Robert Wickens has been very close to securing pole position in the qualifying session for the GTD Long Beach, part of the Acura Grand Prix. The Canadian driver, competing with the DXDT Racing team in his Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, dominated much of the session until, just seconds from the end, he was surpassed by Frankie Montecalvo from Vasser Sullivan.
Wickens finished just 0.151 seconds off the pole time, which was 1m18.411s, a notable result considering he had not driven a race car since last August at Virginia International Raceway.
“We had some radio issues so I only knew that I was first when I finished. I didn’t hear anything else the rest of the lap due to the noise. But hey, P2 is not bad! When I realized I was missing a tenth, I knew exactly where I could have found the time to get first place,” Wickens commented after the session.
The 37-year-old driver expressed his gratitude to the team: “DXDT Racing provides me with a great race car, and the Corvette Z06 GT3.R is a dream here. It’s a good sign of our progression, especially after the tough experience last year, where I finished 15th.”
This qualifying session has been a step forward for Wickens, who praised his teammates like Mason Filippi for helping him adapt quickly to the car. With improvements in his Bosch manual control unit, Wickens hopes to leverage his starting position to achieve a podium finish during the race.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
