Bamber ready for Sunday after Lynn’s pole run
Today was a historic day for Cadillac in the FIA WEC, with Alex Lynn scoring the Ganassi-run works team its first pole position with a superb effort in Hyperpole.
Will that form carry over into the race? Lynn’s teammate Earl Bamber, who will take the start in the #2 V-Series.R tomorrow, certainly hopes so.
“Alex has been doing a fantastic job the last 18 months in quali,” he said this evening. “He’s put us in the best possible position tomorrow. I’m going to take the start and hopefully, we can get through Turn 1 and start a good race. It’s been building with this programme.
“We’ve been working really hard, chipping away at the details and we’re slowly getting into the window. COTA was a great race for us, so hopefully we can continue that momentum. Tomorrow will be a humid one, but I think we can manage it.”
Heriau’s hard work pays off
Cadillac’s pole wasn’t the only milestone result in Qualifying, as Vista AF Corse also nabbed its first LMGT3 pole with the Ferrari 296.
It was Francois Heriau who starred in the session, scoring his first WEC pole position with a rapid, clean lap in the shootout. The Frenchman has been coming on in leaps and bounds in recent weekends and is poised to fight for his first win tomorrow.
“From the start of the weekend, the car performed really well, and I felt comfortable,” he said. “We were competitive right from the free practice sessions, and in qualifying, I aimed to bring home the result, securing the first pole for the 296 LMGT3 in the FIA WEC.
“I’m very happy on a personal level as I’m a rookie with this car this year, and race after race, my performance and confidence with the 296 LMGT3 are improving. Tomorrow’s 6 Hours will be challenging, but we are confident because we’ve shown we can be competitive, and both Simon and Alessio (Mann and Rovera) are very fast. Our main goal is to have an error-free race.”
Alessio Rovera, the nominated works driver who shares the #55 Ferrari with Heriau, spoke to DSC earlier this week and praised his work ethic.
“Before this season he had zero experience in a GT car,” Rovera pointed out to DSC. “To adapt to a car that is heavier and doesn’t have the same downforce is difficult, but during the season he has changed completely. Early on he struggled, but he has worked hard. He is really good at managing tyres, so on tracks where that is an issue he is really good, that’s his strength.”
Remarkably, Ferrari has yet to score a podium in LMGT3 competition so far this season. All the pieces are in place for that to change tomorrow…
Estre confident Porsche can be in the mix
Tomorrow’s race is set to be critical for the Hypercar Drivers’ and Teams’ championship battles.
As it stands the #6 Porsche leads the Drivers’ points tally while Toyota now holds the advantage in the Manufacturers’ race, but it could all change after six hours of racing on Sunday.
Kevin Estre, who drives the #6 Porsche, qualified fifth for tomorrow’s race, and remains positive that his crew can fight for their second victory this season and pull away in the standings.
“I think on long runs we are ok, the car balance is good ahead of tomorrow,” he told DSC. “In Hyperpole I didn’t put it together over one lap because I didn’t have juice in the tyres for Sector 3 late in the session. With a perfect lap pole was reachable.
“This is good because CoTA was really damage limitation for us, whereas here I feel we can fight for the win. We won’t do anything stupid tomorrow and take too many risks because we have a lead to protect, but we hope to get past the #7 Toyota at the start and stay in front for sure.”
Kvyat surprised by Lamborghini pace
One of the more pleasant surprises in Hypercar Qualifying today was the improvement in form shown by Lamborghini Iron Lynx and its SC63.
Daniil Kvyat steered the car into Hyperpole for the first time this season, and secured ninth on the grid with a lap time less than seven tenths off pole.
This flash of pace, he said after Qualifying, is a boost for the team.
“I’m happy with today, it’s great to get in Hyperpole and tick that box. We managed to complete tidy work and work out which direction to take the car. It was unexpected but everything clicked today.
“There is a lot of work to do still, but it was nice. Our car has a very narrow window but it felt good here and I was able to put good laps together in both sessions. I hope this is a boost for everyone, it’s a good look at what the future might be like for this programme.”
Shahin disappointed after EMA Porsche lacked speed
Yasser Shahin and his teammates at Manthey EMA have been on a fairytale run this season in LMGT3 since May, winning at Spa and Le Mans and finishing on the podium at CoTA, putting themselves in title contention.
The Australian isn’t expecting another standout result tomorrow though. After struggling for outright pace in Quali he will start the race from 15th, behind the Pure Rxcing Porsche which leads the championship and qualified 14th, and the Heart of Racing Aston Martin which is still mathematically in with a chance and will line up sixth.
“That’s all we’ve got pace-wise,” he told DSC. “I pushed on my flying lap, made no mistakes and gave it my all, and that was all I could manage. Maybe things can change tomorrow, but I’m not so confident. The success ballast really plays a part here.”
Caygill bouyed by McLaren pace
Josh Caygill stuck the #95 United Autosports McLaren third on the grid in LMGT3. This latest standout performance gives him and his teammates Nico Pino and Marino Sato a strong chance of scoring their second podium in three races.
The Dewsbury-born racer believes the McLaren is well suited to the characteristics of the Fuji circuit and has been encouraged by the team’s work during practice to nail a set-up for the race.
“We will have to manage our tyres, like everyone, but we feel we have a good race car that will enable us to be fighting up front tomorrow,” he said. “We were strong through practice and didn’t lose out too much to the timing of the red flag in FP3, so we are in good shape.”
Work at Turn 1 exit receives praise
Race officials and circuit staff were left scrambling towards the end of Free Practice 3 this morning after the session was red-flagged due to a brick coming loose at the exit of Turn 1,
Thankfully, after close inspection, a solution was found. The area in question was dug up and filled in again to prevent any further dramas. The work was completed quickly and impressively, there were no delays to the timetable.
The feedback on the work was universally positive from the Qualifying drivers DSC polled.
“I even didn’t notice the changes to be honest,” United’s Josh Caygill said. “Which is a good thing, it hasn’t changed the way you approach the corner.”
Circuit Safari and Hot Laps a smash hit
Today’s schedule included the annual Circuit Safari slot for fans before Free Practice 3. As ever, the coaches that lapped the circuit were packed with passionate fans, who relished the chance to share the circuit with the WEC cars.
Hot laps for fans and media were also well attended, with a number of the manufacturers showing off highlights from their road-going ranges to the locals.
DSC’s deputy editor was fortunate enough to head out in an Alpine A110 with Nicolas Lapierre and the French ace, as you may expect, showed off the car’s full potential.
This writer can confirm that the A110 has a surprising amount of power, a pleasing engine note and is highly capable through corners at high speed!
