The Meyer Shank Racing driver trusted his Acura into Turn 1 to set the fastest lap.
Tom Blomqvist carried his courage to the pole position of the IMSA Petit Le Mans season finale.
The Meyer Shank Racing driver turned a lap of 1 minute, 9.628 seconds (131.326 mph) in the No. 60 ARX-06 to set a Grand Touring Prototype record at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. It's the 10th pole position for Acura in the premier hybrid prototype category of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
STARTING GRIDS: Click here for the Petit Le Mans starting lineup l Lineup by row l Lineup by car number
"It's one of those laps where it rewards a little bit of commitment and bravery," Blomqvist said. "Yeah, I just really enjoy driving it. Thankfully, the guys gave me a good car, a good enough car to get the job done.
"It's only one small portion of the job we need to do this weekend. It's more a nice thing for our egos in the team. We're going to sleep a bit better than if we were down the back. (Saturday) is when we need to get the job done."
The pole offered a measure of redemption for Blomqvist, who turned the fastest lap in qualifying last month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway but had the time nullified by a technical infraction.
Qualifying first by 0.119 seconds, Blomqvist made up virtually all of the gap on the short straightaway from the finish line into the treacherous Turn 1.
"You kind of just have to trust that the car's going to stick," Blomqvist, who co-drives with Colin Braun and six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon, said with a laugh. "You just got to carry a lot of speed into the corner and kind of hope you come out the other side. My car was kind of good enough to take that speed. Yeah, it's definitely a fun place to send it."
Jack Aitken qualified second in the No. 31 Cadillac that he shares with Earl Bamber and Frederik Vesti. Nick Yelloly, who co-drives with Renger van der Zande and Tristian Vautier, was third in the No. 93 Acura as the top three cars went under the 70-second barrier.
The No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport 963 qualified fourth, two places behind PPM's No. 6 entry that is leading the GTP points standings with drivers Mathieu Jaminet and Matt Campbell. The No. 7 duo of Felipe Nasr and Nick Tandy trimmed three points off their teammates' lead and trail by 128 points entering the last race of the 2025 season.
The No. 23 Aston Martin Thor Valkyrie qualified fifth, its best starting spot since joining the GTP category in the second race of the season.
In the GTP manufacturer's championship, Porsche leads Acura by tw points.
Here are the pole-sitters in other categories for Saturday's 10-hour race, which will start at 12:10 p.m. ET on Peacock (and also on NBC from noon-3 p.m.):
LMP2: Jeremy Clarke, No. 43 Inter Europol Competition LMP2 07, 1 minute, 13.397 seconds*
GTD Pro: Dan Harper, No. 48 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO, 1:18.523
GTD: Lorenzo Patrese, No. 47 Cetilar Racing Ferrari 296 GT3, 1:18.316
(*—The No. 11's fastest time in LMP2 was disallowed after failing inspection)
PETIT LE MANS QUALIFYING ROUNDUP
Fastest lap by driver after qualifying
Fastest lap by driver and class after qualifying
PRACTICE RESULTS: Session I l Session II l Session III
Category: General Sports
