Le Mans Series

PSI: Pole position was in our grasp!

© Planetlemans - Marcel ten Caat

Less than one week after PSI Experience’s brilliant performance at Paul Ricard in the FIA-GT Championship, the team’s Corvette C6-R made tracks for the Le Mans Series, for the 4th leg being held this weekend at Donington. Another opportunity for Markus Palttala, Pertti Kuismanen and Jos Menten to prove their worth as from the qualifying sessions.
Unlike the previous legs of the 2006 LMS Competition and with a quick visit into the FIA-GT series, the PSI Experience Corvette C6-R was shod with Michelin tyres for the various qualifying sessions held this Saturday. "The first free practice session was held under wet conditions.", Markus Palttala, the team spokesperson commented. ”We tested out various things, without really concentrating on performance. After that, and once the track had dried, we focussed on the different tyre qualities being offered to us here so that we could select the best possible choice prior to the qualifying sessions."

There was therefore an intense interest prior to the brief qualifying session. And for the first time this season it was up to Palttala to qualify the Corvette shod with French tyres. "I immediately clocked a 1’27"685, which allowed us to claim pole position. In fact I could have improved on that time in my 3rd lap, but I got caught up in the traffic. But so what, after last week’s performance in the FIA-GT, our C6-R qualifies in 3rd spot, a mere 0"295 from the pole position. The outcome is that we are now playing in the same court as the Aston Martin of Lamy and Ortelli’s Saleen. Which is not bad at all."

And so with the morale on a high Palttala, Kuismanen and Menten will be competing this Sunday afternoon at Donington, with as main objective to clinch another podium in the GT1 Class, or even better. Pertti Kuismanen will be taking the first relay. "The car is well balanced and the way things are at the moment she’s ready to take on this 1000 kilometre race", Palttala concluded. "It’s now up to us to play our cards right, knowing that we are fully ready to fight it out for a top spot."