ASTON MARTIN QUALIFIES THIRD FOR FUJI

The #99 V8 Vantage GTE of Fernando Rees (BR) and Alex MacDowall (GB) will start from third in the GTE class field in tomorrow’s FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) race at Fuji International Speedway.

The pair, which qualified on pole at the race last year, was the most successful of the three Aston Martin Racing Vantage GTE Pro cars in the 20-minute session, earlier today. Team-mates in the #97 Vantage GTE and #95 Vantage GTE could only manage sixth and seventh.

Similarly, in GTE Am, third was the best that Six Hours of Silverstone and Six Hours of Spa race-winners Pedro Lamy (PT) and Paul Dalla Lana (CA) could achieve. The #96 Vantage GTE qualified in sixth.

“Our teams and drivers did a fantastic job to get the most out of our cars today,” commented Team Principal John Gaw. “And, that’s all we can be expected to do.

“The Balance of Performance adjustments weren’t quite enough for us to be competitive in qualifying but we will be sure to do whatever we can tomorrow to give ourselves the best chance of a good battle with the Ferraris, Corvette and Porsches.”

The WEC Six Hours of Fuji starts at 11am local time on Sunday 11 October. Fans can check out their local TV listings on the WEC website and can follow the team on social media using #teamAMR.