES
SAMSUNG/RADIO SHACK 500 QUALIFYING RESULTS
 
FT. WORTH, Texas (April 5, 2002) - The No. 40 Coors Light and No. 41 Target teams of Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates ran the exact same times during qualifying for the Samsung/Radio Shack 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.  Sterling Marlin and Jimmy Spencer each ran a fast lap of 28.181 seconds (191.618 mph).  Due to points standings, Marlin will start one position ahead of Spencer.
 
Sterling Marlin, driver of the No. 40 Coors Light Dodge Intrepid R/T, will start 20th on the grid for Sunday's event.  The Coors Light team is running undefeated car # 203 at Texas.  It has raced in two events - Las Vegas and Darlington - capturing a win in each.
 
"It bottomed out and got me wiggling a little bit," said Marlin following his qualifying run.  "I think we'll race good.  We are just a little bit off on our qualifying stuff.  We were two tenths off and 15th when we qualified.  We started 24th with this car at Vegas and won and we started 11th at Darlington and won.  I'd like to go three for three.  The car has never lost and we that streak won't last forever, but it sure would be nice if it'd last one more week."
 
Jimmy Spencer, driver of the No. 41 Target Dodge Intrepid R/T, will start outside of Marlin in the 21st position.  Spencer's best finish at Texas Motor Speedway is seventh and came in 1998.  
 
"We picked up a lot from practice, but that's not going to be that great of a time at the end of the day," Spencer said.  "We qualified in the top-10 every race this year, but we won't today.  We've got a long way to go on Sunday, but it's a 500-mile race.  We had this car at Atlanta and qualified really well with it.  It was a pretty good lap considering what we ran in practice."
 
"It's ironic that Sterling and I tied for the same time.  It's really incredible.  Chip Ganassi has said all along that our cars are the same and there's no doubt now that they are."  
 
The Samsung/Radio Shack 500 from Texas Motor Speedway will be broadcast on FOX on Sunday, April 7 at 2 p.m., e.d.t.