{"id":7922,"date":"2010-08-22T09:09:49","date_gmt":"2010-08-22T13:09:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/?p=7922"},"modified":"2010-08-22T20:40:42","modified_gmt":"2010-08-23T00:40:42","slug":"jonny-on-the-spot-pole-position-at-road-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/alms\/jonny-on-the-spot-pole-position-at-road-america\/","title":{"rendered":"Jonny On The Spot \u2013 Pole Position At Road America"},"content":{"rendered":"

Drayson Racing\u2019s Jonny Cocker picked up his second straight pole position in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patr\u00f3n with the fastest lap in qualifying Saturday for the American Le Mans Series powered by eStar. The young British star turned a lap of 1:49.554 (133.019 mph) around Road America in the Lola-Judd coupe that he will share with Paul Drayson.<\/p>\n

\"J-Cocker-1-Sanoma\"<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s lap also made Cocker the first driver in the Series this year to win more than one overall pole position. He did it in dominating fashion with a 1.321-second gap over Dyson Racing\u2019s Guy Smith in another Lola coupe, this one powered by a Mazda engine.<\/p>\n

Cocker\u2019s second fastest lap would have been enough for pole as well. Muscle Milk Team CytoSport\u2019s Porsche RS Spyder qualified third with Klaus Graf\u2019s lap of 1:51.312 (130.918 mph). He will drive with Timo Bernhard.<\/p>\n

\"J-Cocker-2-Sanoma\"\u201cFirst of all, well done to everyone at Drayson Racing. The car was fantastic and around here you need a car that gives you confidence,\u201d Cocker said. \u201cThat\u2019s what we had today, and we had that at Mid-Ohio. We continue to make progress and it\u2019s showing. It will be great to be in front of everyone at the start.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speed has never been an issue for the closed-top Lola-Judd prototype. It has led races at Utah, Lime Rock and Mid-Ohio, and the team is hopeful that this will be its breakthrough weekend for a first victory. It couldn\u2019t happen at a better place, Cocker said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI quite like this [circuit]! It has a huge amount of character and reminds you of Spa or Le Mans,\u201d he said. It\u2019s quite a European style and I think that\u2019s why so many people fall in love with it. But the race is its own thing (separate from qualifying), and traffic is always an issue. You\u2019d think the LMPs would be able to get around the GT cars easily but it\u2019s still very difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n

Luis Diaz is off to a good start in his return to prototype racing around Road America with a pole position in LMP Challenge. Last year\u2019s LMP2 race-winner and Series co-champion set a time of 1:58.287 (123.199 mph) for PR1\/Mathiasen Motorsports. He will drive the team\u2019s ORECA FLM09 with Ricardo Gonzalez.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis feels great. It is one of my favorite places to come race,\u201d said Diaz, who drove to a P2 victory with Adrian Fernandez in 2009. \u201cI\u2019m very happy to be fighting for pole positions here. To be honest when I was here with Adrian last year, I thought it was the last chance to win at this track. I have had a lot of success in Atlantics and with the Acura. This really is a great feeling to be back here. I think I\u2019m enjoying racing more now than in the past. This is the best Series in the world and I\u2019m enjoying every second of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"L-Diaz-Sanoma\"<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Diaz was quickest in both practice sessions Saturday, and his qualifying lap was 2.6 seconds quicker than his time from the second practice immediately prior to qualifying. Needless to say, he was surprised.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t see those times in practice,\u201d Diaz admitted. \u201cThe car had more balance during the longer runs, which is good for us. At Mid-Ohio I had trouble with the traffic after coming from racing the GTC class Porsche earlier this year. Hopefully I can be more aggressive this weekend in traffic. We have the speed and the car to win. The Series is making the right changes with the changes to the restrictor sizes (giving the FLM09s more power) and it\u2019s making things safer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diaz\u2019s best lap was 1.125 seconds quicker than Intersport Racing\u2019s Kyle Marcelli, the best starting position for the team in class. He will drive with Chapman Ducote. Gunnar Jeannette was third in class at 2:00.092 (121.347 mph) in the Green Earth Team Gunnar entry that he will share with Elton Julian.<\/p>\n

\"O-Gavin-Sanoma\"<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Oliver Gavin claimed his fourth career pole position at Road America and first in GT for Corvette Racing. The British ace turned a lap of 2:06.509 (115.192 mph) in the Corvette C6.R that he will drive with Olivier Beretta and was 0.165 seconds ahead of Jan Magnussen in the second Corvette. Magnussen will drive with Johnny O\u2019Connell.<\/p>\n

The two Corvettes swept the top two spots in GT qualifying for the first time since moving to the class in the middle of last year. Gavin and Beretta also finished second in class two weeks ago at Mid-Ohio, and having previous track data has made a huge difference.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think anyone at the team will miss that we\u2019ve had a difficult year. We\u2019ve had a lot of ups and downs,\u201d Gavin said. \u201cThe last few races have been good for us. We tested here earlier for Le Mans, and we\u2019ve been able to carry some of that into this weekend. The data has helped a lot. It\u2019s no secret that Salt Lake City and Lime Rock weren\u2019t good for us. Now we\u2019re at tracks where we have data and have raced.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pierre Kaffer qualified the Risi Competizione Ferrari F430 GT third in class at 2:06.997 (114.749 mph). He will drive with Mika Salo. The top six cars were within 0.946 seconds of each other. Six manufacturers are in the class this weekend.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis class is so competitive and you never know where you are going to stand every time you go out,\u201d Gavin said. \u201cWe have a car that can race with anyone. Whether or not we\u2019ve seen the best from BMW, we\u2019ll see. And you never count out Risi and Flying Lizard. They are so experienced and have done this time and time again. \u2026 At Mid-Ohio, it was a good race for me, for the team and the car. We didn\u2019t have quite enough for the Ferrari. I feel that here we have a slightly better car here. I want to keep the momentum going and if we can then I\u2019ll be delighted. I don\u2019t think there is a championship that has this many manufacturers racing this close together. It is great fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"J-Bleekemolen-Sanoma\"<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In GT Challenge, Jeroen Bleekemolen won his fifth consecutive class pole position with a 2:14.345 (108.473 mph) in the Black Swan Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup entry that he will drive with team owner Tim Pappas. The former LMP2 winner at Le Mans was only 0.175 seconds ahead of TRG\u2019s Andy Lally, who is driving with Duncan Ende.<\/p>\n

Lally though crashed on his second flying lap of qualifying. His time was good enough for a 0.323-second gap to James Sofronas in the GMG Racing Porsche.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was trying to follow Andy and really pushing to put a good time in,\u201d Bleekemolen said. \u201cI think on the second lap we would have been faster before his shunt. I hope we can keep this performance up for the race. It\u2019s not the easiest track for us. Some of the other variations of Porsches have higher top speeds. It\u2019s good to be out front again though.\u201d<\/p>\n

There haven\u2019t been many laps where the Black Swan car hasn\u2019t been out front. Even when at the back of the GTC field \u2013 as Pappas was following an early collision at Mid-Ohio \u2013 it doesn\u2019t stay there long.<\/p>\n

\u201cTim\u2019s doing a great job all the time,\u201d Bleekemolen said. \u201cHe\u2019s picking up lots of lap times. It\u2019s really great for us. At the beginning of the year he was up there with the guys he is racing against and has only gotten better. He came in leading at Lime Rock and then came back at Mid-Ohio from the back of the grid.\u201d<\/p>\n

The American Le Mans Series powered by eStar, Round 7 of the 2010 American Le Mans Series powered by eStar, is set for 2:05 p.m. CT on Sunday, August 22 from Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. SPEED will air the race live at 3 p.m. ET with live radio coverage 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

American Le Mans Series powered by eStar<\/p>\n

Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wis.<\/p>\n

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

1. Paul Drayson, London, GB (GB); Jonny Cocker, Guisborough, GB (GB); Lola B09 60\/Judd (LMP), 1:49.554, 133.019<\/p>\n

2. Chris Dyson, Pleasant Valley, NY (US); Guy Smith, Bracken, Yorkshire (GB); Lola B09 86\/Mazda (LMP), 1:50.875, 131.434<\/p>\n

3. Timo Bernhard, Dittweiler (DE); Klaus Graf, Germany (DE); Porsche RS Spyder (LMP), 1:51.312, 130.918<\/p>\n

4. Tony Burgess, Toronto (CA); Johnny Mowlem, London (GB); Lola B06 10\/AER (LMP), 1:51.711, 130.451<\/p>\n

5. David Brabham, Maidenhead, GB (GB); Simon Pagenaud, Montmorrillon, FR (FR); HPD ARX-01c (LMP), 1:52.148, 129.943<\/p>\n

6. Ricardo Gonzalez, Monterrey (MX); Luis Diaz, Mexico City (MX); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:58.287, 123.199<\/p>\n

7. Kyle Marcelli, Barrie, ON (CA); Chapman Ducote, Miami, FL (USA); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 1:59.412, 122.038<\/p>\n

8. Elton Julian, Santa Monica, CA (Spa); Gunnar Jeannette, Salt Lake City, UT (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 2:00.092, 121.347<\/p>\n

9. Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS (US); Andy Wallace, England (ENG); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 2:00.740, 120.696<\/p>\n

10. Christian Zugel, Holmdel, NJ (US); Frankie Montecalvo, Highlands, NJ (US); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), 2:00.846, 120.590<\/p>\n

11. Olivier Beretta, Monte Carlo, Monaco (MC); Oliver Gavin, Yardley Hastings, GB (GB); Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 (GT), 2:06.509, 115.192<\/p>\n

12. Jan Magnussen, Roskilde, DK (DK); Johnny O’Connell, Flowery Branch, GA (US); Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 (GT), 2:06.674, 115.042<\/p>\n

13. Mika Salo, Monte Carlo (FI); Pierre Kaffer, Salenstein (DE); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), 2:06.997, 114.749<\/p>\n

14. Dirk Mueller, Monte Carlo, Monaco (DE); Joey Hand, Sacramento, CA (US); BMW E92 M3 (GT), 2:07.222, 114.546<\/p>\n

15. Joerg Bergmeister, Langenfield, DE (DE); Patrick Long, Bellaire, FL (US); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 2:07.392, 114.393<\/p>\n

16. Scott Sharp, Jupiter, FL (US); Johannes van Overbeek, San Francisco, CA (US); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), 2:07.455, 114.337<\/p>\n

17. Jaime Melo, Milan, IT (BR); Gianmaria Bruni, Rome, IT (Ita); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), 2:07.561, 114.242<\/p>\n

18. Bill Auberlen, Redondo Beach, CA (US); Tommy Milner, Leesburg, VA (US); BMW E92 M3 (GT), 2:07.716, 114.103<\/p>\n

19. Bryan Sellers, Braselton, GA (US); Wolf Henzler, Nuertingen, DE (DE); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 2:07.939, 113.904<\/p>\n

20. David Robertson, Ray, MI (US); David Murry, Atlanta, GA (US); Andrea Robertson, Ray, MI (US); Doran Design Ford GT (GT), 2:08.703, 113.228<\/p>\n

21. Marc Goossens, Huntersville, NC (Bel); Ryan Dalziel, Orlando, FL (SCO); Jaguar XKRS (GT), 2:10.084, 112.026<\/p>\n

22. Tim Pappas, Boston, MA (US); Jeroen Bleekemolen, Monte Carlo, Monaco (Net); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 2:14.345, 108.473<\/p>\n

23. Duncan Ende, Los Angeles, CA (USA); Andy Lally, New York, NY (USA); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 2:14.520, 108.332<\/p>\n

24. Bret Curtis, Valencia, CA (US); James Sofronas, Newport Beach, CA (USA); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 2:14.843, 108.072<\/p>\n

25. Bryce Miller, Summit, NJ (US); Luke Hines, Essex (Eng); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 2:15.656, 107.425<\/p>\n

26. Ed Brown, Las Vegas, NV (US); Guy Cosmo, West Palm Beach, FL (US); Ferrari 430 GT (GT), 2:15.710, 107.382<\/p>\n

27. Robert Rodriguez, Zephyr Cove, NY (USA); Galen Bieker, Burbank, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 2:15.972, 107.175<\/p>\n

28. Shane Lewis, Jupiter, FL (US); Vic Rice, San Rafael, CA; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 2:16.216, 106.983<\/p>\n

29. Bill Sweedler, Westport, CT (US); Romeo Kapudija, Lincolnwood, IL; Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), 2:16.221, 106.979<\/p>\n

30. Darren Law, Phoenix, AZ (US); Seth Neiman, Burlingame, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (GT), 2:20.428, 103.774<\/p>\n

31. Loren Beggs, Montclair, CA (US); Doug Baron, Pacific Palisades, CA (US); Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (GTC), No Time<\/p>\n

32. Jon Field, Dublin, OH (US); Clint Field, Dublin, OH (US); Lola B06\/10 AER (LMP), No Time<\/p>\n

33. Scott Tucker, Leawood, KS (US); Christophe Bouchut, France (FR); Oreca FLM09 (LMPC), No Time.<\/p>\n

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

Drayson Racing\u2019s Jonny Cocker picked up his second straight pole position in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patr\u00f3n with the fastest lap in qualifying Saturday for the American Le Mans Series powered by eStar. The young British star turned a lap of 1:49.554 (133.019 mph) around Road America in the Lola-Judd coupe …<\/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":[5264,5334,5333,5303,157,522,615,5366,5297,436,216],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7922"}],"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=7922"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7922\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7949,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7922\/revisions\/7949"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}