INDIANAPOLIS – Welcome back to the Indianapolis 500, Pippa Mann.

Mann’s first and only run of 227.244 mph during Saturday’s qualifications at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway landed her right on the edge of the 30 automatic qualifiers for this year’s race. One year after getting eliminated on Bump Day, tears once again overcame the six – check that – seven-time Indianapolis 500 starter.

This time, they were tears of joy.

As she emerged from her No. 39 Driven2SaveLives Chevrolet, Mann hugged every member of the Clauson-Marshall Racing team. Eventually, team owner Tim Clauson made his way through the crowd to embrace Mann and celebrate the moment that began a year earlier.

“This moment is absolutely incredible,” Mann said after the final gun sounded. “The Clauson-Marshall Racing2SaveLives car has had the pace all week long, but Indianapolis Motor Speedway knows how to throw a curveball.”

Clauson went to Mann during last year’s Indianapolis 500 with a plan to get her back into the race. Being able to do it a year later, he said, is “surreal.”

“I told her that day that if I could ever have a part in helping her back here and help her make the show, I would do everything in my power,” Clauson said. “Never in a million years did I think that we’d be doing this a year later.”

The celebration didn’t come without its share of nerves, however.

Following each driver’s first run, Mann’s speed placed her 24th among the field. The top 30 were guaranteed spots in the Indianapolis 500. Satisfied, she and the Clauson-Marshall Racing team decided to wait and see where that speed would land them as drivers spent the next few hours attempting to improve their qualifying position.

Mann walked away from that run optimistic that she wouldn't have to make another run. The assumption was that the track would only get hotter and slower, so her speed should be good enough to keep her among those 30 automatic qualifiers. She was right, but she wouldn’t know it until the final gun sounded.

Late in the day, Mann saw her speed slide down the leaderboard. With the fear of getting forced into Sunday's Last Row qualification — the six slowest cars competing for the final three position — the Clauson-Marshall team decided to put the No. 39 Driven2SaveLives Chevrolet back in line to re-qualify.

But they were too late.

Drivers willing to withdraw their speed get on the track first but Mann wasn't willing to risk losing her position in the field on a final qualifying run.

When there was less than 20 minutes left in qualifying, the team knew there wasn't enough time to make another run. All Mann could do was sit, wait and hope she didn’t get bumped down into one of those last six spots.

Sitting in her car watching a live-stream of the qualifications on her phone, Mann thought to herself, “This cannot be happening again.”

“The weather changed, the track got so much faster and by the time we realized, we were too far back in line,” Mann said. “(There was) a lot of anxiety, a lot of helplessness, and I’m incredibly grateful this worked out the way it did. … I’ll sleep without waking up in a cold sweat and tomorrow, I’ll be able to breathe.”

Mann slid all the way down to 30th. Teams waiting in line in front of Clauson-Marshall began to pull their cars out of pit road knowing there wasn’t going to be enough time to make another run.

No one on the Clauson-Marshall team moved. Nervously they watched drivers like James Hinchcliffe, Sage Karam and Patricio O’Ward try to fight their way their way past Mann and into the field.

“It was a little nerve-wracking, no doubt,” Clauson said. “But in the end it worked out and they did exactly what our goal was to come here. It was to make the race. That’s our victory, to just get in the show. To get to do that and do it with Pippa is really amazing.”

Turns out, Mann was right. Her first time was good enough. She'll start 30th in the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500.