Helio Castroneves will lead the way in IMSA’s return to racing this evening, with the Acura Team Penske driver having qualified on pole for the WeatherTech 240 at Daytona International Speedway.
The Brazilian in the No. 7 Acura ARX-05 reeled off a best lap of 1:34.390 to outpace the pair of Multimatic-run Mazda RT24-Ps in DPi session, which saw the top four separated by less than two-tenths.
It marked Castroneves’ fourth career WeatherTech SportsCar Championship pole and his first since Long Beach last year.
The session was halted two minutes early due to weather in the area, with a reported lightning strike within 10 miles of the Speedway.
Practice 2 pace-setter Oliver Jarvis qualified second in the No. 77 Mazda DPi, ahead of teammate Jonathan Bomarito in the No. 55 entry in third.
Defending DPi champion Juan Pablo Montoya, who led the way on Friday, qualified fourth in the No. 6 Penske Acura DPi.
Ryan Briscoe completed the top-five after rebounding from a puncture in final practice that resulted in bodywork damage to the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R.
Gavin Leads Corvette Front Row Lockout in GTLM
Oliver Gavin gave the Chevrolet Corvette C8.R its first pole in only the car’s third outing following a sweep of the front row in GT Le Mans.
The Englishman took the No. 4 Corvette Racing entry to a 1:42.251 lap time, outpacing teammate Jordan Taylor by 0.272 seconds.
Gavin and co-driver Tommy Milner will be seeking the factory Pratt & Miller-run squad’s first win in more than two years.
A late flyer by Jesse Krohn put the No. 24 Team RLL BMW M8 GTE third on the grid in class, followed by Laurens Vanthoor, who was the best of the Porsches in fourth in the No. 912 Porsche 911 RSR-19.
IMSA iRacing Pro Series champion Bruno Spengler completed the top-five in the newly red-liveried No. 25 BMW.
Compass McLaren on GTD Pole
Corey Fergus took Compass Racing and McLaren to its maiden class pole in GT Daytona, in a hard-fought session for the GT3-spec machinery.
Fergus, on his WeatherTech Championship debut, recorded a 1:47.015 lap time in the McLaren 720S GT3 to edge out the No. 14 AIM Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 of Aaron Telitz by 0.137 seconds.
Fergus will share driving duties with McLaren factory driver Paul Holton in the two-hour and 40-minute race.
Robby Foley will start third in the Turner Motorsport BMW M6 GT3, with Frankie Montecalvo (No. 12 AVS Lexus) and Cooper MacNeil (No. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020) completing the top-five.
The WeatherTech 240 gets underway at 6:10 p.m. ET with live coverage on NBCSN and IMSA Radio.
RESULTS: Qualifying