Michael Meadows continued his perfect record in Carrera Cup qualifying (Photo Credit: Chris Gurton Photography)
Michael Meadows will start both Donington Park Porsche Carrera Cup GB races from pole position after a dominant display in qualifying.
Though Meadows' fastest time (1:07.013) was just 0.044 seconds faster than Lithuanian Jonas Gelzinis, who will share the front row it was with his second best lap – used to set the grid for the second race of the day – that Meadow's superiority showed.
His second best time (1:07.186) would have been good enough for third best on the overall timesheets, third fastest Sam Tordoff two-tenths slower than the pole time. The sophomore Team Parker Racing driver had set the early pace before slipping back but bounced back up the order with successive laps differing by just five-thousandths to take the third best time overall, but take the second spot on the front row for the afternoon race, he and Gelzinis swapping places for the second contest.
Meadows effectively set one pole position in each half of the 30 minute session, taking overall pole with his third flying lap of the before pitting. He then returned to the track for a second six lap sting, setting his second best time on his final flying lap.
Ben Barker and Richard Plant will line up fourth for both races. Another man to improve late in the session was the ProAm1 pace setter Ahmad Al–Harthy. For most the qualifying session the class had been led by Spaniard Victor Jimenez in only his second Porsche race, but Al-Harthy – his teammate in the Oman Air Redline Racing team – leapt to sixth fastest overall late in the session.
Jiminez's will start second in ProAm1, but with the Pro class driver Glynn Geddie, Daniel Lloyd and Rory Butcher between him and Al-Harthy on the grid. Like the Pro class the second and third place starters in ProAm1 swap places for the second race, Brands Hatch race one winner Derek Pierce starting second behind Al-Harthy, with Jiminez the surprise third.
The man who won the other Brands Hatch ProAm1 race – Oly Mortimer – endured a troubled session and will start 17th and last after completing juts five laps in his GT Marques entry.
Tania Mann is the sole ProAm2 entry at Donington Park and will start 16th with a time half a second down on Yucel Ozbek, the Turkish driver at the bottom of the main ProAm1 pack.
