Brian Simo Sebring qualifying

Defending Trans-Am Series champion Brian Simo of Carlsbad, Calif., qualified 16th for Friday's season opener at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Fla. But his time of two minutes 7.544 seconds on the 3.7-mile road course is not indicative of his ability. He noted technical problems slowed his qualifying time in the No. 88 Tommy Bahama Qvale Mangusta, but the Tom Gloy Racing crew did yeoman duty and brought the car up to a faster speed in the final Thursday afternoon practice.

"We're off to a slow start," Simo acknowledged. "We had a technical gremlin that we couldn't find, so we replaced everything on the car. Now we can get back to working on the race setup.

"But qualifying is behind us now, so it's time to look forward to the race. We've been in worse positions and worked back up: We did it twice here last year, when we had to come from the back of the field, so we'll just have to do it again."

-Sylvia Proudfoot