Tyler Maxson’s rollercoaster of a season in Porsche Carrera Cup North America continued in a positive way on Friday, as he captured the Race Brew Pole Award at Watkins Glen International.
German driver Janne Stiak (ACI Motorsports) was second quickest in the Porsche 911 Cup (Type 992.2), but Paul Bocuse (Kellymoss) caught attention with his third-place performance. The teenage driver – part of the Porsche Junior Program North America, and also a Porsche Sprint Challenge North America champion – visits The Glen after his first series podium at the Miami Grand Prix in May.
But with Topp Racing, Maxson was quickest amongst Mobil Pro Class drivers in Friday’s qualifying session running a lap of one minute, 45.949 seconds. As the championship leader, this was Maxson’s first pole position since the season-opener at Sebring International Raceway in March.
“It feels pretty good, what a great lap and a car by the team,” said Maxson, who was awarded the most recent win at the Miami Grand Prix following post-race penalties. “We’ve done a lot of work between Miami and here, and I’m happy to see everything pay off for these guys and get a good lap like that.”
In the Solairus Aviation Pro-Am Class, Patrick Mulcahy keeps his pole-winning streak alive following Friday morning’s session. The ACI Motorsports driver has scored every pole position since the beginning of the season – now tallied at six – a with a lap of 1:48.664. Josh Conley (Kellymoss) was second by eight-tenths.
“They called on the radio that people were going faster, and I knew I had more grip out there,” said Mulcahy. “It was my first time on stickers at this track this season. Not my best performance, but I figured it out.”
Meanwhile, Scott Blind (Ruckus Racing) continues his resurgence towards the Solairus Aviation Masters Class championship lead with a pole position on Friday. His lap time of 1:48.101 nipped Rob Walker (JTR Motorsports Engineering) by just over two-tenths, yet by more than a second over Chris Bellomo (Kellymoss) in third place.
“I feel like we’re hitting our stride again mid-season,” said Blind, who chases Marco Cirone (ACI Motorsports) in the title running. “We struggled a little early, but now we’re back and Walker’s fast.”
Race 1 for Porsche Carrera Cup North America is scheduled for later in the day at 3pm ET. The final round of the weekend goes green at 9:05am on Saturday.
All Porsche Carrera Cup North America races stream live – and are available to watch anytime – on the Porsche Motorsport North America YouTube channel. Stay up-to-date on all the latest news by following Porsche Motorsport North America on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads, and Twitter, and by subscribing to the newsletter.
RESULTS.
Qualifying
Mobil Pro Class:
- Tyler Maxson, #77
- Janne Stiak, #40
- Paul Bocuse, #71
Solairus Aviation Pro-Am Class:
- Patrick Mulcahy, #54
- Josh Conley, #29
Solairus Aviation Masters Class:
- Scott Blind, #45
- Rob Walker, #53
- Chris Bellomo, #68
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