A round of applause greeted the ears of Level 5 Motorsports driver Luis Diaz as he took off his helmet after his 15-minute prototype qualifying run at Petit Le Mans last Friday. He had just beaten the No. 26 Signatech Oreca 03 Nissan of JK Vernay inches before the checkered flag to secure the pole position for the race on Saturday.
The qualifying victory fulfilled a hope that Level 5 Motorsports and owner Scott Tucker have had for months. Earlier this year, Tucker invested in two brand new HPD ARX-01g LMP2 cars in order to ensure that the team would be competitive in the LMP2 field, especially challenging the usually dominant Nissans. Diaz's finish was exactly the result Level 5 had hoped to see, and it sent them confidently into Saturday's race.
"It was just like in the movies, when you want it so bad," Diaz said. "You push so hard, and you think there is no time; for me it was a matter of pushing very hard. I tried to roll a lot of speed through turn one."
Diaz said the strength of the new car was evident. "I'm very happy to be in the pole," he said. "It was very important to beat the Nissan." He looked to Saturday with cautious optimism. "We'll have to be smart," he said. "It's a 10-hour race, so we'll have to be smart and stay out of trouble. I know the car is really strong, so as long as we stay out of trouble, we'll be fine."
Teammate Christophe Bouchut drove the qualifying round for Level 5's second entry, eventually finishing third, though the trio of Bouchut, Tucker and Joao Barbosa would go on to win Petit Le Mans in the LMP2 class later that weekend. The win was Level 5's second consecutive class win at Petit Le Mans, with a victory in the LMP class in 2010, which bumped the team to the LMP2 class this season.
The qualifying victory fulfilled a hope that Level 5 Motorsports and owner Scott Tucker have had for months. Earlier this year, Tucker invested in two brand new HPD ARX-01g LMP2 cars in order to ensure that the team would be competitive in the LMP2 field, especially challenging the usually dominant Nissans. Diaz's finish was exactly the result Level 5 had hoped to see, and it sent them confidently into Saturday's race.
"It was just like in the movies, when you want it so bad," Diaz said. "You push so hard, and you think there is no time; for me it was a matter of pushing very hard. I tried to roll a lot of speed through turn one."
Diaz said the strength of the new car was evident. "I'm very happy to be in the pole," he said. "It was very important to beat the Nissan." He looked to Saturday with cautious optimism. "We'll have to be smart," he said. "It's a 10-hour race, so we'll have to be smart and stay out of trouble. I know the car is really strong, so as long as we stay out of trouble, we'll be fine."
Teammate Christophe Bouchut drove the qualifying round for Level 5's second entry, eventually finishing third, though the trio of Bouchut, Tucker and Joao Barbosa would go on to win Petit Le Mans in the LMP2 class later that weekend. The win was Level 5's second consecutive class win at Petit Le Mans, with a victory in the LMP class in 2010, which bumped the team to the LMP2 class this season.
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