Aitken Steers Whelen Cadillac To Sebring Pole

Cadillac Whelen Secures Pole Position for 74th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring

Cadillac Whelen Racing’s Jack Aitken clinched pole for the 74th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, clocking a qualifying time of 1:46.153s. This marks the team’s third pole at Sebring in four years, surpassing fellow competitors in a fiercely contested session. Aitken, along with co-drivers Earl Bamber and Frederik Vesti, edged out Acura Meyer Shank Racing’s Tom Blomqvist, who qualified second with a 1:46.262s in the #60 Acura ARX-06.

“The Whelen Cadillac was giving me a lot of confidence,” said Aitken post-qualifying. “I don’t think anybody gets a perfect lap, but we were closest.”

Filipe Albuquerque in the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac took the third spot with a time of 1:46.298s. The fastest of the Porsche Penske Motorsport 963s, Kévin Estre, qualified fourth at 1:46.395s, followed by Louis Deletraz in the #40 WTR Cadillac.

In LMP2, Misha Goikhberg secured pole for Bryan Herta Autosport’s #52 ORECA 07-Gibson with a lap of 1:51.182s. This was Goikhberg’s first career pole, narrowly beating United Autosports’ Daniel Goldburg by just 0.073 seconds. Jeremy Clarke rounded out the top three for Inter Europol Competition.

GT3 saw Jack Hawksworth set a new GTD Pro course record with a time of 1:58.480s, driving the #14 Lexus RC F GT3. Hawksworth’s performance eclipsed his previous record and Daniel Serra’s long-standing mark. Winward Racing’s Luca Stolz qualified second in the #48 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO.

Eduardo Barrichello earned his first IMSA pole, clocking a 1:58.856s in the #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3, leading the GTD class ahead of Philip Ellis and Robby Foley.

The competitive field remains tightly packed, with the GTP category covered by only 1.296 seconds. The race is set to commence tomorrow morning, promising an intense battle for victory.

Key Qualifying Results:

• GTP:

  • 1. Jack Aitken (Cadillac) – 1:46.153s
  • 2. Tom Blomqvist (Acura) – 1:46.262s
  • 3. Filipe Albuquerque (Cadillac) – 1:46.298s

• LMP2:

  • 1. Misha Goikhberg – 1:51.182s
  • 2. Daniel Goldburg – 1:51.255s
  • 3. Jeremy Clarke – 1:51.260s

• GTD Pro:

  • 1. Jack Hawksworth – 1:58.480s
  • 2. Luca Stolz – 1:58.769s
  • 3. Neil Verhagen – 1:58.886s

• GTD:

  • 1. Eduardo Barrichello – 1:58.856s
  • 2. Philip Ellis – 1:58.980s
  • 3. Robby Foley – 1:59.072s