Pole Qualifying At Glen

By Joe Jennings
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Updated: July 5, 2008

Team Penske’s Ryan Briscoe survived three rounds of knockout qualifications to win his first PEAK Motor Oil Pole Award in the IndyCar Series since 2005.

Briscoe survived the unique qualifying format narrows the field from 26 to 12 to six. In the Firestone Fast Six session, Briscoe surpassed Justin Wilson in the final minute of the 10-minute session with a lap at 1 minute, 29.3456 seconds, 135.787 mph.

“It came down to the last lap,” Briscoe said. “The team was telling me on the radio how we were progressing through the lap. There were one or two quicker lap times by other drivers, then all of the sudden they said, ‘You’re P2. P1 is a 1:29:38.’ I knew I had to pull it all together. I’m really happy for Team Penske and all the effort they’ve put in to getting the car ready. It was a great last lap, and it’s great to be on the front row with Justin Wilson. After seeing how this race can play out, it’s a big help to start on the pole.”

Qualifying took place in three segments: two groups of 13 cars went out in 20-minute segments, the fastest cars from each group advanced to a second 20-minute round and the overall fastest six were given 10 more minutes to determine the pole position.

Watkins Glen International announced it will be the first major U. S. motorsports facility to use renewable energy to fulfill all its energy needs. WGI purchased 1.03 million kWh of Green-e certified renewable energy credits, which is equal to 100 per cent of its projected energy use. Juice Energy, Inc. helped with the purchase and arranged for WGI to be powered by wind turbines from across the US.

“This is a major milestone for motorsports facilities,” said Craig Rust, president of WGI. “As the premier road racing facility in North America, we are proud to be the most environmentally conscious as well.”

indyracing.com media contributed to this report