Phil Hanson delivered an impressive performance during today's European Le Mans Series (ELMS) qualifying at Aragon, securing the first pole position of the season for the #22 United Autosports ORECA. With just one minute remaining in the session, Hanson clocked in a breathtaking time of 1:46.822, solidifying his spot at the top.
However, the excitement was short-lived for the competition. Neel Jani in the #30 Duqueine ORECA briefly surpassed Hanson's time with a 1:46.801, but this was swiftly negated due to a track limits violation. This ruling reinstated Hanson's pole position, marking his inaugural pole as a driver in ELMS competition.
"We were surprised by the pace,” said Hanson. “It was super tight but I was able to put the lap together. I wasn’t struggling with the heat too much this week, but there are now rumours of a storm coming! It would be funny for the race to be wet after 42-degree heat all week."
In a closely contested session, Olli Caldwell in the #43 Inter Europol ORECA secured third place with a time of 1:46.901, while Jose Maria Lopez in the #47 COOL ORECA followed closely behind, finishing fourth with a lap time of 1:47.262.
The qualifying session was particularly challenging for the Algarve Pro Racing #25 crew, who were coming off a win at Paul Ricard. Unfortunately, driver James Allen could not set a qualifying time and ended the session stranded on the track at Turn 11, which drew out the red flags and left him starting from the back.
In the LMP2 Pro/Am session preceding the LMP2 teams, Salih Yoluc further showcased his talent by securing his third consecutive class pole for Racing Team Turkey in their ORECA with a best time of 1:49.361. His performance not only earned him the pole but also crucial championship points.
"Salih did an amazing lap again and got us an extra point in the championship," said Louis Delatraz, teammate to Yoluc. "It will be tough starting behind the LMP2s, but our goal is to fight for the overall win."
That session saw Giorgio Roda from Proton Competition fall short of Yoluc’s time, managing a 1:49.682 that left him second and on the front row. Rodrigo Sales in the #24 Nielsen Racing ORECA claimed third position after a late effort.
In the tightly contested LMP3 category, Wyatt Brichacek of Inter Europol stole the spotlight, achieving the first-ever ELMS LMP3 pole position for his team with a best lap of 1:52.269. Antoine Doquin from Racing Spirit of Leman finished as the runner-up with a time of 1:52.590.
"We worked so hard for this," said Brichacek's teammate Miguel Cristovao. "The temperature of the track has changed a lot but we are prepared for this situation. We think we have a very good setup for the race, so I am very confident."
Team Virage’s Manuel Espirito Santo rounded out the top three in LMP3, while Eurointernational saw their #11 Ligier slot into fourth.
The GTE class saw a late surge from JMW Motorsport's Martin Berry, who clinched pole with a time of 1:57.022 after the session resumed from a red flag. His effort narrowly edged out Johnny Laursen from Formula Racing by 0.241 seconds.
"Coming to this weekend it was an unknown for everyone, we’ve never been here before. So it’s a mega result," an enthused Lorcan Hanafin said, reflecting on their performance.
The 4 Hours of Aragon race is set to commence tonight at 18:00 local time, promising an exciting night of endurance racing.
