Randy Pobst, of nearby Gainesville, Ga., put his Porsche on pole with a new qualifying lap record at Road Atlanta for Round Nine of the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT Championship, part of the 10th Anniversary Petit Le Mans. Defending race winner Andy Pilgrim, of Boca Raton, Fla., will start second.
Sleeping in your own bed during the race week must do wonders, as Pobst sliced 0.722-second off the current SCCA SPEED GT qualifying record at Road Atlanta, putting his No. 22 K-PAX Racing LLC/Jim Haughey Porsche 911 GT3 on pole for Friday’s race. The Georgian clocked a time of 1:25.689 (106.711 mph) on his first flying lap around the 2.54-mile road course to capture his 20th career-pole.
“I am lucky to be on such a good team here at K-PAX, 3R Racing, ” Pobst said. “It was a bit of a struggle [to get on the pole], because we weren’t quick in the last practice. But, we learned a lot. Will Moody and I sat down and had a long talk and he made some decisions last night that really worked today. He pulled a rabbit right out of the hat. I am very happy and cannot wait for the race to start. I think sleeping 20 minutes away also helps! ”
Last year’s race winner, Pilgrim, slotted into the second spot on the grid with a time of 1:25.917 (106.428 mph) in his No. 8 XM/Mobil 1/Motorola/Bose Cadillac CTS-V. Pilgrim’s time was also under the previous qualifying record of 1:26.441 (105.783 mph).
Pobst’s teammate Michael Galati, of Olmstead, Ohio, qualified third on the grid for Friday’s SCCA SPEED GT race after putting his Mazda 6 on pole for the SCCA SPEED Touring Car Race. Galati entered a time of 1:26.036 (106.281 mph), also under the previous record, in his No. 23 K-PAX Racing LLC/Jim Haughey Porsche 911 GT3.
Defending SCCA SPEED GT Champion Lawson Aschenbach, of W. Palm Beach, Fla., qualified fourth in his No. 1 XM/Mobil 1/Motorola/Bose/Cadillac CTS-V, stopping the clocks at 1:26.551 (105.648 mph). Michael McCann, of Canton, Ohio, completes the top five in his No. 82 McCann Plastics/K&N Filters Dodge Viper with a time of 1:26.714 (105.450 mph)
Ron Fellows (Cadillac CTS-V), Jeff Courtney (Dodge Viper), James Sofronas (Porsche 911 GT3), rookie Tim McKenzie (Porsche 911 GT3) and Cindi Lux (Dodge Viper) complete the top ten.
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