Friday qualifying can make or break a driver for Sunday’s National Championships hosted by the National Auto Sport Association, because it can put a team at a significant disadvantage, which tends to compound over the weekend. The Pittsburgh International Race Complex track can be unforgiving for racers playing catch-up, especially in classes with large fields. With lots of blind turns and elevation changes, passing isn’t easy at PittRace.
That’s why Friday’s qualifying took on greater importance for the racers looking to get to the front of the grid for the qualifying races on Saturday. It also didn’t help that the morning session — which is faster, theoretically because it’s cooler — was marked by a wet but drying track, a slight mist at times. Many of the qualifying times from the morning held throughout the day. The Q2 session was drier, but temperatures had risen, which saps power output and increases tire temperatures.
