Memphis: Kurt Johnson Friday summary

KJ Is No. 1 on Friday in Memphis

Despite blistering midsummer temperatures that handicapped the normally aspirated "factory hot rods" Kurt Johnson and the ACDelco Cobalt Racing team continued their string of strong performances during Friday's opening qualifying sessions for the O'Reilly Mid-South Nationals in Memphis, TN. After opening with a class-leading 6.831-second, 202.21 mph pass in the afternoon time trial, Johnson came back in the evening to rocket down the Memphis Motorsports Park quarter-mile in 6.787 seconds with a top speed of 202.85 mph to claim the No. 1 position midway through qualifying.

"That was a tremendous run for our ACDelco Cobalt, especially given the conditions. It was straight as a string, didn't do anything crazy, kept the front end on the ground, and ran well to sixty feet.

"We've been trying a couple new engine components, and, ironically, the corrected numbers are off where we'd like them to be. Although we should be running a little quicker, when you're quicker than everyone else, it doesn't really matter.

"Although we're pleased with the performance, we have to make sure we stay consistent in the heat tomorrow, getting ready for Sunday."

-j2r-