The #77 Optimum Motorsport McLaren GT3 EVO duo of Morgan Tillbrook and factory driver Marvin Kirchhöfer took pole position for tomorrow’s Silverstone 500, powering to P2 and P1 in the two qualifying sessions this afternoon.
Their combined time of 2:55.388 was influenced by Kirchhöfer’s impressive effort to beat Sandy Mitchell’s GT3 qualifying lap record, a 1:56.569, during his attempt after having topped this morning’s free practice session.
2 Seas Motorsport’s #18 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo duo of Kevin Tse and Maximilian Götz set a combined time of 3:56.049 to join the #77 on the front row.
During the first session, Giacomo Petrobelli headed the way in the #7 Blackthorn Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo.
His four-time British GT title-winning teammate Jonny Adam completed a strong performance as the two set a combined time of 3:56.053 for third place.
The #78 Barwell Lamborghini Huracan qualified fourth after Alex Martin and Patrick Kujala drove to a combined lap time of 3:57.324, which put them ahead of the #91 Paradine Competition BMW M4 GT3 Evo duo – and 2023 champions – Darren Leung and Dan Harper on the grid.
Orange Racing by JMH’s #67 McLaren teammates of Simon Orange and Marcus Clutton will line up in sixth place for tomorrow’s race after their combined time of 3:57.339.
Championship leaders 2 Seas Motorsport and its #42 Mercedes-AMG qualified seventh despite carrying 30 kg ballast for winning the opener. The car’s combined lap time was a 3:57.391 from Charles Dawson and Kiern Jewiss.
Barwell’s #1 Lamborghini qualified eighth with Rob Collard and Hugo Cook’s combined 3:57.615 lap time.
Kessel Racing’s #74 took ninth, and was the fastest GT3 Silver-Am entry, with Andrew Gilbert and Fran Rueda’s combined 3:57.756 lap time.
Paddock Motorsport rounded out the top 10 in the 21-strong GT3 field with drivers Mark Smith and former LMP1 and IndyCar driver Marvin Plowman.
They set a combined time of 3:57.843 in the #9 McLaren.
#84 Mahiki Lotus claims GT4 pole
Mahiki Racing, which was fast throughout practice, claimed GT4 pole with its #84 Lotus Emira.
Josh Miller beat Gordie Much’s Mahiki GT4 qualifying lap record from last year with a 2:07.981. Miller’s teammate Aiden Neate then finished the job as they took GT4 pole with a combined lap time of 4:16.222.
After Mahiki’s pole-winning car at Donington was disqualified post-session for a parc ferme infraction, the team is particularly eager to convert its Saturday speed to a Sunday victory this time.
Reigning GT4 champion Jack Brown also ran fast during qualifying, following up on his teammate Marc Warren’s effort to set a combined time of 4:17.562 in the #90 Optimum Motorsport McLaren Artura GT4. It was good enough for a space on the front row.
The #71 Century Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 Evo qualified third with Ravi Ramyead and Charlie Robertson’s combined lap time of 4:17.784.
Optimum’s #17 McLaren claimed fourth with Harry George and Luca Hopkinson’s 4:17.955.
Mahiki Racing’s #69 Lotus duo of Steven Lake and Jack Mitchell rounded out the top-five qualifiers with their combined time of 4:19.009.
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Image courtesy of SRO/JEP
