Plumb, Skeer Score CTSC Poles at Daytona

Hugh Plumb has captured the pole position for the season-opening Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race of 2016, the BMW Performance 200.

Plumb, who co-drives the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Porsche 997 with brother Matt, set a best time of 2:12.492 in wet conditions at the 3.56-mile Daytona International Speedway.

“The conditions have never been the same, practice-to-practice. For the GS field it was pretty much a downpour,” Plumb said.

“You had to adapt and react to what’s possibly coming at you. You keep trying to go faster.”

He ended ahead of series rookie Daniel Burkett, seeking a debut pole in the GS class, who set a best time of 2:13.041.

Burkett will share the No. 33 CJ Wilson Racing Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport with Marc Miller.

The pair of Ford Shelby GT350R-Cs were third and fourth, with the No. 15 Multimatic Motorsports entry ahead of the No. 76 Compass360 Racing entry.

Elliott Skeer, in his first Continental Tire Challenge start since a one-off appearance at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in 2014, has his second career ST pole in as many opportunities.

The 2015 Porsche GT3 Challenge USA champion laid down a lap of 2:17.340 in wet conditions to take the top spot.

Skeer will share the No. 8 Rebel Rock Racing Porsche Cayman with Robin Liddell.

Three other manufacturers qualified in spots two through four. Mark Pombo took the No. 37 MINI JCW to second at 2:17.980, with Jim McGuire third in the No. 74 Compass360 Racing Audi S3 at 2:18.345 and Chad Gilsinger fourth in the No. 93 HART Honda Civic Si at 2:18.766.

The top BMW qualifier for the BMW Performance 200 was the No. 84 Bimmerworld BMW 328i of James Clay, in sixth.

Of note, last year’s ST class co-champion Stevan McAleer qualified 10th in his first start in the No. 25 Freedom Autosport Mazda MX-5, one spot ahead of Justin Piscitell in the No. 34 Alara Racing MX-5. Piscitell won the first four poles in 2015.

Neither the No. 7 Rebel Rock Cayman nor the No. 44 CRG-I Do Borrow Honda Civic Si set a time in the session.

Friday’s BMW Performance 200 goes green at 1:45 p.m. ET and local time.

RESULTS: Qualifying