Miami ? The way Michael Andretti and other drivers figure it, the winner of the CART Grand Prix of Miami on Sunday probably will be determined the day before.

CART has always been a series where qualifying times are crucial. Add to that a twisting, slippery road course here unfamiliar to all the drivers, and moving up from the back of the pack gets even trickier.

Through 15 races this season, only one driver has managed to win after failing to qualify in the top five. That was Andretti, who started 15th at Long Beach.

Making a similar move from the back of the pack Sunday will be beyond difficult, Andretti said.

“Track position is going to be very important in qualifying here,” said Andretti. “The race actually could be won Saturday in qualifying. I think the pole winner is definitely going to have an advantage here.”

Tony Kanaan got the early upper hand Friday, after being the fastest in the first round of qualifying. Kanaan earned a CART series point with his lap time of 1:01.264, equating to 81.503 mph.

Qualifying for the pole position continues today.

“There was a lack of grip and it took a lot to bring the tires up to speed,” said Kanaan, a Miami resident who earned his first provisional pole of the season and guaranteed himself a front-row spot on Sunday. “Being a brand-new track, the grip level wasn’t high.”

Since the series began in 1979, polesitters have won 29 percent of the time, while only 10 percent of race winners have started in 10th place or farther back in the opening grid.

Continuing those trends seems to be a virtual certainty Sunday, since Miami’s temporary road course is a 1.387-mile, 16-turn maze considered to be tighter and more difficult than most other road tracks.

Those issues are compounded by the fact none of the drivers had steered their way through the course before Friday’s opening rounds of practice and qualifying.

“It should be a challenging race,” said Paul Tracy, one of six drivers to win a race this season. “The good thing is that no driver has any advantage going in.”