Laguna Seca – Qualifying: Louis Délétraz puts the No. 40 Cadillac on pole position

The V-Series.Rs had impressed in free practice and were considered favorites for pole position at Laguna Seca. On the Californian track, the American prototypes lived up to expectations when it came to setting the starting grid: Louis Délétraz was fastest with a time of 1:13.221, giving the No. 40 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac pole position. For the Swiss driver, who shares the wheel with Jordan Taylor, this is his third pole in the series. IMSA, the first in almost two years.

"Obviously, it's great to get pole position, especially on a circuit like this where overtaking is really difficult," the poleman was savoring the moment. “A huge thank you to Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing, as I think we’ve improved tremendously over the last six months. The car has been consistently competitive, and I believe today’s pole position is a great reward for the whole team. I’m really looking forward to the race tomorrow (Sunday).”

Louis Délétraz is experiencing a particularly successful period: he is preparing to make his debut in WEC He will be driving in the Hypercar category next weekend (May 8-10), replacing Alex Lynn in the No. 12 Cadillac for the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. The American manufacturer's decision to select him is further justified after his pole position victory across the Atlantic at Laguna Seca.

Even better for Cadillac, the No. 31 Whelen will start second thanks to Jack Aitken, who missed pole position by just over two-tenths of a second. The winners of the last race at Long Beach, Nick Yelloly and Renger van der Zande (No. 93 Meyer Shank Racing Acura), will start third, ahead of the No. 24 BMW of Dries Vanthoor and Sheldon van der Linde. A slight disappointment for the... Porsche, notably the No. 7 of championship leaders Julien Andlauer and Felipe Nasr, who will start only 9th, behind the sister car, the No. 6 of Kévin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor.

In the GTD category, pole position went to the Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo from Conquest Racing (A. Costa / L. Patrese). Finally, in GTD Pro, it was the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3 from Vasser Sullivan Racing (J. Hawksworth / B. Barnicoat) which was the fastest.

ALSO READ > Louis Delétraz replaces Alex Lynn ahead of the Spa 6 Hours

IMSA – Laguna Seca
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