Indianapolis: Guthrie Racing qualifying notes
Solid Qualifying from Guthrie Racing An intense opening day for the Firestone Indy Lights drivers has ended and all four Guthrie Racing teammates have qualified for the Freedom 100. The field began the day at 9am with brisk ...
Solid Qualifying from Guthrie Racing
An intense opening day for the Firestone Indy Lights drivers has ended and all four Guthrie Racing teammates have qualified for the Freedom 100. The field began the day at 9am with brisk morning temperatures producing the fastest lap times of the day. There was no time to breath as the second practice followed closely at 11am. If that wasn't enough to cause stress levels to soar among the drivers, qualifying promptly started at 1pm. Within a four hour period the entire 27 car field had done all of their practice sessions and qualified for the race at hand tomorrow.
Leading the team was Logan Gomez, who will start in the 9th position. Gomez was satisfied with his effort, but is more concentrated on the race. "The Menards car was stuck to the track," Gomez said. "We specifically worked on a race setup, so that's what we qualified with."
His main area of concern on the track today was tire wear. "We have been focusing on tire conservation as it will play a major role in tomorrows race," Gomez commented. "We just want to be towards the front by the end of the race to give a good fight for the win." Sean Guthrie qualified 16th in a car that finally came to him by the days end. "We struggled during the first practice and made drastic changes for the second session," Guthrie said. "I was happy with the changes, but had no time to work on a qualifying setup so we weren't expecting much in qualifying. I'll just have to put my head down tomorrow and work my way to the front."
Tom Wieringa followed in his Guthrie Racing car to start 20th on the grid. He put in a solid performance, however his starting position doesn't reflect his effort. "It wouldn't go any faster!" Wieringa exclaimed. "The handling was great, but we were lacking on top-end speed. No problem, I feel very confident about tomorrow."
Mickey Gilbert, Guthrie Racing's newest addition to the team, drove hard but ran into some mechanical problems that hindered his qualifying effort resulting in a 22nd grid spot. "We had to run a full fuel load because of problems with the fuel pump," Gilbert explained. "The car felt great, but with the extra weight we weren't that fast. We'll be ready in time for the race, so I'm looking forward to moving up through the field."
With all of the cars prepped for the Freedom 100 tomorrow, airing live on ESPN 2 at 12pm EST, the team looks for its first win at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Guthrie Racing drivers have proven they can come from the back of the field and compete for the win as proven in Kansas and St. Petersburg, so do not expect anything less from the team in the most sought after race of the season.
-credit: gr
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