Nunez Puts Mazda on Pole at CTMP

Photo: Brian Cleary/BCPix.com

Mazda has scored pole for Sunday’s Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix, with Tristan Nunez taking the SpeedSource-run Prototype to the top spot in qualifying at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.

Nunez laid down a best lap of 1:10.126 in Saturday’s 15-minute qualifying session to edge out the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP of Ricky Taylor by 0.309 seconds.

It marked the second pole for both Nunez and the Mazda team in the last four races, as the Japanese manufacturer seeks its elusive first overall win on Sunday.

The 20-year-old rising star will share his pole-sitting Mazda with Jonathan Bomarito in tomorrow’s two-hour and 40-minute race.

Tom Long made it two Mazdas in the top-three, thanks to a 1:10.572 in the No. 70 entry, while Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen winner Christian Fittipaldi was fourth.

The No. 31 Action Express Racing Corvette DP of Eric Curran completed the top-five overall and in the Prototype class.

Colin Braun scored his second Prototype Challenge class pole of the season, in a dominant qualifying effort for the CORE autosport driver.

Braun reeled off a best lap of 1:11.946 to outpace the No. 38 Peformance Tech Motorsports Oreca FL0M09 of James French by 0.945 seconds.

The defending class champion recorded the three quickest times in the session, as one of the only Gold/Platinum-rated driver to qualify the car.

The No. 85 JDC-Miller Motorsports entry of Stephen Simpson will start third in class, ahead of Matt McMurry in the No. 20 BAR1 Motorsports entry in fourth.

The Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix is set for Sunday at 11 a.m. ET with live coverage on FOX Sports 1.

RESULTS: Qualifying

John Dagys

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