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Monterey Saturday Notebook

John Dagys’ Saturday notebook from Monterey…

Photo: Brian Cleary/BCPix.com

Photo: Brian Cleary/BCPix.com

***Tristan Nunez’s last pole came in 2013, also at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, running in the GRAND-AM GX class in a SpeedSource Mazda6. The last pole for a Mazda-powered Prototype was in 2013 for Dyson Racing in ALMS competition at Virginia International Raceway.

***Both Nunez and PC pole-sitter Robert Alon are graduates of the Mazda Prototype Lites. Nunez won the Lites 1 title in 2012.

***Corvette Racing will take part in its annual pre-Le Mans test at Road America next week. All six of its Le Mans drivers, including Jordan and Ricky Taylor, will be at the test, which will utilize the Corvette C7.R’s low drag kit and 2016 WEC Michelin tires.

***Program manager Doug Fehan confirmed to Sportscar365 that the team will bring a spare chassis to Le Mans. Its No. 63 entry was forced to withdraw from last year’s event after a heavy accident in qualifying. Fehan said the new car has already been built and completed a shakedown.

***Change Racing team principal Robby Benton expects their No. 11 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 to complete the season, even if Bill Sweedler and Townsend Bell are not fully confirmed. “This has been a salvage operation from the O’Gara fallout,” Benton told Sportscar365. “We’re just trying to make sure we put something together that Bill Sweelder and Townsend Bell feel comfortable with.”

***One of the potential issues could be the next round in Detroit, which clashes with the Le Mans Test Day. Both Sweedler and Bell will take part in the French endurance classic in a Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 Italia GT.

***Mazda is not expected to formally announce its DPi effort for at least the next few months. It’s understood work continues on the factory program, which will be based on the Riley Mk. XXX LMP2 chassis and utilize a derivative of its MZ-2.0T engine that’s currently run in its Lola-based prototypes.

***Visit Florida Racing hasn’t ruled out an expansion to a two-car program for next year. Team owner Troy Flis told Sportscar365 that he’s been in discussions with potential partners. The team expects to finalize its chassis constructor in the next few weeks.

***The No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR is actually last year’s GTLM championship-winning chassis, which replaced the No. 912 car that was heavily damaged in Kevin Estre’s accident at Sebring in March. The CORE autosport-run team swapped chassis prior to Long Beach.

***James Davison still hasn’t given up on the possibility of landing a last-minute ride in the Indianapolis 500. “I’m waiting to see if a particular seat opens up. At this stage I think it’s 50-50 and we’ll see what happens,” Davison told Sportscar365.

***An all-new IMSA.com Web site will launch next month. IMSA’s new portable streaming device, Vuing, meanwhile, is expected to be officially rolled out beginning at the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen in June.

***Be sure to check out Andy Blackmore’s official Spotter Guide for the Continental Monterey Grand Prix, featuring all 42 starters for the split P/GTLM and PC/GTD races.

***FOX Sports 1 will carry live coverage of the P/GTLM race on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET. The two-hour PC/GTD race will be live on FS2 at 6:30 p.m. ET, with IMSA Radio providing full coverage of both races as well.

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John

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