Nasr Quickest in Roar Qualifying, but Jarvis moved to pole (Update)

Driving the No. 55 Mazda Motorsports Mazda DPi, Oliver Jarvis was second fastest in qualifications Saturday at Daytona International Speedway for Sunday’s Motul Pole Award 100 – the qualifying race that will determine the starting order for the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 30-31. But when the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Racing Cadillac DPi that had set the best lap failed post-qualifying technical inspection for being underweight, Jarvis and the No. 55 moved to the head of the grid.

“I just found out we’ve been promoted to pole,” Jarvis said during the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship night practice session. “I’d rather do it on the track but that pole at Daytona is always special. … Any pole is special but this one in particular. I love this track, such an amazing race.”

Jarvis’ timed lap of 1 minute, 34.442 seconds (135.702 mph) puts the No. 55 Mazda that he’ll share with Harry Tincknell on the point for the 100-minute qualifying race. Starting alongside on the front row in the Daytona Prototype international (DPi) class will be the No. 5 Mustang Sampling/JDC-Miller Motorsports with Tristan Vautier and Loic Duval at the wheel.

“You always want to start out front and try and stay out of trouble,” Jarvis said, “which is working for our program now. I think we’ve got a good race car as well, so we’re hopeful for tomorrow. … I think we’ll be strong tomorrow but never underestimate the competition.”

The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac, meanwhile, slips to sixth on the DPi and overall starting grid, with 49 cars in five classes expected to take the green flag at 2:05 p.m. ET Sunday. A live stream of the race begins at 2 p.m. on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold. The NBCSN telecast airs at 4:30 p.m.

Keating, No. 52 PRI Mathiasen Motorsports Top LMP2 Qualifying

Ben Keating recorded the fastest lap in the Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class, at 1:37.368 (131.624 mph) in the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2 07. He’ll start eighth overall Sunday with co-driver Mikkel Jensen.

Keating’s lap topped Dennis Andersen, who was clocked at 1:38.532 in the No. 20 High Class Racing ORECA. Keating will pull double duty in the Rolex 24, co-driving the No. 97 TF Sport Aston Martin Vantage GT3.

The wet, cool conditions Saturday didn’t create as much trouble as Keating expected.

“The temps were cold, (and it was) a wet track,” he said. “(We) weren’t sure if the curbs were going to be wet or not. And it takes time to get heat into the prototype tires. I was expecting it to be really sketchy, but I was delighted when we got out there and had a lot of grip. It felt really good in the car.”

The No. 51 RWR-Eurasia Ligier LMP2 was found out of compliance with its rear wing in technical inspection and moved to the rear of the 10-car class grid for Sunday’s race.

Kranz Fastest Qualifier in New LMP3 Class

Moritz Kranz took the top position in Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) – the class debuting this season in the WeatherTech Championship – with a lap of 1:42.384 (125.176 mph) in the No. 6 Muehlner Motorsports America Duqueine M30-D08. That topped the fastest lap of 1:43.623 by Ryan Norman in the No. 7 Forty7 Motorsports Duqueine.

Kranz, who earlier in the day won the IMSA Prototype Challenge Scouts of America 145, will team with Laurents Hoerr as the No. 6 car starts 18th overall in Sunday’s qualifying race.

“It was a little bit hectic after my last race because I also had to drive for qualifying as well,” said Kranz, a native of Linz am Rhein, Germany, who raced the LMP3 in the Michelin Le Mans Cup last season. “After the celebration, I had to pick up my stuff and run around the grounds to be back in the car on time.

“Racing here, and actually getting a pole in this WeatherTech Championship, is a kind of a dream come true because I just always see it on TV, and now I’m actually racing here. So, I’m still processing. It’s awesome.”

REVISED Motul Pole Qualifying Results

Felipe Nasr put the #31 Action Express Racing Cadillac in the #1 starting slot for Sunday’s Motul Pole Award 100 that will set the grid for the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Nasr turned a quick lap of 1m34.311s, edging Mazda’s Oliver Jarvis by 0.131 seconds.

Tristan Vautier was third in the No. 5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac, followed by IMSA debutant Kevin Magnussen for Chip Ganassi Racing.

The top Acura ARX-05 runner was Filipe Albuquerque in fifth for Wayne Taylor Racing.

LMP2 saw Ben Keating beat LMP2 champions PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports in the No. 52 Oreca 07 Gibson.

BMW to start 1-2 in GTLM

Marco Wittman led the charge in a BMW Team RLL 1-2 in the GTLM class for the Motul Pole Award 100.

Wittman cracked the 1:43 barrier with a best lap of 1:42.980 in the No. 24 BMW M8 GTE, 0.343 seconds clear of his teammate Timo Glock in the sister car.

A long-time BMW factory driver, Wittman joined No. 24 BMW Team RLL for this year’s attempt to repeat as GT Le Mans (GTLM) winner in the Rolex 24 At Daytona. The 31-year-old German didn’t drive the BMW M8 GTE until testing began Friday at the Roar Before the Rolex 24, but that didn’t stop him from setting the fastest qualifying time for his class on Saturday.

In slick conditions, Wittman toured the 3.56-mile Daytona International Speedway road course in 1 minute, 42.980 seconds (124.451 mph) to secure the first GTLM starting position in Sunday’s 100-minute race that sets the starting grid for the 59th Rolex 24 on Jan. 30-31.

“Yesterday was actually the first laps ever for me in the M8 GTE,” Wittman said, “so every lap (I’m) trying to get more into the car, feeling the confidence, and then I have to say that the qualifying went pretty good. It was a bit tricky because there were some damp spots on track, but it worked out pretty well and I’m happy with the result. It’s just the beginning, it’s a long week, but it’s been a good start.”

Wittman said the primary benefit of being fastest qualifier for a qualifying race is the emotional boost it provides.

“It’s always good to start in the right way, in a good way – also to keep the motivation high for the team,” he said. “There is a lot of work behind (the scenes). All of the mechanics, the engineers, hands on, it’s always great to know if you’re bringing a good result. It keeps the motivation and the spirit high.”

Alexander Sims qualified the No. 4 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R third in his Corvette Racing debut followed by the No. 3 Corvette of Jordan Taylor.

Hardwick Savors Unofficial First Pole in GTD

GT Daytona quick man was Ryan Hardwick, who took the top spot by 0.264 seconds in the No. 16 Porsche 911 GT3 R.

Simon Mann was second in the No. 21 AF Corse Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020, with Madison Snow’s Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo and Russell Ward’s Winward Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo close in tow.

“This is all new for us, this entire qualifying process,” Hardwick said after turning a lap of 1:46.831 (119.965 mph) that made him the best of 19 GTD qualifiers for Sunday’s race. Since the Motul Pole Award for the upcoming Rolex 24 At Daytona is determined from the results of the qualifying race, Saturday’s effort doesn’t count as Hardwick’s first career pole position.

“That felt like this was my first, I guess not quite officially, a pole in the WeatherTech Championship, but I’m going to take it as such,” he said. “I didn’t get the Motul sticker but I’m going to remember this one for a long time. It was a great lap, probably one of the best laps I’ve ever put together.”

The driver of the No. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R was proud of his accomplishment in the treacherous conditions that saw light rain fall intermittently throughout the day.

“It’s really rewarding for me to put together a lap like that in the conditions that we had today,” Hardwick said. “It was raining in the frontstretch every lap and going into Turn 1 was super slick, and then it was kind of dry in other parts of the track. You had to be really disciplined to understand when you could push and when you had to be a little reserved, so it took a little bit of balance today.”

Motul Pole Qualifying Results