Braselton, Ga. (11 October 2019) – entering its sixth Motul Petit Le Mans event, Meyer Shank Racing will start on the second row from fourth on the grid for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season finale (Saturday, 12:00pm ET NBC).
Justin Marks made his first qualifying effort of the season for the No. 86 AutoNation Acura NSX GT3. Having last raced at Watkins Glen with the championship leading squad of Trent Hindman and Mario Farnbacher, Marks was tasked with the 15-minute qualifying run on Friday.
An immediate red flag on lap 1 put a delay on the qualifying session. But once back to green, Marks laid down his fast lap of 1:19.820-seconds on lap three. He was on a run for one more even faster lap but would finish out the session fourth in the order.
“I am very happy with the qualifying effort,” said Marks. “We have thrown so much at the car this weekend to try and get a platform on the Acura where it is drivable through the entirety of the race. The car has good speed, so it comes down to making sure the operation of it is good, so we do not have consequences. While we did not have the outright one-lap speed, we do have a drivable car that will be good at the long runs.”
The No. 86 AutoNation Acura is up for several IMSA championships this weekend. Taking the green flag on Saturday will lock in the GTD championship for Meyer Shank Racing.The team must also finish ahead of Lamborghini to secure the Manufacturer championship for Acura at the end of the 10-hour race.
The 22nd annual Motul Petit Le Mans will be broadcast live on NBC starting at 12:00pm ET on Saturday, October 12th.