Daytona Rolex 04/02/2001   Thursday Qualifying Report   © Malcolm Cracknell It was wet, they all went out to set a time, and James Weaver was on the pole for the fourth year in a row - this time by over 1.8 seconds. James may look asleep at the moment the photograph was taken, but he was on fine pole-sitting form once again. He and Jack Baldwin both found only one clear lap, so the traffic was the anticipated problem. The track became less wet towards the end, when all the quick times were set – but you did need that clear lap. “You had to be careful not to be caught by the ‘Snappers’ explained Weaver. Snappers, what are they? “You might well ask.......” He continued: “The grip was coming in quickly at the end.” Very modestly, he explained that, “this is the fourth year in a row that Rob has had his car on pole. The thrill never goes away, but sadly it (pole) has got no bearing on the race.” Jack Baldwin was just happy to be alongside his “hero.” Amazingly, until today, he’d “never driven one of these Prototypes in the rain. It’s fun. But when this guy (Weaver) sees the rain, he starts smiling. It’s an honour to be up here on the front row – it’s for the guys, who give 110%.” When the track was wetter, Weaver was still fastest, but second for a while was Norman Simon, in the #83 R&S. Perhaps its age helped him on the wet surface – a nice, old, flexible Mklll. But this guy’s talent shines out like a beacon, as regularly as he gets a chance. “We can just womble about tomorrow,” concluded Weaver. That means get the race engine in and not worry about any more quick laps. Sadly, the weather prevented an attempt at a 1:39. Perhaps someone else can go that quickly, if it’s dry? Perhaps not. The order behind these two was a fine old mixture. The Crawford was third, then came the Corvettes in fourth and fifth. Stunning speed from both. They were less than a second behind the Lista / Doran entry. “You know we are getting faster each time we go out so we are looking good for the race,” said Crawford man Didier Theys. “But you have to remember that it isn’t just the fastest car that wins – it helps to be the fastest but.....” Simon’s best remained good enough for sixth, followed by the Intersport Lola, the Risi Ferrari (no clear laps? - no, only part of the story. The team were content not to go for outright times. Brabham was thoroughly enjoying himself earlier on in the day, Kelleners staying in for the Qualifying session), EFR in #20, then the Schubot and Konrad Lolas. The Swedish Lola was fastest in SRPll in 12th, next up in this class the Spencer Kudzu in 16th. Between them were the TRV R&S and the fastest GTs – the Mosler ahaead of Lucas Luhr (on slicks) in the White Lightning Porsche. For the third time today, the massed ranks of ‘Snappers’ weren’t quickest in their class. Red Bull, the V8 BMW and the ex-Barbour Cirtek GT3R were next. The Amick AGT Corvette was fastest in AGT. The Saleen idn’t go out after an incident in the wet second free session. Paul Gentilozzi: “Given the wet qualifying procedure, we just didn’t see the need. With all the cars running together for 45 minutes, you run the risk of an unnecessary incident like what happened to us earlier today. Only the top two positions are locked in, so there’s really nothing to lose (by not going out).” That earlier incident was contact with one of the ‘Snappers.’ It blew out the back window and cracked the windshield. The car is pictured in free practice, before the incident. It was an odd arrangement for Qualifying, but at least 70 cars seem to have scraped into the race. If it’s dry tomorrow, a 130% cut-off may help some people. Times are now posted. Nothing for the Kicak Porsche or the Kumho Ferrari though. The latter was undergoing an engine change. #13. Never a lucky number for most and certainly not the number of favored chance for the Free Spirit Motorsports team at the Rolex (explains Andy Hartwell). With Skott Burkland at speed on the track during free practice, one of the wheels came apart. Frightening times for the unlucky bunch of New Jersey racers. Burkland: “Coming out of the bustop, the right rear wheel had a catastrophic failure. It broke. I hit the wall.” One look at the damage and it was easy to see just replacing the broken wheel would not do. “You are looking at between $30 and $40 thousand dollars in damage. The whole rear of the car is messed up. The right front is all messed up.” BBS representatives were looking at the wheel to try and determine the cause. But the results of their investigations will come too late for the #13 Porsche. “We are finished. We can’t fix the damage.” Copyright ©2000-©2023 TotalMotorSport