Max Buhk took control of the final pole-position shootout on a misty morning at Zandvoort, going quickest right off the bat in the #84 HTP Bentley to further improve the chances of himself and teammate Vincent Abril taking the title. His best time was set on his second flyer, a 1:36.485; championship leader Robin Frijns managed second, just a tenth off the German.
Laurens Vanthoor’s super-sub Christopher Mies topped the times in Q1 driving the #1 Audi. Mies set a 1:37.669 with five minutes left, beating out the #83 HTP Bentley of Jules Szymkowiak by just 0.02 in the tricky misty conditions. The #84 came home third fastest.
The times tumbled in the second session however with the top eight in the Q2 all going through to the shootout.
After such a promising run in the first segment of Qualifying, the #83 Bentley would end up bringing out red flags. Max Van Splunteren on home soil was seen hitting the barriers on the outside of Turn 9 before getting beached in the gravel trap. His off came just a few minutes into the session, meaning all the really competitive times would be set in a mad scramble at the end of the session.
Norbert Seidler would flex his muscles and eventually set the quickest time of Q2 in the #333 Rinaldi Racing Ferrari – a 1:36.750, almost two tenths clear of Robin Frijns in second. The ever rapid Nick Catsburg was a further three tenths back in the Reiter Engineering Lamborghini, with Buhk just behind in fourth spot.
When it mattered most though, Buhk stepped up his game and secured pole position for HTP, scoring an extra championship point in the process, reducing the gap to Robin Frijns to just seven points. Frijns best lap was a 1:36.601.
Frijns and Mies will lineup alongside the German for the Qualifying Race, with series newcomer Nicki Thiim putting the #2 Audi he’s sharing with Frédéric Vervisch third on the grid. Norbert Siedler could only manage fourth in the Rinaldi Racing Ferrari – he and Jeroen Bleekemolen will have a lot of work to do, and a lot has to go wrong for the #1 and #84, if they are to put Siedler in with a shot at the Title on Sunday.
Today’s Qualifying Race starts at 14:15 local time in the Netherlands.
Stephen Kilbey
