The No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R will start tomorrow’s running of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca from third on the DPi grid.
Kevin Magnussen had the controls of the No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R for the 15-minute qualifying session under sunny skies and 70-degrees. The Dane posted a lap of 1:15.026 that will have him starting from the second row for tomorrow’s two-hour-and-forty-five-minute race. Together with teammate Renger van der Zande and the Chip Ganassi Racing crew they will be focused on getting their second win on the season.
“Obviously I am disappointed not to be fighting with the two cars in front of me today,” Magnussen said. “The V-Performance Academy Cadillac was in its right spot, and we were able to put it on the second row in P3. We know the Cadillac is good in the race versus the Acura cars, so I think that is a pretty good position to be in. Of course, you always want to be on pole, but the points and the trophies are tomorrow.”
The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R was qualified by Pipo Derani. The Brazilian put in a lap time of 1:15.384 that will have him starting fifth. He and teammate Felipe Nasr are second in the championship points and will be going for their third win in as many races tomorrow.
“It was a difficult qualifying run for us,” Derani said. “We thought we would have a little more pace, but the track conditions changed a lot and affected our side of the garage. We have a good race car. We are not starting exactly where we wanted but it is a two-hour-and-forty-minute race and a lot can happen. I am sure that the Whelen Engineering team is going to do a fantastic job tomorrow and we can bring home another podium finish.”
The No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R will start from sixth on the grid based upon Tristan Vautier’s fast lap of 1:15.451. Loic Duval will close the race in the black and gold Cadillac.
“It was not very good,” Vautier said. “We made some changes before the session, and we didn’t go in the right direction. Actually, took a step back. We have a decent idea of what to go back on for the race. Qualifying and the race are two different things as there is a lot of tire degradation in the race. So hopefully we will be strong on the long runs. Disappointed in the result, but not the effort. It will make us even hungrier for the race.”
Cadillac WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca Qualifying Results:
3. No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R, Renger van der Zande, Kevin Magnussen, 1:15.026
5. No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R, Felipe Nasr, Pipo Derani, 1:15.384
6. No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R, Tristan Vautier, Loic Duval, 1:15.451
Source. Kyle Chura/Cadillac Racing/Photo. Richard Prince
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