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CART: Bryan Herta Qualifying Notes and Quotes, Cleveland, Saturday

2 July 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

Bryan Herta

#55 Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing Mercedes-Benz Reynard
Marconi Grand Prix of Cleveland
Round 9 of 20 on the 2000 CART FedEx Championship Series
Saturday, July 1, 2000 Final Qualifying Notes/Quotes
At Burke Lakefront Airport Cleveland, Ohio

Bryan Herta and his #55 Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing Mercedes-Benz Reynard will start Sundays Marconi Grand Prix of Cleveland from the seventh spot on the grid after a noble final qualifying effort today. Herta turned a fast lap of 57.671 seconds (an average of 131.463 mph) over the 2.106-mile temporary Burke Lakefront Airport road circuit. It marks the best qualifying position of the season for the first-year Hollywood/Mo Nunn Racing team. Herta is subbing for the injured Tony Kanaan for the second weekend in a row.

Roberto Moreno secured the pole with a fast lap of 57.436 seconds (132.001 mph) today. Sundays race begins at 1 p.m. EDT with a live broadcast set for ABC-TV.

BRYAN HERTA

"What a great effort by the guys for getting me a car that feels so comfortable to drive. Theyve had to go from one driver to another, and Tony and I have very different driving styles. This is where we shouldve been last weekend in Portland. You know, before I subbed for Derrick Walkers team earlier in the year, we were able to sneak in a day of testing before Long Beach, and that made all the difference in the world (with a fifth-place qualifying effort and fifth-place finish). Here, we did our test session, in essence, in actual practice, qualifying and race conditions at Portland. The car is finally to where I can really work with it. Theres still a lot more left in it, so well make some adjustments before warm-up tomorrow morning and see where that takes us. Its a great feeling to be in a race car, to begin with, but an even greater feeling to have a car that works well. I cant wait for the race. I love this place."

Text provided by Laz Denes

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