SAS/Redline driver James Sutton set a searing pace around Thruxton to lay down the fastest ever Porsche Carrera Cup GB lap around the Hampshire track as he claimed pole position for both of the series' races.
Touching 165mph on the run down Woodham Hill towards the Club Chicane Sutton broke the 1:14second barrier in both his quickest laps – 1:13.813 and 1:13.864. Euan Hankey also dipped in to the 1:13s, setting a time of 1:13.960 despite an out of control moment at the chicane as the Parker with Juta racing pilot describes; “I had a big moment into the chicane; I locked the rears and bounced over the middle kerb and it was still a 13.9s lap”.
Sutton's performance owed much to his strategy of pitting half way through the session, taking on new tyres and emerging onto an almost deserted 2.3 mile Thruxton circuit, setting his fastest lap on his eighth tour of the track, his second fastest lap – that taken for the grid for the second race – on his tenth and final lap of the session.
Hankey will start alongside him on the front row for both races with third places shared by Jonas Gelzinis (the Pro-Am1 driver the third man to run a fastest lap under 1:13) and Stephen Jelley.
Sutton's SAS/Redline stablemate Michael Meadows and reigning champion Tim Harvey both claimed top six starting slots for both races, but there were, again, problems for Harvey's teammate Michael Caine, who lamented a ill-handling car in qualifying after showing promising pace in Friday's test session.
Behind Gelzinis – who followed up his overall fastest time in testing by taking both Pro-Am1 poles despite traffic – was Celtic Speed driver Rory Butcher, who with teammate and Pro-Am2 polesitter George Brewster ran the fewest lap of anyone in an effort to preserve tyres on a notoriously rubber-hungry track.
