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.
No comments:
Post a Comment