Phakisa Freeway, Welkom, Saturday, January 30 – A large and appreciative crowd enjoyed the sunshine and the excitement of official qualifying for the inaugural ASA Transcontinental Series Free State 500 at Phakisa Freeway near Welkom this afternoon.

It was the veteran Geoff Bodine, a former Daytona 500 champion, who turned the fastest lap of the four 15-minute qualifying sessions, which saw the 24-car field go out in groups of six to qualify their American V8 stock cars on the starting grid for tomorrow’s 207-lap 500-km race.

The 60-year-old legend from New York State, driving a Rick McCray Chev Impala, recorded a fastest lap of 36,015 sec at an average speed of 239,9 km/h around the 2,5-km Phakisa Freeway super oval.  He will be joined on the front row of the grid for Sunday’s 13h00 rolling start by 19-year-old countryman Marc Davis from Mitchelville, Maryland whose best lap in the WHUR 96.3/The World Network/Marc Davis Motorsports Chev Lumina was 36,182 sec.

Row two will be filled by Chris Wimmer of Wausau, Wisconsin in a Philly’s Subs Chev Impala (36,506 sec) and lone Briton John Mickel, from Cambridge in England, in an RS Capp Chev Monte Carlo(36,643 sec).

Russ Blakeley from Whitewater, Wisconsin (Five Star Race Car Bodies/B&B Race Engines Ford Fusion, 36,934 sec) and fastest woman driver Toni McCray from Highland, California (Lucas Oil Chev Monte Carlo, 37,049 sec) are on row three.