Pruett Puts New Jaguar AJ-V8 Engine on the Pole in Trans-Am Qualifying for Puerto Rico Grand Prix
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico With only two timed laps in his qualifying session, Rocketsports Racing driver Scott Pruett collected the pole position for tomorrow¹s Puerto Rico Grand Prix, the season finale and Round 11 of the Motorock Trans-Am Tour for the BFGoodrich Tires Cup. Pruett, who clinched his third Trans-Am championship with his win in the Motorock Miami 100, claimed his ninth pole this season with a time of 1:05:471 on the 1.6 mile, 10-turn Isla Grande airport circuit. This marks the first pole position for the new four-valve, overhead-cam, fuel-injected Jaguar AJ-V8 engine in its debut appearance in race trim. The last time a Jaguar engine raced in Trans-Am competition was in 1981. Pruett, driver of the No. 7 Motorock/Jaguar R Performance XKR, notched his 29th career Trans-Am pole, moving into second place on the all-time fastest qualifier list ahead of team owner and three-time Trans-Am champion Paul Gentilozzi. With 22 wins, including eight victories in 10 starts this season, Pruett ranks fourth on the all-time race wins chart. ³It¹s been a challenging weekend for us,² said Pruett, who won the Trans-Am Tour title in 1987 and 1994. ³We had a throttle linkage problem and it was sticking. The throttle stuck in Turn 9. I was glad to have the forethought to get my foot under the pedal to get it stopped. But the engine was just fine.² ³Yesterday, we had a hairline crack in the oil pan that was hand fabricated. So we changed the engine, and we couldn¹t get out in the second practice session,² explained Pruett. ³But everyone dug deep and we put the Jaguar XKR on the pole. ³I had only two flyer laps and we did better than I expected,² continued Pruett. ³My hat¹s off to the Rocketsports guys and Jaguar. This is very special for me to be able to give the Jaguar AJ-V8 its first pole, especially during its first outing, and to do it here in Puerto Rico.² Rocketsports stablemate Tomy Drissi, driving the No. 5 ³Stuck on You, the Movie² Jaguar XKR, will start ninth on the grid. Local hotshoe Wally Castro, driving the No. 3 Puerto Rico Lottery Jaguar XKR, is making his second start in Trans-Am competition and qualified sixth. ³The track is in beautiful shape now,² said Castro, who finished 11th in his previous start in 1996 in St. Petersburg after running as high as fifth. ³We¹ve made changes and we¹re moving in the right direction. We¹ll make some shock adjustments before tomorrow¹s warm-up session. ³The tires worked well for me,² Castro continued. ³I¹m learning more about them each time out. I expect to be a top-five contender for the whole race tomorrow.² The Puerto Rico Grand Prix will air live on PEE Channel on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 1 p.m. EST.