Mercedes-AMG Team Riley Top Mercedes-AMG GT3 Detroit Qualifier in Detroit
Three Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams qualified for Saturday's IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at the Detroit Grand Prix. Ben Keating and the No. 33 Mercedes-AMG Team Riley Motorsports topped the trio of Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries with the eighth fastest lap of the qualifying session. Keating will be joined in the top-10 by Kenny Habul in the No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, while Cooper MacNeil qualified in 11th in the No. 50 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3.
All three Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries turned their fastest times on their final flying laps of the 15-minute qualifying session for the GT Daytona (GTD) class. Keating turned his top time of 1:31.511 on his ninth and final lap to lock down the outside row four starting berth. He will start tomorrow's race before handing off to co-driver Jeroen Bleekemolen.
Habul's fastest lap, with a time of 1:31.759, was good for 10th in the GTD class. Habul will start tomorrow's race behind the wheel of the No. 75 car, with co-driver Tristan Vautier closing out the race. This is the second-straight race in which Habul has qualified in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar competition.
MacNeil nearly put the No. 50 in the top-10 as well, recording his best lap time of 1:31.856 in his 10th and last lap of the session, just before the checkered flag flew. MacNeil co-drives with Gunnar Jeannette in tomorrow's race.
A victory by any of the three teams in tomorrow's race would be the fourth-straight win for the Mercedes-AMG GT3 in 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competition.
The three race win streak includes victories by Keating and Bleekemolen and the No. 33 team in the 12 Hours of the Sebring in March and one race ago at Circuit of The Americas (COTA). Those wins were split by a victory by MacNeil and Jeannette and the No. 50 car on the streets of Long Beach in April.
The strong, early-season results by its Customer Racing teams has given Mercedes-AMG a 17-point lead in the IMSA GTD manufacturer championship standings, 135 – 118 over Ferrari, heading into tomorrow's race.
The defending Detroit GTD race winners, Keating, Bleekemolen and the No. 33 team also bring their biggest championship lead of the season into Saturday's race. In the IMSA GTD driver and team standings, Keating, Bleekemolen and the No. 33 team have 133 points, 24 clear of the second-place Ferrari team and drivers that have 109 points.
Following a 20-minute warmup at 8 a.m. EDT, the 100-minute Detroit Grand Prix IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race is scheduled to start at 12:40 p.m. EDT on Saturday, June 3. Live coverage of the race begins at 12:30 p.m. EDT on FOX Sports 2 (FS2), with live in-car cameras, timing and scoring and IMSA Radio available on www.IMSA.com. A repeat telecast of the race will air on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) this Sunday, June 4, at 9:30 a.m. EDT.
Ben Keating, Driver – No. 33 AMG-Team Riley Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: "The Mercedes-AMG GT3 feels great. It is such an easy car to drive. This track is not entirely different than Long Beach, and we had a really good car there, so it was easy to come off the truck quick here in Detroit. I am happy to be the fastest Mercedes-AMG GT3 but I am disappointed with qualifying eighth. I think it is clear that we have a little bit less speed than what we had at the last event, or at any point this season, but there are so many different strategies that can playout in a 100-minute race. We assume there will be yellows, and we will see if they fall our way or not. It will be interesting to see how it all works out, but the Riley Motorsports team has always been really good on pit stops, pit work and strategy."
Jeroen Bleekemolen, Driver – No. 33 AMG-Team Riley Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: "The Mercedes-AMG GT3 ran pretty well in practice. We are happy with the balance, we can make some small changes for the race, but we should be in a strong position. It all comes down to strategy, pit work and consistency out there, and we have proven we can do well in those areas. We have a nice championship lead now but things can change fast, so it's important to bring home good points again. At the same time, it doesn't mean we will take it easy. If the chance comes to fight for a podium or the win, we will take it."
Cooper MacNeil, Driver – No. 50 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: "We had some issues with the car this morning with the front end not cooperating the way we wanted it to. There was too much understeer in the car, it took a while to figure it out, and we went into qualifying with some big changes. We thought they'd be positive – and they were – but it took too long for the tires to come in. I was definitely pushing hard. I got my heart rate up for sure. I got close to the walls multiple times. All three of the Mercedes-AMG GT3s are pretty much together and we're not far off the other guys."
Gunnar Jeannette, Driver – No. 50 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: "We struggled with the balance this morning. We made some really big changes, went closer to what the No. 33 had, and it improved the car for the second session. We're just dealing with some things we can't seem to solve. So, we're going from there. The Mercedes-AMG GT3 has done really well this year because all of the AMG guys have done a really good job designing the car. I think our long run pace has been very good and has been part of the reason we've been winning races."
Kenny Habul, Driver – No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: "I'm happy. It wasn't perfect because it took a long time for the tires to come in, so it wasn't really until the last lap or so that I had a go to drive the wheels off of it. I got it sideways a couple times and ended up P10. There's more in the car, and I probably should have been a little faster, but I'm happy it is in one piece given all the concrete walls around here. I can't wait for the race tomorrow. I'm excited, I really love this place, and it reminds me of back home on the Gold Coast in Australia."
Tristan Vautier, Driver – No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: "This is Kenny's first time here and I think he did really well in qualifying. If you look at the top-five you have some gold-classified drivers and some silvers who are every bit as good as the gold guys, so I think we're right in the mix. Kenny is only two-tenths off the Mercedes-AMG GT3 that is leading the championship. I think we have a good chance tomorrow, we'll see how the race plays out, but overall we are quite happy with today's performance."
