Porsche works drivers Marc Lieb (Germany) and Richard Lietz (Austria) are just one point off winning the GT2 class title of the Le Mans Series. In a thrilling qualifying session, Lietz clinched pole position in the 911 GT3 RSR of the German Felbermayr-Proton team and, with this, extended the advantage of the top duo to nine points heading into the season's final 1,000 kilometre race. With a top time of 1:48.638 minutes on the 5.141 kilometre time-honoured circuit, the Austrian relegated their only remaining rival in the championship, the Ferrari F430 GT manned by Gianmaria Bruni and Robert Bell, to second on the grid by 0.192 seconds.

“We're of course very happy with our pole position and another point,“ said a thrilled Richard Lietz. “Although we've always said that pole position is not so important to us, I felt quite nervous and tense today. We are so close to winning the championship and that is a fantastic feeling. But we also know that you can easily be knocked out of contention through no fault of your own.“ His teammate Marc Lieb added: “We are well prepared for the race. Our goal in all practice sessions was to find a good set-up that reliably gets us over the 1,000 kilometre distance. We did manage this. And now to have Richard bring home the top qualifying time is fabulous.“ Heading into the fifth round of the LMS, the two have three wins this season (Barcelona, Spa, Nürburgring) and three pole positions (Spa, Algarve, Silverstone) to their credit.

Rounding off this good result with the third grid position is Porsche works pilot Patrick Pilet (France) at the wheel of his 450 hp 911 fielded by IMSA Performance Matmut. “We're basically pleased with our position,“ claimed Pilet. “Only one and a half tenths of a second separate us from second place, and that means our speed is good. The car felt great right from the first practice session and the configuration is perfect for the race. Having never competed on this circuit before, I've quickly become familiar with it.“ Hobby race driver Raymond Narac already knows the Silverstone circuit and its fast corners, but was able to benefit from the support of his professional teammate. “Patrick shared a few helpful tips about the ideal line with me,“ said the Porsche dealer from Rouen. “After all, we both want to bring home the first win for our team in the Le Mans Series tomorrow. And the competition in the GT2 class is unbelievably strong. We only hope that no over-motivated rival ruins our chance again.“

The trio in the second Felbermayr-Proton 911 GT3 RSR, Christian Ried (Germany), Horst Felbermayr Jnr. (Austria) and Francisco Cruz Martins (Portugal), take up the race from twelfth on the grid. The English Porsche team, James Watt Automotive, starts from 14th in the GT2 class with drivers Markus Palttala (Finland), Paul Daniels and Martin Rich (both Great Britain).

The final race of the Le Mans Series takes off tomorrow at 11.35 hours local time (12.35 hours CEST) and receives the flag after 195 laps or a maximum of six hours. The TV station “Eurosport“ broadcasts the final live from 11.30 hrs to 12.30 hrs local time (12.30 to 13.30 hrs CEST) and from 16.45 hrs to 17.30 hrs (17.45 to 18.30 hrs CEST).

1. Richard Lietz (AUT), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 1.48.638 minutes
2. Gianmaria Bruni (ITA), Ferrari F430 GT, + 0.192 seconds
3. Patrick Pilet (FRA), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 0.346
4. Jaime Melo (BRA), Ferrari F430 GT, + 0.720
5. Pierre Kaffer (DEU), Ferrari F430 GT, + 0.932
6. Jonny Cocker (GBR), Aston Martin Vantage GT2, + 0.956
7. Andrea Montermini (ITA), Ferrari F430 GT, + 0.974
8. Dominik Farnbacher (DEU), Ferrari F430 GT, + 1.424
9. Tom Coronel (NED), Spyker C8 Laviolette, + 1.704
10. Matt Griffin (GBR), Ferrari F430 GT, + 2.072