Tom Milner (#4-GTLM Chevrolet Corvette C7) “It was better than we expected! We’ve been fifth or sixth all weekend, and we ended up fourth. So it’s not a huge gain but in this class, every position matters. In the end, I was really, really happy with that. In the last practice session we did a lot of work on long runs. It looks like that is going to be a challenge here tomorrow – managing tires, getting the car to last to the end and have it be driveable. It is going to be a long race tomorrow I feel like with how the tires are acting. We’re not really sure where everybody else is with tires and what they are doing as far as their long-run pace. I think we’re fairly happy here with the No. 4 car where it is; it’s as good as we’ve had it. And certainly getting a good qualifying effort will be massively helpful once we get to the race. Hopefully we will be able to keep this spot on the start or even gain a spot of two if we are lucky and just try to get it half way to hand it over to Oliver.”
Alex Riberas (#23-GTD Porsche 911 GT3 R) “It felt pretty special, as it was my first time ever to win qualifying for the IMSA championship. I didn’t quiet know how to get the tires up to temperature. The Continental tires are different than I was used to. The guys did a fantastic job with the setup. Fantstic since the first practice. For sure it was a really good feeling to be on pole. These 2 hours will be really long, so we need to keep our head down and stay focused. I think everybody tells me this is a Porsche track, I don’t know. Its my first time here. I was wondering before the weekend what it would be like to drive around this racetrack. The Heart of Racing guys said they have a pretty strong car of here and they never set the pole position so far. This is their first time, so hopefully things bring them some momentum. So the tire degradation will be a huge thing, so keeping them fresh will be one of the keys to win this thing. This track is really one of the coolest tracks I’ve driven so far. Especially that corkscrew. Its like the Nordschelife in Germany. You get this rhythm, and you feel really comfortable. It s one of those racetracks you can never get the perfect lap, and so you’re never really happy. I have to say even my lap wasn’t perfect, so i think i could still go faster.”
Daniel Serra (#68-GTLM Ferrari F488 GTE) “It was a really quick lap, the car was getting better and better each lap. We put in a lot of laps on the tire. It was me getting comfortable. I was really happy for that lap and for the team. We figured where we had to move and where to go, we got a result that was so fast. It’s a good race to be on pole and push, and its good to be on pole position. its a long race and the completion is quite high. It will be a difficult race going on tomorrow.”
Robert Alon (#52-PC Oreca FLM 09 Chevrolet) “They kept telling me on the radio how close it was. We just had to keep pushing it. And I managed to put it together. I think it will be nice to not have to worry about cars coming up from the back. Its a little easier when you’re just passing them. Yeah to focus a little more on my race, it should be really interesting.” Robert’s father said he was very nervous before the run, but quite emotional at the end.
Tristan Nunez (#55-P Mazda) “I’m at a loss for words right now. We knew what we had coming in here, the car loves this track. We pushed our hearts out in these cars. Starting 1-2, no better place than Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for our first pole. I’m extremely honored to be able to do that. It feels great. We have a pretty competitive package now, that’s the main thing that has put us up here. Even last year, everything we’ve done, to the little things like pit stop practice at the shop, spending hours and hours a day. All that hard work is finally paying off. It’s going to show now and for the rest of the season. There is absolutely more pressure being at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, but I think everyone on the team works well under pressure. and it shows how much passion they have in times like these.”
Ricky Taylor (#10-P Corvette DP) ”It was good. I think it is interesting what the No. 31 is doing with drivers – qualifying with the fast guy. I think a good advantage for us is we have two good, strong drivers. It is a bit of a shame not being third because I had a lap going that would have probably put us there. I made a little mistake, but that is my fault. When we get to the race, anything can happen. The first two sequence of corners, Turn Two and Turn Three are always a bit messy. Your starting position hardly ever stays the same here after the first lap. I think we’ll have a good race tomorrow. We have a lot of confidence in that we have two strong drivers and the other teams are starting their fast guys. We aren’t really racing the Mazdas so I think we are in good shape. The Corvette DP has been solid. Reliability is a given for us because the guys always prepare such a good car.”.