Prior to his fifth IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race, the 24 Hours of Daytona on 27-28 January, Parker Thompson claimed his first pole position for Vasser Sullivan in the GTD category.
The Canadian driver will run his maiden full-season IMSA campaign having previously competed in Endurance Cup rounds for the team.
Frankie Montecalvo, Aaron Telitz and Toyota GAZOO Racing WEC reserve driver Ritomo Miyata will join him for the 24 Hours of Daytona, which will open the 2024 season during the next weekend.
“It means everything,” said Thompson of the #12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3.
“Two years ago, I was spotting up there, and now I’m down in Victory Lane collecting my first pole.
“One for one, but I couldn’t do it without … the entire Lexus Racing Vasser Sullivan group.
“It’s such a solid group.”
Thompson qualified the #14 Lexus third overall in the session of GTD and GTD Pro participants.
Furthermore, the 25-year-old set a fastest lap time of 1:44.494, just 0.032 behind the sibling #14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus which was being qualified by reigning GTD Pro champion Jack Hawksworth.
Respectively, Thompson claimed the qualifying track record for the GTD class at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course, having finished ahead of Porsche works driver Klaus Bachler in the #86 MDK Motorsports 911 GT3.R.
At just a margin of 0.043, Thompson prevailed in his Lexus machinery although the #86 will start on the same row for the Daytona 24, as the pair are two of the 36 cars within the combined GTD fields which will fight for the most prestigious victory on the calendar.
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