Porsche is starting the third round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) from pole position at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. Works driver Kévin Estre from France once again set the fastest lap in qualifying on the high-speed circuit with the 515 hp 911 RSR in 1: 45.412 minutes. With the third qualifying best time in a row, the Porsche GT Team can look forward to a flawless hat trick in the GTE Pro category. Estre shares the car with the Swiss Neel Jani. At the wheel of the sister car, which had a different tire strategy, Gianmaria Bruni (Italy) set the third-best lap time in his home game in 1: 45.844 minutes. He competes with the Austrian Richard Lietz. In the GTE-Am class, a 911 RSR from the Project 1 customer team starts from fourth place. The FIA World Endurance Championship is taking place for the first time on the currently 5.793 kilometer long traditional race track outside the gates of Milan.

The teams in the WEC have only ten minutes for qualifying. Estre did not use the first flying lap to attack pole position, but set his best value on the second attempt. Teammate Bruni put in a 1: 46.009-minute lap in the first attack and followed up with two more attempts. He then finished his fourth lap in 1: 45.844 minutes and thus confirmed his third place in the GTE-Pro classification.

“From a sporting point of view, we are of course very happy about our third pole position in a row in the current FIA WEC season,” commented Fritz Enzinger, Head of Motorsport. “In addition, our thoughts are with the people who were particularly affected by the flood disaster in the Nürburgring region - including many employees and their members of our Manthey team, whom we wish the strength they need to survive this difficult time. "

"Third event of the season, third pole position: It is impressive how reliably our team performs," emphasizes Alexander Stehlig, head of operations at the FIA WEC. “We started the weekend with a clear plan and implemented it consistently in the training sessions. So we were perfectly prepared to go chasing times. First place and third place - a great result. We will build on that in the race and will try to spoil the soup for our Ferrari rivals at their home game. "

In the GTE-Am classification, Egidio Perfetti placed the 911 RSR of the Project 1 customer team in fourth place. The Norwegian completed his fastest lap in 1: 48.057 minutes. In the race he is supported by the Italians Matteo Cairoli and Riccardo Pera. Tenth place went to the identical vehicle from Dempsey-Proton-Racing with team owner Christian Ried at the wheel. The German shares the Porsche with Jaxon Evans from New Zealand and the Australian works driver Matt Campbell.

The third round of the season of the World Endurance Championship (WEC) begins on Sunday, July 18, 2021 at 12:00 (CEST) and runs over a distance of six hours.

Driver comments on qualifying
Kévin Estre (Porsche 911 RSR # 92):“It is a great success to be ahead of the Reds in qualifying at Monza. That was not to be foreseen, because Ferrari is enormously strong on this track. I had a little slipstream at the right moment, the lap was clean and really fast. In the end, the lead was just six hundredths of a second. It was tight, exciting and, on balance, very good. Nevertheless, our thoughts are with the people in the Eifel region who were hit incredibly hard by the flood disaster. We know many of those affected, including friends from our team, many fans around the Nürburgring and numerous teams from the region. We all very much wish that the victims of this catastrophe receive as much support as possible from motorsport as well. ”

Gianmaria Bruni (Porsche 911 RSR # 91):“We followed a different tire strategy than the crew of the sister car. On that basis, I managed a flawless lap without mistakes, that was really good. Now we have to wait and see how strong our competitors are in the race. We are prepared for a tough battle. ”

Egidio Perfetti (Porsche 911 RSR # 56): “ On the one hand, as the fastest 911 RSR driver in the GTE Am category, I am very satisfied. But I don't really like fourth place overall. That was probably because we made a conservative decision with the medium tires. With the soft mix I would have been a little faster today. But let's wait and see. I am optimistic that this choice will prove to be the better one for the early stages of the race. ”

Result GTE-Pro-Class
1. Estre / Jani (F / CH), Porsche 911 RSR # 92, 1: 45.412 minutes
2. Pier Guidi / Calado (I / GB), Ferrari 488 GTE # 51, 1: 45.477 minutes
3. Bruni / Lietz (I. / A), Porsche 911 RSR # 91, 1: 45.844 minutes
4th Serra / Molina (BR / E), Ferrari 488 GTE # 71, 1: 46.214 minutes

result in GTE-Am class
1. Keating / Pereira / Fraga (USA / L / BR), Aston Martin # 33, 1: 47.272 minutes
2nd Perrodo / Nielsen / Rovera (F / DK / I), Ferrari 488 GTE Evo # 83, 1: 47.541 minutes
3rd Lacorte / Sernagiotto / Fuoco (I / I / I), Ferrari 488 GTE Evo # 47, 1: 47.950 minutes
4th Perfetti / Cairoli / Pera (N / I / I), Porsche 911 RSR # 56, 1: 48.057 minutes
10th Ried / Evans / Campbell ( D / NZ / AUS), Porsche 911 RSR # 77, 1: 48.766 minutes
12.Haryanto / Seefried / Picariello (RI / D / B), Porsche 911 RSR # 88, 1: 49.211 minutes 13.Wainwright
/ Barker / Gamble (GB / GB / GB), Porsche 911 RSR # 86, 1: 49.244 minutes
14. Olsen / Buchardt / Root (N / N / USA), Porsche 911 RSR # 46, 1: 51.051 minutes.

All results and championship standings at fiawec.alkamelsystems.com.