IMSA News: Cadillac locks out front row for 12 Hours of Sebring
For the second consecutive IMSA race , Cadillac Racing claimed the front-row staring spots, this time for the 12 Hours of Sebring.
Cadillac Racing earned its 25th pole award in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship prototype competition since 2017 as Pipo Derani topped Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) qualifying for the 72nd Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring Presented by Cadillac.
That total includes five at Sebring International Raceway. Derani toured the demanding 3.741-mile, 17-turn course in 1 minute, 48.152 seconds to pace the 10-car field.
The No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R, driven by Sebastien Bourdais, qualified second with a best lap of 1:48.299 during the scheduled 15-minute afternoon session that was truncated by a red flag.
The GTP Qualifying session kicked off under a sunny 84-degree Fahrenheit air temperature but was halted within six minutes following an incident involving Mathieu Jaminet’s No. 6 Porsche, prompting a red flag due to contact with the 12 Hours of Sebring Turn 1 barrier.
Jaminet clipped too much of the dirt on the exit of turn one, which caused his car to snap to the right and hit the wall head-on. While the Frenchman was able to walk away from the impact with the Armco barrier, his car was too damaged to continue, and the #6 Penske Porsche will start the race from the rear of the GTP grid.
“Congratulations to the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R on securing pole position in qualifying for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Cadillac,” said John Roth, global vice president of Cadillac. “We are excited to get back on the track and compete for the overall win this weekend.”
Derani was also the pole sitter for the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona in late January and Bourdais was close behind in second. This 12 Hour of Sebring pole is his 2nd in row.
“It is a good start for the race,” said Derani, the defending and four-time winner of the race.
Louis Deletraz qualified third-fastest in the #40 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Acura ARX-06, but WTRAndretti could have had an even better result in qualifying at the end.
Ricky Taylor lost all his times in the #10 WTRAndretti Acura after the team was working on the car during qualifying – including a 1:48.038 which would have won the pole ahead of Derani!
Philipp Eng qualified fourth in the #24 BMW M Hybrid V8, followed by Phil Hanson, in the #85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche – which out-qualified the other Porsches!
LMP2 produced a pleasant surprise at the top – a purple ORECA 07-Gibson did take the pole position, but this time it was the #99 AO Racing car driven by PJ Hyett!
Hyett, in just his fifth weekend of LMP2 racing across Asian Le Mans Series and IMSA, took pole position in his class with a best lap of 1:52.142 – his first career IMSA pole position, ahead of some of the best Bronzes in the sport.
12 Hour of Sebring Records were also broken in GTD Pro and GTD. Jack Hawksworth won the GTD Pro pole position aboard the #14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 – also in a special gold 50th anniversary livery – and in GTD, Philip Ellis won the pole for Winward Racing in their Daytona-winning #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3.
Jack Hawksworth qualified the SealMaster-Mobil 1 liveried No.14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 on the pole in GTD PRO for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway.
Hawksworth posted a fast time of 1:58.714 on the 17-turn, 3.74-mile road course.
“It’s nice, I don’t think I have one (pole position) here before. It’s cool and obviously, a big race. It’s always nice to start at the front. It was a tricky qualifying session, it was so hot, so tire preparation and all that kind of stuff was really important.
“The guys at Vasser Sullivan nailed it. We’re in a good spot and nice to start there for sure. Tomorrow’s a 12-hour race, so much is going to happen. Obviously, we had the incident at Daytona, but the guys dug deep and we turned up here really strong. And we got a super strong black and gold Mobil 1 livery on our Lexus RC F GT3. Ben (Barnicoat) and Kyle (Kirkwood) have been really strong all week as well, so we feel we’re in a good spot with our Lexus RC F GT3. We’re ready to rip tomorrow and get after it and have some fun.”
2024 12 Hours of Sebring Qualifying Results
|
Pos |
Pic |
No. |
Class |
Drivers* |
Team |
Car |
Time |
Gap Mph |
|
1 |
1 |
31 |
GTP |
P. Derani / J. Aitken / T. Blomqvist |
Whelen Cadillac Racing |
Cadillac V-Series.R |
1:48.152 |
– – 124.491 |
|
2 |
2 |
01 |
GTP |
van der Zande / S. Bourdais Dixon |
Cadillac Racing |
Cadillac V-Series.R |
1:48.299 |
+0.147 +0.147 124.322 |
|
3 |
3 |
40 |
GTP |
J. Taylor / L. Deletraz / C. Herta |
Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti |
Acura ARX-06 |
1:48.593 |
+0.441 +0.294 123.985 |
|
4 |
4 |
24 |
GTP |
J. Krohn / P. Eng / A. Farfus |
BMW M Team RLL |
BMW M Hybrid V8 |
1:48.829 |
+0.677 +0.236 123.716 |
|
5 |
5 |
7 |
GTP |
D. Cameron / F. Nasr / M. Campbell |
Porsche Penske Motorsports |
Porsche 963 |
1:49.179 |
+1.027 +0.350 123.320 |
|
6 |
6 |
85 |
GTP |
T. van der Helm / R. Westbrook P. Hanson |
JDC-Miller MotorSports |
Porsche 963 |
1:49.258 |
+1.106 +0.079 123.230 |
|
7 |
7 |
5 |
GTP |
G. Bruni / A. Picariello / J. Andlauer |
Proton Competition Mustang Sampling |
Porsche 963 |
1:49.274 |
+1.122 +0.016 123.212 |
|
8 |
1 |
99 |
LMP2 |
P. Hyett / P. Chatin / M. Brabham |
AO Racing |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:52.142 |
+3.990 +2.868 120.061 |
|
9 |
2 |
22 |
LMP2 |
D. Goldburg / P. Di Resta / B. Garg |
United Autosports USA |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:52.313 |
+4.161 +0.171 119.878 |
|
10 |
3 |
2 |
LMP2 |
B. Keating / N. Pino / B. Hanley |
United Autosports USA |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:52.673 |
+4.521 +0.360 119.495 |
|
11 |
4 |
52 |
LMP2 |
J. Smiechowski / N. Boulle T. Dillmann |
Inter Europol by PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:52.765 |
+4.613 +0.092 119.398 |
|
12 |
5 |
74 |
LMP2 |
G. Robinson / F. Fraga / J. Burdon |
Riley |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:53.278 |
+5.126 +0.513 118.857 |
|
13 |
6 |
04 |
LMP2 |
G. Kurtz / C. Braun / T. Sowery |
Crowdstrike Racing by APR |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:53.526 |
+5.374 +0.248 118.598 |
|
14 |
8 |
63 |
GTP |
M. Cairoli / A. Caldarelli / R. Grosjean |
Lamborghini Iron Lynx |
Lamborghini SC63 |
1:53.574 |
+5.422 +0.048 118.547 |
|
15 |
7 |
11 |
LMP2 |
S. Thomas / M. Jensen / H. McElrea |
TDS Racing |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:53.582 |
+5.430 +0.008 118.539 |
|
16 |
8 |
88 |
LMP2 |
L. Perez Companc / N. Nielsen L. Wadoux Ducellier |
Richard Mille AF Corse |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:54.281 |
+6.129 +0.699 117.814 |
|
17 |
9 |
25 |
GTP |
C. De Phillippi / N. Yelloly / M. Martin |
BMW M Team RLL |
BMW M Hybrid V8 |
1:54.364 |
+6.212 +0.083 117.729 |
|
18 |
9 |
81 |
LMP2 |
M. Jakobsen / H. Hedman / R. Lindh |
DragonSpeed |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:54.470 |
+6.318 +0.106 117.620 |
|
19 |
10 |
18 |
LMP2 |
D. Merriman / R. Dalziel / C. Zilisch |
Era Motorsport |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:54.977 |
+6.825 +0.507 117.101 |
|
20 |
11 |
20 |
LMP2 |
D. Andersen / S. Lucas / L. Hoerr |
MDK by High Class Racing |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:55.454 |
+7.302 +0.477 116.617 |
|
21 |
12 |
8 |
LMP2 |
J. Farano / M. Dinan / C. Eastwood |
Tower Motorsports |
ORECA LMP2 07 |
1:56.154 |
+8.002 +0.700 115.914 |
|
22 |
13 |
33 |
LMP2 |
L. Willsey / J. Barbosa / J. Edgar |
Sean Creech Motorsport |
Ligier JS P217 |
1:57.324 |
+9.172 +1.170 114.758 |
|
23 |
1 |
14 |
GTDPRO |
|
Vasser Sullivan |
Lexus RC F GT3 |
1:58.714 |
+10.562 +1.390 113.415 |
|
24 |
1 |
57 |
GTD |
R. Ward / P. Ellis / I. Dontje |
Winward Racing |
Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
1:58.778 |
+10.626 +0.064 113.354 |
|
25 |
2 |
47 |
GTD |
R. Lacorte / G. Sernagiotto / A. Fuoco |
CETILAR RACING |
Ferrari 296 GT3 |
1:59.014 |
+10.862 +0.236 113.129 |
|
26 |
3 |
12 |
GTD |
F. Montecalvo / P. Thompson A. Telitz |
Vasser Sullivan |
Lexus RC F GT3 |
1:59.143 |
+10.991 +0.129 113.006 |
|
27 |
2 |
23 |
GTDPRO |
R. Gunn / A. Riberas / M. Farnbacher |
Heart of Racing Team |
Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo |
1:59.264 |
+11.112 +0.121 112.892 |
|
28 |
4 |
32 |
GTD |
M. Skeen / M. Grenier / K. Koch |
Korthoff/Preston Motorsports |
Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
1:59.350 |
+11.198 +0.086 112.810 |
|
29 |
3 |
77 |
GTDPRO |
|
AO Racing |
Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) |
1:59.446 |
+11.294 +0.096 112.720 |
|
30 |
4 |
3 |
GTDPRO |
A. Garcia / A. Sims / D. Juncadella |
Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports |
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R |
1:59.508 |
+11.356 +0.062 112.661 |
|
31 |
5 |
19 |
GTDPRO |
F. Perera / J. Pepper / M. Bortolotti |
Iron Lynx |
Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 |
1:59.517 |
+11.365 +0.009 112.653 |
|
32 |
6 |
62 |
GTDPRO |
D. Serra / D. Rigon / J. Calado |
Risi Competizione |
Ferrari 296 GT3 |
1:59.534 |
+11.382 +0.017 112.637 |
|
33 |
7 |
1 |
GTDPRO |
B. Sellers / M. Snow / N. Verhagen |
Paul Miller Racing |
BMW M4 GT3 |
1:59.586 |
+11.434 +0.052 112.588 |
|
34 |
8 |
4 |
GTDPRO |
T. Milner / N. Catsburg / E. Bamber |
Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports |
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R |
1:59.786 |
+11.634 +0.200 112.400 |
|
35 |
5 |
78 |
GTD |
M. Goikhberg / L. Spinelli D. Defrancesco |
Forte Racing |
Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 |
1:59.797 |
+11.645 +0.011 112.389 |
|
36 |
6 |
80 |
GTD |
S. Yoluc / R. Pinto de Andrade S. Andrews |
Lone Star Racing |
Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
1:59.865 |
+11.713 +0.068 112.326 |
|
37 |
9 |
9 |
GTDPRO |
M. Kirchhöfer / O. Jarvis J. Hinchcliffe |
Pfaff Motorsports |
McLaren 720S GT3 EVO |
1:59.883 |
+11.731 +0.018 112.309 |
|
38 |
10 |
64 |
GTDPRO |
H. Tincknell / M. Rockenfeller C. Mies |
Ford Multimatic Motorsports |
Ford Mustang GT3 |
1:59.916 |
+11.764 +0.033 112.278 |
|
39 |
7 |
023 |
GTD |
O. Triarsi / C. Scardina / A. Rovera |
Triarsi Competizione |
Ferrari 296 GT3 |
2:00.334 |
+12.182 +0.418 111.888 |
|
40 |
8 |
21 |
GTD |
S. Mann / F. Heriau / M. Molina |
AF Corse |
Ferrari 296 GT3 |
2:00.396 |
+12.244 +0.062 111.830 |
|
41 |
9 |
70 |
GTD |
B. Iribe / F. Schandorff / O. Millroy |
Inception Racing |
McLaren 720S GT3 EVO |
2:00.427 |
+12.275 +0.031 111.801 |
|
42 |
10 |
96 |
GTD |
R. Foley / P. Gallagher / J. Walker |
Turner Motorsport |
BMW M4 GT3 |
2:00.459 |
+12.307 +0.032 111.772 |
|
43 |
11 |
45 |
GTD |
K. Marcelli / D. Formal / G. Doyle |
Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti |
Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 |
2:00.633 |
+12.481 +0.174 111.610 |
|
44 |
11 |
65 |
GTDPRO |
J. Hand / D. Mueller / F. Vervisch |
Ford Multimatic Motorsports |
Ford Mustang GT3 |
2:00.719 |
+12.567 +0.086 111.531 |
|
45 |
12 |
55 |
GTD |
R. Hardwick / G. Levorato / C. Lewis |
Proton Competition |
Ford Mustang GT3 |
2:00.752 |
+12.600 +0.033 111.500 |
|
46 |
13 |
34 |
GTD |
M. Franco / A. Costa Balboa C. Sbirrazzuoli |
Conquest Racing |
Ferrari 296 GT3 |
2:00.859 |
+12.707 +0.107 111.402 |
|
47 |
14 |
66 |
GTD |
S. Monk / K. Legge / T. Calderon |
Gradient Racing |
Acura NSX GT3 |
2:01.064 |
+12.912 +0.205 111.213 |
|
48 |
15 |
120 |
GTD |
A. Adelson / E. Skeer / J. Heylen |
Wright Motorsports |
Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) |
2:01.364 |
+13.212 +0.300 110.938 |
|
49 |
16 |
44 |
GTD |
J. Potter / A. Lally / S. Pumpelly |
Magnus Racing |
Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo |
2:01.513 |
+13.361 +0.149 110.802 |
|
50 |
17 |
27 |
GTD |
R. De Angelis / Z. Robichon / I. James |
Heart of Racing Team |
Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo |
2:01.555 |
+13.403 +0.042 110.764 |
|
51 |
18 |
43 |
GTD |
J. Andretti / G. Chaves / S. Hargrove |
Andretti Motorsports |
Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) |
2:01.958 |
+13.806 +0.403 110.398 |
|
52 |
19 |
86 |
GTD |
K. Li / A. Fjordbach / K. Bachler |
MDK Motorsports |
Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) |
2:03.970 |
+15.818 +2.012 108.606 |
|
53 |
20 |
13 |
GTD |
O. Fidani / M. Bell / L. Kern |
AWA |
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R |
2:05.079 |
+16.927 +1.109 107.643 |
|
54 |
21 |
17 |
GTD |
A. Mantella / N. Varrone / T. Merrill |
AWA |
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R |
2:05.089 |
+16.937 +0.010 107.635 |
|
Pos |
Pic |
No. |
Class |
Drivers* |
Team |
Car |
Time |
Gap Mph |