Kevin Gleason in the #181 VW DriverGear GTI MK6 Sets a Sub 1 Minute Qualifying Lap While the Championship Points Leader Ryan Ellis in the #181 Car Will Start in 14th
APR Motorsport is pleased to present another successful qualifying round in the CTSCC for VW DriverGear Racing with a Second Place Qualifying while the Championship Points leader starts from a comfortable mid pack position for tomorrow’s Memorial Day Classic at Lime Rock Park. VW TDI Cup Standout Kevin Gleason has seemingly found his stride at the tight and technical Lime Rock Park circuit in Lakeville, CT this afternoon after an excellent qualifying round. Ryan Ellis was unable to find enough traffic free lap time to be able to move up in the order despite extremely successful practice rounds.
APR Motorsport felt their work was cut out for them coming off a successful placing at the last race at VIR with such a short time in between races to setup the GTI’s for two completely different race tracks. Where the track at VIR is fast and requires a lot of confidence to carry momentum through the turns, Lime Rock Park is tight, technical and short presenting equal but opposite challenges for the strategists and setup experts in the CTSCC. This also makes it difficult for the technical crew of APR Motorsport as they only had a mere two weeks to completely change the handling characteristics for each track prior to arrival at Lime Rock.
The first practice session saw both GTI’s at the front of the pack but the practice before qualifying proved other teams were holding back and APR Motorsport found themselves quickly making setup improvements to compete. Ryan and Ian in the #171 GTI showed good pace towards the end of the second practice and went into qualifying feeling positive. Kevin and Chris Gleason, Jr. were able to be on point throughout Friday with a few tire pressure changes during practice that yielded great results for Kevin in qualifying.
Kevin relayed, “We were fortunate to get comfortable in the new setup very quickly. Both Chris and I took to Lime Rock like it’s a home track for us even though this is the first time we’ve ever been here.
APR Motorsport took our feedback seriously and did an amazing job giving us the car we needed to be fast. I’m glad I was able to reward their hard work with a P2. This might just be the race for Chris and I to bring one home!” Kevin will start out tomorrow’s race and turn over the GTI to his brother Chris who will finish out the strategy set by APR Motorsport while the #181 GTI is poised for its best finish of the year.
Ryan and Ian are disappointed that Ryan simply wasn’t able to find enough clean space on a hot lap to post his best time. Ian said after qualifying, “Ryan is a great qualifier and he’s proven that thus far this season. I know we had a better time in it but sometimes things just don’t go your way. I’m confident Ryan will run a great first stint tomorrow as usual and I just hope I can bring us up closer to the podium before time expires.” With a couple of Mini’s and both Kia’s ahead of the Points Leader in qualifying, Ian and Ryan know it will be tough to hang on to the lead for the Championship. Ryan remarked, “Generally I’m not too worried about the speed shown by the Minis and the KIAs. I know I’ve got a good car under me and the best co-driver I could hope for. Ian and I are going to move up quick and put it to the front runners. All I can say is that they better be ready for us!”
The Memorial Day Classic at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, CT begins this Saturday at 10:30AM EST and will air on SpeedTV at a later date. To follow the action in real time, as it happens, visit APR’s facebook page or check out the APR Motorsport website at www.aprmotorsport.com for more information.
About APR: APR LLC is an automotive engineering firm operating a 36,000 sq. ft. performance campus in Opelika, AL. APR was founded in 1997 with a corporate philosophy of Integrity, Excellence and Innovation. APR’s Sole Mission is to provide the highest quality and most highly engineered aftermarket performance products available for Porsche, Audi and Volkswagen vehicles. Learn more at www.goapr.com.