Briscoe on Pole for the Road Runner Turbo Indy 300

Kansas City, Kansas – After pouring rain and hail forced a condensed two-hour practice session earlier today and after a one hour break, qualifications finally got underway for the fifth race (and first oval) on the IZOD IndyCar schedule with Ryan Briscoe, who was second fastest in practice, winning the pole with a four-lap average of 212.145 mph.

After trailing Scott Dixon in practice, Briscoe made changes to his car which obviously and literally paid off. As winner of the PEAK Performance Pole Award he adds $10,000 to Team Penske’s coffers.

Last year’s Kansas winner, Scott Dixon, who was fastest in today’s practice session and who was the provisional pole sitter until Briscoe’s run, starts second. Rounding out the top five are Dan Wheldon (Panther Racing), Hideki Mutoh (Newman Haas), and Alex Tagliani (FAZZT Race Team).

The field may change as IRL officials have yet to announce Wheldon’s fate after his left tires appeared to have dipped below the white line. A two-time winner at Kansas, Wheldon believes he touched the white line--but did not go over it.

Marco Andretti’s run is also under review for falling underneath the white line. Despite showing precise consistency on his last two laps—which were identical down to the last tenth of a second—Andretti, like Wheldon, experienced problems with his rear bar causing his car to suffer from understeer.

Even if their runs are disqualified and they are sent to the back of the field, Wheldon and Andretti should not despair. Helio Castroneves, suffering the same setback last year at Kansas, ultimately placed second proving that it is possible to work through the field and be on the podium.

Echoing that notion is Danica Patrick. After a strong qualifying run, in which she almost made contact with the wall after getting loose in Turns 3 and 4, she said, “if you have a good race car, no matter what, you can make it up.”

Rookie Mario Romancini was the only driver who failed to make a qualifying run due to a damaged car. During practice he spun out in Turn 3 on his exit, making rear-contact with the SAFER Barrier.

Tomorrow’s race marks the first time in series history that four female drivers (Milka Duno, Sarah Fisher, Danica Patrick, and rookie Simona De Silvestro) compete in the same oval race. Fisher, making her first appearance this season after offering her ride to Graham Rahal, in a move that showed her maturity as a team owner, had an impressive qualifying run, managing to hug the white line.

The Road Runner Turbo Indy 300 takes places at Kansas Speedway, a 1.5-mile tri-oval, on May 1 at 1:30 p.m. (EST). Airing live on ABC, 27 cars are entered to race 300 miles over 200 laps. In Friday’s practice session all 27 cars were separated by only a half-second.

Robyn Lynne Schechter