Under cloudy skies and in temperatures of around 20 degrees Celsius, Kevin Estre (F) and Michael Christensen (DK) were just 0.719 seconds off the polesitter in the 911 with the starting number 92. The #91 sister car on tenth position is shared by Richard Lietz (A) and Gianmaria Bruni (I). After clinching a double victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Porsche takes up the six-hour race on Sunday as the leader of the drivers’ and manufacturers’ classification.
In the GTE-Am category, the Project 1 squad secured pole position. Porsche works driver Jörg Bergmeister from Germany, Patrick Lindsey (USA) and Egidio Perfetti (N) share driving duties in the #56 Porsche 911 RSR. Porsche Young Professional Matt Campbell (AUS), Christian Ried (Germany) and Porsche Junior Julien Andlauer (F) concluded the 20-minute qualifying session on second place for Proton Racing. Gianluca and Giorgio Roda (I) as well as Porsche Young Professional Matteo Cairoli (I) planted the #88 sister car on fifth. Gulf Racing with the drivers Michael Wainwright (GB), Ben Barker (GB) and Alex Davison (AUS) take up Sunday’s race from ninth place.
Dr Frank-Steffen Walliser (Vice President Motorsport and GT Cars): “As expected, it was a difficult qualifying session for us. We’re satisfied with P5 for the number 92 car, it’s what we expected. With our other vehicle we have to see why we didn’t manage to turn better laps. I’m thrilled about positions one and two for our customer teams in the GTE-Am category.”
Gianmaria Bruni (Porsche 911 RSR #91): “This qualifying session was really difficult for us. We had problems getting the front tyres up to temperature and we couldn’t really turn a fast lap. Still, tomorrow is another day and we’ll do everything we can to get further up the field.”
Richard Lietz (Porsche 911 RSR #91): “That was definitely not our best qualifying. In the first lap the grip was still okay, but then the tyre temperature dropped and we lost grip. Unfortunately this meant we couldn’t do anything more. Now we just have to cross our fingers for the race.”
Kévin Estre (Porsche 911 RSR #92): “I’m really pleased with the qualifying. Michael drove a great lap. I encountered a lot of traffic on my first lap, but I still pushed hard and unfortunately made a mistake. In the second lap I didn’t have the grip I needed for a better lap time.”
Michael Christensen (Porsche 911 RSR #92): “I’m happy with the qualifying. My lap was okay. The car was well balanced and felt good. For this reason I’m heading into Sunday’s race feeling optimistic.”
More quotes in the press release (downloads).
GTE-Pro class
1. Mücke/Pla (D/F), Ford GT, 1:55,727 minutes
2. Lynn/Martin (GB/B), Aston Martin Vantage GTE, +0.078 seconds
3. Sorensen/Thiim (DK/DK), Aston Martin Vantage GTE, +0.376 seconds
4. Priaulx/Tincknell (GB/GB), Ford GT, +0.477 seconds
5. Christensen/Estre (DK/F), Porsche 911 RSR, +0.719 seconds
6. Rigon/Bird (I/GB), Ferrari 488 GTE EVO, +0.783 seconds
7. Farfus/Da Costa (BR/E), BMW M8 GTE, +1.004 seconds
8. Tomczyk/Catsburg (D/NL), BMW M8 GTE, +1.265 seconds
9. Pier Guidi/Calado (I/GB), Ferrari 488 GTE EVO, +1.378 seconds
10. Lietz/Bruni (A/I), Porsche 911 RSR, +1.424 seconds
GTE-Am class
1. Bergmeister/Lindsey/Perfetti (D/USA/N), Porsche 911 RSR, 1:59.001 minutes
2. Ried/Andlauer/Campbell (D/F/AUS), Porsche 911 RSR, +0.202 seconds
3. Yoluc/Adam/Eastwood (TR/GB/GB), Aston Martin Vant. GTE, +0.274 seconds
4. Dalla Lana/Lamy/Lauda (CDN/P/A), Aston Martin Vantage GTE, +0.337 seconds
5. Roda/Roda/Cairoli (I/I/I), Porsche 911 RSR, +0.756 seconds
6. Flohr/Castellacci/Fisichella (CH/I/I), Ferrari 488 GTE, +0.808 seconds
7. Ishikawa/Beretta/Cheever (J/MC/I), Ferrari 488 GTE, +1.002 seconds
8. Mok/Sawa/Griffin (MAL/J/IRL), Ferrari 488 GTE, +1.117 seconds
9. Wainwright/Barker/Davison (GB/GB/AUS), Porsche 911 RSR, +1.220 seconds
A six-strong fleet of Porsche 911 RSR will tackle the race on the 5.901-kilometre tradition-steeped circuit in the British Midlands: two in the GTE-Pro class and four in the GTE-Am class.
Richard Lietz and Gianmaria Bruni tackle the six-hour race in the #91 car. Bruni from Italy won the WEC Silverstone race in 2012 and 2015, while Lietz crossed the finish line first there in 2014. The cockpit of the #92 Porsche 911 RSR is shared by Le Mans champions Kévin Estre from France and Michael Christensen from Denmark. After winning the world’s toughest endurance race earlier this year, the two drivers now lead the drivers’ classification in the GTE-Pro class. Porsche currently ranks first in the manufacturers’ classification.
Three customer squads field four more 911 RSR in the GTE-Am category. Porsche Junior Julien Andlauer (France), Christian Ried from Germany and Porsche Young Professional Matt Campbell (Australia) compete in the #77 car. Driving for Dempsey Proton Racing, the trio travels to Silverstone leading the drivers’ and team classification after scoring a class victory at Le Mans. Manning the sister car are Porsche Young Professional Matteo Cairoli (Italy), Khaled Al Qubaisi from the United Arab Emirates and Italy’s Giorgio Roda. Out of all the teams that contested the GTE-Am class at the Le Mans classic, the drivers of the #88 vehicle achieved the best grid position. Competing in the 911 RSR campaigned by the Project 1 team are Porsche works driver Jörg Bergmeister (Germany), Patrick Lindsey from America and Norwegian Egidio Perfetti. The two Englishmen Michael Wainwright and Ben Barker join forces with Alex Davison from Australia in the cockpit of the nine-eleven run by the British customer team Gulf Racing.
In 2017, the latest generation Porsche 911 RSR celebrated its WEC debut at Silverstone. At last year’s season-opening race on the British circuit, the Porsche works drivers Richard Lietz (Austria) and Frédéric Makowiecki (France) promptly scored a podium spot, with the 2017 vice champions concluding the race in Great Britain on third. The Silverstone circuit hosted the first modern-day Formula 1 Grand Prix in 1950. Legendary corners such as Becketts, Copse and Stowe were carved out of the grounds of a former military airbase.
The Porsche 911 RSR celebrated its WEC debut at Silverstone in 2017. So far this season, the racer from Weissach has clinched a one-two result in the GTE-Pro class at Le Mans as well as the GTE-Am class win. The water-cooled four-litre boxer engine is based on the seventh generation of the iconic 911 sports car. The #91 and #92 vehicles tackled Le Mans sporting a special historic design. For the Silverstone round, the Porsche GT Team will revert to the factory design with the primary colours white, red and black.
The six-hour race at Silverstone gets underway on Sunday, August 19, 2018, at midday local time (13.00 hrs CEST).
Dr Frank-Steffen Walliser (Vice President Motorsport and GT Cars): “After the close fight at Le Mans we’re ready to take on the next challenge. Our aim is to defend our lead in the points. Silverstone enjoys a long tradition and holds a very special place in the hearts of drivers and motor racing enthusiasts. We’re up against tough competition, but we’re perfectly prepared. At Le Mans, the Porsche 911 RSR once again underlined that it can handle huge stresses and is reliable.”
Pascal Zurlinden (Director GT Factory Motorsport): “The high grip level at Silverstone puts special demands on the setup of the 911 RSR. Intuition and finesse are needed here. Only those who opt for the right setup will be in a position to fight for victory. We were among the frontrunners to the end at Spa and we scored a double victory at Le Mans – it should continue like this at Silverstone.”
More quotes in the press release (downloads).
In the Sports Car World Endurance Championship (WEC), which was first contested in 2012, sports prototypes and GT vehicles compete in four classes: LMP1, LMP2, GTE-Pro and GTE-Am. They all compete together in one race but are classified separately. The Porsche GT Team contests the GTE-Pro class, while the customer teams Dempsey Proton Racing, Project 1 and Gulf Racing fight for honours in the GTE-Am class.
Round three can be viewed free-of-charge via live streaming from 12.30 to 19.30 hrs on Sport1.de. The free-to-air station Sport1 will also broadcast the race from 14.30 to 14.45 and from 15.45 to 19.15 hrs. The race is aired on the pay-TV channel Sport 1 Plus from 13.30 hours. Eurosport 1 televises the race free between 18:15 and 19:10 hours. Moreover, the entire race can be watched on the pay-TV channel Eurosport Player. The pay-TV channel Motorsport.TV also broadcasts the six-hour race from 12:45 to 19:15 hours. For a fee, the FIA WEC app offers live streaming of the complete race as well as the time-keeping.
