WRT Sweeps Front Row for Nürburgring 1000

Laurens Vanthoor’s No. 1 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT Audi will start from pole position in tomorrow’s Blancpain Endurance Series Nürburgring 1000 title showdown, as Christopher Mies posted the quickest time right before rain hit the Nürburgring once again.

Even before the start of Q1 it became clear rain was going to disturb Qualifying for the Nürburgring 1000, resulting in a frantic rush to put in a fast time before the first droplets began to fall halfway through the second 15-minute segment.

Christopher Mies immediately delivered a 1:55.708 in the No. 1 WRT Audi, effectively securing pole position as the track got wetter as the session progressed. Laurens Vanthoor then went on to dominate the irrelevant final session.

“Actually, the plan was to put on a used set to get a feeling for the track because it rained in the afternoon, but obviously that changed due to the black clouds coming in,” said Mies.

“It’s all about helping Laurens now. We have the best chances to win this race, but it’s still a long way to go, and we’re at the Nürburgring so anything can happen with the weather. I think I have done the first 50 percent of the job today”

Marc Basseng, who switched seats with Mies for this weekend, made it a WRT 1-2 as the German posted the second fastest Q2 time (+0.460s) in the sister car, giving the Belgian team a front row lock out as it tries to guide Vanthoor to the Pro Cup drivers’ title tomorrow.

Marco Seefried put in a strong performance in the No. 52 AF Corse Ferrari, securing the third spot on the grid.

Andy Meyrick’s No. 7 Bentley ended Q2 in fifth, but as Steven Kane’s Q1 time turned out to be faster, the car will start in front of the No. 99 ART Grand Prix McLaren that edged out the Continental GT3 by a mere 0.032s in Q2 .

The Bentley Boys face a 15-points deficit to the No. 1 Audi heading in tomorrow’s six-hour race.

Vanthoor’s main challengers for the title, Stéphane Ortelli, Edward Sandström and Gregroy Guilvert, experienced a difficult qualifying in the No. 26 Sainteloc Audi to claim P9 on the grid.

Ortelli had problems dealing with the traffic in Q2, while Guilvert beached the car in the gravel trap after loosing the rear under braking for the first corner in the final session.

RESULTS: Qualifying