United Autosports will start from pole position for both races this weekend at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi after Paul di Resta comfortably topped both 10 minute qualifying sessions on Saturday morning in the #23 Oreca 07.
His 1:39.804 was 6 tenths clear of Ben Hanley’s best effort in the #4 Nielsen Racing car for Saturday evening’s race.
LMP2 Am meanwhile saw David Droux take the top time in the #39 Graff Racing Oreca, well clear of Neale Muston whose best effort put the #44 ARC Bratislava Ligier ahead of Dennis Anderson’s #49 High Class Racing Oreca.
The second session, to set the grid for Sunday’s season finale saw the same overall top three, di Resta this time with a 1:39.962 with Inlet half a second off and David Droux again topping LMP2 Am.
LMP3 saw an even more dominant force in Laurents Hörr, the German completing his clean sweep of class pole positions with two peerless displays in the #2 DKR Engineering Duqueine, 1:46.452 in session one and a further improvement to 1:46.301 to claim pole for Sunday’s race. Session one saw a brief red Flag interruption after Jordan Grogor stopped in the Konrad Ginetta, the car making it back to the pits under its own power.
Indeed for race 2 Hörr was out of the car and posing for pictures with the car on pit lane with just under half of the session remaining, the gap to the nearest competition in both sessions over a full second.
That saw Xavier Lloveras on the front row for Saturday’s race in the #26 G-Drive Racing Ligier and Edouard Cauhaupe take the position for the season finale in the #3 CD Sport Ligier.
Jonny Adam was in good form in the #95 TF Sport Aston Martin, after pole for Race 2 at Dubai he repeated with another for Saturday’s Yas Marina race – 1:50.576 a couple of tenths clear of Klaus Bachler’s best in the #33 Herberth Porsche with the pair tussling throughout the session.
Mikhael Grenier put the GT AM Championship leading sps Automotive Performance Mercedes AMG third
The second session for the Sunday race grid saw Adam again lead the session before losing his three fastest times to track limits violations, the Scot recovering in the last moments of the session to salvage second, precisely two-tenths back from Bachler whose #33 Herberth Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 R will start from pole.
And it was a Mercedes AMG third once again, this time though, the #6 Haupt Racing Team car in the hands of Arjun Maini.
Both qualifying results remain provisional as this article goes to press.
Race 1 starts at 14:30 Local time.
