Ford Drivers Hail “Rewarding” Pole Effort for Miedecke/MPC

Photo: Gruppe C Photography/SRO

Chris Mies and Dennis Olsen said to start on pole in Sunday’s Suzuka 1000km is “rewarding” for the Miedecke Motorsport by Team MPC operation, in the Australian squad’s debut race with the Ford Mustang GT3 EVO.

Mies, Olsen and Fred Vervisch combined for the second-best three-driver average in qualifying for the fourth round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge season.

However, the No. 77 Craft-Bamboo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, which had an average that was nearly six-tenths quicker than the Ford trio, face a three-position grid penalty for a red flag speeding infringement from Friday’s night practice.

Mies, who set the car’s quickest lap, a 1:59.003 in Q1, credited the Troy Russell-led Melbourne Performance Centre outfit, which has combined with Miedecke Motorsport for the joint effort.

Both organizations, with the help of Multimatic and Ford Racing, built up the Mustang GT3 EVO in the Suzuka paddock earlier this week, with the brand-new car only turning its first laps yesterday morning.

“The team worked hard and had to build up the car and everything,” Mies told Sportscar365. “They didn’t know the car at all.

“Obviously, Fred, Dennis and I, we tried to give as much input as possible and help them to understand the car.

“I think it’s a good start. We were already happy that we were in Suzuka and to be back now with a pole position after not being here for a couple of years is pretty cool.”

Olsen added: “It’s very rewarding for the team. It’s been a lot of work for these guys, the last couple of days.

“Our main focus has been to get all the basics right and so far we have.”

Mies, who set the second quickest time in night practice, said he’s been impressed with how quickly they’ve been able to get up to speed in the car’s first Suzuka appearance.

However, the German driver pointed to the pair of Pro class Mercedes-AMGs as potentially being the favorites in the race.

“With Ford Multimatic we built the EVO for a reason and it looks like it’s working,” he said. “I still don’t think that we have the same pace as the Mercedes over the distance.

“And obviously we’re benefitting from the grid penalty. So by pure pace we’re obviously a bit behind.

“But still, I think it’s a very, very good result for the team to qualify second in one of the toughest races with the toughest teams and drivers in competition.

“I think we all deserve a beer tonight.”

Olsen likewise expects challenging race, specifically with tire degradation likely to play a factor.

“It’s going to be a big challenge ahead of us tomorrow,” he said. “It’s going to be tough. There’s a lot of tire deg here and we see the others are very strong there, so we’re hoping we can hold on.

“Then we just have to execute good pit stops and stay clean.

“It’s a new team; It’s new for everyone. We’ll see what we can do tomorrow.”

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