Into Africa by Dragon Racing’s Axcil Jefferies took pole position for the second International GT Open race this weekend at Circuit Paul Ricard.
His last flying lap time of 2:01.530 at the wheel of the #25 Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo beat Elite Motorsport’s Tom Lebbon by only 0.024 seconds to the top spot, initially earning his team’s first pole in the championship.
The result though was changed after the #25 was dealt a post session penalty for exceeding track limits – The Elite Ferrari inheriting pole as a result.
The #17 Elite Ferrari team leads the championship on 87 points despite their driveshaft issue at the beginning of yesterday’s race, completing the front row with their best time of 2:01.554.
“The car was pretty good,” said Jefferies after the session. “The team has worked very hard lately to get the car in the right window.
“And so far this weekend, both cars have been competitive, so it’s quite nice.
“We were really competitive last year when we started (in GT Open).
“I think we just had some engine issues. We changed the engine this weekend, and it’s clearly made a big difference, so we’re progressing forward.
“It’s a great team. Honestly, it’s family. Obviously, we work together in the UAE as well.
“Then with Into Africa Racing, this has been like a dream partnership for me working with Xolile [Letlaka].
“He’s so committed to this. He’s working harder than anyone I’ve ever worked with before to keep improving.
“So it’s nice to kind of go on this journey and just see him make good steps. And I’m happy to be a part of it.”
It was a 1-2-3 for Ferrari, as two-time Italian GT champion Lorenzo Ferrari took third in the #96 AF Corse Ferrari with his lap time of 2:01.738.
Yesterday’s race winners, ZRS Motorsport, line up fourth for today’s race after Alex Fontana completed a fastest lap time of 2:01.831 towards the end of the session in the #911 Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo.
Team Motopark’s Maximilian Götz took fifth place having set a lap time of 2:01.959 in the #71 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, holding second in the standings with teammate Christian Mansell on 84 points.
They start ahead of the #51 AF Corse Ferrari of David Perel, whose best time was a 2:02.068.
In seventh position overall and pole position in the Pro-Am category, Karol Basz extracted a 2:02.214 lap time from his #777 Olimp Racing Ferrari.
Two of his fellow Pro-Am rivals followed next in eighth and ninth outright, with Yannick Mettler’s #54 CBRX by SPS Mercedes (2:02.335) ahead of Oliver Webb’s #24 Greystone GT McLaren 720S GT3 EVO (2:02.342).
Greystone GT’s championship protagonist #33 McLaren was next with a 2:02.342 by Zac Meakin, making this the first time the team’s #24 McLaren has outqualified the #33 McLaren in the 2026 season.
Scuderia Villorba Corse’s #63 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 qualified 11th outright in the hands of Rodrigo Testa, who set a 2:02.379 lap time.
Al Faisal Al Zubair put the #707 Al Manar by Dragon Racing Ferrari next in 12th after a 2:02.487, with Charlie Fagg next, second in Pro-Am, with a 2:02.522 from his #81 Norik Racing Ferrari.
Alessandro Balzan was 14th outright in the #15 Rinaldi Racing Ferrari (2:02.577) ahead of the third-placed Pro-Am car, the #117 Mikkel O. Pedersen Racing Porsche (2:02.689).
The Am class pole-sitter Galid Osman starts 16th in the #16 AF Corse Ferrari (2:03.112), which was forced to retire after being involved in yesterday’s first-lap incident.
Three positions back is the next Am class competitor, Adrian Lewandowski and his #6 Baron Motorsport Ferrari, who set a 2:03.441 time.
Piotr Wira’s #14 Good Speed Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo was 21st overall, third in Am, with his time of 2:03.857.
Today’s 60-minute race commences at 13:45 CEST/local time.
