Wilson fastest at Portland

PORTLAND – Justin Wilson took the provisional pole for the Grand Prix of Portland, turning a fast lap of 58 seconds flat Friday at Portland International Raceway.

Wilson, who averaged 121.903 mph in the No. 9 RSPORTS car, finished second at Portland last year, and held the pole for the 2005 race on the 1.964-mile permanent road course.

“It flows well, and I guess I like that,” Wilson said.

Robert Doornbos, the rookie points leader, was second at 58.214 (121.455 mph) for Minardi Team USA.

Sebastien Bourdais, who has won three straight series championships, had the best practice time in the morning, but his car stalled out during qualifying practice.

He went on to qualify with the third-best lap of 58.308 (121.260 mph).

“We ended up running out of fuel, nothing major,” said Bourdais, who struggled with his car.

“For some reason the car went from acceptable to couldn’t really move, so it’s a little bit disappointing,” he said. “I hope we find something on the setup, otherwise, I have no idea.”

Bourdais is vying to earn the 100th win for the Newman-Haas-Lanigan Racing team. He won in Portland in 2004.