{"id":6933,"date":"2010-07-10T23:17:30","date_gmt":"2010-07-11T03:17:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/?p=6933"},"modified":"2010-07-10T23:17:30","modified_gmt":"2010-07-11T03:17:30","slug":"second-straight-pole-position-at-utah-for-simon-pagenaud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/alms\/second-straight-pole-position-at-utah-for-simon-pagenaud\/","title":{"rendered":"Second straight pole position at Utah for Simon Pagenaud"},"content":{"rendered":"

Simon Pagenaud captured his second straight pole position at the Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix on Saturday. The sterling Frenchman set a best lap of 1:34.350 (116.229 mph) in Patr\u00f3n Highcroft Racing\u2019s HPD ARX-01c that he will drive with David Brabham.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\"S-Pagenaud-PHR-Utah-GP\"<\/p>\n

Pagenaud, who won the race last year with Gil de Ferran, outpaced Drayson Racing\u2019s Jonny Cocker and his Lola B09\/60-Judd coupe by 0.536 seconds. In last year\u2019s race, Pagenaud won the race, pole position and set the fastest race lap.<\/p>\n

\"S-Pagenaud-Utah-GP\"<\/p>\n

Yep, he likes it here.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to be back. This is a very beautiful track,\u201d said Pagenaud, who shares the LMP championship lead with teammate Brabham after victories in the last two races. \u201cI just love how the car reacts here in the high-speed corners and the chicane. I love pretty much everything about this track. I don`t know why I am so quick here.\u201d<\/p>\n

It ultimately doesn\u2019t matter as long as it keeps up. The pole position may have come as a bit of surprise as the high altitude at Miller Motorsports Park puts the normally aspirated cars such as the Patr\u00f3n Highcroft HPD ARX-01c at a slight disadvantage compared to the turbo-powered prototypes. The lack of pressure means air can\u2019t be forced as quickly into the engine of the non-turbo cars.<\/p>\n

But that\u2019s why they hold qualifying, as the saying goes. Despite the slight disadvantage, non-turbo cars qualified first, second and fourth on the grid with turbos third and fifth.<\/p>\n

After the Drayson Lola which Cocker will share with 2006 overall race-winner Emanuele Pirro, Dyson Racing\u2019s Mazda-powered Lola B09\/86 coupe was third fastest thanks to Chris Dyson\u2019s lap of 1:34.909 (115.614 mph). He will drive with Guy Smith.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe tried to run a no-downforce setup to keep up with the Dyson\u2019s top speed,\u201d Pagenaud said. \u201cWe are usually so quick in the corners and we had to give some of that up. In just a few hours, we`ve made such a big improvement. Hats of to the team, we showed up with a completely different package and had to adjust.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe won`t be P1 in the corner at the start, I can tell you that right now,\u201d he added. \u201cBut we\u2019ll spend the least amount of time in the pits and rely on our team, crew and David to keep going quicker and quicker. Our strategy and fuel saving will be the key because the start will be dramatic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gunnar Jeannette captured his second LMP Challenge pole in four races with a lap of 1:42.592 (106.956 mph) in G-Oil\u2019s Green Earth Team Gunnar ORECA FLM09. A resident of the Salt Lake City area, Jeannette was 0.210 seconds quicker than Level 5 Motorsports\u2019 Christophe Bouchut.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\"G-Jeannette-Utah-GP\"<\/p>\n

GETG and Level 5 sit 1-2 in the class championship with Level 5 winning two races to GETG\u2019s one. But Jeannette leads the class with two pole positions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is fantastic. If I could pick two tracks I wanted to be on pole it would be Sebring and here,\u201d Jeannette said. \u201cThis is my backyard so I\u2019m ecstatic to be on pole. So far so good!\u201d<\/p>\n

Jeannette has been the quickest driver in class in all four sessions so far \u2013 Friday\u2019s test, and Saturday\u2019s two practices and qualifying. He said his familiarity with the circuit certainly didn\u2019t hurt, especially as the LMPC cars are racing at Utah for the first time.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe`ve been struggling for grip all weekend,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s really tricky in a prototype; you sit very low and even with just a bit of elevation changes it\u2019s kind of hard to see. On such a race that\u2019s only two hours, 45 minutes, the farther up you are the better off you`ll be. Some of the sections are tough to get by the GTs or GTCs because our top speeds are so similar. So if we don\u2019t get a good run on them, it`s very difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alex Figge qualified third in the PR1\/Mathiasen Motorsports entry that he will drive with Max Hyatt. The car\u2019s best lap was a 1:43.115 (106.413 mph).<\/p>\n

Gimmi Bruni led a 1-2 qualifying effort for Ferrari with his second career pole in the Series. The Italian turned a lap of 1:47.667 (101.914 mph) for Risi Competizione in the car he will drive with Jaime Melo. It was a tightly contested session with Bruni only 0.062 seconds better than Johannes van Overbeek in one of Extreme Speed Motorsports Ferraris. J\u00f6rg Bergmeister qualified third for Flying Lizard Motorsports and Porsche at 1:47.921 (101.674 mph).<\/p>\n

\"G-Bruni-Utah-GP\"\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis track is very, very good,\u201d said Bruni, who has never raced at MMP before. \u201cI started driving here last week with the two days testing. I`m really comfortable with the track. We`ve been really good from yesterday to qualifying. It was a mess getting caught with some GTCs, but you wait and you can get the good clear road. I was hoping for more of a gap but for sure it will make for a really good race tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Especially if the race pace is as close as the qualifying pace. The top eight cars in class were within 0.883 seconds, quite remarkable given the expansive circuit layout.<\/p>\n

\u201cFerrari brought me here with Jamie to battle with all of the other manufacturers,\u201d Bruni said. \u201c We`re fighting against all the other cars and putting in a lot of effort. If you win, you win. If you lose, you learn how to improve. It\u2019s the best drivers, best teams and best manufactures. I\u2019m so happy to be here.\u201d<\/p>\n

All four of the Ferraris are running on cellulosic E85 for the first time this weekend. In all, the top eight cars were all running on the biofuel.<\/p>\n

In GT Challenge, Jeroen Bleekemolen earned his second straight pole position in class with a lap of 1:54.641 (95.714 mph) in Black Swan Racing\u2019s Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car. Bleekemolen and team owner Tim Pappas led for the entire six-hour round at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in the Series\u2019 last race.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\"J-Bleekemolen-Utah-GP\"<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all about learning new tracks since they are all new to me,\u201d Bleekemolen said. \u201cWe struggled a bit. The other cars did a two-day test here but it was really good. I can`t complain. This place is really nice, very fast. There is a lot of room for errors which makes you push really hard but you can get away with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bleekemolen, a former Porsche Supercup champion and LMP2 champion at the Le Mans 24 Hours, was only 0.312 seconds better than Orbit Racing\u2019s Bryce Miller who was quickest in Saturday morning\u2019s practice and Friday\u2019s test session. Alex Job Racing\u2019s Luis Diaz was only 0.001 seconds behind Miller. Much like in GT, the gap between the top cars was small. Only 0.975 seconds separated the eight fastest cars.<\/p>\n

\u201cA few mistakes can cost you two- or three-tenths with our cars,\u201d he said. \u201cYou have to be focused the whole time. By not making mistakes is what gives you the best time.\u201d<\/p>\n

The American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patr\u00f3n field is ready to kick off the summer stint with the Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix at Miller Motorsports Park. The two-hour, 45-minute race will begin at 2:35 p.m. MT on Sunday, July 11, with coverage beginning on SPEED at 4:30 p.m. ET. Live radio coverage will be available on American Le Mans Radio presented by Porsche \u2013 a production of Radio Show Limited \u2013 as well as Sirius Channel 127 and XM Channel 242. Visit the Series\u2019 schedule page for ticket and accommodation information. Live Timing and Scoring, track schedule, entry list and much, much more will be available on Racehub at americanlemans.com.<\/p>\n

Larry<\/em><\/strong> H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix Miller Motorsports Park, Tooele, Utah<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s qualifying<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

1. David Brabham, Maidenhead, UK (GB); Simon Pagenaud, Montmorrillon, FR (FR); HPD ARX-01c (LMP), 1:34.350, 116.299<\/p>\n

2. Emanuele Pirro, Monte Carlo, MC (IT); Jonny Cocker, Guisborough, GB (GB); Lola B09 60\/Judd (LMP), 1:34.886, 115.642<\/p>\n

3. Chris Dyson, Pleasant Valley, NY (US); Guy Smith, Bracken, Yorkshire (GB); Lola B09 86\/Mazda (LMP), 1:34.909, 115.614<\/p>\n

4. Greg Pickett, Crystal Bay, NV (US); Klaus Graf, Dornham (DE); Porsche RS Spyder (LMP), 1:34.948, 115.566<\/p>\n

5. Jon Field, Dublin, OH (US); Clint Field, Dublin, OH (US); Lola B06\/10 AER (LMP), 1:35.379, 115.044<\/p>\n

6. Bryan Willman, Kirkland, WA (US); Tony Burgess, Toronto (CA); Lola B06 10\/AER (LMP), 1:37.689, 112.324<\/p>\n

7. Christian Zugel, Holmdel, NJ (US); Gunnar Jeannette, Salt Lake City, UT (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:42.592, 106.956<\/p>\n

8. Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS (US); Christophe Bouchut, France (FR); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:42.802, 106.737<\/p>\n

9. Alex Figge, Denver, CO (US); Max Hyatt, San Jose, CA (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:43.115, 106.413<\/p>\n

10. Kyle Marcelli, Barrie, Ontario CA (CA); Brian Wong, Newport Beach, CA (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:43.180, 106.346<\/p>\n

11. Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS (US); Andy Wallace, England (ENG); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:44.901, 104.601<\/p>\n

12. Jaime Melo, Milan (BR); Gianmaria Bruni, Rome (Ita); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), 1:47.667, 101.914<\/p>\n

13. Scott Sharp, Jupiter, FL (US); Johannes van Overbeek, San Francisco, CA (US); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), 1:47.729, 101.856<\/p>\n

14. Joerg Bergmeister, Langenfield (DE); Patrick Long, Bellaire, FL (US); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 1:47.921, 101.674<\/p>\n

15. Bill Auberlen, Redondo Beach, CA (US); Tommy Milner, Leesburg, VA (US); BMW E92 M3 (GT), 1:47.966, 101.632<\/p>\n

16. Dirk Mueller, Monte Carlo (DE); Joey Hand, Sacramento, CA (US); BMW E92 M3 (GT), 1:47.970, 101.628<\/p>\n

17. Olivier Beretta, Monte Carlo, MC (MC); Oliver Gavin, Yardley Hastings, GB (GB); Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 (GT), 1:48.022, 101.579<\/p>\n

18. Jan Magnussen, Roskilde, CK (DK); Johnny O`Connell, Flowery Branch, GA (US); Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 (GT), 1:48.279, 101.338<\/p>\n

19. Ed Brown, Las Vegas, NV (US); Guy Cosmo, West Palm Beach, FL (US); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), 1:48.550, 101.085<\/p>\n

20. David Robertson, Ray, MI (US); David Murry, Atlanta, GA (US); Andrea Robertson, Ray, MI (US); Doran Design Ford GT (GT), 1:50.214, 99.559<\/p>\n

21. Marc Goossens, Huntersville, NC (Bel); Ryan Dalziel, Orlando, FL (SCO); Jaguar XKRS (GT), 1:52.178, 97.816<\/p>\n

22. Darren Law, Phoenix, AZ (US); Seth Neiman, Burlingame, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 1:53.732, 96.479<\/p>\n

23. Tim Pappas, Boston, MA (US); Jeroen Bleekemolen, Monte Carlo (Net); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:54.641, 95.714<\/p>\n

24. Bryce Miller, Summit, NJ (US); Luke Hines, Essex (UK); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:54.953, 95.455<\/p>\n

25. Ricardo Gonzalez, Mexico (MX); Luis Diaz, Mexico City (MX); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:54.954, 95.454<\/p>\n

26. Shane Lewis, Jupiter, FL (US); Jerry Vento, West Palm Beach, FL (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:55.128, 95.310<\/p>\n

27. Henri Richard, Los Altos Hills, CA (FR); Andy Lally, New York, NY (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:55.383, 95.099<\/p>\n

28. Bret Curtis, Valencia, CA (US); James Sofronas, Newport Beach, CA (USA); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:55.418, 95.070<\/p>\n

29. Robert Rodriguez, Zephyr Cove, NY (USA); Galen Bieker, Burbank, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:55.432, 95.059<\/p>\n

30. Bill Sweedler, Westport, CT (US); Romeo Kapudija, Lincolnwood, IL; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:55.616, 94.907<\/p>\n

31. Juan Gonzalez (MX); Butch Leitzinger, Rebersburg, PA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:55.838, 94.725<\/p>\n

32. Loren Beggs, Montclair, CA (US); Doug Baron, Pacific Palisades, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 1:57.952, 93.028<\/p>\n

33. Bryan Sellers, Braselton, GA (US); Wolf Henzler, Nuertingen (DE); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), No Time<\/p>\n

34. Giancarlo Fisichella, Rome (IT); Toni Vilander, FInland (FIN); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), Time Disallowed.<\/p>\n

\u00a9 RIF | ALMS<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Simon Pagenaud captured his second straight pole position at the Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix on Saturday. The sterling Frenchman set a best lap of 1:34.350 (116.229 mph) in Patr\u00f3n Highcroft Racing\u2019s HPD ARX-01c that he will drive with David Brabham. \u00a0 Pagenaud, who won the race last year with Gil de Ferran, …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[9],"tags":[5264,5334,40,5275,966,1085,781,361,961,522,201,1036,436,37,5279,191],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6933"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6933"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6936,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6933\/revisions\/6936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}