Matt Campbell delight at securing pole position for Porsche at World Endurance Championship opener in Qatar

ByAlex Livie

Published 01/03/2024 at 18:27 GMT

A Porsche Penske 963 Hybrid Hypercar will be on pole position in the opening World Endurance Championship (WEC) race of the season in Qatar after Matt Campbell pipped Nyck de Vries to top spot on the timing sheets at the Lusail International Circuit on Friday. The race gets underway on Saturday and you can catch the action on Eurosport and discovery+.

Matt Campbell wrote himself into the history books by putting a Porsche on pole position for the first time in Hypercar with a stunning lap in Hyperpole at the World Endurance Championship (WEC) season opener in Qatar.

The Australian, by his own admission, struggled earlier in the week but setup changes paid off as he posted a lap of 1:39.347 in his Porsche Penske 963 Hybrid Hypercar.

After beating Nyck de Vries by 0.164 seconds, Campbell paid tribute to his team.

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“Fantastic to get our first ever overall pole position in WEC,” Campbell said. “We have had a strong performance all weekend.

“We made some really good tuning towards qualifying and it has really paid off, so a big thanks to the engineering crew.

“I struggled a little but yesterday during our quali simulation and also this morning, and we really turned it around.”

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Looking ahead to the race at the Lusail International Circuit, Campbell feels his effort in qualifying gives him a big advantage for Saturday.

“Starting from pole position, it is really important in Qatar for track position and I am looking forward to tomorrow,” Campbell said.

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On his WEC debut, Callum Ilott showed his potential by taking third on the grid in his Hertz Team JOTA Porsche 963.

Antonio Fuoco rounded out the top four in his Ferrari AF Corse 499P.

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Stream the 2024 World Endurance Championship on Eurosport and discovery+

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