Earl Bamber smashed the previous track record in GT Le Mans to secure his first career TUDOR United SportsCar Championship pole position Saturday at Road America.
The New Zealander took the No. 912 Porsche North America Porsche 911 RSR to a lap of 2:02.384 around the 4.048-mile permanent road course.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans winner was one of five drivers under the previous track record of 2:03.747, set by John Edwards last year.
Behind Bamber, Antonio Garcia and Giancarlo Fisichella completed the top three. Garcia was 0.224 of a second in arrears of Bamber, while Fisichella was more than one second back.
Edwards was fourth with Tommy Milner completing the top five.
Garcia and co-driver Jan Magnussen in the rebuilt No. 3 Corvette C7.R hold a two-point lead over Bill Auberlen and Dirk Werner in the No. 25 BMW Team RLL BMW Z4 GTE. Auberlen qualified sixth.
Patrick Pilet was unable to better a lap of 2:12.307, which slotted the No. 911 Porsche eighth and last in class and behind the top eight runners in the GT Daytona category.
Patrick Lindsey emerged from the GT Daytona class field to score his second pole position of the season (Monterey) in the No. 73 Park Place Motorsports Porsche 911 GT America.
Lindsey and Ben Keating engaged in a neck-and-neck scrap for the top spot, with the Porsche driver prevailing over the No. 33 Riley Motorsports Dodge Viper GT3-R.
Lindsey’s best time was 2:09.370 in the car he’ll share with Spencer Pumpelly; Keating ended at 2:09.488 in the car he’ll co-drive with Jeroen Bleekemolen.
The top five in the GTD class points line up from third to seventh, albeit not in points order. Christina Nielsen qualified third at a 2:09.947, ahead of Dion von Moltke, Bill Sweedler, Ian James and Cooper MacNeil.
Von Moltke and Christopher Haase currently lead Nielsen by five points heading into Sunday’s race.
The Continental Tire Road Race Showcase gets underway Sunday at 2:05 p.m. CT.
