Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA locked out the front row of the grid for the 2025 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans after Sebastien Buemi in the #38 Cadillac V-Series.R lapped the 13.626 kms of the Circuit de la Sarthe in 3:23.333 in Hyperpole 2, quickly followed by Alex Lynn in the sister #12 car who went .167 seconds quicker with a 3:23.166.
Completing the top three qualifiers for Saturday’s French endurance classic was the #5 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963 driven by Julien Andlauer who lapped in 3:23.475 before retiring to the pits with a detached right rear wheel.
For 2025, the structure of Hyperpole has been changed with the quickest 12 entries from both the LMP2 and LMGT3 fields from Wednesday’s qualifying going forward to a 20-minute Hyperpole 1 session out of which the quickest eight entries from each class would compete in a 15-minute Hyperpole 2 session from which the top eight on each grid would be decided. Different drivers were required for each session with tyre changes allowed mid-session but not refuelling. Teams were allowed to refuel between each session if they progressed to Hyperpole 2.
The same format was followed for the Hypercar grid with the quickest 15 entries from qualifying going through to Hyperpole 1 after which five entries would be eliminated, leaving ten cars to compete for the overall pole position.
The new format made for four thrilling sessions where, given the limited track time and the length of a lap, opportunities to push for the ultimate qualifying time were limited.
Hyperpole 1 for the LMGT3 field saw elimination for the #193 Ziggo Motorsport Ferrari 296 LMGT3, the #88 Proton Competition Ford Mustang, the #11 United Autosports McLaren 720S GT3 and the #54 Vista AF Corse Ferrari, the latter not setting a time after an off-track excursion led to a red flag.
The #46 Team WRT BMW M4 LMGT3 with Kelvin van der Linde at the wheel went quickest in the session with a 3:54.345 followed by the #81 TF Sport Corvette ZO6 LMGT3 R who lapped in 3:54.646.
In the LMP2 field, the #28 IDEC Sport entry was eliminated alongside the #45 Algarve Pro Racing entry, the #48 VDS Panis Racing entry and the #25 Algarve Pro Racing entry.
Hyperpole 2 saw the #46 Team WRT BMW taken over by Valentino Rossi who kept a cool head to put in a 3:54.966 on his second lap to secure third on the LMGT3 grid. Second quickest was the #21 Vista AF Corse Ferrari which lapped in 3:53.085 in the hands of Alessio Rovera. Pole position in the LMGT3 class went to Heart of Racing Team when Mattia Drudi put in a 3:57.789 in the #27 Aston Martin Vantage LMGT3.
Hyperpole 1 for the Hyoercar class saw the quickest time set by Jack Aitken in the #311 Cadillac Whelen V-Series .R with a 3:22.742 followed by the manufacturer stablemate of the #38 Cadillac Hertz Tean JOTA entry with a 3:32.141 in the hands of Sebastien Bourdais.
The five Hypercars eliminated after Hyperpole 1 were the #51 Ferrari AF Corse Ferrari 499P in which a visibly frustrated Alessandro Pier Guid could go no quicker than a 3:24.143, the #35 Alpine A424, the #83 AF Corse Ferrari in the hands of Yifei Ye, the #101 Cadillac WTR which had only completed an engine change during the previous practice session and the #009 Astin Marton THOR Team Valkyrie.
Alex Lynn took over the #12 Cadillac for Hyperpole 2 and set his pole time on his fourth lap of five with teammate Sebastien Bourdais lapping just .167 seconds behind to lock out the front row for the Tunbridge Wells-based team, which celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025.
Julien Andlauer in the #5 Porsche Penske Motorsport entry had set a provisional pole time of 3:23.475 on his second lap but lost his right rear wheel as he approached the pit lane entry and could take no further part in the session.
Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA Co-Owner Sam Hignett (Photo: Roger Jenkins)
Co-Owner of Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA Sam Hignett was delighted to have secured the team’s first overall pole but was firmly focused on the demands ahead for the race.
“It’s fantastic but the hard work starts now ahead of the race,” he said. “Both cars will be going out for the final practice this evening as we have more data we need to gather.”
#12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA driver Will Stevens (Photo: Roger Jenkins)
#12 driver Will Stevens, who drove in Hyperpole 1, echoed Sam Hignett’s thoughts about the race focus.
“I think honestly we’ve made really good steps all week,” said Will Stevens. “We’ve slowly built up, we’ve gained confidence and we know this car’s very good in qualifying conditions but yeah, it’s just cool to for us as JOTA, for Cadillac and GM to come to our first Le Mans together and to get the 1 – 2. Not only to get the pole but to have a 1 – 2 just shows the progress we’re making as a team but the hard work starts now.
“Obviously it’s great to start on pole and to lock out the front row for the team and for Cadillac. Now we’ve just to keep it like that for 24 hours.”
The lights go out for the 24 Hours of Le Mans at 1600 local time on Saturday June 14.
