Michael Galati: “Track time is always an advantage and it worked out well for me”

Michael Galati, of Olmsted, Ohio, needed only one lap in his Porsche to set the pace in Friday’s 30-minute practice session for Sunday’s SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT Championship Round Six race at the Steelback Grand Prix of Toronto. Point leader Andy Pilgrim, of Boca Raton, Fla., and Eric Curran, of East Hampton, Mass., completed the top three.

After being brought in on the first lap due to an oil leak, Galati was able to only turn one lap at speed in his No. 23 K-PAX Racing/Jim Haughey Porsche 911 GT3 before an incident ended the session early, but his time of 1:15.613 (83.557 mph) around the 1.755-mile circuit was 1.235 seconds better than anyone else.

“They just overfilled the oil tank a little bit and I was smoking off the exhaust, so they called me in, ” Galati said. “I came in right away. The team made sure there was no problem and there wasn’t so I went back out. Then the red flag came out and I had to come back in, so I only got one flying lap, but the car felt really good.

“I raced here back in 1999 in a different series, so I know this track a little bit, but I forgot about a lot of places. It’s a little too slow, but that’s a street race. It’s not bad though, it’s short so it keeps you on your toes all the time.

“I was out in the Touring Car just before the GT session, so I think that refreshed my memory a little bit. Track time is always an advantage and it worked out well for me. ”

Pilgrim led most of the session in his No. 8 XM/Mobil 1/Motorola/Bose Cadillac CTS-V with a time of 1:16.848 (82.214 mph), just a tick faster than Curran’s lap of 1:16.986 (82.066 mph) in his No. 30 Whelen Engineering Chevrolet Corvette.

Curran’s teammate and car owner, Sonny Whelen, ended the session early after making heavy contact with the Turn 11 wall in his Chevrolet Corvette. Whelen was uninjured, but his car was damaged and is unlikely to return this weekend.

Local hero Ron Fellows, of Mississauga, Ontario, was fourth in his No. 16 XM/Mobil 1/Motorola/Bose Cadillac CTS-V with a best lap of 1:17.180 (81.860 mph). Rookie Brian Kubinski, of Plainfield, Ill., was fifth in his No. 12 Diamond Construction/Blackdog Racing Chevrolet Corvette with a fastest time of 1:17.221 (81.817 mph).

Lawson Aschenbach (Cadillac CTS-V), Randy Pobst (Porsche 911 GT3), Tommy Archer (Dodge Viper), Lou Gigliotti (Chevrolet Corvette) and Doug Peterson (Chevrolet Corvette) completed the top 10.

Attached: Image of Michael Galati at the Steelback Grand Prix of Toronto. Image by Mark Weber/SCCA

TORONTO - Results from practice for Sunday’s SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT Championship Round Five race, part of the Steelback Grand Prix of Toronto at Exhibition Place, with position, car number in parentheses, driver,

hometown, car, fastest lap time, and speed in miles per hour.

1, (23), Michael Galati, Olmsted, Ohio, Porsche 911 GT-3, 1:15.613, 83.557.

2, (8), Andy Pilgrim, Boca Raton, Fla., Cadillac CTS-V, 1:16.848, 82.214.

3, (30), Eric Curran, East Hampton, Mass., Chevrolet Corvette, 1:16.986, 82.066.

4, (16), Ron Fellows, Mississauga, Ontario, Cadillac CTS-V, 1:17.180, 81.860.

5, (12), Brian Kubinski(R), Plainfield, Ill., Chevrolet Corvette, 1:17.221, 81.817.

6, (1), Lawson Aschenbach, W. Palm Beach, Fla., Cadillac CTS-V, 1:17.236, 81.801.

7, (22), Randy Pobst, Gainesville, Ga., Porsche 911 GT-3, 1:17.387, 81.641.

8, (5), Tommy Archer, Duluth, Minn., Dodge Viper, 1:17.489, 81.534.

9, (28), Lou Gigliotti, Dallas, Texas, Chevrolet Corvette, 1:17.877, 81.128.

10, (87), Doug Peterson, Bonita Springs, Fla., Chevrolet Corvette, 1:18.113, 80.882.

11, (14), James Sofronas(T), Newport Beach, Calif., Porsche 911 GT-3, 1:18.754, 80.224.

12, (99), Jeff Courtney, Slinger, Wis., Dodge Viper, 1:18.966, 80.009.

13, (31), Sonny Whelen(T), Old Saybrook, Conn., Chevrolet Corvette, 1:19.050, 79.924.

14, (82), Michael McCann, North Canton, Ohio, Dodge Viper, 1:19.078, 79.895.

15, (2), Cindi Lux(R), Aloha, Ore., Dodge Viper, 1:19.238, 79.734.

16, (17), Rob Foster(T), Phoenix, Ariz., Dodge Viper, 1:19.631, 79.341.

17, (3), Scotty B. White, Puyallup, Wash., Dodge Viper, 1:19.699, 79.273.

18, (6), Jeffrey Robbins(R), Southfield, Mich., Dodge Viper, 1:20.339, 78.641.

19, (20), Dane Moxlow(R), Grosse Ile, Mich., Pontiac GTO, 1:21.690, 77.341.

20, (76), John Bourassa(T), Jupiter Island, Fla., Porsche 911 Turbo, 1:21.818, 77.220.

21, (13), Nick Majors (R), Oakville, Ontario, Dodge Viper, 1:23.646, 75.532.