Nashville IRL Chevrolet Qualifying
Meira Top Chevy Qualifier for Nashville IRL Race
NASHVILLE, Tenn., July 18, 2003 - For the second straight race,
Brazilian Vitor Meira posted the fastest qualifying speed among the six
Chevrolet drivers in the starting field for Saturday night's Firestone Indy
200 at Nashville Superspeedway. On a sultry afternoon with heavy air and
high humidity, Meira drove Team Menard's Johns Manville Chevrolet Dallara
to a 201.916 mph lap on the 1.33-mile concrete oval, qualifying 15th on the
grid. Scott Dixon won his third consecutive pole with a 206.211 mph lap in
Ganassi Racing's Toyota G Force.
"We put in a good lap and the car setup was perfect for qualifying,
just like in Kansas," said Meira. "The Menard engine shop is doing great
work, and it's paying off. We're learning with every lap and every race.
"The fourth-generation Chevy is coming and that's going to be a big
step for us," Meira added. "While we have this engine we are still making
progress. We have a lot to do with the car, and I still have a lot to
learn.
Although Meira has never raced on this unique concrete oval, he did
gain valuable experience in a recent test here.
"We tested here two weeks ago," he explained. "We had a fuel
pickup problem and tested with full tanks, so we have a lot of data on how
the car will perform with a heavy fuel load."
Buddy Rice was the second fastest Chevrolet driver on the qualifying
sheet with a 199.407 mph lap in Red Bull Cheever Racing's Dallara that
placed him 17th on the grid.
"We ran in the low 200s in practice by ourselves, so with the wind
change or more moisture in the air, the track's slowed down," Rice
reported. "We trimmed out the car, so I'm not sure where we lost the speed.
We've got to make sure we have a car that can run with the front pack and a
setup that's aggressive enough that we can keep up. I think we have a solid
car for tomorrow."
Sarah Fisher, Chevy's top finisher at the preceding race in Kansas
City, will start Dreyer & Reinbold Racing's GMAC/AOL Chevrolet Dallara from
the 18th spot on the grid after her 199.085 mph qualifying lap.
"The track's bumpy in places, but conditions are fine," said Fisher.
"We usually don't race on a concrete track and, without testing, we've
been focused on setup all day. The car's working consistently and reliably
now, and we know the weaknesses we need to get around. We've picked up
performance from practice and are looking forward to driving that home
tomorrow. We're sitting as well as can be expected right now."
Robbie Buhl, Fisher's Dreyer & Reinbold Racing teammate, turned a
nearly identical qualifying speed at 199.085 mph and will start his
Purex/Aventis Chevrolet Dallara 19th in tomorrow's race.
"Despite this run, we have a good race car," Buhl declared. "We didn't
run as well as we did in practice which is frustrating. But we didn't spend
time on qualifying here. We're not going to be up front, so we've focused
on race setups and 20-lap runs. Chevy's working hard and hopefully we'll
see a different scenario in a month or so."
Sam Hornish Jr. is in position to mount another of his
come-from-behind charges after qualifying Pennzoil Panther Racing's
Chevrolet Dallara 20th with a 198.228 mph speed.
"Those weren't the numbers we wanted, but the race is what pays
the money," said Hornish. "We never really worry that much about
qualifying. This place has been known to have a few accidents, so the big
thing is to stay out of trouble and keep away from the debris. This is a
patience race. Our goal is to stay upbeat because there's hope on the way."
Buddy Lazier will ride shotgun on the field, starting Hemelgarn
Racing's Delta/Life Fitness 21st on the grid.
"We didn't get the full practice session and unfortunately missed
testing here," Lazier noted. "I was able to pull sixth gear this morning in
practice so we didn't make a gear change. I don't know whether the wind
came up or what, but we lost a lot of rpm on the qualifying run."
The Firestone Indy 200 will start at 8 p.m. EDT on Saturday night,
July 19. The 200-lap, 266-mile race will be televised live on ESPN2 and
broadcast on the IMS Radio Network.
FIRESTONE INDY 200 QUALIFYING SUMMARY:
Pos./Driver/Engine/Speed
1. Scott Dixon, Toyota, 206.211 mph
2. Helio Castroneves, Toyota 205.339
3. Tora Takagi, Toyota, 205.051
4. Gil de Ferran, Toyota, 205.010
5. Tomas Scheckter, Toyota, 204.482
15. Vitor Meira, Chevrolet, 201.916
17. Buddy Rice, Chevrolet, 199.407
18. Sarah Fisher, Chevrolet, 199.163
19. Robbie Buhl, Chevrolet, 199.085
20. Sam Hornish Jr., Chevrolet, 198.228
21. Buddy Lazier, Chevrolet, 196.819
