Tim Minor Takes Pole and Resets Lap Record!
Tim Minor returned to F2000 Championship Series competition and decimated the existing VIR lap record on his way to pole position for race one!
The 2 Liter grid saw the return of Tim Minor, a previous F2000 Championship Series champion, he is a great addition to an already tight field. During Friday’s practice session the track conditions were excellent and competitors ran times that were only a single tenth of a second off the lap record, it wasn’t Minor to set the pace however, Brandon Dixon who has won several races in 2019 continued his dominance setting the fastest practice time of the weekend.
Sunny skies and hospitable mid-seventies degree weather set a stage where the qualifying record could fall. The addition of new Hoosier tires for all competitors certainly improves those chances.
Qualifying has started, and at around the eight minute mark, Tim Minor, Reece Everard, and Brandon Dixon start trading the best times. Dixon and Everard run in clean air, Minor is mired in a bit of a pack but still making good on his time out there. Steve Jenks is in fourth, only eight tenths of a second shy of the fastest time.
At the eleventh minute mark a car Bob Wright found himself in the wall and that brought out a black flag all. The recovery was lengthy, but the cars returned to action with ten minutes remaining. Bob Wright was fine, the car sustained minor damages to the rear wing.
The drivers returned to track with five minutes of green flag driving. Tim Minor still holding fast lap, Brandon Dixon second, Reece Everard in third. All three covered by only .048 of a second. Steve Jenks improved his best with only three minutes remaining, he held fourth less than two tenths of a second adrift. Corey Milne was holding the fifth spot and he continued to improve his times, but he’d need to find something special to move up.
With one minute remain Tim Minor continued to improve, and in doing so he outpaced the gaining Brandon Dixon. Minor wasn’t content though, and in running a 1:51.04 he reset the qualifying lap record by a full half second. Dixon chipped away at that lap, but with time running out he would have to settle for a second place starting position. Reece Everard continued to hold third, Steve Jenks fourth, Corey Milne in fifth, and Nick Palacio making his return to F2000 Championship Series competition found himself in sixth.