The Qualifying sessions 1 and 2 of the Porsche Sprint Challenge Ibérica held this Saturday, at the Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto, will return to the well-known protagonists. Manuel Alves (LOB Motorsport) and Dylan Pereira (AF & V Motorsport) will share the domain of the time tables, reinforcing the status of main candidates for victories in the Sprint races.
Qualification 1 – Manuel Alves returns to make a difference
The first qualifying session, held in the morning, featured low temperatures, cloudy weather and dry track, a perfect setting to test the coolness and consistency of two drivers. Manuel Alves will not give any guarantees and guarantee a pole position in the season, being the only driver to lap below 1:46. The Portuguese of LOB Motorsport shows a canonical speed of 1:45.266, which is the most desired position on the grid for Sprint Race 1, which will be held this afternoon (5:05 p.m., Spanish time). Next to him on the first line will be the Spanish Alejandro Barambio (GT Corse), who finished a significant 0.9 seconds behind Alves.
The third best time was achieved by José Barros (AF & V Motorsport), just 7 thousandths slower than Barambio, balancing the balance between the podium places. The session was interrupted by a red flag, caused by the mistake of Jorge Ramirez (RGB Racing Team) on its fourth quarter. Despite the incident, the Spanish maintains the 4th best time, 2.7 seconds behind the leader, ensuring presence on the second line of the grid.
André Fernandes (AF & V Motorsport) completes the Top 5, while the young Canadian Brieana Macdonald (Monteiros Competições) shines to be 6th overall, surpassing Francisca Queiroz, usual dominator of the Ladies Cup, and being the best representative of her team. Among the Porsche 991 GT3 Cup of Category 1, highlight is Nuno Inocêncio (Monteiros Competições), 8th overall and the fastest in his group, consistently confirming that he is placed among the best throughout the season.
Qualification 2
Dylan Pereira reages and conquers “pole” With pleasant temperatures and a dry track, the second qualificação trouxe a dispute a millimeter for the pole position of Sprint Race 2.
Dylan Pereira (AF & V Motorsport) won by just 115 thousandths of a second over Manuel Alves, a duel of high technical level and surgical precision. The Luso-Luxembourgians are looking forward to the rival’s morning performance and part of the vantagem for the amanhã bullfight, promising a new intense fight between the two favorites in the Category 2 title.
Borja Garcia (GT Corse) once again stood out, registering the 3rd best time, half a second behind Pereira, clearly maintaining his position in the fight for the podium places. The Spanish Jorge Ramirez (RGB Racing Team) repeated the 4th position obtained in Qualification 1 and will return from the second line, after riding two seconds behind the leader.
In the Ladies Cup, Francisca Queiroz (LOB Motorsport) once again showed her speed and was the fastest among the women, as the 7th overall time. Logo back, British Chloe Grant (Monteiros Competições) has achieved the best results in Category 1, surpassing the usual candidates and guaranteeing an excellent starting position.
Official Program – Round 5 – Jerez
Saturday, November 1
– 17:05 – Sprint Race 1 (20 min + 1 volt)
Sunday, November 2
– 13:05 – Sprint Race 2 (20 min + 1 volt)
– 16:50 – Endurance Race (50 min)
*Spanish Time Difference (-1 hour in Continental Portugal)