Garrett Lowe and Thomas Dombrowski mastered the wet conditions in qualifying and secured the Stromwatches.com Pole Award for NASCAR GP UK – Lowe and Dombrowski both claimed their maiden pole positions
- Wet weather led to an unpredictable qualifying session for V8GP and OPEN
- Garrett Lowe became the first American driver to claim the Pole Award in V8GP
- Thomas Dombrowski waited late in OPEN Superpole to also claim his first pole position
The NASCAR GP UK continues to deliver the surprises that made the event a must watch for race fans. After bright sunshine led to a record setting practice on Friday, morning rainfall created an incredibly tense qualifying session. The tricky conditions were a blessing for Garrett Lowe, who quickly adapted with the weather and drove the BS+BREMOTION machine to America’s first pole position in V8GP, the top division of the official European NASCAR championship. Lowe was not the only driver who took their maiden pole position: Thomas Dombrowski joined the hybrid racer as the recipient of the Stromwatches.com Pole Award in OPEN, showcasing remarkable car control to put himself in the best seat in the house for Round 5.
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V8GP: What a Drive by Garrett Lowe!
NASCAR Euro Series has welcomed many great American drivers in its long and illustrious history, but never has an American driven their pure racing machine to pole position in V8GP. That all changed when Garrett Lowe took the #99 Chevrolet Camaro to an epic quest for the Stromwatches.com Pole Award in the 2026 NASCAR GP UK. Lowe confirmed his position as Vittorio Ghirelli’s main title rival with his achievement at Brands Hatch, clocking a time of 53.079 to rewrite the history books. Not only was this Lowe’s first pole position in his V8GP career, the American also topped the Junior Trophy ahead of Paul Jouffreau, who will start alongside the BS+BREMOTION driver from the front row.
“It was actually kinda fun!” said Lowe on driving the V8 powered machines in tricky conditions. “I didn’t think I’ll enjoy this place in the wet, but it’s pretty good. I had a few laps in the simulator to get an idea on what it’s like in the wet because it’s predicted to be wet when we’ll come/. American SpeedFest, American on top, at least in qualifying! I just got to do my job in the race. BS+BREMOTION provided me with a fast Chevrolet today.”
The battle on the top was as heated as ever with Gianmarco Ercoli, Jordan O’Brien and Ghirelli all securing a top-5 starting position for Round 5. Jack Davidson, who qualified sixth, used his home track advantage to beat Thomas Krasonis and Vinnie Meskelis for third spot in the Junior Trophy rankings. Martin Doubek and Nelson Piquet Jr. battled through two grueling sessions to put their machines into Superpole. Thomas Toffel was the fastest in Challenger Trophy, narrowly missing out on the Superpole in 11th place. Giovanni Cartechini and Logan Bearden in 13th and 15th joined the Swiss driver in the top-3 positions for the elite amateurs special classification.
OPEN: Thomas Dombrowski Avenged His Demons
The memories of his massive crash at Brands Hatch in 2025 might have lingered on Thomas Dombrowski’s mind when he prepared himself for qualifying in the 2026 edition of the NASCAR GP UK, but all of the doubts were put away after he drove the #24 PK Carsport Chevrolet Camaro for his maiden Stromwatches.com Pole Award. Dombrowski waited until his last lap in Superpole to grab the important pole position, but it was worth the effort and wait. As the Frenchman went on to say, it was his revenge after what transpired in 2025.
“I’m super happy, having the first pole position at this track,” said Dombrowski after he got out of his machine. “After the huge crash last year, it’s a good revenge and shows the good mentality that we had. It’s beautiful to do it here.”
Major drama took place behind Dombrowski as OPEN’s championship leader Thomas Toffel crashed twice, a perfect demonstration on how challenging the weather conditions can be in the UK. This could play a major implication for Raphael Lessard, who was the only driver to beat Toffel in the battles for victories so far. A second place qualifying result gave the Canadian a clear view ahead for the first of two races that will take place at the 1.928 kilometer circuit that celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2026.
Sandro Tavartkiladze put in a valiant effort to qualify his Team Bleekemolen machine in third, enough for first in the Master Trophy rankings. Two-time OPEN champion Martin Doubek was fourth ahead of Claudio Cappelli, once again the fastest in Legend Trophy. Gil Linster was sixth with Valentino Gambarotto and Melvin de Groot – second in Master and Legend Trophy respectively – putting their cars on the fourth row.
Toffel and Jens Beeusaert completed the list of Superpole participants in ninth and tenth. Beeusaert claimed third place in the Master Trophy in spite of an incident in Superpole. The Lady Trophy was led by Mariam Davitidze, who was confident with the performance of her Kolkhi GRT machine in the wet. Davitidze beat Robin Bleekemolen and Beitske Visser in the special classification battle, which also featured Happinessa to create an exciting four-way scrap for the best female driver in OPEN. Francesco Leogrande completed the Legend Trophy top-3 in 20th place.
The weather was predicted to ease down for Round 5 races, but rain or shine, V8GP and OPEN will be ready to put on a show to remember for the thousands of British race fans that are expected to attend the NASCAR GP UK. V8GP Round 5 will go live at 14:05 CEST followed by OPEN Round 5, scheduled for action at 17:25 CEST. Find out where you can watch the action from https://www.nascar.eu/watch/ and if your regional area doesn’t have a dedicated TV partner, then DAZN, NASCAR Euro TV and YouTube will provide all the spectacle to a worldwide audience.
Featured image by NASCAR Euro Series / Nina Weinbrenner
