BRASELTON, Georgia (October 2, 2026) – Neil Verhagen put the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO on pole for Saturday’s Motul Petit Le Mans with a 1:18.194, cutting the team’s GTD PRO championship deficit from 47 to 42 points before the final race of the season.
Verhagen was quick from the opening laps of the session before returning to pit lane for a second set of Michelin tires. His pole time came on lap eight of ten, three minutes from the end, and placed him 0.144 seconds ahead of Mattia Drudi in the No. 68 Aston Martin.
Nicky Catsburg qualified the championship-leading No. 4 Corvette third, 0.161 seconds behind the No. 1 BMW.
The result gave Paul Miller Racing the maximum 35 qualifying points, five more than the No. 4 earned for third. Verhagen and Connor De Phillippi will therefore start Saturday’s ten-hour finale 42 points behind Catsburg and Tommy Milner.
Friday’s pole continues a strong qualifying season for Verhagen and the No. 1 BMW. It is his third WeatherTech Championship pole and the team’s seventh top-three qualifying result of 2026.
Paul Miller Racing also starts Petit Le Mans from GTD PRO pole for the second consecutive year after Dan Harper led qualifying in the No. 48 BMW in 2025.
The pace had been present throughout the weekend, with the No. 1 finishing second in Practice 1 and fourth in Practice 2 before Thursday night’s final practice session.
For Paul Miller Racing, Friday also represented an opportunity that had been missing at Indianapolis two weeks earlier, when weather forced the cancellation of GTD PRO qualifying and no qualifying points were awarded.
“I’m really happy with that one,” said Verhagen. “The car felt amazing and we were quick very early in the session. We knew we had two sets of tires, so the goal was just to keep improving and put everything together when it mattered.
“Obviously we were disappointed at Indianapolis because qualifying has been one of our strengths all year and nobody had the chance to score those points. Today we had that opportunity again and we maximized it. It’s very tight now and everyone is going to push as hard as possible tomorrow. We’re ready for the fight.
The clearest championship scenario for Paul Miller Racing is now straightforward: a victory for the No. 1 would secure the GTD PRO title if the No. 4 Corvette finishes third or lower.
The 29th Motul Petit Le Mans starts Saturday, October 3, at 12:10 p.m. ET and runs through 10:10 p.m. ET.
