Corvette Racing driver Olivier Beretta affirmed his standing as the most prolific pole winner in American Le Mans Series history by taking the final GT1 pole. Beretta extended his ALMS record with his 23rd career pole in qualifying for the Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series at Long Beach.

Beretta was the quickest qualifier with the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R, turning a lap in 1:17.952  (90.887 mph) on the 1.966-mile temporary circuit through the streets of Long Beach. He edged Johnny O'Connell in the No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R by .192 seconds after O'Connell had set the pace in the first two timed laps. The two Corvette drivers recorded their fastest times before qualifying was briefly interrupted by a red flag. Both subsequently completed two additional laps when qualifying resumed, but did not improve their times. 

O'Connell's best lap was timed at 1:18.144 (90.663 mph). "We changed our setup pretty drastically from this morning so I wasn't really certain what we'd get in qualifying," O'Connell explained. "We improved in some areas but not as much as we needed. I'm not disappointed – Olivier has proven himself to be one of the best qualifiers in sports car racing. You're never happy when you don't get the pole, but qualifying has never been my forte. We've improved our car and that's the most important thing.

At the conclusion of qualifying, American Le Mans Series officials paid tribute to Corvette Racing's accomplishments in the GT1 division. "This is a celebration of a decade of dominance," said ALMS President/CEO Scott Atherton. "This is literally the end of an era as Corvette Racing, one of the true pillars of the American Le Mans Series, is about to close a chapter of their racing history. The best news is that this simply opens the next chapter with much more history still to be written.

"There are a lot of people who recognize what Corvette Racing has accomplished," Atherton said. "The last couple of years have been difficult for all of us without the level of competition this program has known in the past – but no one has forgotten the Viper era, the Aston Martin era, Ferrari era, and the Saleen era. I've been in many meetings with executives of car companies as I tried to attract GT1 competition into the series, and I wish I had a dollar for every time it was explained to me that there is such a dominant organization in GT1 that it's just not feasible to compete. While it was hard to take at the time, it's an incredible compliment that never gets written about in the papers or comes across on TV, but I can tell you that it's absolute fact. "To everyone at Corvette Racing, a heartfelt thanks for a decade of involvement," Atherton concluded. "I can't tell you how much we're looking forward to the debut of the Corvette in GT2 at Mid-Ohio in a very competitive environment."