IRL: Texas: Cheever Racing qualifying report

Boomtown 500
Race 6 of 15, Indy Racing League Championship
Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth, Texas

Red Bull Cheever Racing on Front Row at Texas
--Scheckter on Pole, Cheever in Second-

The Red Bull Cheever Racing team dominated pole day at Texas Motor Speedway on Friday by running fastest in both practice sessions and then putting both cars on the front row of the starting grid for the Boomtown 500 on Saturday, June 8.

In his sixth oval race rookie Tomas Scheckter, 21, became the youngest driver to win pole position in the Indy Racing League. Driving the No. 52 Red Bull Cheever Racing Infiniti, Scheckter was the final driver on track to qualify. With a quick lap of 220.146 mph, he bumped teammate and team owner Eddie Cheever Jr. to second place. Cheever qualified on the outside of the front row with a 219.065 mph speed in the No. 51 Red Bull Cheever Racing Infiniti.

The pole position was the second for Red Bull Cheever Racing this season. Eddie Cheever Jr. won his first career pole at California Speedway in March.

Eddie Cheever Jr. on Qualifying

"We have been strong all year in qualifying with the Infiniti engine. This is the second pole for the team this season. It's a family affair with both Red Bull Infiniti cars on the front row of the grid. The conditions changed for qualifying. Tomas got it just right. He and Owen (Snyder III, Chief Mechanic) did a good job today. I think Indy showed we have impeccable engines for this race. We are still disappointed with what happened at Indy. We thought we had the car and the team to win. We have to be disciplined and make sure we use everything to our advantage in the race on Saturday night. It's time to start winning some races."

Tomas Scheckter on Qualifying

"I didn't know it was my chief mechanic's birthday today and forgot to buy him a present. He told me that I could just give him a pole, so 'Happy Birthday Owen (Snyder III).' It's great to be on pole. When you race in Europe the pole position is very important, so this means a lot to me. The Red Bull Cheever Racing team is unbelievable. I saw the track for the first time today. The team gave me a great car. I feel privileged to be driving here. Eddie (Cheever Jr.) has worked very hard to build this into a successful team. We have an unbelievable crew, and a great engine package with Infiniti."

Starting Lineup Highlights 1. Tomas Scheckter, 220.146
2. Eddie Cheever Jr., 219.065
3. Al Unser Jr., 218.214
4. Laurent Redon, 217.975
5. Helio Castroneves, 217.256

Race Information
The Boomtown 500 starts at 7 p.m. (CDT) Saturday, June 8. The race will be televised live on ESPN and by the Indy Racing Radio Network. Practice takes place on June 7. Live timing and scoring of all on-track activity can be found on www.indyracing.com.

Red Bull Cheever Racing, based in Indianapolis, is the brainchild of 1998 Indy 500 champion Eddie Cheever Jr. A leader in American motorsports, the Indy Racing League team is built on Cheever's experience in Formula One, sports cars and open-wheel oval racing. Corporate and technical partnerships with the world's leading energy drink Red Bull, Nissan North America's Infiniti Division, TWR Group, and Lincoln Financial Group greatly enhance the team's resources and technology. For more information, visit www.cheeverindyracing.com.

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