Matthew Brabham Continues Perfect Qualifying Record in 2026 at Lime Rock Memorial Day Classic

Matthew Brabham continues to be spot-on perfect in qualifying for the Trans Am by Pirelli TA Class in 2026, edging out Paul Menard to secure the pole for Saturday’s Memorial Day Classic at Lime Rock Park.

Behind the wheel of the same Chris Dyson Racing No. 16 Gymweed Ford Mustang that he’s driven all season long, Brabham has been a force to be reckoned with, still maintaining a perfect streak of winning every TA event this season from the pole – a mark he’ll look to further extend on Saturday.

With a lap time of 47.920 seconds around the 1.53-mile, 7-turn road course, Brabham was able to out-run his biggest competition, Paul Menard, by nearly two tenths of a second. Menard will once again start from the runner-up position.

Making a return to the Trans Am Series this weekend at Lime Rock, Chris Dyson qualified third place in the No. 20 RACER / Gym Soda Ford Mustang, a second entry for Chris Dyson Racing. David Pintaric was fourth with Tomy Drissi rounding out the top-five.

The TA Class will be on track for 68 laps (or 75 minutes) on Saturday at 11:40 AM ET.

TA CLASS – QUALIFYING RESULTS:

1. #16 Matthew Brabham (Gymweed Ford Mustang) (47.920)
2. #3 Paul Menard (Pittsburgh Paints / Menards Ford Mustang) (48.100)
3. #20 Chris Dyson (RACER / Gym Soda Ford Mustang) (49.794)
4. #57 David Pintaric (Birds Eye View Project / Kryde Racing Ford Mustang) (50.768)
5. #8 Tomy Drissi (Trench Shoring Chevrolet Camaro) (51.089)

Bill Goforth has secured the pole for Saturday’s Trans Am by Pirelli GT1 Challenge at Lime Rock Park, after being the only driver in the class to take a time in Friday’s qualifying session. With a lap time of 53.990 seconds, Goforth will start ahead his son, Brent Goforth, who didn’t get on the racetrack in time to make a lap.

GT1 CHALLENGE – QUALIFYING RESULTS:

1. #99 Bill Goforth (Big Dog Foundation Piers Chevrolet Corvette) (53.990)
2. #98 Brent Goforth (Big Dog Foundation Piers Chevrolet Camaro) (No Time)

Chris Coffey continues to be the class of the Trans Am by Pirelli SGT Class, winning the pole for Saturday’s Lime Rock Memorial Day Classic. However, this week, Coffey had to work extra hard to make sure he started out in front of the pack come race time.

With a lap time of 53.023 seconds, Coffey only secured the pole position by a tenth and a half over Jesse Schmidt, who makes his Trans Am SGT Class debut this weekend at Lime Rock Park, and nearly found himself starting from the lead.

Patrick Utt continues to make progress towards challenging Chris Coffey each week, and was much closer on lap time at Lime Rock, securing the third-place starting spot.

SGT CLASS – QUALIFYING RESULTS:

1. #97 Chris Coffey (TrafficGrafix / NAI Racing / GTE Eng Ferrari 458 Challenge) (53.023)
2. #91 Jesse Schmidt (Windhund Racing Porsche 991.1 GT3 Cup) (53.166)
3. #49 Patrick Utt (Race Quip / Driven Racing Oil Chevrolet Camaro) (54.515)

Derric Carter has been unstoppable in the Trans Am Series by Pirelli GT Class in 2026, and that continued into Friday’s qualifying session from Lime Rock Park. Carter, driving his usual No. 24 Ford Mustang GT 500, posted a time of 56.019 seconds to win the pole position by more than a second over Michael Saia, a former winner at Lime Rock Park.

Brion Gluck returned to the series this weekend after skipping a couple of races and will start third in the GT Class.

GT CLASS – QUALIFYING RESULTS

1. #24 Derric Carter (PortableHoist.com Ford Mustang GT 500) (56.019)
2. #13 Michael Saia (KMC / Motul / Rabid Wraps / Rapid Perf Porsche 997.1 GT3 Cup (57.218)
3. #47 Brion Gluck (Freedom Coffee / Gallant Few / 6XD) (Factory 5 Daytona 65 R) (1:02.250)

Neither Erich Joiner nor Billy Griffin, the two drivers entered in Saturday’s Trans Am by Pirelli XGT Class posted a lap time in qualifying.

The TA/GT1/GT/XGT/SGT Class will be on track for 68 laps (or 75 minutes) on Saturday at 11:40 AM ET. Coverage of the event will be live on RacingAmerica.tv, Racing America 24/7 and @TheTransAmSeries on YouTube.

-Photo credit: Chris Clark Photography