Pigot Delivers Third Consecutive Pole for Rising Star Racing at Barber
Rising Star Racing teammate Neil Alberico was not far behind in the No. 2 Bondurant School/eFormulaCarNews.com/J&M Trophy Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing entry as the series rookie netted his best qualifying result to date with a fast lap of 1:21.3622-seconds earning him a spot on the inside of row two for Race 1.
It’s the second consecutive pole for Rising Star Racing’s Pigot who also took the pole position in the two season-opening rounds through the streets of St. Petersburg last month.
Pit lane position is determined by championship point order and with Pigot holding the championship lead, he had the advantage as he took to the track first in line for the qualifying run. Setting quick laps each time by, the Juncos Racing team called him to pit lane for fresh rubber with about 12 minutes to go in the session. It was then that Pigot took to the track to shave nearly one more second off his fastest time, clinching the pole on Lap 14.
“It’s great to be on pole here at Barber," said Pigot after receiving his Cooper Tire Pole Award. “We struggled a little bit in practice but the Juncos Racing guys did a great job figuring out exactly what we needed to adjust and gave me a great car for qualifying. I think we can make it even better. So we’ll just keep pushing and hopefully we can keep the lead on the start and have a nice easy drive tomorrow. But I don’t think it will be as easy as St. Pete! The Rising Star Racing guys have been incredible and it’s been a great opportunity to have them here with us at both races so far this season."
Similarly, Alberico ran among the top-five through the opening stages of the qualifying session with his Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing team opting to mount fresh tires a bit earlier in the session during a red flag period. Making the most of his new tires, Alberico set out to turn some quick laps around the 2.3-mile twists and turns of the Alabama road course. He set his fastest lap on Lap 13 – missing the pole time by just a tenth of a second.
“We struggled a little bit in practice but we figured it out when it counted," offered Alberico. “We used new tires for the first time in a while so it was good to go fast and be competitive. We missed pole by just a little bit but we know our team is up there and we’ll go for the win tomorrow. Art (Wilmes, Rising Star Racing) showed up right before qualifying which gave me a bit of good luck and hopefully we can bring Rising Star Racing another win tomorrow!"
Rising Star Racing drivers Pigot and Alberico will return to the track tomorrow morning at 11:00 AM (CT) for Pro Mazda Race 1.