“Not bad to be the first leaders of the championship! » -Porsche

The 963 takes the first pole position in its young history thanks to Australian Matt Campbell in Qatar, the first since Bahrain in 2017 in the premier category of the WEC.

Published on 01/03/2024 à 16:22

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“Not bad to be the first leaders of the championship! » –Porsche

Porsche was first in Qatar. / © DPPI

We can't stop him anymore. After winning the 24 Hours of Daytona (United States) and the 12 Hours of Bathurst (Australia), Australian Matt Campbell took pole position for the 1812 km of Qatar, the opening round of the WEC 2024, on board the Porsche n ° 5.

For the German manufacturer, record holder for victories at Le Mans (19 wins), this is a first since the Hypercar debut of the 963.

« It's obviously a fantastic feeling to get our first ever pole, responded Campbell. However, I had difficulty during the qualifying simulations yesterday (Thursday. Editor’s note). I really wasn't comfortable. Same thing this morning (in EL3. Editor’s note). Hats off to the team of engineers who managed to turn the situation around.

When qualifying came, I had the feeling, from the first lap, that the car had changed. I was very happy with the balance of the car. It was a little trickier during the Hyperpole because the compound was different (all Hypercars were required to run on hard tires. Editor’s note).

We start from the best position, which will be crucial for the race strategy tomorrow (Sunday March 2. Editor’s note). »

By signing the first pole position of the season, Porsche scored a point which allows it to lead the championship. The symbol did not escape the general manager of Team Penske which operates the official Porsche 963s.

« The WEC is a championship where you have to execute every detail perfectly and that's what we did today, commented Jonathan Diuguid.

It is the fruit of a sum of efforts in all areas. I can't isolate one from the others. The engineers did a fantastic job and we recruited talent to strengthen our team.

It's not bad to be the first leaders of the championship!

As Matt pointed out (Campbell. Editor’s note), track position will play an essential role, so we focused on that during the free sessions, without neglecting the long stints of course, particularly in terms of understanding the tires.

We are confident, the car clearly has pace. It will be up to the drivers and the team to respond. »

The 1812 km of Qatar will start on Sunday March 2 at 11:00 a.m. Qatar time (09:00 a.m. in France).