Qualifying 1: Kanaan quickest

Kanaan's 61.264-second (81.603 mph) lap guaranteed him a front row start for Sunday's race even if he doesn't turn a wheel in final qualifying. The Brazilian's best starting position this year was second.

"When I walked the track, I knew it would be a lot like Denver," Kanaan said. "We put the Denver set-up on the car, and apart from a few adjustments, it was perfect. Then it was just a matter of putting together a good lap."

Kanaan's closest pursuer was practice pacesetter Scott Dixon. The 21-year-old improved his morning time by a tenth to 61.444s, but he was 0.18s off Kanaan's time despite a couple of brushes with the walls.

"I think everybody hits the wall once or twice during qualifying at a street course," Dixon said. "But I just bounced off and kept going."

Third went to Tora Takagi, who got his Walker Reynard-Toyota working well over the bumps.

"We struggle on bumpy circuits, so I hope I stay in the top five tomorrow," Takagi remarked. "Track conditions were worse this afternoon - the circuit was really breaking up in Turns 4, 5 and 6."

Kenny Brack, Alex Tagliani and CART championship leader Cristiano da Matta rounded off the top six, while Rockingham winner Dario Franchitti was seventh in his Lola-Honda.

"We improved the car from practice but I never got a clear lap in," noted Franchitti, who clocked a 62.369-second lap. "The track actually lost grip from this morning, if that's possible. It's like ice out there."

The track problems were exacerbated by a 42-car ALMS field and a brace of heavy Trans-Am machines. Organisers may try to fix the problem area with quick-drying concrete patches overnight.

The marbles off-line contributed to the only accident of the session. Adrian Fernandez clipped a wall with his left front wheel before ploughing into another barrier with the right side of his Lola-Honda. He wound up ninth fastest.

"I've never seen the problem this bad," the Mexican said of the crumbling surface. "I think it's a combination of rubber from the other series. The marbles are very small, very fine, and if you get off-line you're gone."

Others to encounter trouble in Friday qualifying included Michael Andretti, who locked up his brakes and stuffed his Lola-Honda into a tyre wall on his out lap. He managed 14th place in his spare, two spots ahead of his team-mate Paul Tracy, who was another driver to spin during qualifying.

Tony Kanaan Lola Honda 1m01.264s
Scott Dixon Lola-Toyota 1m01.444s
Tora Takagi Reynard-Toyota 1m02.039s
Kenny Brack Lola-Toyota 1m02.165s
Alex Tagliani Reynard-Cosworth 1m02.304s
Cristiano da Matta Lola-Toyota 1m02.348s
Dario Franchitti Lola-Honda 1m02.369s
Christian Fittipaldi Lola-Toyota 1m02.523s
Adrian Fernandez Lola-Honda 1m02.543s
Bruno Junqueira Lola-Toyota 1m02.607s
Shinji Nakano Lola-Honda 1m02.750s
Jimmy Vasser Lola-Cosworth 1m02.860s
Oriol Servia Reynard-Toyota 1m02.891s
Michael Andretti Lola-Honda 1m03.052s
Michel Jourdain Jr Lola-Cosworth 1m03.055s
Paul Tracy Lola-Honda 1m03.134s
Patrick Carpentier Reynard-Cosworth 1m04.135s
Mario Dominguez Lola-Cosworth 1m04.326s