Sutherland, Goble set Portland records with Trans Am poles

Ken Sutherland (No. 85 Kallberg Racing Ford Mustang) qualified fastest overall for the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli Western Championship at Portland International Raceway with a blazing time of 1m11.467s, setting the fastest time of any Trans Am class in Portland history.

“Well, so far so good,” said Sutherland. “We went out for the two test sessions yesterday. The car was super fast and good, we didn't even go out for our practice session. I always question, what could we learn? But the car was too good to be messing with, especially knowing we have two very long races this weekend. In qualifying, the car was just like it was in testing; it was super fast. Jeff Jefferson, Chris Evans and guys just did a great job getting the car ready and prepared. The car was just right on when we were out there. As far as the race goes, I’ve got to be careful. They're going to start us from the back, behind all the TA2 cars. So, just getting through traffic will be the critical part and not getting too anxious to get by some of those slower cars. Hopefully we'll bring home a win or two.”

Brody Goble in the No. 69 Brown Bros. Ford Lincoln Ford Mustang qualified fastest in the CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series, laying down a lap time of 1m12.638s, qualifying first in class for the third time this season. Goble was followed in time trials by Jade Avedisian (No. 10 Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry) in her first Trans Am start, and Mia Lovell (No. 40 Nitro Motorsports Toyota Camry), marking the first time two female drivers have qualified in the top three in the class.

“It's a doubleheader this weekend, so we’ve got to be focused on a race later today and a race tomorrow,” said Goble after qualifying. “Every session's been going in the right direction; we’re making small changes, which is nice not having to do anything crazy. We know the track super well. It makes me feel old now, but I've been racing here since about 2010 in Spec Miata stuff and a whole bunch of things in between, and now doing Trans Am here, so I love the track. It's about four and a half hours from where I live, so it's almost my home track. We bested the track record by over a second from what it was last year.”

Simon Asselin (No. 81 Infillion Porsche 991.2 GT3 Cup) was the fastest in the XGT class with a time of 1m13.866s, and Cole Beaudreau (No. 88 Boudreau Racing Ford Mustang) was the quickest in TA with a time of 1m15.545s.

Race one at Portland International Raceway will be contested today at 5:40 p.m. ET/2:40 p.m. PT. The race will be streamed live on Trans Am’s YouTube channel, @TheTransAmSeries.

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