Lime Rock: TRG qualifying report

TRG Pontiac GTO.R's Qualify Seventh and Eleventh at Daytona

Daytona Beach, Florida -- TRG drivers Paul Edwards and Marc Bunting qualified seventh and eleventh respectively for the inaugural race for the TRG Pontiac GTO.Rs to be run this evening at Daytona International Speedway.

The Brumos Porsche 250 will take the green flag at 7:30 p.m. and race into the darkness. In addition to 90+ degree temperatures, central Florida is currently receiving record rain fall. There is an 80% chance the race will see some precipitation before the end sometime around 10:00 p.m.

Paul Edwards is racing at Daytona for the first time. The young Californian ran a time of 1:57.407 with an average speed of 109 mph. "I really like the track and the place is legendary in endurance racing. I only had about 10 laps practice prior to qualifying; we had a small gear issue at the beginning and a vibration before qualifying that we did not have time to repair. The team has the fix; we will get it ready for the race and look to be competitive and at the front." Edwards is teamed with fellow GM factory driver Jan Magnussen.

The morning practice session witnessed the number 65 car driven by Bunting and teammate Andy Lally run flawlessly from the drop of the green at 9:00 a.m. through qualifying. Bunting was able to run a 1:57.957 good for a sixth row GT starting position. "We had a good morning with the new GTO.R. In qualifying I gave it all I had. The car is very comfortable to drive and handles well. We are getting beat pretty good down the straight-away. We should have a good car in the race tonight."

Team owner, Kevin Buckler, was a proud chief as the GTO.Rs took to the track for the first time in competition. "The cars really look great! Although we had a few small issues with Jan and Paul's car, we were able to get into seventh position in GT in qualifying. We are about where we expected we would be here at Daytona. The restrictor is hurting our top end around the long oval, we are about a second-and-a-half down to the faster cars at the braking point of turn one."

The 250-mile race will be televised live on the Speed Channel starting at 8:00 p.m. EST this evening.

-trg-