Johnson, Isman Claim COTA CTSC Poles

Billy Johnson secured the GS pole position for Friday’s Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race at Circuit of the Americas, both his first of the season and first of his career in the No. 158 Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang Boss 302R.

Johnson will share the car with Ian James as the pair also seek their first victory of the season and look to play spoiler in the championship chase. Johnson clocked a flier of 2:22.504 around the 3.4-mile road course.

“The track cooled down a bunch from practice, we took what we learned and threw a qualifying setup at it,” Johnson said. “I really wanted a pole and the guys gave me a chance to be able to do it.”

Teammates Scott Maxwell and Jade Buford, who scored the pole in the season opener in Daytona, start second in the No. 15 Ford Mustang Boss 302R (2:23.000).

Hugh Plumb, who steps into the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche 997 alongside brother Matt this week, lines up third.

The two Camaro Z/28.Rs, the No. 01 CKS Autosport entry of Eric Curran and Lawson Aschenbach and the points-leading No. 6 Stevenson Motorsports entry of Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell, start fifth.

Trent Hindman, who currently sits two points behind Davis/Liddell in the GS standings, lines up ninth in the No. 46 Fall-Line Motorsports BMW M3 that he’ll share with John Edwards.

In ST, Adam Isman captured the pole position late with a last-lap flier of 2:29.977, for his second pole of the season (Indianapolis) in the No. 04 Autometrics Motorsports Porsche Cayman he’ll share with Remo Ruscitti.

“After my first couple laps, the car fell off really hard on hot tires. The guys said slow down. Sure enough on the last lap, I pulled it out, right at the end,” Isman said.

Jeff Mosing was on pace for his second pole (Daytona, then in a BMW 328i) with a best time of 2:30.161 before losing the pole at the last minute. He’s in the No. 56 Murillo Racing Porsche Cayman that he’ll co-drive with Eric Foss.

Foss enters Friday’s race just one point behind Wayne Nonnamaker (260-259) in the similar Porsche Cayman, the No. 42 entered by Team Sahlen. The Wayne/Will Nonnamaker entry qualified 18th.

The No. 5 CJ Wilson Racing Mazda MX-5 of Stevan McAleer and Chad McCumbee is third (2:30.668), as the team seeks its second straight win at the track.

The No. 75 Compass360 Racing Honda Civic Si of Ryan Eversley and Kyle Gimple lines up fourth with Bryan Heitkotter and Steven Doherty in the No. 34 Skullcandy Team Nissan Nissan Altima in fifth.

Friday’s race will be live streamed on IMSA.com at 1:20 p.m. ET, 12:20 p.m. CT and local time.

RESULTS: Qualifying