Race Date May 23, 2004

Monterrey, Mexico (May 22, 2004)Sebastien Bourdais (#2 McDonald’s Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) led Friday Champ Car qualifying for Sunday’s Tecate/Telmex Grand Prix of Monterrey, but due to new qualifying rules run on Friday, the Newman/Haas driver was not automatically locked into a front-row starting spot – as had been the rule previously.

Undaunted, he went out Saturday and made his own rules, leading a group of six drivers that set a new track record around the 2.104-mile Fundidora Park circuit, pacing final qualifying with a time of 1:13.915 (102.474 mph) to score the pole for Round 2 of the Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford campaign.

Bourdais earned his first pole of the year and the sixth of his young career in leading Saturday’s qualifying, setting his new track mark with 16 minutes to go in what was one of the most electrifying final sessions of the past few seasons. Bourdais and Mario Dominguez (#55 Herdez Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) traded fast laps like a pair of welterweights throwing punches midway through the session as the winners of the last two Jim Trueman Rookie of the Year Awards swapped the top spot four times in a span of three minutes.

The flurry was halted when Roberto Gonzalez (#21 Nextel Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) spun and crashed near the pit entrance, leaving Bourdais atop the speed sheets when the green flag waved with 11 minutes to run in the 35-minute session. But no one would approach the lofty time set by the Frenchman, leaving him to lead the field to the green in Monterrey for the second consecutive campaign. Dominguez would settle for second after putting up a fast lap of 1:14.343 (101.885 mph), earning the best starting spot of his three-year Champ Car career. This marks the first time that Dominguez has started in the top two rows, with his previous best starting spot being a fifth earned at Elkhart Lake.

The track record book came under fire early and often on a warm day in Monterrey as Justin Wilson (#34 Mi-Jack Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) needed just eight minutes to establish a new mark on a day where six drivers would better the existing track standard. Wilson would be the only driver to make a major move in the final minutes after the Gonzalez crash, vaulting to the third spot on the grid with a top lap of 1:14.354 (101.869 mph). The third position marked not only the highest starting spot of Wilson’s young Champ Car career, but also the best ever for a driver from the second-year Mi-Jack/Conquest Racing stable.

Champ Car reverted back to the previous qualifying format after experimenting with some changes on Friday and the move provided immediate action when the final session started. Wilson, Michel Jourdain Jr. (#9 Gigante Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) and Tarso Marques (#19 American Medical Response Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) took advantage of a clear track to post early times, with Nelson Philippe (#17 LeasePlan Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) and Ryan Hunter-Reay (#4 Herdez Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) following close behind.

It wasn’t long before the majority of the field joined the early entries, leading to a flurry of action for the large gathering of Monterrey fans. Patrick Carpentier (#7 Indeck Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) and Bruno Junqueira (#6 PacifiCare Ford-Cosworth/Lola/Bridgestone) each flirted with the top spot briefly in the first half of the session but were soon relegated to the top five as Dominguez and Bourdais went to work.

Junqueira would eventually settle for fourth, marking the best starting spot of his four Monterrey starts as he posted a time of 1:14.405 (101.800 mph). Carpentier held on for fifth to also set a new personal Monterrey best grid position. Defending race winner and series points leader Tracy will start alongside Carpentier in the sixth spot.

Courtesy Champ Cars PR