By Mark Robinson
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – If the first quarter of the Rolex 24 At Daytona is an indication of the rest of the race and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season, it’s going to be a year to remember.
The first six hours of opening of the famous endurance ride on Saturday offered no competition of the drop of the green flag. Instead of sacrificing their time and waiting patiently for the last hours, managers and teams in all five classes arrived early and often turned like day after night.
Five of the seven top-class entries, Daytona Prototype international (DPi), made a turn at the front. The six-hour point was the first point where points were awarded in the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup. The leaders at the time were: the number 5 Mustang Sampling / JDC-Miller MotorSports Cadillac DPi-VR in DPi; the 11 11 WIN Autosport ORECA LMP2 07 in Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2); the no. 74 Riley Motorsports Ligier JS P320 in the new Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class; the no. 4 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R in GT Le Mans (GTLM); and the no. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R in GT Daytona (GTD).
Flag-to-flag coverage of the iconic Rolex 24 continues throughout the night on the range of NBC Sports platforms. Tune in to the NBC Sports App until 11pm ET. Coverage then moves to NBCSN from 11pm to 3am before returning to the NBC Sports App from 3-6pm
As daylight breaks in Daytona Beach, live coverage shifts from 6 to 14 hours to NBCSN before the dramatic closing hours of 14 to 16 air on NBC. The checkered flag will be flying around 3:40 p.m. The entire race streams on TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.
DPi Highlights: Johnson is delighted to be in the car with the green flag waving
By Holly Cain
For the first time in his career, NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson was named the driver of the Rolex 24 in his eighth appearance. Johnson won the no. 48 Ally Action Express Racing started Cadillac DPi from sixth place and ran second when he awoke a little less than two hours later for the team’s first change for the driver.
Though his face was covered by a mask for his Zoom news conference after the time, the joy was evident in Johnson’s face. His eyes showed that it was an exciting start to his race.
“It’s just so much fun to be back in this race and have the opportunity to ride for Action Express and have my former sponsor on board with Ally and (former NASCAR crew member) Chad Knaus is here and Jeff Gordon , “Johnson said. .
“Even though I was not the fans there, there was a great energy to stand there, knowing that I was ready to start this amazing event. I have never had the honor of starting in this race, so a bunch of really cool emotions, memories and thoughts that I will never forget. ‘
Johnson admitted that he had to walk ‘butterflies’ in his stomach to the grid, but was satisfied with his opening drive in the car.
“Nerves were probably a little higher than I wanted to be, but at the same time I looked around and realized what I was ready to try to taste as much as possible,” Johnson said.
The start of the race was not so good with the Mazda Motorsports Mazda DPi no. 55, which had a double stroke in the opening hours. First, the car would not start if instructed to do so. Once fired, driver Oliver Jarvis had to remove the green flag from the back of the field. When Jarvis made his first pit stop about 40 minutes into the 24-hour race, he was cited for a putt violation and was sentenced to a run-through penalty. Still, the Mazda took a single round back in doubt.
Albuquerque Awed by Intense Early Action
By Jeff Olson
During the opening hours of the race, Filipe Albuquerque considered asking engineer Brian Pillar for popcorn. The view of the wild racing in front of him was so good.
“They slammed doors,” Albuquerque said. “I was like, ‘It’s early. “They were wide. It was difficult. I unfortunately had some contact with GTDs and LMP3s. They do not really know where to go sometimes because there are so many cars. But the car is good. ‘
Albuquerque started fifth in the no. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac DPi-VR and was fourth when he was replaced by Ricky Taylor in about two hours and 25 minutes in the race. Taylor quickly put the number 10 car, which Taylor and Albuquerque share with Alexander Rossi and Helio Castroneves, in the lead.
After the disturbing start, Albuquerque made a prediction.
“It’s about who makes the least mistakes,” he said.
Initial period Pagenaud pumped
By Jeff Olson
Simon Pagenaud once thought as he got out of the car.
“I’ll tell you, I was hacked right away,” he said. “I just had a fox! I had a great time at the helm. The adrenaline went up. It was incessant concentration. It was really a lot of fun.”
Pagenaud became the second rider in the No. 48 Action Express Racing handled Cadillac DPi-VR and handed the car to teammate Mike Rockenfeller in fourth place in the DPi class, shortly before the four-hour mark.
During his career, Pagenaud, who also shares the car with Jimmie Johnson and Kamui Kobayashi, has teamed up with number 01 Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac, the Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac no. 10 and Meyer Shank Racing Acura no. 60 chased.
“We struggled in traffic and overtook each other,” Pagenaud said. “Honestly, you have to be on your toes. Every brake zone, every corner, you pass. Amazing. You have to be really sharp on your reflexes. If you do not see well at night, you are going to be in trouble.”
Magnussen’s Rookie Radio Mistake
By Jeff Olson
Kevin Magnussen made one mistake during his first turn in the race: he forgot to turn on his radio.
Magnussen found him and in the no. 01 Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac DPi-VR sat after replacing Renger van der Zande, but forgot to put the radio wire attached to his helmet in its place in the car.
The result was silence.
“I made a rookie mistake,” Magnussen said. “I did not plug in my radio, so I waited for them to say, but my radio was not in. I only realized it when it was a few seconds too late. I plugged it in, but then I had to “I’m waiting for them again to tell me to go. We lost five seconds, I do not know, so I lost the lead and went from P1 to P3.”
Once on track, Magnussen worked in second place again before being replaced by Scott Dixon. The radio will not be forgotten again.
“It’s out of the way now,” Magnussen said. “It will not happen again. I will turn on the radio immediately next time.”
Le Mans prototype 2: defending champion DragonSpeed first out of the race
The 81 DragonSpeed USA ORECA LMP2 07 will not defend its Rolex 24 class victory. The car retired three hours into the race after a few early tours with Rob Hodes at the helm. Hodes went off course for 40 minutes in the race of the famous Bus Stop chicane and about half an hour later again at Turn 2. The car spent a lot of time in the garage for repairs and tried to drive back with Ben Hanley, but finished his run after completing just 53 laps.
Two other LMP2 entries were also among the early retirees. The no. 20 High Class Racing ORECA who started second in the class was out of the race after 56 laps. Former Formula One driver Robert Kubica was one of the drivers but could not turn any laps.
The 29 Racing Team Netherlands ORECA ran early in the top three, but was injured when Fritz Van Eerd had contact with the wall in Turn 7 for about two hours in the race. Van Eerd was treated and released from the domestic medical center. The car was taken to the garage for repair shortly thereafter and did not return and completed 65 laps.
These retirements helped open the door for the No. 11 WIN Autosport ORECA, with Steven Thomas, Tristan Nunez, Thomas Merrill and Matthew Bell sharing their driving duties, to put their claim first.
“My first three shifts, we were able to get up there and at least stay with the leaders,” Thomas said. “Then we put Tristan in the car, and he just drove it straight ahead.”
Nunez, the former Mazda DPi driver, was pleased with the new team’s progress in a packed LMP2 field.
“The WIN Autosport machine is currently on track, so it was a lot of fun out there,” Nunez said. “It’s great to have a different perspective now. The class numbers are insane. Ten LMP2 cars are insane. The races’ close, very top drivers. Steven did a very good job for the first time, so very excited to see where it’s coming from here. ‘
Le Mans prototype 3: issues that hinder the best starter in the class
The two leading beginners in LMP3 damaged their cars in less than 20 minutes in the race at almost the same time. The no. 6 Muehlner Motorsports America Duqueine M30-D08, the class sitter with Moritz Kranz at the helm, slows down with apparent suspension damage and limps back to the track for repairs. At the same time, Ryan Norman turns in the no. 7 Forty7 Motorsports Duqueine and, following reports of liquids leaking from the car, drive directly to the garage.
The no. 6 was fighting back against the six o’clock mark and sitting third in the class, two rounds behind the leading no. 74 Riley Motorsports Ligier. The no. 7 was sixth in the class, 35 laps off the pace.
GT Le Mans: Not the way to start a race
It was an ominous race for the GT Le Mans class. When the GT cars got the green flag, Bruno Spengler (No. 25 BMW Team RLL BMW M8 GTE) ran behind Kevin Estre (No. 79 WeatherTech Porsche 911 RSR-19). The contact changed Estre into Alessandro Pier Guidi next to him in the No.62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 GTE.
While the others could continue with minimal damage, the no. 79 Porsche wounded front and rear. When a large part of the bodywork shook off minutes later, it resulted in the first caution of the race. The number 79 spent 14 minutes on the pit lane for repairs. Spengler was sentenced to death for responsibility for incidents.
“It was quite an emotional start,” said Pier Guidi, no. 62, said. “It was quite troublesome. You do not expect such a thing for the start of a 24-hour (race), but we were fortunately honest. I was hit hard, but the car is good. I managed to get to the Corvette “and the car was OK. The race is still a long way off, so we will keep going.”
Not unexpectedly, the two Corvette Racing Corvette C8.Rs set the pace in the class, with the numbers 3 and 4 dominating up front. Still, the top five in the class remained on the front lap, with the Porsche no. 79 another 12 rounds left.
GT Daytona: time to wright the ship
As expected, the GT Daytona class saw a wide range of leaders and frontrunners through the first quarter of the race. When the six-hour mark was reached, it was the no. 16 Wright Motorsport Porsche for. Quite considering the performance the team has gone through over the past week.
First, the team’s primary car crashed into Roar before the Rolex 24 tested, and team owner John Wright worked with Black Swan Motorsport to acquire a new chassis. Then driver Ryan Hardwick crashed again, this time in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge practice, while the team was making its debut in the series. Hardwick suffered a concussion in the later incident, which sidelined the recipient of the 2020 Bob Akin Award for participating in the Rolex 24.
The team added Trent Hindman, GTD champion in 2019, to replace Hardwick. The drama has the no. 16 not stopped from leading the class by six hours and picking up the valuable IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup points.
“We are all very happy here, given the run – up to the race,” said Jan Heylen, the team’s endurance rider who opened in the car. “I’m glad Ryan’s doing well and recovering well. I know he really wanted to be here and do it with us.
“Like any long-distance race, we just try to take care of the brakes, the car and be there at the end at the 20-hour mark and hopefully have a good car to be able to race.”