GTD PRO: Caldarelli Picks Up Where He Left Off
After claiming their first win in over three years last time out, Pfaff will start from pole position Sunday for the Michelin GT Challenge. Andrea Caldarelli put down a 1:44.733 with five minutes to go, claiming the first pole position for the Lamborghini Temerario in IMSA. After going third quickest in GTD PRO final practice earlier this morning, there was hope Pfaff could convert. Emphatically, Calderelli delivered by improving on his final practice time by nearly a second. This is the Italian’s third career IMSA pole.
Championship leaders Paul Miller Racing were second in their No. 1 BMW. But his fastest lap of 1:44.810 was lost due to him causing the red flag in free practice on Friday. Significantly, his second fastest lap of 1:44.957 was enough to have him start third. However, he lost his second place to his closest championship rivals – the No. 4 Corvette from Pratt Miller Motorsports. Nicky Catsburg’s 1:44.924 was key to ensure he grabbed a front row spot.
One could argue this GTD PRO session was the most competitive session of the season. All ten cars in the class qualified within one second of pole.
GTD: Stevenson Goes Lights Out for DragonSpeed
The DragonSpeed Corvette is finding speed in the second half of the season Photo Courtesy: Alec Udell Racing/Facebook
Like Pfaff, DragonSpeed was near the top in the final practice Saturday morning, usually used for qualifying simulations. Casper Stevenson must have felt quite confident in his package. Stevenson laid down a 1:45.188 halfway during the 15-minute GTD session. Tried hard as they might, the rest of the thirteen-car field could not top it. Stevenson’s lap, his second IMSA pole, is fast enough for seventh quickest on the combined chart. For a team that announced at the start of the weekend they will be leaving at seasons’ end, this has to be quite the shot in the arm.
Behind Stevenson was Lorenzo Patrese. The No. 34 Conquest Ferrari would end up within half a tenth of the Dragonspeed Corvette. Dudu Barichello did set the third fastest time in the session with a 1:45.263. However, due to the “failure to adhere to controlled powertrain parameters” – the official message from race control, his third and fifth laps were disallowed. Therefore, the Heart of Racing No. 27 was moved from third to twelfth and eventually eleventh after Sheena Monk’s fastest lap was also canned.
Taking third on the grid was Heart of Racing’s closest championship rival – Winward Racing. Russell Ward, after spinning during the middle of the session at the Roller Coaster, rebounded to post a 1:45.327 which became third and valuable points.
The Michelin GT Challenge at VIR goes green at 12:10pm local time Sunday afternoon.
Full Qualifying Results: Click HERE
Headline Photo: The Pfaff Motorsport Lamborghini in Friday Practice Photo Courtesy: Virginia International Raceway/Facebook
