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Robert Wickens nearly pulled off a phenomenal GTD pole run in qualifying for the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
The Canadian, who contests IMSA’s sprint rounds with DXDT Racing’s #36 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, took the top spot with under a minute remaining but was relegated to second in the final moments by Vasser Sullivan’s Frankie Montecalvo. The result, which was 0.151s behind the class pole-setting time of 1m18.411s by Montecalvo, is still impressive, especially considering Wickens hadn’t been behind the wheel of a race car since last August at Virginia International Raceway.
"We've been having some radio issues here and there so I heard I went P1 at the checkered,” said Wickens, 37.
“And then I didn't hear anything for the rest of the lap because of the static. But yeah, P2 is alright! As soon as I heard that I missed it by a tenth, I knew exactly where I could have found that to snag P1. DXDT Racing gives me a good racecar, and the Corvette Z06 GT3.R is a dream around here. Living a good life!"
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The pace also shows how comfortable Wickens is already despite how long it had been behind the wheel of a race car.
“It's been a steep learning curve,” Wickens said. “Ironically, I felt more prepared last year even though it was my debut in the series. This team is so strong. Mason (Filippi, co-driver) has been doing an amazing job getting me up to speed. It's a full team effort here. Hopefully we can play from P2 and try to get a podium."
There is some additional satisfaction with the result, though, considering the chaos of last year’s qualifying outing at the 1.968-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit, where he started the weekend off strong but was left finishing 15th in class.
"A bit of a redemption from last year, even making it through FP2 and having a clean weekend this year compared to last. DXDT Racing and Corvette Racing are doing an amazing job,” Wickens said.
“The car is so nice to drive. When I heard I missed it by a tenth (of a second), you immediately know as a driver where you could have found it. It’s a good problem to have. We had the equipment to put it on the pole today. Hopefully with a little more experience, I can get a little more from the car and from the hand control system from Bosch. Going into this weekend, if you told me I’d be on the front row, I would have taken it."
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