– The Frenchman sets the fastest qualifying time in Silverstone for round 3 of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup
– Larry ten Voorde claims second spot on the front row for the Supercup race as support to the British Grand Prix
– Porsche Junior and series leader Bastian Buus posts fourth behind his teammate Harry King
Premiere for Dorian Boccolacci: Driving for the CLRT team, the Frenchman wrapped up a Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup qualifying session as the fastest for the first time. He shares the front row for round three of the season of the international one-make cup with the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup with Dutchman Larry ten Voorde. The GP Elite driver lapped the Silverstone Formula 1 circuit just 48-thousandths of a second slower than the polesetter. BWT Lechner Racing has locked out the second grid row: Englishman Harry King and Porsche Junior Bastian Buus from Denmark will tackle the Supercup race as part of the British Grand Prix support programme from positions three and four. The race gets underway on Sunday at 11:55 am local.
Dorian Boccolacci could hardly believe it himself: « We were the only ones among the top teams not to test in Silverstone. Plus, I didn’t do anything differently than usual, » said the Frenchman, surprised by his top qualifying time for the third round of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season. « But my team gave me a perfect car and I managed to turn a flawless lap. » The 24-year-old from Cannes in the south of France has been a regular driver in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup since 2021 and competes for CLRT since the beginning of this season. For the first time ever he secured the pole position. Boccolacci’s best results to date at the wheel of the 375 kW (510 PS) Cup Porsche were two second places in Monza, Italy, in 2021 and in Monaco in 2022.
The second fastest qualifier, Dutchman Larry ten Voorde from GP Elite, was also somewhat surprised. « I was hit by problems during Friday’s practice. We analysed the data for a long time afterwards. My race engineer and my mechanics then made some major set-up changes for the qualifying. While everything went in the right direction, I honestly didn’t expect that it would be enough for second place, » revealed the two-time Supercup champion.
The third grid spot was claimed by local hero Harry King. In front of packed grandstands the UK racer lapped the 5.891-kilometre Silverstone Circuit around two-tenths of a second slower than Boccolacci. « Obviously, I’d have preferred to start my home race from pole position, » King admitted. « Still, I reckon I have a good chance from the second row. I think my race speed is better than my qualifying speed. »
Porsche Junior Bastian Buus secured fourth place on the grid. Like King, he competes for the BWT Lechner Racing squad. « I don’t know exactly what happend, but I really struggled today – especially with the traction. I couldn’t adapt my driving style to the difficult conditions, » admitted the 20-year-old Dane. Rain shortly before the qualifying had significantly changed the grip conditions of the circuit compared to the previous day’s practice session. « Now I’ll attempt to win from fourth on the grid. It’ll just take a bit more effort. »
Two teammates also share the third grid row: Alexander Fach from Switzerland and Morris Schuring from the Netherlands compete for FACH AUTO TECH. Seventh place in qualifying went to the fastest rookie in the 32-strong field, South African Keagan Masters driving for the Ombra Racing team. The close result is testimony to the fierce level of competition: positions 1 to 16 were within one second of each other.
Qualifying result, round 3 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, Silverstone (UK) : 1. Dorian Boccolacci (F/CLRT), 2:02.132 minutes ; 2. Larry ten Voorde (NL/Team GP Elite), 2:02.180 minutes ; 3. Harry King (UK/BWT Lechner Racing), 2:02.357 minutes ; 4. Porsche Junior Bastian Buus (DK/BWT Lechner Racing), 2:02.511 minutes ; 5. Alexander Fach (CH/FACH AUTO TECH), 2:02.558 minutes ; 6. Morris Schuring (NL/FACH AUTO TECH), 2:02.641 minutes…
Holger Eckhardt,