MONTEREY, Calif. — On the heels of profitable the newest IMSA Michelin Pilot Problem Grand Sport class race at Sebring Int’l Raceway, the No. 39 CarBahn by Peregrine Racing BMW M4 GT4 EVO is off to a robust begin a cross-country drive away in Monterey.
Sean McAlister, who shares the No. 39 BMW with Jeff Westphal, secured his second profession Michelin Pilot Problem pole (Daytona 2024 was his first) with a finest lap of 1 minute, 29.364 seconds (90.156 mph) across the 11-turn, 2.238-mile WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca circuit. Saturday’s two-hour WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 120, Spherical 3 of the season, is a part of the TireRack.com Monterey SportsCar Championship weekend. Westphal is a previous Monterey winner, having received in GS with CarBahn in 2020.
McAlister set his quickest lap on his ninth and closing timed lap as monitor temperatures cooled into the 90-degree Fahrenheit vary after hovering effectively above 100 a lot of the day, underneath sunny, cloudless, 75-degree ambient temperatures.
His lap beat Moisey Uretsky, within the No. 44 Ibiza Farm Motorsports McLaren Artura GT4, by simply 0.009 of a second. Uretsky and Michael Cooper received the season-opening BMW M Endurance Problem four-hour race at Daytona; McLaren received at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca final 12 months with one other workforce.
A second BMW, the No. 95 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 EVO certified by Dillon Machavern, ended third. He’ll share the automotive with Francis Selldorff.
In the meantime the No. 33 Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb Agajanian Hyundai Elantra N TCR continued its qualifying prowess in Touring Automobile. After Bryson Morris received the primary two Motul Pole Awards of the season in Daytona and Sebring, co-driver Mark Wilkins continued the streak on Friday with the automotive’s third pole in as many races this 12 months.
The 2019 TCR class champion scored solely his second profession Michelin Pilot Problem pole, together with his final coming on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway final September. Wilkins turned in a finest time of 1 minute, 30.245 seconds (89.276 mph), He’s a two-time TCR winner on the monitor (2021, 2023).
Morris and Wilkins completed second at Daytona and received on the highway in Sebring earlier than being despatched to the rear of the sphere there for having a refueling time lower than the permitted minimal of 52 seconds. There’s some unfinished enterprise for the No. 33 Herta Hyundai for the reason that sister entries of Denis Dupont and Preston Brown of their No. 76 Elantra (Daytona) and Mason Filippi and Harry Gottsacker of their No. 98 Elantra (Sebring) received the primary two races of the 12 months.
IMSA 3D Scholarship recipient Celso Neto, who will share his No. 7 Precision Racing LA Audi RS3 LMS TCR with Ryan Eversley, certified a season-best second place at 0.088 of a second in arrears. Gottsacker, within the No. 98 Hyundai, certified third.
Two Grand Sport class entries had late driver adjustments following the entry checklist launch, each Porsche 718 GT4 RS CS vehicles.
Eric Filgueiras steps into the No. 17 UniTronic/JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche alongside Chris Miller. Mikey Taylor is out of the automotive for good purpose as he’s at dwelling following the start of his new son.
Filgueiras and Taylor crafted a “contingency plan” to the place he’d be obtainable on standby if Taylor was unavailable. As soon as the decision was made to draft Filgueiras in, the RS1 Porsche veteran headed West to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, the place he’s completed second earlier than.
“I’m excited and honored to have the chance to drive with UniTronic/JDC-Miller MotorSports and I’ve to thank Mikey Taylor for the decision to sub in for him,” he stated. “I’m trying ahead to getting rolling with Chris and the whole workforce and joyful to be again with the Porsche model.”
