- Daijiro Yoshihara, Honda, clinches pole position
- Ricca and Hyundai set the fastest time in TC
- Anderson, Subaru BRZ, leads in TCA
- Provisional Results
Chilly temperatures welcomed the TC America field Saturday morning during their 15-minute qualifying session. The 26 drivers on track had only a short amount of time to set the fastest lap around the 2.520 miles course.
In the end, only three drivers prevailed in each class; Daijiro Yoshihara in TCX, Jeff Rica in TC and Devin Anderson in TCA.
TCX
The order in the TCX class changed with every passing minute. First, Lucas Catania set the fastest lap time in his No. 26 Rigid Speed Company BMW M2 CS (Cup), but then the No. 44 Rooster Hall Racing BMW M2 CS (Cup) of Colin Garrett rose to the top with 6 minutes left in the session. However, Daijiro Yoshihara made a late attempt at pole position, which paid off as the Japanese driver set a flying lap time of 1:51.003 on his last lap, claiming first place in his No. 99 VGRT Honda Civic Type-R TCX. He edged out the No. 73 LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Type-R TCX of Kyle Loh by a mere 0.241, with Colin Garrett in third place.
Rounding off the Top 5 was the No. 21 Fast Track Racing BMW M2 CS (Cup) of Adam Gleason and Lucas Catania in his No. 26 Rigid Speed Company BMW M2 CS (Cup).
TC
Qualifying in the TC class was thrilling and unpredictable lap after lap, with Jeff Rica getting two lap times deleted early in the session before finally setting a flying lap time of 1:52.238 on his fifth lap. He secured pole position in the No. 78 Genracer / Ricca Autosport Hyundai Elantra N TC, and also set the fourth fastest qualifying time overall. Clayton Williams will take to the grid in second in the No. 60 MINI JCW Team Mini JCW Pro TC.
The battle for the final spot in the Top 3 was incredibly close, with only 0.176 seconds separating the drivers between third and fifth. In the end, it was Ken Fukuda who claimed third place in the No. 42 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type-R, followed by Michael Hurczyn in fourth in his No. 8 VGRT Honda Civic Type-R and Celso Neto in fifth in the No. 7 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type-R.
TCA
Devin Anderson rose to the top of the TCA class early in the session in the No. 22 TechSport Racing Subaru BRZ, but quickly became involved in a tight battle with teammate Shaoyi Che in the No. 23 car, with the two swapping positions back and forth on the leaderboard. It wasn’t long before Spencer Bucknum came into the mix, putting his No. 5 LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Si FE1 in contention as well.
Ultimately, it was Anderson who walked away victorious, securing pole position with a time of 1:56.989, which he set on his final flying lap. Bucknum followed in second place, with Shaoyi Che rounding off the Top 3 just 0.191 behind. Mario Biundo and William Lambros, two drivers who will surely be in position to fight for a podium later today, followed suit in fourth and fifth in the No. 07 LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Si and No. 77 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si FE1.
Up Next
Race One takes place at 11:30 AM PT, and Race 2 Sunday, April 2 at 9:55 AM.
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