Fisher

NAZARETH, Pa. -- Sarah Fisher went from being the IRL's most popular driver to sitting on the sidelines for the season's first three races when team owner Derrick Walker couldn't find a new sponsor after Kroger pulled out.

But the termination of Fisher's contract with Walker last week made her available to drive this weekend at Nazareth as a replacement for Robbie Buhl, who is still recovering from a concussion suffered in a qualifying accident at California.

Fisher took her first laps in Dreyer & Reinbold's No. 24 during a private test at Nazareth on Tuesday before official practice got under way on Friday. She generally posted practice times in the middle of the pack before earning the 19th spot during qualifying on Saturday.

"The car was a bit different (during qualifying) than this morning's practice because the tire pressures didn't come up," said Fisher, who has two career podium finishes. "That was really unexpected, and I had to dump the throttle over in Turn 3. We've been making slight adjustments since we tested Tuesday, and our focus is on Sunday's 225 laps, not just these two."

Rain postponed Saturday afternoon's post-qualifying practice session until Sunday morning, and Fisher thinks the team has been learning much about the setup during the practice sessions.

"After practice Saturday it was pretty good. We got it through stages where (it started to get) loose and we know where we've got to go back and (make changes to) the race car. (Sunday) morning it will be a better example (with) the weather than Saturday to kind of see where we are. ... I think we have a really good race car and we're really close."

It's a common opinion that passing will be difficult on Sunday, which will present even more challenges for Fisher. But she found a bright side to starting near the back of the pack.

"Well, it's better than starting in the middle. That's where I was headed and starting in the middle is really hard because if something happens you're right in the middle of it. I'm not very ecstatic about how we did (in qualifying) but two laps vs. 225, I think tomorrow's more important."

Fisher's last IRL race was the 2001 season finale at Texas, where she was knocked out of the race in a first-lap accident. And while she did run a Pro-Celebrity road race at Long Beach last week, Fisher said the race didn't exactly help her shake off the rust of a long layoff.

"It's a totally different deal," said Fisher, who finished 19th in points last season. "The Pro-Celebrity race was a road-course race -- in a front-wheel drive car! There's quite a difference there. But it's all fun. I had a great time there and Toyota treated us all like queens."

As for Sunday's race, driving for a new team after a long layoff has Fisher just hoping to make it to the end.

"(My goal is) just to finish. It's really important to be there at the end of the race. You can't win a race unless you're there, so the first part of that is to be there. These guys (with Dreyer & Reinbold) haven't had the best of finishes this year, so hopefully we can put one in for them."

Despite a loyalty to Derrick Walker, who essentially brought Fisher into the IRL, Fisher had repeatedly said during her layoff that she's a race car driver and needs to be racing cars. That thinking led her to seek release from her contract with Walker, allowing her to be a substitute driver or possibly land a ride for the remainder of the season. Or possibly more importantly to her, a ride for Indy.

Knowing that, it's not surprising to hear Fisher's response when asked what she hoped to be saying when she looks back upon the 2002 season come September.

"Thank god I've got a ride! Thank god I'm employed! I talked to (Malcolm in the Middle actor) Brian Cranston out there (at Long Beach) and his famous quote was, 'In order to be in the spotlight you have to be used to being unemployed.' It's part of racing, too."