IMSA News: Blomqvist puts Acura on pole for Petit Le Mans
Tom Blomqvist (pictured) shattered the GTP qualifying lap record at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, securing pole position for the Motul Petit Le Mans with a blistering 1:09.628 in the No. 60 Acura ARX-06.
–by Mark Cipolloni–
His time edged out Jack Aitken’s No. 31 Action Express Racing Cadillac V-Series.R by 0.199 seconds, breaking Aitken’s previous record of 1:09.639 set a year ago. This marked Acura’s fourth pole in the last five races, though Blomqvist’s pole at Indianapolis was previously revoked due to a technical infraction.
Nick Yelloly, Blomqvist’s Acura Meyer Shank Racing teammate, claimed third in the No. 93 car, joined on the second row by Felipe Nasr’s No. 7 Penske Porsche 963. Ross Gunn rounded out the top five in the No. 23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Valkyrie, followed by Matt Campbell’s No. 6 Penske Porsche.
The No. 63 Lamborghini SC63, in its final scheduled IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship appearance, starts seventh, with Filipe Albuquerque’s No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura in eighth. The BMW M Hybrid V8s of Dries Vanthoor and Sheldon van der Linde completed the top ten, while Jordan Taylor’s No. 40 Cadillac and Max Esterson’s No. 85 JDC-Miller Motorsports Porsche will start at the rear of the GTP class.
In LMP2, Steven Thomas clinched pole with a 1:13.157 in the No. 11 TDS Racing Oreca 07 Gibson, outpacing Jeremy Clarke’s No. 43 Inter Europol Competition machine by 0.240 seconds. Clarke’s late charge dropped PJ Hyett’s No. 99 AO Racing Oreca to third, followed by United Autosports’ Daniel Goldburg and Nick Boulle in fourth and fifth. George Kurtz triggered a red flag after crashing his No. 04 CrowdStrike Racing by APR Oreca at Turn 5, losing his two fastest laps and relegating him to last in class for Saturday’s season finale.
In the GT classes, Lorenzo Patrese dominated GTD qualifying with a 1:18.316 in the No. 47 Cetilar Racing Ferrari 296 GT3.
Dan Harper secured back-to-back GTD Pro poles in the No. 48 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO, finishing 0.207 seconds behind Patrese. Harper inherited pole after Albert Costa’s faster lap in the No. 81 DragonSpeed Ferrari was voided due to a red flag in Thursday’s practice, dropping Costa to fourth in GTD Pro.
Riccardo Agostini took second in GTD with the No. 021 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari, followed by the No. 19 Van der Steur Racing Aston Martin. Aaron Telitz earned second in GTD Pro for Vasser Sullivan’s No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3, ahead of the No. 4 Corvette Z06 GT3.R. Reigning GTD Pro champion Laurin Heinrich rounded out the top five in the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R.
The Motul Petit Le Mans begins at 12:10 p.m. EST, with live coverage on NBC, Peacock, and IMSA’s YouTube channel for international viewers.