Up and down day for Patrick.

Visteon/Patrick Racing's Jimmy Vasser qualified a season high fourth while team-mate Roberto Moreno will line-up 15th for tomorrow's Miller Lite 200 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.

Vasser, driving the #40 Visteon/Patrick Racing Toyota Reynard, started the day third on the combined speed chart following Friday's twin practice sessions with a fast time of 66.788 seconds (121.710 mph). In Saturday morning practice the Visteon/Patrick Racing team experimented with some ideas, which resulted in speed gains. Vasser's quick lap in the morning practice was 66.496 seconds (122.247 mph), which was the sixth fastest time of the session.

In qualifying Vasser ran in the second or "fast group" because he is in the upper half of the point standings. He clocked his fastest time of the weekend in qualifying turning a lap of 65.931 seconds (123.293 mph). In addition to being the fourth fastest time of the day, Vasser was able to close the gap between himself and the top spot by over .1 of a second.

"The #40 Visteon/Patrick Racing Toyota Reynard was very good in qualifying," Vasser said. "It was very competitive out there today so a couple of tenths was really important. I thought I had a lap that was a couple of tenths faster, but somehow I lost time in the last corner. The Visteon/Patrick Racing team did a good job this weekend preparing the car. Overall we are happy starting fourth on the grid, but the main thing is to have a good race tomorrow and score a lot of points so we can get our season back on track," Vasser concluded.

Vasser has now qualified in the top-10 seven times in 13 attempts this season. In ten appearances at Mid-Ohio this is his second highest starting position. His best qualifying position is second in 1996 and 1998. Vasser has now qualified in
the top-10 seven times and in six of his last seven races at Mid-Ohio.

Currently tenth in the 2001 FedEx Championship Series standings with 50 points, Vasser is just a "hot streak" away from rejoining the top-five in the point's race.

Moreno, behind the wheel of the #20 Visteon/Patrick Racing Toyota Reynard, did not fair as well as is team-mate despite making equally significant gains in practice. Starting the day 12th on the combined practice report with a fast time of 67.280 seconds (120.820 mph), Moreno improved to 66.871 seconds (121.559 mph) in morning practice placing him 11th on the speed charts. In qualifying he ran with the first group and continued to get faster running a quick time of 66.550 seconds (122.146 mph). However, on the next lap, which the computer had him running between .2 and .3 seconds faster, his foot slipped off the brake pedal and onto the accelerator launching him on an off-road excursion. The problem occurred when the sand paper that is attached to the brake pedal to prevent the driver's foot from slipping while battling the twisting corners with their elevation changes on the challenging 2.2-mile permanent road course, peeled off. Although Moreno was able to regain enough control to prevent significant damage to the car, the incident ended his qualifying session.

"The Visteon/Patrick Racing team did a good job today and the whole weekend," Moreno said. "We have improved the car every session and we had a good qualifying effort. I was able to run my fastest time of the weekend in qualifying, which is what you want to do. I had a problem on what should have been my fastest lap when my foot slipped off the brake pedal and hit the accelerator. I was able to get back on the brake, gain control of the car and slow down before I hit the tires otherwise it would have been a big crash. The lap looked like it was going to be a good one so that is unfortunate," Moreno explained. "Overall the #20 Visteon/Patrick Racing Toyota Reynard is a very good, very quick car so I am looking forward to tomorrow's race," Moreno concluded.

Vasser's fourth place starting position is Patrick Racing's second best qualifying effort at Mid-Ohio in 26 attempts. The team's best starting position is third (Emerson Fittipaldi - 1986). Patrick Racing has now qualified in the top-10 13 times at Mid-Ohio. They have finished in the points 17 times with 15 top-10 showings, nine top-five finishes and two wins (Fittipaldi - 1988 and Adrian Fernandez - 1998).