Ferrari AF Corse placed on a dominant show in qualifying for his or her dwelling race on the 6 Hours of Imola. The Scuderia secured the highest three spots on the grid within the Hypercar class for the second spherical of the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) with Porsche Penske Motorsport behind them in 4th and fifth. In LMGT3, spherical one winners Manthey PureRxing secured the highest spot.
Hypercar
It could be laborious for the weekend to be going significantly better for Ferrari AF Corse after qualifying. The Italian workforce topped each practise classes on Friday and FP3 on Saturday morning on the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. The Tifosi (Ferrari followers) have been overjoyed when the workforce continued that run of type in qualifying, with Antonio Fuoco taking Ferrari’s third Hypercar pole within the #50 automotive with a shocking lap time of 1:29.446.
The privateer Ferrari AF Corse workforce got here second, with Robert Schwartzman posting a time of 1:29.885, with the opposite manufacturing unit Ferrari coming in simply 0.068 seconds behind that in third. Such constant efficiency shall be heart-warming for the workforce who suffered a disappointing weekend on the season opening Qatar 1812km.
The workforce who dominated that weekend in Qatar, Porsche Penske Motorsport, are subsequent on the grid. Race profitable #6 comes 4th, an thrilling 0.148 seconds behind the third Ferrari, with Matt Campbell, polesitter in Qatar, in fifth. Then comes reigning champions Toyota Gazoo Racing. Their mission is to get again on the rostrum. With their #7 automotive beginning in sixth and #8 in eighth, they stand to learn from any carnage between the Porsches and Ferraris.
First of the brand new groups for 2024 is BMW M Staff WRT. They managed to separate the Toyotas with Rene Rast posting a 1:30.600. They might nonetheless be 1.134 seconds of the pole tempo, however to be within the combine with such veteran groups is definitely encouraging. The three privateer Porsche groups make up the following three positions, with Hertz Staff JOTA taking ninth and eleventh, cut up by the Proton Competitors Porsche in tenth.
The 2-driver Cadillac Racing automotive was twelfth quickest, adopted by the 2 Peugeot TotalEnergies vehicles. With their nearly model new Peugeot 9X8 making its debut, the workforce have to work to become familiar with it. Following an amazing third quickest time in FP1, they could be disenchanted that each vehicles are over 2 seconds of the pole setting tempo. Lamborghini Iron Lynx line up sixteenth for his or her dwelling race, adopted by the 2 Alpine Endurance Staff vehicles, with Isotta Fraschini rounding off the grid, over 1.5 seconds off the tempo of the Alpines.
LMGT3
In LMGT3, it was an amazing qualifying for individuals who triumphed in Qatar, whereas those that carried out effectively in practise have been surprisingly off the tempo. Qatar winners Mathey PureRxing took pole with a lap time of 1:42.365, with Qatar’s second place finishers, Coronary heart of Racing Staff, lining up alongside them of their Aston Martin Vantage AMR LMGT3.
Staff WRT lock out the second row. Italian followers can rejoice, as their hero Valentino Rossi‘s automotive, the #46 BMW M4 LMGT3 strains up in third, with the sister automotive alongside it. Sarah Bovy put her Iron Dames Lamborghini Huracan LMGT3 Evo2, whereas Giorgio Roda put in an amazing drive to get his #88 Proton Competitors Ford Mustang LMGT3 alongside her in sixth. The Manthey Ema Porsche 911 GT3 RS LMGT3 is seventh, adopted by the 2 Vista AF Corse Ferraris, with the #59 United Autosports McLaren 720S LMGT3 Evo rounding out the highest 10.
TF Sport had been the dominant pressure within the LMGT3 class up to now in Imola. The workforce shall be scratching their heads as to why they might solely handle eleventh and thirteenth on the grid in qualifying. They have been cut up by the D’Station Racing Aston Martin. The #77 Ford Mustang is 14th, adopted by the second McLaren, the 2 Akkodis ASP Staff Lexus RCF LMGT3 vehicles, and the Iron Lynx Lamborghini.
Up Subsequent
After the brand new Golden Age of endurance racing bought off to such an unbelievable begin in Qatar, the stage is ready for one more thrilling spherical of the 2024 FIA WEC. Can Ferrari maintain onto these high three positions? Will Porsche work their magic and handle to grab victory from Ferrari at their dwelling race? Can Manthey PureRxing proceed their glorious type?
Comply with The Checkered Flag for a full race report and press releases from the groups after the race. Full qualifying outcomes may be discovered right here.
