P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Antonio Giovinazzi took pole for the FIA World Endurance Championship season opener at Imola, but the Italian in the #51 Ferrari had to dig deep to beat Toyota’s Ryo Hirakawa, who was just 0.011 slower. Giovinazzi set his fastest lap, a 1:30.127, on his final flying lap after Hirakawa had appeared to have pipped him […]
At the FIA World Endurance Championship season opener at Imola, Antonio Giovinazzi secured pole position in the #51 Ferrari by a mere 0.011 seconds over Toyota’s Ryo Hirakawa. Giovinazzi’s final flying lap of 1:30.127 edged out Hirakawa’s strong challenge. Antonio Fuoco in the sister #50 Ferrari qualified third, just 0.029 seconds behind Giovinazzi, making for a closely contested qualifying session.
The initial Hypercar qualifying round eliminated 7 cars, including Earl Bamber’s #38 Cadillac and the #36 Alpine of Jules Gounon. The top spots were initially held by Alpines and Malthe Jakobsen in the #94 Peugeot before Ferraris took over, with Fuoco and Kubica dominating.
In the Hyperpole session, Jakobsen briefly led with a quick lap in the #93 Peugeot, but Giovinazzi reclaimed the top spot with a faster lap. Ultimately, Hirakawa snatched pole position from Ferrari, with Giovinazzi responding with a blistering lap to secure a narrow pole position.
In the LMGT3 category, Thomas Fleming celebrated a debut pole position in the #10 Garage 59 McLaren, ahead of ASP Lexus cars led by Hadrien David. Fleming’s 1:41.181 lap set the benchmark, showcasing the competitive field in the endurance championship opener.
