Endurance... the sports car racing blog: January 2020

Friday, January 31, 2020

Bathurst 12 Hours Top 10 Shootout Highlights

The full session and the highlights for the Top 10 Shootout for the Bathurst 12 Hours with commentary from John Hindhaugh, Richard Craill, and Jonny Palmer, and an introduction (thanks, blokes), from Chris Stubbs and Neil Crompton.

Friday news from Bathurst Before the 12 Hours Part 2

Part two of the news recap from Mount Panorama Bathurst, preparing for the 12 Hours tomorrow.

Mueller, Van der Zande Come to Drivers' Aid After Big Wrecks

https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/no-brainer-decisions-for-mueller-van-der-zande-to-come-to-drivers-aid/

Because of the demolition derby, the sheer carnage, and utter mayhem of the Saturday action at Mount Panorama, the starting grid for Sunday's Liqui Moly Bathurst 12 Hours has been reduced to 34 cars.

Grid Reduced to 34 Cars After Carnage-Filled Saturday
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/bathurst-12h-grid-reduced-to-34-cars-on-saturday/

Kirchhofer Knew Bathurst Crash Would Be a "Big One"
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/kirchhofer-knew-bathurst-crash-would-be-a-big-one/

After the Pole Shootout, Matt Campbell has claimed for Porsche, the pole position for tomorrow's Bathurst 12 Hours. Pole Shootout highlights, are coming up.

Campbell Clinches Bathurst 12H Pole for Porsche in Shootout
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/campbell-clinches-bathurst-12h-pole-for-porsche-in-shootout/

Bathurst 12 Hours Qualifying Highlights

Highlights of qualifying for the Bathurst 12 Hours, and you will see for yourself, some monumental crashes during the session before a fastest time was actually set. Richard Craill and John Hindhaugh at the microphone, cover the action in the highlights package.

Friday news from Bathurst before the 12 Hours Part 1

News on Friday from Mount Panorama Bathurst in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia, and these news reports will be interspersed with qualifying highlights as well, before we get to the race coverage, tomorrow. Look out. There have been some major crashes of note during practice and qualifying. Details ahead.

Van Gisbergen Puts Triple Eight on Top in Friday Practice
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/van-gisbergen-puts-triple-eight-on-top-in-fp4/

Bathurst Friday Notebook
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/bathurst-friday-notebook-6/

SunEnergy1 Planning Full-Season Effort in Pro-Am
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/sunenergy1-planning-full-season-effort-in-pro-am/

Factory Mercedes-AMG Support 'Strengthens' Triple Eight
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/factory-mercedes-amg-support-strengthens-triple-eight/

Vanthoor Audi Tops FP5 After Crashes, Kangaroo Stoppage
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/vanthoor-audi-tops-fp5-after-kangaroo-stoppage/

M-Sport Confident No. 8 Bentley Will Be Repaired for Race
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/bentley-confident-no-8-will-be-repaired/

Massive Accidents Mar Shortened Q1
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/massive-accidents-mar-shortened-q1/

Another car, withdrawn from the Bathurst 12 Hours. HubAuto Corsa and their Ferrari will not race.

HubAuto Corsa Ferrari Withdrawn Despite Rebuild Attempt
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/hubauto-corsa-ferrari-withdrawn-despite-rebuild-attempt/

Still more carnage at Bathurst, and another withdrawn entry. The #62 R-Motorsport Aston Martin is destroyed in Q2.

Kirchhoefer Writes-Off No. 62 R-Motorsport Aston in Q2
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/kirchhoefer-writes-offs-no-62-r-motorsport-aston-in-q2/

Campbell Quickest as Grid Set for Pirelli Top 10 Shootout
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/campbell-quickest-as-grid-set-for-pirelli-top-10-shootout/

More news to come, but stay tuned, as coming next, we have highlights of the Top 10 Shootout itself.

Thursday, January 30, 2020

news before the Bathurst 12 Hours on Thursday

Lots and lots of news to cover before the Bathurst 12 Hours as well as practice and qualifying which, as you will see, both of those sessions were marred by wrecks and cars having to be withdrawn from the motor race for being far too damaged to actually compete in it. There's loads of news. So, let's get right to the stories. Note, there may be a breakaway from the news post and a separate one added, if video footage is found from qualifying that deserves it's own post.

Pre-race news headlines

Record 11 GT3 Manufacturers, 40-Car Entry for Bathurst 12H
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/record-11-gt3-manufacturers-for-bathurst-12h/

Fraga Confirmed at GruppeM Mercedes for Full-Season Campaign
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/fraga-confirmed-at-gruppem-for-full-season-campaign/

Cameron Added to Honda Lineup for IGTC Season
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/cameron-added-to-full-season-honda-lineup/

Audi Confirms Factory Bathurst 12H Lineups
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/audi-confirms-bathurst-12h-lineups/

R-Motorsports Signs Ghiotto, GT3 Rookie Caldwell for Bathurst
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/r-motorsport-signs-ghiotto-gt3-rookie-caldwell-for-bathurst/

Triple Eight Confirms Bathurst Lineup with Two Former Winners
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/two-former-bathurst-winners-confirmed-in-triple-eight-mercedes/

GPX Planning Four-Race IGTC Entry After Bathurst

https://sportscar365.com/sro/world-challenge-europe/gpx-planning-four-race-igtc-entry-after-bathurst/

KCMG Sets Largely Unchanged Lineup for Bathurst 12H
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/kcmg-sets-largely-unchanged-lineup-for-bathurst-12h/

IGTC Points Nomination Altered; Added Focus on Am Drivers
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/igtc-points-nomination-altered-added-focus-on-am-drivers/

Garage 59 Commits to Full IGTC Campaign
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/garage-59-commits-to-full-igtc-campaign/

Walkenhorst Sets Bathurst 12H Lineup; Down to One Car
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/walkenhorst-sets-bathurst-12h-lineup-down-to-one-car/

Walkenhorst shall be back to a two-car lineup for the remainder of the Intercontinental GT Challenge in 2020.

BMW Confirms Return; Two Walkenhorst Cars After Bathurst
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/bmw-confirms-return-two-walkenhorst-cars-after-bathurst/

Aston Martin has signed on as a full-season manufacturer entry for IGTC 2020.

Aston Martin Becomes Full-Season IGTC Entrant
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/aston-martin-becomes-full-season-igtc-entrant/

First Photos from Bathurst
https://sportscar365.com/features/photography/first-photos-from-bathurst-2/

"Big Effort" for Walkenhorst, BMW After Logistics Issue
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/logistics-issues-rule-out-second-walkenhorst-bmw/

Black Swan Racing could return to the Intercontinental GT Challenge for the second half of the 2020 season. Details, below.

Black Swan Set for IGTC Return at Spa
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/black-swan-set-for-igtc-return-at-spa/

Ferrari becomes the record ninth manufacturer to sign up for IGTC 2020.

Ferrari Recommits to IGTC in Record Ninth Manufacturer
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/ferrari-commits-in-record-ninth-igtc-manufacturer/

Bathurst Thursday Notebook
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/bathurst-thursday-notebook-6/

Honda "Going into the Unknown" in Bathurst 12H Debut
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/honda-going-into-the-unknown-in-bathurst-12h-debut/

Reynolds, SunEnergy1 Pace Practice 3 at Bathurst
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/reynolds-sunenergy1-paces-practice-3-at-bathurst/

The KCMG Nissan GT-R has been withdrawn from the Bathurst 12 Hours.

No. 35 KCMG Nissan Withdrawn After Bathurst Practice Crash
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/kcmg-nissan-withdrawn-after-bathurst-practice-crash/

We've got a lot more to talk about. Friday, the blog entries will be split up between news updates and highlights from qualifying. So, stay tuned for that.

Wednesday, January 29, 2020

recapping the Rolex 24 at Daytona

Tuesday, January 28, 2020

post-race news from the Rolex 24

Monday, January 27, 2020

Action Express Rolex 24 Diary: Entry #4: The Race

Action Express has won this fabled motor race, three times before, in 2010, 2014, and 2018. Going in, it was surely thought, wow, an even numbered year, we will have a chance to maybe to go for another triumph. Sadly, that was not to be. Motor racing is fickle. We came into this event, with a good qualifying effort and were really hoping for a good race to come our way. But, it just so happened that luck wasn't on our side. We had a catalog of problems with the car and it just wasn't our year to be honest. It was very unlike our team to have these issues especially given their record over the last eight to ten years with three victories. I actually found out from my friend and team owner/team principal, Bob Johnson, a few weeks after the race, at the beginning of February, that this trouble with the gearbox goes much deeper and is related to computer software which is no different for race cars than it is for road going production cars in this day and age as the automobile is so reliant upon computers to be able to run the various mechanical systems of the engine, the gearbox and more.

So, this analysis is right after the race but it also does some foreshadowing into the future and kind of links finding out the news from what Mr. Johnson had to say and also knowing in my heart of hearts that we were just going to have to soldier on and pick up whatever pieces we'd be given. I was back in the hotel room watching the overnight coverage on NBC Sports Network, staring at the results ticker and thinking to myself, especially in the early morning hours before coming back to the track for the end of the race, "you know what? We're just going to have to accept what we get." Racing is not like baseball or football where you can argue a bad call with a referee unless of course you might have some infraction in the pit lane you feel is unjustified or a pass under yellow that you feel is unjustified.

When you have a problem, as in life, you can't stew about it after a race is over. The agony of defeat has to immediately be turned into, "OK, how do we solve this issue with the next race looming on the horizon?" You can't rest on your laurels in any sport, but in racing especially, resting on your laurels will do you no good at all. We will delve into the troubles with the car, and study them, working closely with our partners at ECR who build the engines for the Cadillac, the 5.5 liter V8 motors we use, and also at Xtrac Transmission Technology Specialists who build gearboxes for sports car racing and for numerous other disciplines of motorsport, and supply the transmission for the #31 Cadillac DPi-V.R.

Then, we will go testing at Sebring before the next race and find out how we can improve the car, to defend our victory that we scored at the 12 hours in 2019. That is the plan, and we are ready to execute it. Stay tuned for general news about Sebring, and who knows, there may be some information about Action Express. As for when yours truly hopes to get to see another race in person, well, I live closest to Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, where IMSA will be racing a sprint event at the beginning of August. Aiming to travel there to support Action Express in their quest for victory. But, to be able to attend the Rolex 24, was a dream come true, and I definitely intend to come back and see another edition in the not too distant future.

Sunday, January 26, 2020

Rolex 24: Hour 24 (the finish)

A mere 60 minutes remain and the final hour, here, on Endurance... The Sports Car Racing Blog, starts now. Perched high atop the observation deck, I am keenly watching, as things will become a tad easier for us observing the race. Some cars will need a splash and dash and other cars will need a full fuel fill. In GT Daytona, everyone has to pit again with 59 minutes left on the board. The #16 car will need a lap more fuel than the #44, and the #44 will need four more laps than will the #48. The #88 Audi will need much less fuel. There's a half a stint difference between #16 and #88. 1;42.168 for the Porsche. Our pulses are through the roof right now. Mirko Bortolotti has been in the car for three and a half hours. He will have to get out of the car so he does not exceed his maximum driving time of four hours in any six hour stretch.

He will need to pit one more time and change drivers. Maybe this is a deliberate short stint. The #10 Cadillac, from the lead, i sinto the lane for it's final stop, presumably. Kamui Kobayashi will stay in the car as they take on Michelin tires and get rid of one of their windscreen tear offs. Waiti9ng on fuel and a fresh drink of water for Kamui Kobayashi. He is 17 minutes shy of making it to the end on fuel. The #5 Cadillac is also in the lane. We have a message that the #62 Ferrari is officially retired. Two Aston's, two Lamborghini's, the #74 Mercedes, and now the #62 Ferrari have retired. Check that, as the #74 car, despite all the woes they've had, is on track and running right now in this final hour as it gets underway and we are actually five minutes into the final hour, with 54 and a half minutes on the board yet.

The #5 Mustang Sampling JDC-Miller Cadillac is in the lane. Four tires for the car, and a fresh drink of water for Loic Duval as well. The #74 Riley Motorsports Mercedes AMG GT3 is actually running 11th in GT Daytona despite the electrical problem the car suffered in the early morning just after sunup which also caused the car to lose the brakes and become a major handful for the drivers. Kudos to Riley Motorsports for curing that issue. Jonathan Hoggard and company in the #47 Precision Performance Motorsports Lamborghini is out of the motor race. We review all of the cars that are out of the motor race. The first of these is the #23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage, driven by Ian James from England, Spaniard Alex Riberas, Canadian Roman De Angelis, and Danish Aston Martin star, Nicki Thiim, which was involved in a puzzling, off the wall incident with the #47 PPM (Precision Performance Motorsports), Lamborghini.

Jonathan Hoggard was at the controls of that car, which ground to a halt in turn five more recently. Ross Gunn in the #98 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 factory car, that (after his scheduled pit stop), he clattered into the pit wall on the exit, and that spelled that automobile's demise (it was game over for Gunn, Mathias Lauda, Pedro Lamy (former Formula 1 driver), and Andrew Watson). Also out of this motor race through the fairly low attrition rate, the #19 GEAR Racing Lamborghini which had a fire which Christina Nielsen did put out, deploying the fire bottles before scrambling to safety earlier this morning, and as we mentioned, the #47 car, and the #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari with it's horrendous damage from a right rear puncture.

Now, WRT Speedstar is close on drive time for Mirko Bortolotti to receiving a penalty if they go over the limit, but the team has confirmed that Mirko Bortolotti shall take the car to the end of the race in 52 and a half minutes time. You may want to remind the chaps at WRT of the four hour rule. Now, is that classified as outside assistance if the commentators try to give advice to the teams? Not in the rule book. But at any rate, these chaps from WRT Speedstar, they must know they will have a talking to from the IMSA marshals if they don't address this drive time shemozzle. They probably got a message from timing and scoring. Kamui Kobayashi now has 43 seconds over Oliver Jarvis who is ahead of Loic Duval by 30 seconds. Juan Pablo Montoya is in the lane and so is the #96 Turner Motorsports BMW M6 GT3 with Bill Auberlen in the car who will take it to the finish. New Michelin tires on the car, and the blokes at Turner Motorsport have "Bill power". This is strange to see a Turner BMW not in yellow and blue as they have the Liqui Moly livery on the car, but they also have that all black carbon bonnet on the car that they've been running since the opening hours of this motor race yesterday.

The car also has a white plain door. So, it's been through the wars, but it has new boots underneath it for the end of the race. Now, ladies and gentlemen, as we speak, the battle in GT Le Mans is getting hot and heavy. It's Porsche vs. Corvette! The blowtorch has been ignited and will be applied in short order. Jesse Krohn has made up a 5.7 second deficit and set the fastest lap of the race in GTLM. The BMW is making up ground on the #3 Corvette. Krohn has set the pace on stun, and possibly kill, or vaporize. Nick Tandy will be forced to drive a very wide Porsche to keep the rapid Finn behind him. The gap is coming down through NASCAR turns one and two.

They fly through the Bus Stop. Now, Mr. Director, why are you showing us GTD when we should be fixated on the GTLM scrum? Thank you, Mr. Director for changing camera angles. Now, we can see the BMW bearing down on the Porsche through NASCAR turn four. This is for the lead, the win in GTLM and they're together. Nose to tail. Now, Jesse Krohn wants to slipstream the Porsche down the front straight. Krohn makes the pass right 'round the outside for the GTLM class lead! 48 minutes to go, and Krohn is denied! Nick Tandy slams the door at least partially into turn one. Tandy does slam the door in the Finn's face. What a scrap!

Tandy is the minnow. Krohn is the shark. That M8 looks more like an I8 because this car is absolutely electric coming off corner number six and headed back to the west banking. The #48 Lamborghini just pitted from the GT Daytona lead and there will be four tires and fuel for Marco Mapelli in the #44 Magnus Racing Lamborghini. Jesse Krohn has the draft of both the #85 JDC-Miller Cadillac and the #9 GT Daytona Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R as he is scything his way past the Porsche on the banking on the front straight! Tandy has the inside into turn one, drifts wide, and will Krohn attack? Yes! Tandy runs wide! Krohn slips right through! Or does he? They're nose to nose headed to turn two on the infield road course here at Daytona.

The jet black BMW prevails into the International Horseshoe! Brilliant racing! Whether Nick Tandy's tires were crying enough, or he just couldn't make the apex, you have to admit, this is what IMSA racing is all about. We still have 46 minutes left. The #912 Porsche has already made it's final pit stop. Fuel and tires for the #912. Earl Bamber will finish the race and #911 is in the lane as well. The BMW is stretching it's legs as the #911 is in the lane for the final time. Nick Tandy comes in from the GTLM lead and he very nearly blew it, locking up the wheels. Patrick Pilet, his long time co-driver for Tandy in Pfaff Porsche. Nick Tandy will finish this race.

The Pfaff Motorsports Porsche which led so much of the early stages in GTD, has made it's final stop with Patrick Pilet. Marco Mapelli will finish the race in the #44 Flex Box Lamborghini for GRT Magnus and would you believe, Mirko Bortolotti will finish the race aboard the #88 WRT Speedstar Audi. Nick Tandy on the long exit from pit lane. Andrea Caldarelli will extend his margin over the #44 Lamborghini. #48 needed more fuel. BMW #24 is in the lane from the lead of GTLM to respond to the Porsche's. Tires and a splash and a dash on fuel. That was a very fast stop for the BMW. Much tidier and quicker than the Porsche stop.

Porsche's only in turns three and four. Both Porsche's are now running together on the track but they are a long way behind the BMW. 41 minutes left and it'll all come out in a wash here for the Porsche squad. BMW very recently set the fastest GTLM lap. Now, 40 minutes to go and our race leader has run 808 laps, tying the distance record set two years ago. We've equaled that. The prediction is 832 laps. Porsche's side by side and the #912 pokes the nose on the inside and Nick Tandy runs wide! He can't turn in at turn one. Earl Bamber has been unleashed. We reckon the #912 has more fuel in the tank and the BMW is just four seconds or so up the road. 3.4 seconds is the gap. Bamber capitalizes on Tandy's mistake and the Kiwi slots in front.

Kamui Kobayashi has broken the distance record at 809 laps. Cameron Cassels has brought the #38 Performance Tech LMP2 car to the pit lane and they are goinng behind the wall with only 38 minutes left to run in the Rolex 24. They want to see the checkered flag, but it could be game over for that car. Meanwhile, Earl Bamber might be losing ground to his team mate but he's getting closer to Jesse Krohn in the BMW. The pit stop for the #24 BMW M8 GTE sw the tem tke sticker Michelin tires. The Porsche's scrap into the tri oval and Tandy tried to defend Bamber from poking his nose in there and Tandy went off the road. Remember a few years ago, the two factory Porsche's tangled in the infield during the night time hours. That had to be around 2015 or 2016. Earl Bamber was pumping his fist saying, "yes, yes, yes!" and Nick Tandy had to be mumbling inside his helmet, "dang it! Why did I do that?! Arrgh!"

It shows how eager each of these cars are to win in GTLM. 1;42.8 for Jesse Krohn. 1:43.1 for Earl Bamber, and 1:42.8 for Nick Tandy. Kamui Kobayashi will pit at the end of this lap for their final stopp. He is in the lne now. It's the final stop for the race leader. Kamui Kobayashi will finish this race. They are enjoying this weekend. That's their approach. The crew's job is done and they can watch the car run out the rest of this race. Kobayashi lets an LMP2 car go. Oliver Jarvis was close enough to take the race lead for a short spell. Kamui Kobayashi comes out second behind Oliver Jarvis with Loic Duval in third place.

Juan Pablo Montoya has also pitted. He may have to do one more stop. Mattheus Leist in the #85 Cadillac will take fuel on it's final stop. Some GTD Daytona traffic from the #11 Lamborghini that kicks up a lot of dirt. Poor old Richard Heistand has that Lamborghini 14th in class in GT Daytona. Marcel Fassler still circulating in the #4 Corvette C8.R, 36th in the overall of 38 cars after spending seven hours and 50 minutes in the garage for a cracked bell housing. Oliver Jarvis in Mazda #77 is leading over Kamui Kobayashi and Loic Duval. Oliver Jarvis pits for the final time and the #10 Cadillac will resume in the lead as Jarvis pits easily. He has the first stall in the lane for being on pole at the Roar Before The Rolex 24. Oliver Jarvis scored pole on Thursday in qualifying which seems an eon ago now.

Oliver Jarvis will take the #77 Mazda to the finish, trying to win. Juan Pablo Montoya did hit the lane for a splash and dash. Kamui Kobayashi now retakes the lead of the motor race, working lap 814. So, 814 laps, 2,898 miles. The predicted distance will be 831 laps, 2,958 miles. That will without doubt be a new record. Oliver Jarvis remains second and Loic Duval is 30 seconds further behind, but he likely won't make up that amount of time in the less than half an hour we have left to run in this race. 29 minutes to go. Kamui Kobayashi has no pressure. Ease it home. He leads by 50 seconds.

Kobayashi does have to get past the #74 Riley Motorsports Mercedes AMG GT3. The #6 Acura is definitely tattered and splattered. Check that. We are looking at the #7 car. At the end of the race, you want to seal the dirt and grime from the travels into the wrap the car is covered in. They are rarely painted anymore. They are wrapped in graphics. Juan Pablo Montoya will take the #6 Acura to the end with team mates Dane Cameron and Simon Pagenaud. The #81 DragonSpeed LMP2 car was in the pit lane and Ben Hanley is now into the International Horseshoe. Fuel and tires for Ben Hanley. Gabriel Aubry has been pressing really hard aboard the #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports car but it looks like second in LMP2 will be their best effort when this motor race is done and dusted in 27 and a half minutes time.

Helio Castroneves brings the #7 Acura into the lane for a final time, for fuel only. He is eighth in DPi and will score 23 points, but he's ten laps down to the next car which is Felipe Nasr in the #31 Whelen Cadillac. Two cars that have had long, difficult races, that will score some points, but will definitely be looking forward to the remainder of the season. Cadillac #10 puts another lap on BMW #24 and Jesse Krohn has put six seconds on Earl Bamber who is also gapping Nick Tandy, his team mate. Andrea Caldarelli leads Marco Mapelli in the two Lamborghini's, and Mapelli is 19 seconds behind, with Mirko Bortolotti behind in the #88 WRT Speedstar Audi, the Lamborghini and the Audi have the same motor, the 5.2 liter V10. The Porsche's come next in GT Daytona, with the #16 Wright Motorsports car of Klaus Bachler, and Jeroen Bleekemolen in the #54 Black Swan Racing entry.

The car was rebuilt from a completely new chassis after a practice session when Trenton Estep had a mega size crash. They sourced a new chassis to be able to race. Use a different car but use the same engine and transmission that you have. 24 minutes to go now. Kamui Kobayashi leads by 52 seconnds over Oliver Jarvis. Victory Lane is being prepared, with the trophy and with the coolers full of Gatorade for celebration and refreshment for the winners. Yours truly sees his favorite flavor back there. That'd be lemon lime. Oliver Jarvis will finish second in this race, but they've done a whale of a lot better than last year when the two Mazda's both went out of the motor race within the first six hours last year.

It's amazing that the Mazda will be a finisheer this year. Four Rolex 24's for Oliver Jarvis and six for Olivier Pla and the best between both of those drivers, being sixth and eighth. This will be a huge improvement. It's a finish too, for the #74 Mercedes despite the fact that they've had a litany of problems. Now, Porsche's are still scrapping away, glued together in GTLM through speedway turns one and two. Nick Tandy has slipped a little ways behind, honing in on Earl Bamber. So, the Kiwi best look out. Get it to the end but don't crash into each other, whatever you two blokes do. The gap is opening up to the GTLM leading BMW and Nick Tandy gets the inside line in the International Horseshoe but now they're banging each other! Don't hit each other. This isn't a short track stock car race. Is Nick Tandy finished being Generous George here?

There was argy bargy, a love tap. Nick Tandy tries to fend off Earl Bamber and you saw, bish bash bosh, the results of that little dust up. Maybe Nick Tandy wants to test the water for trying to get ahead. But the rule is, don't hit your team mate. What? Do you want a cookie? Then don't bash your team mate! No cookies for you, sunshine. This slang essentialy is a backhanded compliment to someone who is blowing their own horn and trying to say, "look what kind of beauty I've got." This can be the case with racing drivers, especially if they are team mates.

Team mates in the lane probably can't look at the screens. Fred Makowiecki and Matty Campbell as well as Laurens Vanthoor and Matty Jaminet can't look at the screens right now. Jesse Krohn meanwhile, is scampering away. The Porsche boys realize they won't catch the BMW. Colton Herta in the sister #25 BMW M8 GTE is in fifth in GTLM with the demise of the Risi Competizione Ferrari. Fifteen minutes left on the clock. Jesse Krohn will most certainly help his team mates to GTLM victory while it is becoming more certain of victory as well for the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac, despite penalties for Kamui Kobayashi and Ryan Briscoe, but has run flawlessly for the most part. Andrea Caldarelli leads GTD by 18.6 seconds over Marco Mapelli and Mirko Bortolotti. Bortolotti did make his final stop for a splash of fuel.

He is 20 seconds ahead of Klaus Bachler. Madison Snow was a Silver rated driver on the FIA rankings but not on the IMSA rankinngs, and could not race last year. IMSA fixed their system and so Snow is now a Silver rated IMSA driver and able to drive with Bryan Sellers again in GT Daytona. 55 seconds is the margin between Kamui Kobayashi and Oliver Jarvis. Loic Duval is going to complete the podium finishers. 825 laps completed, 2,937 miles even. The prediction has been upped to 832 laps, 2,962 miles. Just 38 miles short of 3,000 miles. Ben Hanley still leads LMP2 as Gabriel Aubry pits for a final fuel splash and Aubry, the 21 year old Frenchman will finish the race, followed by John Farano.

Four LMP2 cars run ahead of five GTLM cars. BMW, Porsche, Porsche, Corvette, BMW. They had troubles with the right front wheel when the rattle gun failed. They had a huge mechanical issue on the #25 car. In the end, the #24 car has the advantage over the two Porsche's. BMW put all their eggs in one basket for the #24. They want one of their cars to win. But at Porsche, they have two podium places, but they don't know yet who would be on the podium steps yet. Bamber and Tandy have been scrapping quite a bit. The leading three cars in GTLM, for the drivers, Nick Tandy has a Rolex and so does Augusto Farfus, but for everyone else, they'd get their first Rolex watch. Oliver Jarvis had a class win in 2013 in an Audi for Alex Job Racing.

He has had two straight poles in this race, 2019 and 2020. Check that, for Jarvis. He got a Rolex for a win at Sebring, the only Rolex ever made for a Sebring win. 828 laps completed, and four to go. 2,948 miles. Four more laps of this speedway, one of the best in the world, one of the most famous, and 14 miles. We'll get to 832 laps. We've had six yellows and three in succession within an hour and a half which was a wild deal, and we've also broken a record for maximum green flag running at seven hours and 48 minutes, 280 laps. They didn't used to have Full Course Yellows at Daytona but they have in recent time. Smallest field in this race's history, but the number of cars has lessened the opportunity for accidents even though purist sports car racing fans would get concerned. The convergence announcement might arrest the slide.

Paul Miller watches his #48 Lamborghini that will win GT Daytona if everything works out as the #48 car has 22 seconds in hand over the next three laps to complete this race. Kamui Kobayashi will likely take the final lap, the white flag. There is no white flag yet. Two laps to go for Kamui Kobayashi. We could get 833 laps. The advantage now is over a minute over Oliver Jarvis. Konica Minolta Cadillac, DragonSpeed, BMW, and Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini, will be the winners. We are inside 90 seconds to go. White flag this time. Last lap time, as Kamui Kobayashi negotiates the #57 MSR Acura. Use as much fuel as you like. He is 1:02 ahead. Thge two Porsche's are a second apart and the #912 will finish ahead of #911. They've settled into an order. The Corvette C8.R will not get a podium during their first race. Porsche will get a double podium for the 911 RSR-19, but they will not win on debut.

This Rolex 24 has been dry throughout, and Wayne Taylor Racing wins! BMW RLL wins GTLM with the BMW M8 GTE #24 for John Edwards, Augusto Farfus, Chaz Mostert, and Jesse Krohn. LMP2 honors go the way of DragonSpeed and the #81 Oreca for Ben Hanley, Colin Braun, Henrik Hedman, and Harrison Newey. GTLM goes to BMW! #24 wins for BMW Team RLL aboard the BMW M8 GTE in the hands of John Edwards, Augusto Farfus, Chaz Mostert, and Jesse Krohn. Paul Miller Racing wins GT Daytona with Andrea Caldarelli, Madison Snow, Bryan Sellers, and Corey Lewis.

Overall/DPi: #10 van der Zande/Briscoe/Dixon/Kobayashi     Cadillac DPi-V.R.

             LMP2: #81 Hanley/Braun/Hedman/Newey    Oreca 07 Gibson

             GT Le Mans: #24 Edwards/Farfus/Mostert/Krohn   BMW M8 GTE

             GT Daytona: #48 Caldarelli/Snow/Sellers/Lewis     Lamborghini Huracan GT3

Congratulations, to all the winners! So, the 58th Rolex 24 at Daytona is in the books. Yours truly has enjoyed all the time he has been here at the speedway, but now, it is time to head home from the speedway, well, back to the hotel anyway, and grab some lunch. What a race this has been as the winners deservedly celebrate! What a long race. What an incredible race. What an incredible experience to be able to be here in person, to see it. More to come about Action Express and their race, later on. Congratulations to all the winners. This Rolex 24 is history, but wow, it's amazing to see this race in person, for the very first time. More to come. Stay tuned.

The next event for the IMSA WeatherTech Championship is another crown jewel, the second event of the 2020 campaign and the Michelin Endurance Cup, the famed 12 Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway as we move to central Florida, for the "Super Sebring" weekend we in IMSA will share with the FIA World Endurance Championship in the middle of March. Can't wait for Sebring. See you there, ladies and gentlemen. So long, for now, from the World Center of Racing, Daytona International Speedway, a place yours truly has finally been to for the first time nd it is an unforgettable experience.

Rolex 24: Hour 23

The diversity of the championship with tracks they run on in IMSA, suits some cars in some places and other cars in other places at other tracks. It's about strategy, too, according to Piers Philips. Philips is the President of BMW Racing Operations. He makes sure the engineers are doing their jobs. He was at Seat, the Spanish automaker for a while. The BMW is being challenged again by the Porsche and the Porsche has made the pass through turn six up onto the banking. Earl Bamber was taking absolutely no prisoners there.; BMW is still fighti9ng. Jesse Krohn is going to have to push, push, push to catch Earl Bamber, and Krohn will drag it back into the tri oval. Jesse Krohn knows exactly where he can put the car.

We are inside two hours left in the motor race. Bamber knew he had to get the pass accomplished before the tires get up to pressure and temperature. We have an hour and 55 minutes to go now. Jordan Taylor, Nick Tandy, and James Calado are next in the order in GT Le Mans. The other cars are good to go to the end of the motor race, we think. They will need two more stops. In GTD, as the Corvette/Porsche battle rages for fourth in GTLM, the leading car is Marco Mapelli in the #44 Lamborghini who has made a pass on Andrea Caldarelli who was in the lane for scheduled pit work. Mirko Bortolotti is third in class in Audi #88. Nick Tandy is all over Nicky Catsburg like the proverbial el cheapo suito here for the final step on the GTLM podium!

Tandy looks inside and then outside, squaring the corner off through the kink. Tandy goes inside through the International Horseshoe, he moves past the Corvette, as Loic Duval moves through in the #5 JDC-Miller Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R. Now, we have a report from the stewards that the #62 Ferrari is being penalized. The wheels were moving while on the air jacks. That'll be a drive through penalty and ruin their race in GTLM as they won't be able to keep up with the Porsche's, the Corvette, and the BMW. The #54 Black Swan Porsche was on the lead lap but will lose that lap after their pit stop, followed by Jens Klingman driving the #96 Turner Motorsports BMW and then comes Alessandro Balzan in the #63 Scuderia Corsa WeatherTech Ferrari.

We're inside the final two hours, into the 23rd and 24th hour. This motor race is still a belter indeed. Earl Bamber is pushing, and now, Nick Tandy is right there as well as we watch Marco Mapelli and Andrea Caldarelli scrapping with each other. They are half a second apart, having run 703 laps (2,503 miles). Caldarelli is nose to tail with Mapelli. Identical cars, nose to tail, no more than a foot apart into the tri oval. This is fabulous! They are well ahead of Mirko Bortolotti in the Audi. Felipe Nasr, for Action Express is being interviewed on IMSA Radio. Again, yours truly has followed this team the whole race, and it has been an up and down race.

There will be more discussion, in a later post, about the weekend for the #31 car. Nasr explains that the race didn't go the way they wanted. The gearbox has been suspect all night. They lost second gear, driving in third gear through the infield. He says, "I feel sorry for the guys, our other drivers, and our mechanics. But that's racing, and we'll get another opportunity soon." Nasr continues, "the race is not over. I will get back in the car and give it my best. I'd love to win this race. That's the aim in the future. The car has some damage to it. It's handling fine, but it can't be perfect. The #10 car has the pace all day long. Hats off to them. But, I feel like we all did well, but the car gave up."

The #31 Cadillac is four laps behind the #85 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac. You drive as hard as you can, but there are no places or points to gain unless someone else has a problem and you don't want to wish ill upon your competitors. Racing karma, if there is such a thing, does not work that way. It's not like a movie where there is a hero and a villain. Meantime, GTD is still rumbling on with the two Lamborghini's and speaking of rumbling, out of NASCAR turns three and four, it's Porsche vs. BMW in GTLM who have been rivals for a long, long time. It's Munich vs. Stuttgart. Remember what I said about not wishing ill on your rivals. You don't. But, you sure want to push them hard and let them know you aren't going to take it sitting down and that you will fight them, cleanly of course.

The BMW closes in on the Porsche and of course, the sister Porsche is still having its hands full with the #3 Corvette. The Lamborghini scrap continues as well. This is wonderful motor racing. We've smashed the record for green flag racing at 280 consecutive laps and almost eight hours. Two years ago, the lap distance record was set in this race, by an Action Express Cadillac, when they won, and ran 808 laps in total. But, fast forward, and it looks like we're going to blow that previous record into outer space. Get out the space blaster and press the button, and let the laser do it's thing, and obliterate the lap record.

We're going to make a huge inroad into the record books. This era has seen things where not a lot of mechanical things break. Bish bash bosh. It's right there in your face. You can see it on your television. Yours truly is seeing it right in front of my eyes as I am perched atop the observation deck between turns one and two here at Daytona International Speedway, soaking in the last part of this motor race. We're 772 laps into this motor race, with a predicted distance of 831 laps. Kamui Kobayashi leads by 31 seconds. James Calado has served his drive through penaltyand just barely stayed on the lead lap for Risi Competizione. They will be back for Sebring.

Lamborghini rumble. It's round two. In the blue corner, Magnus Racing with Flexi Box, and in the red corner, Paul Miller Racing. The battle is on for GTD glory. Andrea Caldarelli nearly has the outside line out of the west horseshoe and into turn six as they turn onto the high banks. Kamui Kobayashi leads Tristan Nunez by 30 seconds, 772 laps, 2,748 miles done and dusted so far. Loic Duval is third followed by Acura and Mazda. Cadillac, Mazda, Cadillac, Acura, Mazda, Cadillac, as Juan Piedrahita is sixth in the #85 JDC-Miller "Banana Boat" Cadillac, while leading in LMP2 it is the #81 DragonSpeed USA Oreca in the hands of Harrison Newey.

He is 1:48 ahead of Gabriel Aubry in the #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Oreca. Those two cars have been battling back and forth with a couple niggles, but nothing serious. In the meantime, in GTD, in the battle of the Lamborghini's Marco Mapelli is managing to stay ahead of Andrea Caldarelli. Sounds like an Italian race to me. Furthering that Italian flair is Mirko Bortolotti in the #88 WRT Speedstar Audi, a former Lamborghini driver. Klaus Bachler and Jeroen Bleekemolen are next in line in GT Daytona, both driving Porsche's. Let's savor these battles with less than 100 minutes left in the race.

Earl Bamber and Jesse Krohn continue their ding dong battle in GTLM. Ooh! Argy bargy into the International Horseshoe, and the race leading #10 Cadillac gets bottled up in this fracas at least for a wee while. Tristan Nunez has a ringside seat, and speaking of a ringside seat, it's time again for the Lamborghini vs. Lamborghini ten round knockout boxing match. It's the bull fight. But no. We are not in Spain. We are at Daytona International Speedway. There is no matador. It is two bulls, mano e mano. It's two Lamborghini Huracan GT3's for different teams with two equally capable Italian drivers behind the wheel.

Mapelli goes ahead of Caldarelli into the Bus Stop. Corvette #3 meanwhile makes a pit stop. Jordan Taylor will be able to get to the end of the motor race with just one more pit stop needed. The #912 Porsche and #24 BMW are tied together as well and will need two more pit stops. The #77 Mazda will drop to third on the pit exchange as the #5 Cadillac goes ahead, Loic Duval, trying to reel in Kamui Kobayashi. Kobayashi is so quick, that Duval will have to try everything and anything he knows to get by the Japanese master driver, who races with Toyota regularly in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

Loic Duval stays out a lap longer than does Tristan Nunez as the Lamborghini tussle continues. They've been team mates at Lamborghini for a long time and now Mirko Bortolotti is in an Audi rather than a Lamborghini. Marco Mapelli was an endurance champion last year in a different championship, in the SRO series that races exclusively with GT3 cars and has their own endurance events. Andrea Caldarelli too, has run in various championships including Super GT. Mapelli has a lap record in a Lamborghini around the Nurburgring Nordschleife. It's the penultimate stop for the Flexi Box Lamborghini.

This has to be a clean stop. Fuel in the tank. Tires changed. Marco Mapelli stays in the automobile and will take the car to the end of th motor race as the coooling system steams soaking up the heat and now, he screams out of the lane and back into the motor race. The windscreen was getting pretty pitted and pretty grimy and so the crew takes a tear off layer off the windscreen. Meanwhile, the #5 Mustang Sampling JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac is also into the pit lane. Colton Herta ceded his position on track to Marco Mapelli. The #10 race leading Cadillac makes a pit stop as well for tires and fuel and no driver change. It's a standard stop. Clean the windscreen and change the tires, and add fuel. No worries. He's back on track.

Kamui Kobayashi might commit himself to one extra stop before the end of the race. Wayne Taylor believes his team has a little bit of an advantage headed for the finish of this race. Taylor says, "I have to agree with the strategists." That said, strategy will change if there is another yellow. Who will go the longest? The final stint will be as long as possible. Team bosses, usually, are open and honest when interviewed about what they are doing, while others might just play their cards closer to their chests. An hour and a half to go. We might bank on a yellow in the last 90 minutes. GTLM is still really close as the Porsche 911 RSR-19 wants to win on debut while the BMW M8 GTE is coming to the end of it's development after it was withdrawn from the FIA WEC with Team MTEK who oversaw it's exploits there.

BMW wants to go out on a high note. However, Porsche, the new car, made it's debut in the FIA WEC towards the end of last year and they are working on doing the same in their IMSA debut, but they have the BMW to contend with. The BMW is a very tough nut for the Porsche to crack. Mazda #55 is in the lane for fuel and tires but no driver change and they are back on track. Into the lane as well, the GT Daytona leader, the #48 Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3. Andrea Caldarelli stays at the wheel of the car. Mirko Bortolotti takes over the GTD lead. Who won the race on pit road between the Lamborghini's?

Bortolotti is in the lead of the race in GTD. The #16 Porsche in fourth spot is still in it and the #54 Black Swan Porsche as well as the #63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari will be back on the lead lap as well. We've also just witnessed another pit stop for the #911 Porsche 911 RSR-19. That was a quick, clean stop for the #911 for 22 seconds on the air jacks and back down and gone. All of the GTD cars are going to have to take one more stop and likewise for the GTLM machines. More scrapping between the #912 and #24. If there's a yellow now, the pit lane would be closed. There is a gap between Andrea Caldarelli and Marco Mapelli and now, Caldarelli has 13 seconds in hand and we see a tire issue for the #62 Ferrari out of the Bus Stop, the Risi Competizione car in GTLM with James Calado at the wheel fo it, and he's had a right rear tire go bang, big style into the chicane. The lining of the wheel arch is against the SAFER barrier.

We may see a Full Course Yellow, and there's a slippery surface flag too. Maybe there will be a Full Course Yellow but we don't know yet. Risi Competizione is changing the right rear tire as it was totally on the deck after losing the carcass of the tire and there's big damage to the right rear corner as well as the inner part of the fender, and the suspension system. It's a tricky job, cutting through steel bands from the tires, wrapped around the rear suspension and the brake discs. The car will be in the lane for a while while the #63 Scuderia Corsa GTD example is also in the lane. We watch the battle continue to unfold in GTLM between the Porschen and the Corvette as they blast past the #11 GRT Grasser Lamborghini, Steijn Schothorst, the Dutchman, at the wheel of it.

Jesse Krohn is catching the Corvette as well as the Risi Competizione team goes to work. The BMW has prodigious power while the Porsche can deal with the traffic. We watch the race leader, Kamui Kobayashi, working his way throughy the GT traffic, slipping up the inside through the left hand kink. Meanwhile, more work going on with the #62 car. They have also lost parts off the rear diffuser and the engine is overheating in the Ferrari as well. James Calado getting out of the car. It could be game over for the #62 car. They have 12 laps over the #25 BMW M8 GTE. A sterling job to get the car back. Calado says that there's a lot of damage to the car and there's no sense to keep going on risking everytuing going flat out on pace. It's better to just throw in the towel for the Rolex 24 and go on to the next race.

C'est la vie. They will be back for the next race at Sebring. We continue watching the GTLM battle and the Porsche comes to the pit lane. The #14 Lexus RC F GT3 is also in the lane for what is presumably the next to last, or last pit stop. Earl Bamber is in the lane with the #912 Porsche for new slick tires and a clean of the windscreen as well as a fuel load as he guns the engine and screches out of the pit lane. Regardless of what teams are up to, Balance of Performance is there. Forget sandbagging. The Ferrari had an advantage, trimmed it, and then they just haven't had the edge. They had the edge at Petit Le Mans at the end of last year, but not here at the Rolex 24.

Risi Competizione will be at Sebring in March. The Balance of Performance for Daytona is different from everywhere else IMSA races. The Sebring BoP has no bearing in what they have here. The #24 BMW has stayed out for an extra lap and will need less fuel than does the Porsche. The Porsche is out on stone cold tires. Will the #24 car backtime and do a short run one stint from the end? The Porsche may or may not be on sequence. Will they do a splash late on? The Corvette has done that and the Porsche's are actually separated. The BMW will have to come in soon. How long will it stay out?

The #81 and #52 cars in LMP2 are 1-2. Harrison Newey leads by a lap or so, to the second place LMP2 car, the PR1/Mathiasen car. Newey leads by three minutes as the #88 Audi is in the lane from the lead in GTD. It is on the opposite pit stop sequence compared to the other GT Daytona cars. An hour and ten minutes to go. No driver change and the car will not be in the class lead. They will need a splash and a dash if they don't want to do a mega fuel save with the amount of time still on the clock. Lamborghini #44 went into the lane earlier than the #48 car. Andrea Caldarelli leads Marco Mapelli by 11.6 seconds. Caldarelli's car was short-filled. Mirko Bortolotti is third followed by Klaus Bachler. The #24 GTLM BMW is in the lane, but was balked by the #18 Era Motorsports LMP2 car coming out of it's pit box. The #24 checked up, stopped, and stalled. But now, they are back into the race.

You can hear the tires squeal but barely hear the motor. This is the penultimate stop for the #24 and will need a splash and a dash. The #911 Porsche has leapfrogged the sister car and where is the BMW? He's out front and on cold tires and then, the Porsche just blows past it! Nick Tandy in #911 sneaks through into the GTLM class lead, ahead of Jesse Krohn and Earl Bamber. The BMW has been shattered in terms of maybe wanting to win this race in GTLM because of the pit stop kerfuffle. No tire warmers in IMSA and the tires take a lap and a half to warm them through driving. That's old school and the way racing should be. Harrison Newey is back on track after a pit stop and he is still ahead of the #52 car, second in class.

#911 will need more fuel than #912 for the final pit stop. Meanwhile, Kamui Kobayashi leads by half a minute over the #77 Mazda, splitting the two Cadillac's with Loic Duval third. Four laps behind now is the #6 Acura Team Penske Acura DPi with Juan Pablo Montoya at the wheel of it. We have just over an hour to go in the race, and the last hour of the 58th running of the Rolex 24 is coming up, shortly. Don't touch that dial. You'll want to stay with us right until the climax, the conclusion of this fascinating motor race. Trust me. I am perched atop the fan deck and just soaking this in. It's absolutely fantastic! Ben Hanley has taken over the #81 DragonSpeed car from Harrison Newey. He is just ahead by two minutes over the #52 car in the hands of Gabriel Aubry. That is the DragonSpeed Oreca, the white car, with the blue stripes and the stars, and blue dorsal fin with Flex Box (or as yours truly has referred to it, Flexi Box), emblazoned on it as sponsorship.

Flex Box is a company that handles shipping and storage and makes containers for such applications. It is also referred to in computer software, but that is a whole other system and company. The DragonSpeed car is sponsored by the shipping and storage concern. Maybe you need a Flex Box that is big enough to transport your race car from one event to the next, chaps. Ben Hanley will take the car to the end of the motor race as the BMW is being hounded by the Porsche in GTLM. Nick Tandy leads by 6.9 seconds but poor old Jesse Krohn is being hounded by the sister Porsche of Earl Bamber. The Porsche is more diminuitive in size, but unbelievably, it weighs 60 kilograms more than the BMW. 1,220 kilograms for the BMW. 1,280 kilograms for the Porsche. 2.2 pounds in a kilogram, and you can do the division math to work out the poundage of those automobiles.

Porsche were given ten extra kilograms after the Roar Before the 24. Kamui Kobayashi leads by 35 seconds over Oliver Jarvis. Loic Duval in the #5 JDC-Miller Mustang Sampling Cadillac is back in third place, and a minute covers the top three. Juan Pablo Montoya comes next and then comes Ryan Hunter-Reay in the #55 Mazda limping to the finish. The same could very well be said for Mattheus Leist, Felipe Nasr, and Helio Castroneves towards the rear of the DPi field, as they are working on finishing the motor race after all of them have had fraught races to this point. Ryan Hunter-Reay is ten seconds off the pace at 1:47 with the lack of turbo boost.

Mirko Bortolotti is third in GT Daytona and has been train lengthed by the two Lamborghini's which in turn are 12 seconds apart. Mirko Bortolotti is being closed upon by Klaus Bachler aboard the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche. We were speaking of Flex Box and what they do with their storage and shipping container systems, well, the #44 GRT Magnus car also has their sponsorship, and so you'd need two different teams to have two separate Flex Boxes to transport their cars from race to race. Mazda #77 is in the lane for it's penultimate pit stop. Oliver Jarvis is getting a new drinks bottle and apparently, one of the other drivers will take that car to the end, which is just an hour away.

Four new Michelin tires, and a windshield teart off is off the car. We are ticking down to the end of the 23rd hour of motor racing. It is... say it loudly and proudly... done and dusted! One more racing hour to go before we decide winners of the 58th Rolex 24, and that final racing hour gets underway, next!

Rolex 24: Hour 22

Nunez says Mazda has been double stinting their tires and should have plenty left. We are inside the last three hours as we back time this motor race. It's been very exciting so far as Ryan Briscoe continues to run in the 1:36-1:37 range. Sebastien Bourdais is third, slipping behind Oliver Jarvis' Mazda, the #77 car and the sister Mazda #55 of Jonathan Bomarito, he still is struggling. Dane Cameron in the #6 Acura might be able to make inroads on the red #55 Mazda. Porsche #912 in the lane from second in GTLM. It's a standard stop for fuel and tires, perhaps. Matthieu Jaminet stays in the car, and Matt Campbell is in the #911. He is chasing down John Edwards. What do these two blokes have left in the locker as we come down to crunch time? The BMW has had a lot of oomph to take the fight to the BMW. The #88 WRT Speedstar Audi is in the pit lane for scheduled service. Mirko Bortolotti will finish the race out, taking over from Dries Vanthoor with fresh tires and a full fuel load.

The GTLM pit stop strategies have diverged. Check that. We speak of GTD. Lamborghini leads with Paul Miller Racing, and the #48 car, Bryan Sellers at the controls. Nobody can ease up. The gaps are just not wide enough to offer a security blanket to anyone. Punctures, wrecks, drive through penalties. It's all still to play for. The machinery is tired. The drivers are tired. Into the lane, the #62 Ferrari 488 GTE. Pit stop time for the #24 BMW as well. It's amazing, as we watch the #6 Acura Team Penske Acura ARX-05. That car remains intact even though it's still porpoising and car is still hitting the deck. The floor of that automobile has been taking a beating this whole race. The driver's must feel as though they've been in the drum of a cement mixer this whole race.

The sound is incredible. If you are listening on the radio or the TV and you hear that, it sounds like static. But no. It's the whack, whack, whack, whack, whack, sound of the splitter on the Acura clattering the pavement here at Daytona International Speedway. Porsche pit stop time, and it's the #911 car in the lane for routine service. What will the ride height be on that Acura? The clattering can't be doing that car any good at all. The BMW also pitted. So, the battle continues hot and heavy in GTLM. Bryan Sellers brings the GT Daytona leading Lamborghini #48 to the lane as well. Andrea Caldarelli takes over behind the wheel. New tires, and a cleaning of the grille. There's not as much tire clag in the grille areas of the cars as there was in the overnight.

A pit stop too for the severely delayed #4 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R that dealt earlier in this race with a cracked bell housing. The #4 had been parked, but it was back on the track, I think. We have run 729 laps (2,595 miles). Sebastien Bourdais is now third in the overall and he will be back to the lane soon. #4 was just behind the wall for another couple hours as Laurens Vanthoor has now lost time to John Edwards in GTLM. Nick Tandy says the race has been a long one but a good one. It's hard to stay ahead of the BMW and it's hard for the Porsche's to pass. We see a pit stop again for the #14 AVS Lexus in GTD. Racing is not supposed to be easy, especially endurance events. You settle into a 24 hour race, but there have been gambles made all the time.

Porsche #911 wants to outrun their sister car as well as the BMW and the Ferrari. We see a driver change for the #77 Mazda on their pit stop and the #5 Cadillac is also in the lane. #5 is in the lane and has gone to their regular stint length instead of coming in early. A bit of bother on the pit stop for the #5. People have worried that BMW will pull out of IMSA. But, they likely will stay despite the fact that they left the FIA World Endurance Championship. Andy Lally says he's ready to go, but also believes Marco Mapelli is set to stay in the car. Pit stop time now, too, for the sister AVS Lexus RC F GT3, car #12. We want to say hello, to Bob Varsha. We're pulling for you, mate.

Andy Lally says that the team has had a few yellows that have taken the team off sequence. He did the sunrise stint earlier, but he's very concerned about what his team mates are doing. Andy Lally realizes he won't take the Lamborghini to the finish. Bob Varsha is a star of race broadcasting and is one of my heroes. We hope to see you back at the track soon. We're headed to the sharp end of this race, the money laps. We are joined by Steve Pattie, from VP Racing Fuels and bang on schedule, the #10 WTR Cadillac, is in the lane from the race lead. It'll be four tires and fuel as well as a driver change. Ryan Briscoe is out of the car and Kamui Kobayashi is getting into the car.

They clean the wheel wells, load the fuel tank, and Kamui Kobayashi is back into the race. We are going to see a race lap record here at the Rolex 24. VP Racing Fuels works very closely with IMSA to formulate enough energy, and of course the weather has cooperated with us as well. Racing fuel is only one element of VP Fuels, using formulations for IMSA, rallying, motorcycle racing, and more. Chemists in Texas also formulate oil for racing on land and water, as well as performance automotive products. Two hours and 40 minutes to go, the length of a regular IMSA race. Electric cars are here to stay, but oil and lubrication will still be needed for electric cars.

Fuel lubricant and coolant are for drive train systems. Water is the enemy, through electrolysis. Water is the enemy of lubrication and so therefore, VP has developed non glycol lubricants and additives. IMSA is looking at one of them as an official coolant, protecting engine parts and reliability. We thank VP Racing Fuels for their participation here in IMSA. We wish Brian Till and Bob Varsha, great recoveries. Kamui Kobayashi must be patient, but his idea of patience is not in any definition of the word we typically know. The #55 Mazda is in the lane for service, but still ailing with it's boost issues. We still have a ding dong battle in GT Daytona. It's the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche against the #88 WRT Audi.

Side by side stuff through the kink and this battle is fantastic. Mirko Bortolotti vs. Patrick Long. This racing has been cutthroat and yet, respectful. Again, we are still looking at a race record distance. Doug Fehan said the #4 Corvette was parked, but no. The #4 Corvette C8.R is back into the motor race. The pit crew tends to have a lot more confidence than does the team boss. Learn and pay attention to detail. You will learn nothing about the car if the thing is just idle in the lane being fixed. Kamui Kobayashi has run his 740th lap. This is mile marker 2,634. Kobayashi like co-driver, Ryan Briscoe, has been consistently uncorking laps in the 1:35 bracket. Sebastien Bourdais is pushing but still cannot catch Tristan Nunez.

The #10 team has an extra set of tires if there is a late Full Course Yellow and the tires are holding up well over a stint. As the ambient temperature warms up, the tires will slide a bit but the team seems to be in good shape. The race began in warm conditions and will end in warm conditions. Kamui Kobayashi will take the #10 car to the checkered flag. The #10 Cadillac's attitude has been comfortable and it's been fast. But the car looks at ease with itself and the driver's don't need to overextend themselves either. A lapse of judgment at this stage can turn your race pear shaped. Consistency though, is what has put the #10 Cadillac and it's drivers into this position as we get towards just two hours of the motor race still to run.

Simon Pagenaud has passed Jonathan Bomarito in the #55 Mazda with it's 2.0 liter turbocharged 4 cylinder engine and if the boost for the forced induction isn't there, they cannot bring any more power to help them. In GTLM, five seconds, roughly splits the #24 BMW M8 GTE and the #3 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R. Laurens Vanthoor has passed the Corvette and is chiseling away the gap to the BMW in the class lead in GTLM. Vanthoor got into the Porsche on the most recent pit stop, the #912 car. Piers Philips and BMW will be happy with the result of at least one of their cars, the #24 and their sister car has worked its way back up the order even though they've had a lot of trouble, and the same is true for the #7 Acura, which continues to be caboose on the field in DPi but is still running. The car is 20 laps down.

Ben Hanley leads LMP2 in the #81 DragonSpeed car. Ben Keating is second, and Ryan Lewis aboard the #18 Era Motorsports entry is still hanging in there as yours truly still is relying heavily on the official spotter's guide. Unfortunately, we don't get top speed numbers from IMSA any longer. I think we just get lap times, and meanwhile, Ryan Lewis is in the pit lane for service. Fourth in class is the #8 car for Tower Motorsports by Starworks and into the lane comes the #81 DragonSpeed entry. #8 has Nicolas Lapierre at the controls. Lapierre sharing with David Heinemeier Hanson, John Farano, and Ryan Dalziel. Pit stop time as well for the #7 Acura with Ricky Taylor at the wheel of it, learning, running miles on the car, solving their problems.

We've had a lot of green flag racing including that record breaking run that lasted for nearly eight hours earlier on in this race. Some people may argue this race won't be a classic. Well, we've seen an amazing race, whether you consider this motor race a classic or not. Pace and consistency has been shown in spades. Anyone else who has had unscheduled service, has had to fight back, while the #10 car did the same thing, but they've been able to stay in the top position for quite a while. This is a modern endurance event, and in the old days, you'd have to baby the car and run slower lap times and slower pace for the vast majority of the race, thinking back to the classic years of the 1960s and '70s, and also (just as classic), the GTP era of the 1980s and early 1990s, or, the World Sports Car era of the late 1990s.

The overhead views of Daytona International Speedway are immaculate. Yours truly is on his way there, to enjoy the final couple of hours, to see the finish to this stunning motor race. Whoa! A close shave there for the overall leader as Kamui Kobayashi gets split by both AVS Lexus' in the Bus Stop. Hmmm. Maybe a wise man was right when he said, "don't run for a bus." Don't run for a bus, because you are just going to get stymied. One of the GRT Grasser Lamborghini's is off the road too, look. That particular green Lamborghini is one we haven't seen in a while. That's the #11 of American Richard Heistand, Dutchman Steijn Schothorst, Spaniard Albert Costa, and Frenchman Franck Perera.

We've had mega running all weekend and very little respite. No long Full Course Yellow's. Pit stop time for the #55 Mazda. Calculations and changes are expected in endurance racing, for fuel, but especially for tires, with the whole 38 sets of tires for the prototypes through the entire weekend including practice, qualifying, and the motor race. Now, we see the #55 Mazda has stalled and has to be bump started by the pit crew. The car is down and away. As far as the sharp end of GTD, some teams have no idea where their fuel is, but the tires being double stinted, has helped. Single stint the tires all the way to the checkers. This is the #44 Magnus Lamborghini. Their rivals with the Paul Miller Lamborghini and the WRT Speedstar Audi will have to manage their tires. No punctures. You cannot botch your fuel calculations either. You have to be diligent, especially in these last two hours and 15 minutes. Klaus Bachler has taken over the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche in GT Daytona, from co-driver, Patrick Long.

The #44 GRT Magnus Lamborghini has pitted and has come out behind the Paul Miller Lamborghini and the WRT Audi. Marco Mapelli is behind Mirko Bortolotti and the Porsche. Mazda #77 and Cadillac #5 shall pit again soon. The #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari pits from fourth in class in GTLM. Mazda #77 is in the lane as well. Risi Competizione still has not found the pace they've wanted. The #25 BMW M8 GTE is in. Bruno Spengler is in the car, being assisted by co-driver Colton Herta with the water bottle. Cadillac #5 is in the lane as well as mentioned. Sebastien Bourdais may continue in the car. Yes. The door was opened but maybe just to change the drink bottle.

The #62 Ferrari has run well in this race. It's an older car, the 488 GTE. They've run well in this race and will be back for the 12 Hours of Sebring. Daniel Serra looks to be staying at Risi Competizione but some of the other drivers are racing the same car, for a different team, in a different championship, namely the FIA WEC which will be joining IMSA at the next race at Sebring for the "Super Sebring" race weekend, coming up in March, and you will hear a whole lot more about that event and get full coverage as it approaches and when it happens, so keep an eye and an ear out. The Ferrari just has a scosh less horsepower and a taller wicker bill on the rear wing. They've been close but they just aren't quite running on the same level as the other newer GTLM cars. They ran well at Petit Le Mans, the IMSA finale, last year.

The cars ahead of the Ferrari, including brand new cars for Porsche and Corvette, and a rejuvenated BMW M8 GTE, have had more performance this weekend. BMW #24 did do a brake change under green flag racing, overnight, but they are still hanging on. John Edwards and Laurens Vanthoor have been very close, and are five seconds apart, as they have both completed 713 laps (2,538 miles). Matt Campbell has been in contention as well. Meanwhile, Kamui Kobayashi continues to lead and that car has seemingly been on rails. The drivers are enjoying it and so, they've gone faster. If the track and the car come to you, relaxing as you drive, makes you go faster. Ito the lane for service, the #912 Porsche.

They've pitted from second in class in GTLM. A distance check once again for the overall leader. Cadillac #10 has now run 757 laps, 2,695 miles. Earl Bamber is now at the controls of the #912 Porsche 911 RSR-19. Bang on schedule, the #10 Cadillac hits the pit lane, from the lead. Fuel and tires the modus operandi. The order of the day. Scrubbed Michelin tires go onto the car. Mirko Bortolotti pits the #88 WRT Speedstar Audi from second in GT Daytona. Time to get lunch before the motor race is done and dusted. OK, chaps. You all are starting to wax eloquently about soccer again. Can we hold off on the football until after the motor race?, says yours truly with a hearty, raspy chuckle. Meanwhile, the Porsche is in the pit lane for scheduled service.

It's #911. BMW #24 should be in the lane next time by. BMW has indeed been taking the fight to Porsche or vice versa. BMW's race has gone according to plan except for the trouble with the #25 as the #24 is in the lane for service, for fuel and tires as well as a driver change. Phillips says the convergence idea will work out well with the new global platform. But, as we've said, let us see where we are in this race before we start dreaming. Competing at a high level is indeed an intent for BMW. This season has exciting prospects. BMW is in it's third year with the M8 GTE and Phillips says, "oh yes, we know the old girl quite well now", and they do indeed.

Rolex 24: Hour 21

Into the pit lane comes the leading #5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac, and also, the #10 Konica Minolta Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac also pits. The intensity ramps up, now. Losing ten seconds in the lane, is a bear. You are going to lose time. No driver change for the #10 car. Ryan Briscoe leads Joao Barbosa by 3.6 seconds. The Cadillac's are still able to run longer on fuel than the Mazda's. We've watched this Cadillac scrap unfold fora whilenow and it continues. We also watch a mishmash of GT cars, in GTLM and GTD. We are looking at the Porsche and Corvette in third and fourth. Porsche, BMW, Porsche, Corvette in GTLM as Matthieu Jaminet is pulling away from John Edwards, but only by a second or so. The gap is tighter between Fred Makowiecki and Nicky Catsburg. Ryan Briscoe's lead over Joao Barbosa remains considerable. JDC-Miller can't have made a big error, but it does not take much to lose time in the lane.

Nicky Catsburg still hounding Fred Makowiecki as Tristan Vautier laps past these cars, aboard the sister #85 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac, "the banana boat". For some reason, the #31 Whelen Action Express Cadillac is dropping away further. They are still not where they want to be in the running order. Side by side stuff, look, between Porsche and Cadillac in GTLM across the line coming up to complete another racing lap. The GTLM cars are surely evenly matched, and the new Corvette C8.R is a potent weapon right out of the box. The BMW is fleeter on acceleration, and the Porsche has good grip through the infield, and good speed. The Ferrari does not have the straight line speed, but the cornering is their advantage just like the BMW. Catsburg tries to pass Makowiecki and Fred Makowiecki slams the door in Catsburg's face, again.

Jonathan Bomarito is running in the 1:39 bracket, running four seconds or so adrift of the leaders in DPi including the Cadillac's and the sister #77 Mazda. In GTD, Jeroen Bleekemolen runs ahead of A.J. Allmendinger in a battle between Black Swan Porsche and MSR Acura. Battles all around this 3.56 mile combined super speedway and infield road course. The new curbs in the chicane have stood up much better than we thought they would. The area on the exit of the Bus Stop gets very dirty and in the old days, that used to be a double apex corner, but not anymore. 1:37.4 for Jonathan Bomarito, 1:35.6 for Ryan Briscoe in the lead. Something has gone amiss in the Mazda #55. The gap has ballooned quite a bit.

The #55 is about 20 seconds behind. After the brilliant qualifying lap for pole by the #77 Mazda on Thursday, Mazda has had that car run faster than the sister car. Pit stop time now for Porsche #912, Corvette #3, and a few more. But the #24 BMW M8 GTE has been going longer on fuel although the tire stints are shorter. The #912 Porsche is very dirty, but running like a top. Fuel and tires also for the #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari. Pit stop time for the #48 Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3. Corey Lewis is getting into what is another very travel stained race car, but one that is running well. The reliability of these modern endurance sports cars is pretty remarkable. Porsche #911 and BMW #24 are also in the lane from first and second in GTLM.

Matt Campbell will get into the #911 Porsche and the Porsche mechanics are really efficient on the tire changes. Now, Campbell is back on his way. We can see the two AVS Lexus RC F GT3's liner stern on the front straight, but the #14 car has dived for the pit lane. Aaron Telitz stays on the track but the #14 is into the lane. Not sure who will be stepping into the #14. Ah. It's Kyle Busch who has stepped out, and Jack Hawksworth has taken over. Aaron Telitz is an open wheel racer, but has been here to race in the Rolex 24 with Lexus a couple times before. The #54 Black Swan Porsche is also in the lane as we watch a battle between the #85 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac of Tristan Vautier, and one of the GTD cars, the #96 Liqui Moly Turner Motorsports BMW M6 GT3.

In GT Daytona, the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R pitted just at the green flag on this restart. Patrick Long at the wheel of it. Long now has a handy 13.6 second lead over the Lamborghini #48 of Corey Lewis and Marco Mapelli in the #44 Magnus Racing Lamborghini. Dries Vanthoor in the #88 WRT Speedstar is closing in on Sig. Mapelli. Ryan Briscoe has a clear road on the road course as we listen to the deep, throaty rumble of the Cadillac V8. Briscoe's view is as clear as a bell. The #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R is in the lane. Patrick Pilet steps out and a new driver has gotten into the car. They of course had a driveshaft issue in the middle of the night that took an hour and a half to replace. Dennis Olsen is now in the car, and they are playing catch up.

Nicky Catsburg is now behind the Ferrari by ten seconds in GTLM. Catsburg has been passed by the Ferrari and at this moment, as we look at the screens, it's Alessandro Pier Guidi driving the Ferrari now. Kyle Busch says it is very different to be driving a race car at sunup. He is getting more seat time and he says, "we are stuck in a spot, and we'll just finish the race." Kyle Busch says he did get some sleep. Could Kyle Busch go to Le Mans? Maybe. Jeroen Bleekemolen says about his time racing with Black Swan, there's been lots of emotions and lots of ups and downs. Some people had changed their flights to head out of Daytona early. But it looks like they are going to finish. Jeroen Bleekemolen says they've had small setbacks with the strong pace, but can still go flat out. He mentioned the car had floor damage and was understeering.

Jeroen says the he and co-driver Trenton Estep are both in a learning phase with the Porsche 911 GT3R. Also, Sven Mueller, who is now driving, didn't get laps in dry running, only in the wet. Bleekemolen says he's driven a bunch of GT3 cars and that all of them are similar to drive. He likes the 911 GT3R and has also driven the Mercedes AMG GT3. Push, push, push. Go flat out. Jeroen Bleekemolen would like one more yellow for the Black Swan car to be in the fight. They are still a lap down but could get back in the game. Ryan Briscoe has now run 704 laps (2,506 miles). The gap to second place and the #5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Mustang Sampling Cadillac of Joao Barbosa, is ten or more seconds.

The #55 Mazda continues falling behind. The car has lost 40 seconds in the last 15 seconds. Poor old Jonathan Bomarito is struggling. In GTLM, Nicky Catsburg has been running 1:43 laps consecutively but he had at least two slower laps and has lost 12 seconds after a spin. The #55 Mazda is not smoking, but it could be losing performance as the lap times are falling off the pace, hanging onto the lead lap just by the skin of his teeth. Three and a half hours to go. Oliver Jarvis is catching Joao Barbosa, and they are just 1.4 seconds apart, as the #38 Performance Tech Motorsports car in LMP2 comes to pit lane. Cameron Cassels, Robert Masson, Kyle Masson, and Don Yount sharing the car.

Not sure which of the Masson's is in the car. It's either Robert, the father, or Kyle, the son. Dr. Robert Masson is a doctor, an orthopedic surgeon and spinal alignment specialist. The car is indeed travel stained and it has a flat carbon fiber replacement nose. The car is in a spot of bother as it will not start. Kyle Masson is in the car. Pit stop time once again as well for the #5 Mustang Sampling JDC-Miller Cadillac. Tires and fuel for Joao Barbosa. There is a turbo boost issue on the #55 Mazda. It can be fixed, but not yet. A pit stop is imminent for the #6 Penske Racing Acura and Dane Cameron, for nose repair work. Now, we have a correction. Joao Barbosa on his pit stop in the #5 Cadillac, handed the car to Sebastien Bourdais. Also, the #77 Mazda is in the lane as well.

Oliver Jarvis stays at the wheel. Just fuel and tires. Insofar as Nicky Catsburg, he made a mistake and did spin the Corvette. He spun and continued, costing him 12 seconds and a place, as he lost a place to Alessanndro Pier Guidi, annd the GTLM lead is up for grabs! John Edwards chops across Matthieu Jaminet and makes the pass on "Jam Jam". Matt Campbell is third in class and John Edwards as well as Matthieu Jaminet have quite the chore to get past the #44 GRT Magnus Flex Box Lamborghini Huracan GT3. Jaminet has the drive up the inside of the Lamborghini, but the BMW, John Edwards whistles off into the distnce.

Jaminet is trapped behind the Lamborghini. Jaminet has the drive off turn six to get past the Lamborghini. Meanwhile, Juan Piedrahita in the #85 JDC-Miller "Banana Boat" Cadillac, shoots his way on the low side, past the Porsche. The flying banana has indeed made the pass. The Mazda went one lap longer than the Cadillac and this has allowed Oliver Jarvis to pass Sebastien Bourdais. Into the lane, the #6 Team Penske Acura ARX-05. Ryan Briscoe is consistently running in the 1:35 bracket. A nose change for the Acura, the much beleaguered Acura this. They are a few laps behind.
Mazda #55 in the lane as well. The Penske crew changed tires and the fuel probe was out before the car moved as the nose had to be fastened down. They are testing the car, essentially. They are two laps down, and we've had only six yellow flags in this motor race. The #10 Cadillac has pitted for service as well, having run a 23 lap stint. He was weaving the car around to put heat into the tires on the pit exit road which is crucial. As we have seen in this race, if you have cold tires exiting the lane, you will perhaps take a wallop into the Armco barrier which is not what you want this late in the game. We welcome Mr. John Hindhaugh back to the broadcast booth.

Paul Tracy in his commentary duties for NBC Sports Network has also been observing plenty of this motor race. Yours truly is still back at the hotel, glued to the television, and I shall leave shortly, to head back to the speedway, for the finish of the motor race. Hoping to catch the last two hours, in my favorite spot, which has been up on the observation deck off of speedway turn two. Into the tri oval again, look, we can see how the DPi cars just slice past the GT Daytona machines in these big clusters of traffic. Sports car racing, to find the traffic, is no different than if you have a bowl of candies in different flavors and you are searching around in the bowl to find your favorite. Will it be butterscotch, chocolate, peppermint, or something else?

That's the variety we see in sports car racing, especially in IMSA. We've been watching a smashing battle in GTLM. Now, we've been prone to tooting our clown horns about LMP2 because usually that class has been down to the last man standing in recent years. But that isn't the case this year. The #81 and #52 car have been trading the lead for a long while, although the #52 dropped four laps down to the leaders after changing a tow link earlier in the race. Ben Keating in that car. We've had just six yellow flags for 28 laps and just an hour and 43 minutes of clock time. Laurens Vanthoor did a triple stint during the night, staring at the back of the #24 BMW M8 GTE.

The #3 Corvette C8.R has made a pit stop, out of sequence. Teams are now working backwards from the end of the race, on their pit stops. We will see teams make four, maybe five more pit stops. Our buddy, Jonny Palmer will be back to the commentary box soon. Ryan Briscoe is now back to the lead of the motor race and he has been running very consistently in the 1:36 range. Sebastien Bourdais is second, it is clear Jonathan Bomarito, with the boost issue on the #55 Mazda, has lost a lap or so. His woes are getting worse, and the car was off all night. Bryan Sellers has the lead in GT Daytona, now by a second or so over Patrick Long.

Marco Mapelli remains second in class and in third, Dries Vanthoor. So, Lamborghini, Lamborghini, Audi. More LMP2 cars will enter in IMSA later in the season. The cars are good, have plenty of horsepower, and are fun to drive. Ben Keating can now focus on driving the #52 PR1/Mathiasen LMP2 car. He led convincingly in the class and is now back at the wheel after many spots of bother for the other car he was driving, the #74 Riley Motorsports Mercedes AMG GT3 which is not a factor any longer. I believe it is out of the motor race after having smoke billowing out of the car, earlier on with Felipe Fraga driving.

Mazda #55 has gone a lap down to Ryan Briscoe. Their boost issues continue. We still have just about a half hour more than a regular IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship race to go, as Konica Minolta Wayne Taylor Racing is searching for their second consecutive overall triumph here at the Rolex 24, and third in four years. The sun is shining, with a chilly ambient temperature that is now climbing. We have limited sets of tires, and the bottom of the pile of new tires is being reached. We'll see 70-80 degrees by the time the checkered flag waves? No. Wishful thinking, mate. It'll be in the low 60s. From here to the end, tires will be used for single stints after double stinting overnight.

Ryan Briscoe continues to cut lap times that are extremely consistent right now. Not sure too many other contenders will be able to catch him. He is one with his race car at the moment. 1:35.5 again for Ryan Briscoe. He is stepping into a prototype for the first time in three or four years after being a part of the Ford GT program with Chip Ganassi for the last three years. All the cars are different, and racing series' are also different, with multiple classes. Sebastien Bourdais and Oliver Jarvis are separated by just 3.7 seconds. Bourdais has lost 1.7 seconds of time. Traffic giveth, and traffic taketh away.

We are watching Oliver Jarvis aboard the #77 Mazda RT24P. Tristan Nunez says he has had his most successful Rolex 24 yet in eight attempts. Nunez is asked about tire management and says we've been running an all out sprint race since it began and it'll come down to tire management. Nunez knows how quick the Cadillac's are, and is confident in his mount for Mazda. Tristan Nunez says "keep pushing, even if it feels like you've already done a ten round boxing match." Pit stop time for the #81 DragonSpeed LMP2 car as well for fuel and tires.