Bourdais on pole for Battle on the Bricks

IMSA

Sep 22

#01 Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac will start from pole for Sunday’s Battle on the Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway thanks to Sebastien Boudais setting the fastest lap during qualifying. Louis Deletraz’s with #40 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Acura ARX-06 will also start from first row. Five drivers were under the 1:15 mark.

Sebastien Bourdais qualifies #01 Cadillac in pole

Cadillac Racing will start on the pole position for the fifth time in eight IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship races as Sebastien Boudais, in the #01 Cadillac V-Series.R, reeled off a best lap of 1:14.592 in qualifying at The Brickyard. The #01 Cadillac V-Series.R, which Bourdais will share with Renger van der Zande in the six-hour TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks has qualified no lower than third this season.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Indianapolis. Sebastien Bourdais with #01 Cadillac V-Series.R

Sebastien Bourdais: “We need all the points we can get. We’ll take it for sure. It’s a small gain, but every little point helps. We’re just going to try and get out of here still alive in the championship so we can live to fight another day once we get to Petit. “If the forecast holds true and it’s on and off rain, it’s going to be difficult because the wet tire is too soft and doesn’t transition and the hard tire is really undriveable in variable conditions. So, it will be exciting. “There’s a survival period that comes into play (in six-hour race). You kind of have four hours of, ‘Let’s make sure that we got all the bits on the car and not do anything stupid to take yourself out of contention.’ The 2-hour, 40-minute race, the first stint it’s more about positioning yourself and then, go, go, go.’ I think for all of us, it’ll be the single biggest challenge to not hit anyone and not get hit. I think whoever manages to do that the most appropriately will definitely have the best chance of ending up on top. We’ll have a good night, a good sleep. Hopefully we can come back tomorrow and put a banker and hopefully come out on top.” Source: Cadillac Racing

Louis Deletraz with #40 Acura also in first row.

Louis Deletraz with the Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Acura ARX-06 #40 missed pole by 0.225 seconds but will start from first row.

Mathieu Jaminet with #6 Porsche third

The #6 Porsche 963 will tackle the endurance event in Indianapolis from the second row. Frenchman Mathieu Jaminet secured the third grid spot at the wheel of the hybrid prototype that recently won the Road America race. Mathieu Jaminet missed the first row by 0,031 sec. as he lapped in 1:14.848.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Indianapolis. The #6 Penske Porsche 963 of Mathieu Jaminet.

Mathieu Jaminet (Porsche 963 #6): “Third place is not bad at all. Our car felt great in qualifying. The setup was virtually perfect. It was super close, but the Cadillac was out of reach today. P2 might have been possible for me, but that’s about all. I’m pleased with how the weekend has gone so far. Next comes race day: I’m confident that we’re well placed for the six-hour event. We aim to advance from third to the very front.” Source: Porsche

Whelen Cadillac in second row.

Jack Aitken, driving the #31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R, qualified fourth in the 11-car GTP session with a best lap of 1:14.936.

Jack Aitken: “Qualifying was a really solid session for us. We were finding our feet a little bit in practice but made some great changes ahead of quali. Seb (Bourdais) did a great lap to secure pole, I was happy with mine as well, so now we look ahead to the race and all the unpredictability the weather will bring. That aside, the traffic will be a huge challenge as everyone has said, so we will keep our nose clean and make smart decisions." Source: Cadillac Racing