Rolex 24: Hour 24 (the finish)

Several firsts could be possible at the end of this race.  Now, the #48 Ally Cadillac is still pushing extremely hard.  Less than an hour to go.  Kamui Kobayashi is now fourth.  Simon Pagenaud says he has really enjoyed being around Action Express and knowing how to work together with other teams.  Pagenaud is a sports car racing veteran.  His greatest achievement was winning the 2019 Indianapolis 500. Acura #10 is in the lane.  Filipe Albuquerque is running well in the handling department.  The DPi cars will all have to do a splash and dash with 20 minutes to go.  Harry Tincknell, too, pitted.  Five lead lap cars for the overall would be a record for the Rolex 24.

#01 and #48 pass.  Renger van der Zande moves to the lead.  It is amazing that pit strategy could work into the factors of a 24 hour race.  Now, Kamui Kobayashi is pushing for the lead.  Kobayashi is going to use all he has left in the tank, but he is perhaps losing distance to Van der Zande but he is not giving up.  It may come down to a mano e mano battle.  Filipe Albuquerque in the #10 Konica Minolta Acura DPi is still in contention as well.  Final pit stops for GTLM between Corvette and BMW.  Jordan Taylor revving the motor and the Corvette passes the BMW for GTLM.  That's going to be a slugfest for the final 48 minutes.  #3 locks the brakes on cold tires in the International Horseshoe!  Wow!

He almost overcooks it.  A lucky break there, look, for Jordan Taylor!  Egad!  Tommy Milner in the sister car now in the pit lane.  45 minutes to go.  Kamui Kobayashi is reeling in Renger van der Zande.  Kobayashi dives into the braking zone.  Kobayashi is pressing Van der Zande.  How will Van der Zande play the traffic.  The two team mates the last two years who won this motor race together are now rivals.  40 minutes on the board.  #01 and #48 nearly came together during the night.  Match fuel to the tires.  The #10 has spent six less minutes on pit road than the #01 and the #48 is still in the fight.

Albuquerque is 4.4 seconds down on the top two.  Jordan Taylor has just gone by Tommy Milner.  Milner did the overcut.  Engel leads Marciello and Caldarelli in GTD.  The two Mercedes' are in contention.  DPi cars headed for the pit.  #01 and #48 pit together.  #01 has a faster stop!  The shorter fill for ther #10 Acura are in.  Now, the #55 Mazda pits as well.  The fight is on now to the end with 32 minutes left.  Filipe Albuquerque leads.  Albuquerque vs. Van der Zande and then Tincknell and Kobayashi.  Again, Albuquerque leads Van der Zane.  BMW #25 off the road in turn one.

BMW #25 makes it to pit lane for a splash and dash as we see the #10 Acura in the lead.  Filipe Albuquerque has led 320 of 790 laps.  Alessandro Pier Guidi and Ferrari leads GTLM.  Gabriel Aubry leads LMP2 and Spencer Pigot in LMP3.  Maro Engel leads GTD.  A team that came from Michelin Pilot Challenge up to the WeatherTech Championship and they could win in class.  They didn't dominate the MPC series.  This is their first effort in the WeatherTech Championship.  Risi Competizione #62 Ferrari is in the lane.  Meanwhile, about the two horse race at the front, that is what it is becoming.  WTR Acura vs. CGR Cadillac.  The Mazda, and the Action Express Cadillac may not have enough steam to catch up as the clock dwindles.

#01 is reeling in #10.  Renger van der Zande pushing Filipe Albuquerque.  He is on the attack.  He has older right side tires.  Side by side.  Van der Zande has to back out of the gas.  The aero wash is an effect of this.  Van der Zande is hyped.  He wants this.  How bad do you want it?  Filipe Albuquerque is making a move to try and escape Renger van der Zande.  Watch for traffic.  Van der Zande deep on the brakes.  Jordan Taylor leads GTLM in the #3 Corvette.  Van der Zande is closing up in the headwind.  Van der Zande is trying to move past Albuquerque.  Here he comes.

Twelve minutes to go.  Now nine minutes.  No change for the last wee while.  It seems as if the Acura could have this motor race signed, sealed, and very nearly, delivered.  Renger van der Zande's tire blows!  Kamui Kobayashi is now second trying to hold off the Mazda of Harry Tincknell and company.  Three minutes.  Never has the top class had five cars on the lead lap in the 58 previous editions of the Rolex 24.  Maro Engel moves out of the way.  Acura won in the early 1990s in Camel Lights, the predecessor of LMP2.  Acura are a lap away from their first overall win in the Rolex 24.  Honda won with another team in 2016.  

But now, Acura will officially win.  WTR will equal Chip Ganassi at three straight, and then, four out of the last five Rolex 24 wins.  They shook the car down at Sebring last Tuesday and came here confident.  Alexander Rossi, Helio Castroneves, Filipe Albuquerque, and Ricky Taylor win the Rolex 24 at Daytona in hat trick style!  Four of the last five years.  In GTD, the #57 Winward Racing Mercedes will get the three pointed star winning.  Era Motorsports wins LMP2 with their special livery.  Riley Motorsports 74 Ranch win LMP3.  GT Le Mans honors go to Corvette Racing, Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor, and Nicky Catsburg.

That's all for now.  Yours truly is mentally drained.  What a dramatic motor race this was.  We'll see you in 2022.

Overall/DPi: #10 Taylor/Castroneves/Albuquerque/Rossi     Acura ARX05

             LMP2: #18 Merriman/Tilley/Dalziel/Chatin              Oreca 07 Gibson

             LMP3: #74 Robinson/Pigot/Andrews/Askew             Ligier JS P320 Nissan

             GT Le Mans: #3 Garcia/Taylor/Catsburg                   Chevrolet Corvette C8.R

             GT Daytona: #57 Ward/Ellis/Dontje/Engel                Mercedes AMG GT3'

That's it from the Rolex 24 for 2021.  We will discuss how things went for Action Express and also post-race, tomorrow.  Yours truly is spent.  Endurance racing diehards, get some rest.  The 12 Hours of Sebring isn't far away as the next race in the odyssey that is the 2021 IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship.  So long, from the legendary Daytona Beach and the mighty Atlantic Ocean.  See you soon.  Bye bye.  

Rolex 24: Hour 23

We have less than two hours to go and we have five cars separated by 3.3 seconds going for the win.  Kobayashi 1.3 seconds back while Jarvis is half a second behind Taylor.  Kobayashi runs through the road course but doesn't have the straight line speed.  Meantime in the International Horseshoe, Daniel Serra tears up the Rolex signage.  Engel and Marciello are still rumbling in GTD.  Now, we have a Full Course Yellow for the Rolex signage strewn about in the International Horseshoe.  The #01 Ganassi Cadillac has lost speed to Dane Cameron.  Mike Conway takes over the #31 Whelen Cadillac and Chase Elliott says that his progression as a sports car driver is getting better.  We are under Full Course Yellow.  Now, the green flag is on.  Taylor, Jarvis, Kobayashi, Cameron.  Kobayashi holds off Cameron afer we've seen about ten laps of yellow flag.

Dane Cameron poking his nose at Van der Zande.  Kobayashi losing a tad of time on the straight.  Battles too in GTLM.  Farfus goes by Sims.  Daniel Serra went off after being tagged by Andrea Caldarelli in the #1 Lamborghini.  Now, Kobayashi is closing on Jarvis and Taylor.  No one has ever won three overall titles in three straight years.  #48 is struggling on the straights and now, Jarvis is pressing Taylor.  The restart is being reviewed by Race Direction.  Kobayashi needs a tow to catch Jarvis and Taylor.  Less than an hour and 45 minutes to go.  

Four cars, four men, going for victory in the greatest sports car race in North America.  This is what we face at the conclusion of the 2021, the 59th Rolex 24 at Daytona.  BMW is being monstered by Corvette in GTLM.  At the front, it is the same four car battle.  Acura, Mazda, Cadillac, Cadillac.  Matthieu Vaxiviere in the LMP2 leading Tower Motorsports car jumped the restart.  Oh dear.  LMP2 is going to be a bear.  The top five continues as a car goes straight on at the Bus Stop.  Not sure who that driver is and what car it is.  Now, racing the Rolex 24 in January is totally normal.  

Lapped traffic for the leaders.  Only eight cars have retired.  41 of the 49 cars still pounding around out there.  Wayne Taylor Racing are going for their third straight and fourth overall Rolex 24 win.  Action Express going for their fourth Rolex 24 win.  Mazda going for their first.  #48 in the lane for a quick stop.  Kamui Kobayashi stays in the car.  Kobayashi is going for the hat trick.  In GTLM/GTD here's what's going on.  SunEnergy1 in GTD are second.  Raffaelle Marciello finishes.  Maro Engel in Winward Racing's Mercedes.  Now, pit stop time for the #10 and #55.  Filipe Albuquerque and Harry Tincknell, both will finish the race for their respective teams.

Dane Cameron has now moved to the lead in the #60 Acura.  It appears the remaining GT cars and LMP3s etc. are staying out of the way of the DPi scrap for the win.  Meantime,. a battle is on in GTLM as well between BMW and Corvette.  #24 vs. #3.  An hour and a half now left on the board.  Acura #60 in the pit lane.  A splash and a dash it looks like.  Jimmie Johnson has a passion to drive different cars, different tracks, and different championships.  Kobayashi is 6.8 seconds down.  Van der Zande is trying to catch Albuquerque.  #48 needs pace.  Filipe Albuquerque is now leading Renger van der Zande and Harry Tincknell.  The #8 Tower Motorsports LMP2 car was penalized and now, Ryan Dalziel leads with Era Motorsports and the design of course, has been designed by a six year old kid from Canada named Owen who drew a picture and the team put it on their car.

Ryan Dalziel has the lead in LMP2.  80 minutes left in the motor race now.  The race for second is hot!  It's Renger van der Zande opening the door and Harry Tincknell runs right through.  Kobayashi drops to fourth place.  Raffaele Marciello almost loses his footing and Andrea Caldarelli tries to take advantage and almost gets clag and grass in his radiator grill.  There's a heavy tailwind right now.  A great eclectic blend of cars and also drivers.  Pros and gentleman drivers.  59 rookies are racing this event.  We had a 75 year old gentleman driver as well.  Filipe Albuquerque still leads the race.

Corvette #4 in the pit lane.  Now the two Corvette's are battling each other once more.  BMW and Corvette continue to scrap and claw for GTLM honors.  Jordan Taylor vs. Augusto Farfus.  40 years ago Bobby Rahal won the Rolex 24, again with Bob Garretson and Brian Redman in a Porsche 935.  Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor, and company, are back in contention.  The BMW is staying in range as best as possible.  Corvette were penalized earlier on.  Augusto Farfus is going for the hat trick in GTLM with BMW.  Renger van der Zande brings the #01 Cadillac to their second to last pit stop.  Damage again for the #21 Ferrari of Nicklas Nielsen.  This car has been in the wars for a long time and still is.  Seventh in GT Daytona for this team even though they've had a very productive race.  Maro Engel, factory Mercedes driver driving for Winward Racing.  Russell Ward, Philip Ellis, Indy Dontje (named after the Indianapolis Motor Speedway), and Maro Engel.

BMW tried to short fuel their car.  Not sure if that worked out too well.  We shall find out.    

Rolex 24: Hour 22

#48 will put Kamui Kobayashi in the car.  Slow running, look, for the beleaguered Mustang Sampling #5 JDC-Miller Cadillac.  Slowing down it is a right rear tire that is flat.  They crashed and had to have repairs done to the car.  The all French squad of Sebastien Bourdais, Loic Duval (in the car now), and Tristan Vautier, having issues.  Kamui Kobayashi is going to perhaps finish the race in the #48 Cadillac for Action Express.  Mercifully, the #5 is in the lane and we also see #01 and #60 in the lane.  Scott Dixon stays in the car for Ganassi while A.J. Allmendinger, he will give way to Dane Cameron.  Filipe Albuquerque is out of the #10 and now, Ricky Taylor is going to run a double stint for the #10 Acura.  

Kamui Kobayashi starts his mission, now.  Over the curbs, and out onto the high banks.  Lapped traffic from GTD in the way.  We can still see the Acura in the lead of the motor race.  The chess match has begun.  Christina Nielsen explains she has never run a Rolex 24 where the majority of her driving was at night.  Nielsen explains some of the damage to the Porsche the team was having trouble with, probably with suspension damage.  Someone has spun.  That's the #11 LMP2 car.  Time is growing short here at the Rolex 24.  The #11 car s being repaired in pit lane.  Stephen Thomas, he had black smoke coming out of the car.  Was this brake smoke?  Did he explode a brake rotor?  That piece of shrapnel is a smoking hulk of some kind.  So the team are now fixing the brakes.  That's carbon or iron smoke.  The brake rotor exploded on the right front wheel.  

Mike Rockenfeller is confident and thinks Action Express can be happy.  Hopefully AXR can catch the WTR Acura.  WIN Autosport said they replaced the whole brake system on their automobile at 4AM this morning.  The #57 Winward Mercedes is in the lane for service and Maro Engel is going to stay in that automobile.  The margin is shrinking.  Ricky Taylor still leads.  Now, the #31 is still running and is ahead of the #10.  Chase Elliott is still soldiering on in the #31 machine.  The #01 Ganassi Cadillac is slow.  The #01 will replace a tire and get back in it.  

Ricky Taylor nearly gets chopped by a GT car of some sort.  We remain under Full Course Yellow.  Pit stop time for #10, #48 and others.  Oliver Jarvis in the #55 Mazda has been in the lane and so has Scott Dixon in the #01.  Renger van der Zande now in the car.  GT cars pitting now.  GTLM and GTD.  Now, Corvette's are still in a head to head scrap and the #3 car is stalling.  It won't budge!  The engine is stalling.  Jordan Taylor is gunning the motor and now he starts it and is down and gone.  #31 is in the lane as we get ready to go green.

Green flag!  Ricky Taylor, Dane Cameron, Oliver Jaervis, and Kamui Kobayashi.  Taylor and Cameron fighting.  This is a war!  Oliver Jarvis is in the hunt and so is Kamui Kobayashi.  Taylor goes through on Cameron.  Jarvis is moving in as well.  Filipe Albuquerque might get into the car, but no.  Oh my!  Here comes Oliver Jarvis!  Ricky Taylor fends him off.  Kobayashi keeping a watching brief as well.  Two hours to go.  Ricky Taylor gets a good exit off the corner in the Bus Stop.  GTLM is shades of last year with BMW vs. Ferrari.  Farfus and Pier Guidi squabbling over third, not first like in 2020.  Back to the lead.  Jarvis reeling in aylor.  Kobayashi close behind.

Kobayashi reeling in the Mazda while in turn, Mazda is reeling in the Acura of Ricky Taylor.  Three of the best in the business scrapping for a mega trophy.  

Rolex 24: Hour 21

Christina Nielsen, Katherine Legge, Rob Ferriol, and Earl Bamber have been running really well.  Filipe Albuquerque continues to lead.  Simon Pagenaud says it was fun to drive and race against the Acura and their drivers.  He's amazed at how high the level is in sports car racing currently.  Pagenaud realizes we still have two IndyCar races left to go as far as distance.  #48 has spun a few times.  The turbo in the Acura behaves differently.  The turbo gives a lot of power but not instantaneously.  Normally aspirated V8 = instant power.  Pagenaud is having lots of fun.  Mike Rockenfeller and Kamui Kobayashi will finish the motor race.  An issue on the tire change for the #01 CGR Cadillac.  Trouble with the rattle gun.  The nut was recalcitrant and didn't go on.  It was also maybe a recalcitrant rattle gun.  Is the balance good in the #48?  Will they have handling woes?  Will the balance of the car become a concern?

Take advantage of every single thing that you can.  Find a way to make opportunities work.  Chase Elliott is back on track in the #31 Whelen Cadillac.  Chase Elliott is 22 laps down, but he will run and gain more experience in the #31 car for future appearances in IMSA races that could indeed be in the cards.  Salih Yoluc has the wheel of the #51 RWR-Eurasia Ligier.  Austin Dillon, Salih Yoluc, Cody Ware, and Sven Muller.  Mike Rockenfeller has been struggling with handling in the #48 Cadillac.  Keep adjusting the car with the tools you have in the cockpit.  In GT Daytona, Mercedes run 1-2.  Philip Ellis leads the motor race for Winward Racing and in second, Luca Stolz for SunEnergy1.  Ellis once again, sharing with Russell Ward, Indy Dontje, and Maro Engel.  Mercedes, I don't know if they've won GTD at the Rolex.

How close can the #48 car come to winning at Daytona?  Currently, the Rockenfeller/Johnson/Pagenaud/Kobayashi machine is fourth while there is more trouble for the #31.  #48 pits again but they need a yellow maybe to see if the car is running well in terms of balance.  Kamui Kobayashi watches and wonders.  In LMP2, the "Crayon Car" painted by Owen from Ottawa in Canada, is leading LMP2.  Paul Loup Chatin is driving and he is being followed by Gabriel Aubry, Fabian Schiller, and Salih Yoluc.  Marco Wittman was flashing the lights to a GTD car saying "get out of my way!" and then along comes a DPi doing the very same thing to him!  Poor old chap was getting mixed signals there.

The sole surviving #82 DragonSpeed Flexi Box Oreca 07 continues on track.  There is some smoke or dust emanating from the rear of it.  That's smoke and it looks faint and wispy.  Is that oil coming from the Gibson 4.2 liter V8?  Or maybe me old eyes are just plauing tricks again.  There is smoke emanating from the #82.  The #81 is out of the race.  Now, there's smoke out the right bank of cylinders.  These issues don't fix themselves and when they are out of oil, that usually means the engine is cooked.  The LMP3 cars are racing as they were, not heavily modified for endurance except for brake changes.  Now, the #74 Riley Motorsports Riley.  Robinson Racing, and George Robinson, Gar's father, were legendary at the Rolex 24 and in other U.S. sports car racing.

George Robinson has won at Daytona but not at the Rolex 24.  Spencer Pigot and Oliver Askew share that car.  Oliver Askew didn't come from a racing family but his family did give him a go kart and he was hooked.  The #82 is in the lane.  Fabian Schiller out of the car and Eric Lux into the car.  The car is still smoking.  They have to diagnose the trouble and the bonnet is coming off the car.  Is this engine oil or gearbox oil leaking?  The majority of the smoke was coming fro the CV joint on the rear wheel, although the engine may be smoking as well, the English built Gibson 4.2 liter V8 which by the way has a great engine note.

The #79 WeatherTech GTLM Porsche 911 RSR-19 is still out there pounding around.  Pretty amazing as those boys have had a fraught race.  MSR Acura and Ganassi Cadillac are also in a scrap of their own through the Internatonal Horseshoe and through the sixth corner coming up onto the high banks.  This is the third place battle between A.J. Allmendinger and Scott Dixon.  Dixon has tried everything and Allmendinger slams the door in his face.  So "The Dinger" is on the gas, and poor old Dixon is throwing the kitchen sink at the Acura DPi driver.  Allmendinger tries a side draft, but no dice.  Albuquerque still leads the motor race.    

Rolex 24: Hour 20

In GTD, we can see a batgtle beginning to brew.  It's steeping and simmering.  Ellis, Nielsen, and Stolz are the top three.  A Ferrari in a Mercedes sandwich.  Also, Simon Pagenaud is working traffic and he has to take risks to get past the GT cars.  It's a real teeth grinder here.  Rossi seems to have the edge, but Pagenaud has the patience.  He has to hang in it with Rossi to see if it comes back to him.  GTD and LMP3 in a chess match on the high banks.  The true chess game is this ongoing, simmering battle between Ferrari and Mercedes.  AF Corse vs. HTP Winward.  Alexander Rossi leads by 2.5 seconds.  This is the first time Wayne Taylor has not raced a General Motors product in 28 years, since 1993.  

CGR had a penalty for speeding overnight.  Scott Dixon will get into the #01 soon, running also with Renger van der Zande.  Max "The Axe" Angelelli, is now in a business relationship with Dallara.  He is representing Dallara, but taking on his dear friend Wayne Taylor who he drove with and managed a team with.  Now, the #75 SunEnergy1 Mercedes has taken over second in GTD from the #21 Ferrari.  Luca Stolz at the wheel of it right now.  As we check in on LMP2, Ryan Dalziel has the #18 Era Motorsport car in sixth.  Christopher Mies could deliver a third consecutive LMP2 win for DragonSpeed in the #82 car since the #81 machine is out.  Timothe Buret is third in the #8 Tower Motorsports entry as well.  

Scott Andrews and Riley Motorsports lead LMP3.  Corvette leading GTLM and they have not won in that class at the Rolex 24 in five years, not since 2016.  Nielsen closes in on Ellis little by little.  This is the cat chasing the mouse or the shark chasing the minnow as it were.  Cooper MacNeil says that he has had a tough race, but he is helped by a few different co-drivers to be taught about a Porsche 911 RSR.  Tough start in a 24 hour motor race.  Cooper MacNeil, Gianmaria Bruni, Richard Lietz, and Kevin Estre were crashed out before the race even started by an amateur move from a pro driver.  Cadillac #48 is pitting and so is the #60 MSR Acura.

Cooper MacNeil will be at Le Mans with Proton and Porsche and he too is also a licensed helicopter pilot.  #10 in the lane.  Filipe Albuquerque is into the car.  Alexander Rossi was working hard to hold off Simon Pagenaud.  Cooper MacNeil and his family are behind the WeatherTech company.  The #01 Ganassi Racing Cadillac is in the lane as well.  Now, Simon Pagenaud is third overall and he is fully up to speed on warm tires, while Filipe Albuquerque has cold tires.  The three way battle in GTD is still on.  We have Phil Ellis vs. Nicklas Nielsen vs. Luca Stolz.  Jordan Taylor leads Nick Tandy in GTLM by 4.2 seconds.

This laser focus on GTD racing is extraordinary to watch.  Interesting to see who has the advantage in different spots of the track between the Mercedes and Ferrari.  Filipe Albuquerque in the #10 Acura continues to lead.  Meantime, Colton Herta says the Turner Motorsports BMW is competitive in GTD and they need a brake change and will become competitive.  They lost a lap with a flat tire and then they had a disconnected fuel line which sprayed fuel in Bill Auberlen's face.  It was a bit of confusion but he's OK and got a shower.  Battles all over the shop here at Daytona.

Corvette #3 is ahead of #4.  Are the #4 boys trying to do a fuel strategy trick?  The two Corvette teams want to beat each other.  Inter-team rivalries.  Corvette #3 into the pit lane.  Tires, fuel, and a driver change.  Standard operating procedure.  Also, a new drinks bottle added to the car.  Jordan Taylor lights up the tires and he's back on the track, down and away.  Simon Pagenaud is closing in on Filipe Albuquerque.  Pit stop time for both the #57 and #21 cars in GTD.  Ellis and Nielsen continue their scrum.  Now, Nick Tandy speaks about the different options on tires and compounds.  They are obvious both day and night but there's a crossover point on the custom Michelin tires for GTLM that have a variety of compounds, sort of like an assortment of chocolates for instance.  Will it be cream filled or caramel and nougat?  Or will it be a chocolate covered cherry?

GTD has added a new player to the game.  Matteo Cressoni was pushing Phil Ellis in the braking zone for turn one and paid the price by spinning!  Man oh man!  Initial argy bargy washed the nose out and Matteo Cressoni gets the short end of the stick on that deal.  He's still in it.  Not an early bath.  But now the tire is starting to come apart.  Matteo Cressoni is a cool customer.  But he has to be bugged by this.  This is purely a racing incident.  Simon Pagernaud reeling in Filipe Albuquerque.  Scott Dixon is also chasing Juan Pablo Montoya.  No further action on that GTD shemozzle we just saw.  

#21 goes up on the air jacks for the tire change and there is fluid pouring out and a crimped exhaust pipe.  Ferrari has not won in class at the Rolex 24 in 40 years or so.  Ferrari has one GT class win in the Rolex 24, in 2014 with Level 5 Motorsports.  Check what was said earlier.  Ferrari has overall wins but just one GT class win.  Pagenaud is 1.1 seconds behind Albuquerque now.  Just over four hours to go.  Katherine Legge and Christina Nielsen, racing for Earl Bamber Motorsports, are representing women in motor racing and Katherine Legge had to go through lots of rehabilitation after a huge crash in a prototype.  But she is back and racing.  Acura #10 on and off pit lane.  Scott Dixon brings the #01 Ganassi Cadillac in as well.

Sticker tires for CGR.  #48 in the lane, and Mike Rockenfeller gets into the car taking over for Simon Pagenaud.  

Rolex 24: Hour 19

Oliver Askew is working on a deal for the Indianapolis 500 after his vicious crash last year.  He is of course competing here in the Rolex 24 as well.  It is so tough to maintain the intensity in this motor race and Helio Castroneves explains how stressful it is.  The car evolves in several ways, and there are tools to adjust the car so it feels right.  But at night, that's a whole different deal.  Loads of downforce and slippery conditions.  Drivers are being respectful, thankfully.  Helio Castroneves slides his seat insert in the back of his firesuit instead of having an insert that molds directly to the racing seat.  Pit stop for Action Express and #31.  A quick pit stop.  Pit work going on for BMW Team RLL in the #24 camp as well.  Alexander Rossi of course is now in the #10 Acura and he is in the lead of this motor race.  

Kevin Magnussen is second, followed by Olivier Pla, and Simon Pagenaud.  Helio Castroneves will race the Indianapolis 500 with Meyer Shank Racing, trying to join A.J. Foyt, Rick Mears, and Al Unser Sr.  Unser Sr. and Foyt were on the same winning team for Preston Henn in a Porsche 962 in this race, at the Rolex 24, back in 1985.  Acura #60 in the pit lane.  Same for #10 and the #01 Cadillac.  Simon Pagenaud spins the #48 Cadillac briefly in turn six.  That is on his out lap on cold tires.  All he lost was time.  Thank heavens he did not flat spot the Michelin tires.  Dragging the left front into the braking zone is a tough one.  Maxi Buhk was nearby him in the Mercedes AMG GT3 for Alegra Motorsports in car #28.  Into the lane, the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R.   

The Mercedes/Ferrari GTD battle resumes.  Philip Ellis chasing Nicklas Nielsen as Colton Herta has a right rear tire flat on the #96 Turner Motorsports BMW M6 GT3.  They were running inside the top ten in GT Daytona.  He did a splash and a dash.  He changed one tire so that there were no delays.  A real shame for Vasser Sullivan Lexus.  They have had a litany of trouble, a fraught race.  It's been rough for both of the Lexus cars for Vasser Sullivan.  The #31 Cadillac is in the garage, stuck in third gear.  This does not look good.  As far as the weather, teams are checking the track temps.  It will get to 75 degrees Fahrenheit towards the end of the race.

The battle is on for the lead.  Rossi vs. Magnussen, WTR vs. CGR, and Acura vs. Cadillac.  Magnussen has to give up the fight for now.  It's still a little early.  Alexander Rossi in the lead of the motor race.  Simon Pagenaud still holds fourth in the #48 car.  Magnussen locks the brakes just a bit.  Felipe Nasr, meanwhile is still back in the garage.  Reportedly, the car is stuck in third gear.  The Whelen Engineering Cadillac has been having issues through this race.  Now, with the Aston Martin as a pick, Kevin Magnuseen tries to take Alexander Rossi, brakes late, gets in the dirt in the Bus Stop chicane, and it looks like Rossi sold him the dummy there.

Full Course Yellow once again, look.  What is it for this time, pray tell?  This is the tenth Full Course Yellow of the motor race.  We have hit double digits.  Only six in 2020.  Meanwhile, in the Whelen Engineering garage, there's still trouble with the Cadillac.  Felipe Nasr was going well and then the transmission got stuck in third gear.  He can't downshift or upshift.  The exhaust manifold is broken.  It has a hole in it.  We are stuck in a hole in this championship at Action Express.  Yours truly cannot believe it.  There was a software issue in the engine, and then, the transmission went out with a bang when fourth gear ate itself and the transmission tore itself to pieces.

We have to go back to the drawing board at AXR.  I shall write a post after this race is over summing up my emotions.  Unbelievable.  We will have to see where we can finish with the #48.  Corvette in the pit lane with both cars and there's more stops for GT cars.  The #57 Winward Mercedes has leapfrogged the #21 AF Corse Ferrari again.  This scrum is not over.  More pit stops for LMP3 and GTD cars as we remain again under Full Course Yellow with a long way still to go this year at the Rolex 24.  The #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche is in the pit lane.

We are ready to resume this motor race under green.  #10 is in the lane for regular service.  Magnussen fades to the inside but it does not work and Rossi still leads.  Alexander Rossi is still trying to escape from Magnussen.  Magnussen is pressing Rossi and he is going to try taking the lead and he does.  He is pulling away now.  Rossi wants a tow through NASCAR turns three and four.  Rossi wants a bite of the cherry indeed.  Magnussen is moving away.  So Rossi will have to be the shark chasing the minnow.  The GTD battle continues between Ellis and Nielsen.  Kevin Magnussen is penalized!  He will have to do a drive through penalty for wheel spin while the car is still on the air jacks!

Magnussen is used to two second F1 pit stops instead of a 30 second pit stop.  He did it last night and got away with it, but not now.  It is fair comment to say that he made a mistake but the penalty is going to be brutal for CGR.  The overall lead and the GTD lead are what we are looking at.  Five hours still to go.  There are fair fights in every one of the classes.  We still have two sprint races to go.  Quite the battle simmering in GTLM.  We'll talk about it soon.  Stay tuned, everyone.  

Rolex 24: Hour 18

The Mercedes AMG/Ferrari battle continues as Maro Engel and Daniel Serra are flying right now.  Potentially, drivers like Mirko Bortolotti, Daniel Serra, and Maro Engel could be in the new GTD Pro formula.  Dane Cameron is now being chased by the #01 Cadillac of Kevin Magnussen.  Pipo Derani runs fourth behind Magnussen.  Engel was driving way too aggressively on Serra.  That was not a good idea on his part.  When will it be time to attack with strategy?  Five DPi cars are within 27 seconds of one another on the lead lap.  There's plenty of time left in the motor race yet.  The GTD battle is still hot and heavy as well.  It is the Engel and Serra show.  These two are really motoring and scrapping with one another.  Serra wants it but can't grab it.  He has more downforce yet noses over into the turn, look.

Serra tries another move on Engel and Engel washes him out wide.  This is fascinating.  Trent Hindman is now stepping back into the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche, and the #3 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R is in the pit box and back into the motor race with Antonio Garcia at the keyboard right now.  Mercedes #57 is in the lane for service.  Fuel and tires at the very least for the Winward boys.  Same for the Ferrari.  This is a fair fight.  The #91 Riley Motorsports LMP3 car has also made a scheduled pit stop.  Just a shade over six and a half hours now left to run in the 59th Rolex 24 at Daytona.  Hard to believe next year in 2022 will be the 60th anniversary of this race.  

Pipo Derani going after the #60 Acura of Dane Cameron.  Ah.  #88 is off and on, the Earl Bamber Motorsports Porsche, for Hardpoint/EBM.  Rob Ferriol, team co-owner at the wheel of it.  Pipo Deranu and Jimmie Johnson are still in this fight.  The Cadillac's are on the verge of unbreakable at this point in time.  What a great car it is, winning the opening five races of 2017 with Wayne Taylor Racing.  Now, after 28 years with GM, Wayne Taylor Racing has switched over to Acura.  Wayne Taylor's arrival with GM was during the 1990s with the Chevrolet Intrepid program.  Soon, WTR Acura will pit and therefore, Alexander Rossi will be ready to take over from Helio Castroneves.

Pit stop time for the #31 Whelen Cadillac.  Chip Ganassi Racing had a 60% win rate between 2006 and 2015.  In the pits, the #60 Acura DPi in for Meyer Shank Racing.  Olivier Pla will take over the car for the next stint.  A familiar automobile for Dane Cameron.  Simon Pagenaud has now been installed into the #48 car.  Alexander Rossi is now into the #10 Acura on the pit stop exchange.  Kevin Magnussen in the lane for fuel and four tires as well.  Kevin Magnussen is in the car I believe.  Magnussen leads Rossi, Nasr, and Pla.  Now, in LMP2, Kyle Tilley is the new class leader in the Era Motorsports car with it's special livery drawn by six year old youngster Owen, from Canada, his dad and grandpa, huge race fans.  His design won the competition, and his drawing is on their car.

We continue to follow the #18 on the track briefly and now are focusing in on LMP3 and the leader in class, the #74 Riley Motorsports Ligier in the hands of Oliver Askew.  Whoops!  We have a spin, and it is another LMP3 car, the #38 Performance Tech entry.  The last time Felipe Nasr and Kevin Magnussen saw each other in the same race was in Formula 1 and they also drove in British Formula 3 for the same team.  Yikes.  Dane Cameron is another driver who has wanted a Rolex 24 win even though he is a three-time IMSA champion with different teams.  

Jimmie Johnson ran his morning stint and he really did well and has had fun.  Jimmie says he had a great stint and was caught in traffic.  Catching a yellow would be a great way for them to catch up.  Matthieu Vaxiviere is still leading LMP2.  We have a very special visitor coming up as nine-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen will check in and say hello.  Maro Engel is chasing down Mikael Grenier.  Tom Kristensen was Grand Marshal at Daytona but never raced at the Rolex 24.  Kristensen is looking at the five Danish drivers in the race this weekend.  Sports car racer Marco Sorensen is with Tom Kristensen doing some simulator work.  Kristensen has an Audi eTron Quattro and a Bentley supercharged road racer.

Calvin Fish, Ayrton Senna, Martin Brundle, Cor Euser, and more, raced together in Formula 3 back in the day in Europe.  Audi of course are going to be back in LMDh and Tom Kristensen thinks the team he drove for will do well when they put their new program online.  LMDh will be a great formula when it happens between the ACO, FIA, and IMSA.  Tom Kristensen has had an incredible career.  Meanwhile, back to racing at the Rolex 24.  We go onboard with the BMW M8 GTE, car #25.  Then onboard with the leading Acura.  A number of gaggles of cars around the speedway right now as the race continues in earnest.  It seems Acura are the ones who are in the pound seats right now as we are just past the 18th hour.

Rolex 24: Hour 17

Some developments at Action Express.  The clicking and ticking sound we heard on the onboard camera was not a header pipe.  It was a driver cooling fan.  Pipo Derani was almost clouted by the #60 MSR Acura. We are also seeing Renger van der Zande in the lead of the motor race in the #01 Cadillac.  Now, we have also seen some drama for the #52 LMP2 car.  Renger van der Zande is going for the hat trick of wins at the Rolex 24.  Renger van der Zande thought he'd remain at Wayne Taylor Racing, but, he was let go from the team, and then picked up at Chip Ganassi Racing.  Jimmie Johnson is also in the lane as the Ganassi team is changing the nose and the downforce, taking aero off the car or adding more with a subtle adjustment.  

The land rush of GTLM and GTD pit stops has just happened.  So there is reshuffling in the order now among the GT classes.  Mercedes #57 is in the lane, still.  We are coming to the restart as Helio Castroneves is in front.  Castroneves is running this one race and Dane Cameron is now second.  In the meantime AXR are third and fourth.  Derani third and Johnson fourth.  Now, Derani is fourth with Johnson in fifth and it seems Renger van der Zande has now come to third.  Meantime, Maro Engel is being monstered by Jan Heylen.  Less than seven hours to go.  We can see LMP3 cars, at least one, cutting it's way through GTD traffic.  That's the #74 Riley Motorsports Ligier for Gar Robinson, Spencer Pigot, Scott Andrews, and Oliver Askew.

The two Corvette C8.R's continue running 1-2 in GTLM nose to tail.  Kenny Habul has moved in the lead in GT Daytona.  Jan Heylen and Kenny Habul were battling really well.  Renger van der Zande is being hotly pursued by Dane Cameron as Helio Castroneves continues on his way in the lead of the motor race.  In the #31 they will do double and triple stints and Chase Elliott could get back into the car before the race is done and dusted.  Renger van der Zande has taken the lead from the #10 Acura.  Milner and Garcia still lead in GTLM for Corvette Racing.  

A battle has ensued between BMW and Ferrari, look, but I believe it is in two different classes with a GTLM car leading a GTD car.  Maro Engel is being challenged by Daniel Serra in GTD.  Wow!  Engel moves in on the road course section in the infield.  The Ferrari might have the edge.  Pit stop time fr Ganassi Cadillac and others in the prototype class.  In replay, the Ferrari gets snookered by the Mercedes.    

Rolex 24: Hour 16

Renger van der Zande now leads the motor race with A.J. Allmendinger now second and then the two Action Express Cadillac's.  This is a one-off for the #48, but they could be back later in the year if sponsorship and scheduling allows.  Kobayashi is going to try Renger van der Zande again.  Kobayashi and Conway, in separate cars at Action Express, are team mates at Toyota in the FIA World Endurance Championship.  Kamui Kobayashi has spun the #48!  He was way to aggressive trying to pass Renger van der Zande.  Don't let the energy of the moment make you think this race is anywhere close to over.  Kobayashi pushes, but don't push too hard!

Kamui Kobayashi assumed the door was open, but Kobayashi had the door slammed in his face.  James Calado is now trying to move around Tommy Milner.  But Connor De Philippi is leading GTLM in a BMW M8 GTE at the moment.  The rosy orange glow of dawn is beginning to paint it's tapestry across the Florida sky.  The GTLM battle remains hot and heavy.  Pipo Derani is getting ready to go back into the #31 Whelen Cadillac as the GTLM battle continues.  Antonio Garcia chasing Connor De Philippi.  The #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R is still fighting in GTD.  Ellis, Marciello, and Cressoni are the top three in GTD.  Mercedes, Mercedes, and Ferrari.  

Phillip Ellis is really pushing, and Raffaele Marciello is an AMG Mercedes factory driver, one of the fastest GT drivers globally.  Kenny Habul won the Intercontinental GT Challenge Pro Am honors at the California 8 Hours a few years ago.  Habul bought property on Conrod straight at Mount Panorama Bathurst.  Renger van der Zande leads DPi.  Now, the GTD battle is harem scarem stuff.  Pace wise, the #31 is running well, but there could be a cracked exhaust.  Hopefully that is not the case.  It could be big trouble with the performance and the reliability of the car.  Good battles going on in the LMP2 class right now as the sun continues to climb higher into the sky at Daytona.

It is just past 7:00 A.M. Eastern Time.  The works Porsche team a few years back put the Brumos livery on their car and they also had a Coca Cola livery on that car.  David MacNeil, the owner of WeatherTech has a few of those cars in his collection.  Cooper MacNeil's dad.  Now, we are watching Matteo Cressoni being hounded by Philip Ellis.  Mike Conway is making headway on A.J. Allmendinger.  No real worries about the cracked header.  However, the grip of the tires is something that is a spot of bother for all the DPi drivers.  

Ferrari racing Mercedes in GTD.  Now, Pipo Derani is expected to get into the #31 car on their next pit stop.  Pit stop time indeed for #31.  Tires, fuel, and a driver change as Pipo Derani is getting into the car.  #48 is also into the pit lane for service.  The sunlight coming to the track is very special.  You are getting a second wind, reaching ro another gear.  Now, in the lead of the motor race it is still Renger van der Zande.  Castroneves is second followed by Dane Cameron and Pipo Derani.  Connor De Philippi is running in front in GTLM over Antonio Garcia and Tommy Milner in the Corvette's.  The BMW's are committed to the four endurance races.

GTLM cars are bespoke while the GT3 cars are global and have a dozen manufacturers involved.  Audi and Porsche no longer have an official prototype factory program but they will be there for LMDh and so will Acura.  Works and customer programs are expected and there will be GT convergence as well.  Coming off the pandemic year, we are amazingly racing with 49 cars in this particular motor race we are witnessing now.  The Acura's also have a fuel advantage, at least over the Cadillac's.  Sun is rising at Daytona and so, daylight will be here soon.

The battles are fierce.  IMSA is looking to electric vehicles and one of these is a Hyundai electric race car.  The Hyundai ETCR.  500 kilowatts of power.  There is instant power with four electric engines and no conventional transmission.  This falls in line with the green racing initiative for IMSA.  Hopes are to see electric cars racing with petrol powered cars.  Chevrolet and Cadillac will be electric fully by 2035.  Electric race cars could very well be in our future if the cars can run on a charge.  There are many electric car manufacturers.  We could get an electric class going for IMSA and maybe for the World Endurance Championship as well.

Corvette and BMW in the lane, after battling for the GTLM lead.  Pipo Derani is in a major dust up with Dane Cameron.  Tommy Milner has leapfrogged Connor De Philippi.  Also, the #3 Corvette is in the pit lane.  A clean stop for the most part except for a slight kerfuffle with a tire.  Kenny Habul goes off and in the #75, as maybe the left rear tire is down or something.  Hard to tell if Kenny Habul got in deep or if it was on the out lap.  An ugly scene on the banking between two GTD cars as the #64 TGM Porsche runs on from the Bus Stop and the #97 Aston Martin spins in avoidance.  Meanwhile, BMW has caught the Corvette's after Tommy Milner has moved around Antonio Garcia.  Ted Giovanis gets inside of Ben Keating and how those two came together, I don't know.

Giovanis was late on the brakes and he will be pinged by the marshals with a penalty.  Did he run in deep?  Maybe so.  He has been in racing for 30 years, but is 75 years old.  

Rolex 24: Hour 15

A.J. Allmendinger is now closing up on Mike Rockenfeller.  Mike Conway does lead over Scott Dixon at this particular moment.  Several teams want to have another Full Course Yellow for making changes and repairs to their cars.  What will happen in the next 45 minutes?  The DPi cars are running like trains and it will get even spicier when the sun rises.  The Cadillac's have a major advantage over the Acura's at the moment.  Traffic giveth.  Traffic taketh away, is the motto in endurance racing.  There could have been a slight touch between the #55 Mazda and the #60 Acura.  Mike Conway leads Scott Dixon by almost 1.3 seconds.  The battle at the front is steaming right along as Scott Dixon catching Mike Conway.  Bill Auberlen and Bryan Sellers are in a spot of bother.  Auberlen will be penalized, and about 40 minutes ago, there was argy bargy between Klaus Bachler and Bryan Sellers.

Klaus Bachler did take a penalty.  Alexander Sims is on his outlap, and we also see Connor De Philippi and James Calado taking stops.  Nick Catsburg will have to pit.  Now, Kevin Estre has rejoined the race in the much delayed #79 WeatherTech Porsche 911 RSR-19, the WeatherTech car.  Mike Conway is running 4/10ths of a second to Scott Dixon, and then to Ricky Taylor.  Wow.  How do you like these onions, mate?  No roughhousing between these blokes.  Mike Conway has an advantage, maybe, but Scott Dixon goes to the high side.  Conway stays in the lead of the motor race.  

Scott Dixon has gone around Mike Conway for the time being.  As dawn breaks, the #8 Tower Motorsports LMP2 car has not done a brake change yet.  If there is a yellow, that technical servicing of the cars can get done fairly quickly.  59 rookie drivers in this race at the Rolex 24 this year and many drivers will be going for the full season IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship.  Mike Conway will hit the pit lane soon.  Scott Dixon is still leading.  Kamui Kobayashi is going run for an hour and a half then Jimmie Johnson will get in for sunrise.  #31 in the pit lane for scheduled service.  

Chase Elliott is doing a much better job than he was doing.  Is there still damage underneath the car?  It seems the damage does not matter anymore because the car is back in the game.  Now, the Corvette team cars are still scrapping for the GTLM lead.  Alexander Sims leads Nicky Catsburg at this particular moment.  Cadillac #01 is now in the pit lane.  Five of the teams in this race are running with three driver teams, so their rotation schedules are a tad different and according to the rules you can't run more than four hours in a six hour window.

Connor De Philippi in BMW #25 is catching the Corvette's.  BMW took a hit after the Roar qualifying race with 20 kilograms added.  Heavier cars are slower.  How much downforce do you have?  How much power does the motor have?  How much weight are you carrying?  Now we see some shuffling in DPi with Ricky Taylor moving to the lead over Kamui Kobayashi, Renger van der Zande, and Mike Conway.  Nicky Catsburg is in his fourth stint while Alex Sims is in his third.  Now, we have Gabriel Aubry leading in LMP2.  Paul Loup-Chatin is second.  Sunrise is approaching here at Daytona.  It won't be long.  

Debris in the trio oval is causing another Full Course Yellow from the flag stand.  Now, this seems to be some sort of signpost that has been scattered somewhere.  At the start, Corvette's and Ferrari's went off the road, and after stopping, of course, Kevin Estre rear ended the car.  One of the Mercedes GT3 cars just threaded the needle big style between a couple course vehicles!  Pit stop time as well now for the DPi contenders.  Several of them just now in and out of the pit lane.  Jimmie Johnson is clearly enjoying this motor race, soaking it up, drinking it in.  

Chad Knaus is also having a good time as the team manager on the #48 car.  But the pit crews will be burned out completely.  The yellow flag continues and we should be getting back to green flag racing in short order, hopefully.  Many of these yellows have really thrown the rhythm of the race off compared to what yours truly got to witness in person last year.  The restart is imminent.  

Rolex 24: Hour 14

Nicolas Lapierre, who was just in the pit lane, just had contact on the track.  Turn three behind the pits, is where Nicolas Lapierre is stranded.  He had forward momentum, and the windscreen wiper is off the windscreen and so, he's had a spin.  This is not good for Ben Keating and his ambition of drive time in an LMP2 car.  Nico Lapierre brings out the seventh Full Course Yellow of the motor race after two and a half hours of green flag running.  Oliver Gavin, also, has pitted and taken the #14 AVS Lexus RC F GT3 behind the wall.  The top three GTLM cars have pitted.  No driver changes.  Alexander Sims in #4, Nicky Catsburg in #3, and Phillip Eng in the #25.  So, in replay we see the car almost getting tapped, and he spins to avoid the #38 LMP3 Performance Tech Ligier.  It is believed Nico Lapierre is staying in the car but the flatbed will pick it up.  The bodywork and the suspension are damaged on the car I believe.  The Performance Tech car was o the road, and the #52 did take two full spins through the International Horseshoe.

Oliver Gavin is now back in the race with the #14 Lexus RC F GT3.  The #12 Lexus had the debris damage from earlier.  #52 has bodywork and suspension damage and the car is stuck in gear.  But Nico Lapierre is out of the car and is just fine.  Pits are open for prototypes and Kenton Koch is in the lane in the #6 LMP3 car for Muehlner Motorsports America for a brake change.  This is the mandatory technical pit stop, the mandatory brake change in an eight minute window I believe.  Also, the #10 Acura ARX-05 is in the pit lane from fourth, with a a brake change as well as Ricky Taylor stays in the car, on a dry brake system with quick disconnects on the calipers etc. without draining the brake fluid.  

There's nothing holding the disc on.  There is a spline, a locating peg, that holds it on.  Floating disc brakes.  The #18 Era Motorsports LMP2 Oreca was having trouble with the electronics for the downshift for the transmission.  But, everything seems to be working out OK for the team at the moment.  Dwight Merriman has met his minimum drive time and so now, Kyle Tilley, Ryan Dalziel, and Paul-Loup Chatin will take the car to the finish.  Era Motorsports are racing in IMSA and also in the Asian Le Mans Series.  Era Motorsports will be racing the Asian Le Mans Series at the Dubai Autodrome and the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi.  

Green flag, and did someone pass before the start/finish line?  Jonathan Bomarito is trying to get a lap back.  That was close to accelerating before the start/finish line.  That was very close.  We shall see a replay on that, maybe.  Restart under review?  Very possible.  Mike Rockenfeller still leads the motor race in the #48 Ally Bank Cadillac.  #55 is the car that may be penalized.  A stop + 60 second hold for Muehlner Motorsports #6, the Duqueine D08 Nissan.  Working on a car in a closed pit.  That could have been for emergency service but apparently it was not.  Action Express are back to 1-2 order.  Mike Rockenfeller leads Felipe Nasr.

Another interesting penalty for the #14 Lexus RC F GT3 for working on a car in an unapproved area of it.  We are getting close to the morning hours.  Felipe Nasr was muscled onto the grass somehow or other.  Has the restart been put under review?  Not yet.  Not that we can tell.  Jonathan Bomarito was trying to get a lap back, and he moved in on Felipe Nasr.  Montoya, Dixon, and Taylor are running fourth, fifth, and sixth.  Corvette has split their strategy although it seems the #4 has been getting better fuel mileage than the #3, and now, the BMW is pressing the Corvette, giving it a fair fight.  Alexander Sims is 3/4 of a second up the road.  

Yours truly was taking a short break and now, we can see some chopping and changing as Felipe Nasr leads, leading Montoya, Dixon, and Taylor.  There was some talk about the Michelin tires and their specs.  Yours truly missed that.  Meanwhile, we are watching the #57 Winward Mercedes being absolutely hounded by the #21 AF Corse Ferrari.  Indy Dontje vs. Nicklas Nielsen.  Spencer Pigot is the new leader in LMP3.  We miss the works Porsche's, and thankfully the WeatherTech team took the Porsche 911 RSR-19 along with Proton Competition, after the farewell tour with the factory Porsche team.  We were talking to Frank Weissman, the project manager for Porsche Cars North America.  

The #31 Whelen Cadillac is back in the pit lane and it looks like it is standard service and Nasr has been passed by Scott Dixon in the #01 Ganassi Racing Cadillac.  As for Porsche and customer racing, LMDh has been announced, with the new version of the DPi cars.  They really are focusing on coming to IMSA.  Porsche Carrera Cup North America is officially hosted.  We are looking forward to what is going to happen with LMDh in 2023.  Porsche Cup have also now aligned with Michelin tires.

Drivers will be able to advance on the Porsche Racing ladder as well.  Indy Dontje continues on in the lead of GTD ahead of Nielsen, Luca Stolz, and Charlie Eastwood.  With GTD Pro, they will have works or semi works and customer teams at Porsche and at other brands as well.  Nicklas Nielsen seems to go one step forward and ends up two steps back while Mike Conway leads the motor race for the #31 Cadillac team.  

Rolex 24: Hour 13

Push without risk.  That is the idea.  We will be seeing daylight in oh, another two or three hours.  Mike Rockenfeller has not driven a prototype car for a while.  He has won in a prototype with Action Express.  Lately he has been in the German DTM championship which is actually moving to GT3 cars this season.  Three wide, splitting the #111 GRT Grasser Lamborghini, and here comes Mike Rockenfeller trying to move in, making inroads on Filipe Albuquerque.  That was heads up driving from both of those chaps.  We are just over halfway through this motor race.  Kevin Magnussen is hanging on and now, Chase Elliott has dropped to 35 seconds behind and Juan Pablo Montoya is going to be moving in on the defending NASCAR Cup Series champion.

The battle continues through lapped traffic.  There are only three or four cars out of the race.  49 starters and there are still 45 cars on track.  The closest position battle is for the overall lead.  Oh my.  One of the GT Daytona Audi's is in strife on the apron of the race track.  That's the #42 NTE Sport Audi R8, Alan Metni at the controls.  The Win Autosport Oreca is continuing to suffer on track, and it may be in the pit lane and Alan Metni is taking the #42 Audi to the garage.  The WIN Autosport car is back in the race but having trouble, still.  There could be rake issues and now, we see Alan Metni making contact with an LMP2 car in turn six.  That was the #11.  Now, we saw a pit stop for the #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari and new boots onto the #48 Ally Bank Cadillac.  Mike Rockenfeller still in the pit lane.

Chase Elliott has moved around Juan Pablo Montoya for third spot.  Alan Metni is responsible for the incident with the #11 car of Tristan Nunez.  So whoever is driving that car when it is fixed, it will have to serve the penalty.  Now, pit stop time for both the #31 Whelen Cadillac and the #60 MSR Acura.  Chase Elliott overshoots the pit box just a shade.  But the pit stop seemed to go well otherwise.  So, now the order is shifting and Kevin Magnussen is now in the overall lead.  The #10 Acura has pitted and for fuel only it seems.  Maybe they are double stinting tires on that car.  Hard to tell.  

The #57 Winward Racing Mercedes AMG GT3 is in the lane as well.  Ricky Taylor replaces Filipe Albuquerque in the #10 car.  Daniel Serra was also in the lane in the #21 AF Corse Ferrari.  Kevin Magnussen just pitted the Ganassi Cadillac, the #01 car.  Mike Rockenfeller is reeling in Ricky Taylor hand over fist at the moment while Juan Montoya is third and in fourth, Felipe Nasr, plugged back into the #31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac.  Ian James and Heart of Racing has run well, and they raise money for Team Seattle and the Seattle Children's Hospital.  Some members of the team are located in New Zealand while others are in North America right now.

Scott Dixon has served a stop + 20 seconds penalty for driving 25 kilometers an hour over the speed limit to get through the Michelin RFID scanners.  In DPi, we see Ricky Taylor leading followed by Mike Rockenfeller, Felipe Nasr, and Juan Pablo Montoya.  Timothe Buret leads Roberto Lacorte in LMP2.  Chris Mies and Ryan Dalziel fourth.  Scott Andrews leads Kenton Koch, Lancy Willsey and Dylan Murry in LMP3.  Alexander Sims, Nicky Catsburg, Jesse Krohn, and Phillip Eng are the top four in GTLM.  Then, in GT Daytona it is Indy Dontje, Daniel Serra, Luca Stolz, and Darren Turner.  

You've not missed anything at the front.  Filipe Albuquerque has moved to Acura and Wayne Taylor Racing, after driving for a few years for Cadillac and Action Express.  Filipe Albuquerque knows the drivers for that particular team.  We have eleven hours and 15 minutes to go.  So, there's still a long, long way to go and drivers and teams need to haver a lot left in the locker.  Into the pit lane, the #42 Audi R8, the beleaguered NTE Sport car.  Lance Willsey spins and continues.  He spun in turn one and gets back on in front of the #63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 488 GT3.  The #42  Alan Metni driven Audi had to have the toe links fixed on the sterring apparatus.  Sadly, both of the GRT Grasser Lamborghini's have retired.  #111 has finally called it a night due to ongoing electrical woes.

Now, Felipe Nasr is into the pit lane after a 20 lap stint, but he stays in the car.  He took the car over from Chase Elliott a half an hour ago or so.  Car #42 has a penalty for speeding in the lane and there is another car stopped at turn two while Mike Rockenfeller stays in the #48 Ally Cadillac.  Car #7 is off the track in the Forty7 Motorsports Duqueine Nissan.  Also, pit stop time for the #10 Konica Minolta Acura.  Ricky Taylor continues to lead.  Juan Pablo Montoya is now in the #60 Acura.  Meantime, we had been remiss to check in on #7, but that car is being shared by Mark Kvamme, Ryan Norman, Gabby Chaves, and Trenton Estep.  Scott Dixon pits the #01 Cadillac DPi-V.R.  Fuel, tires, and a windscreen clean for #01.  The maximum fuel drop is 30 seconds.   

The #52 PR1 Wynn's LMP2 car is in the pit lane for service.  Coming up to yet another racing hour.  

 

Rolex 24: Hour 12

It is indeed nearly time for the witching hour.  The #48 Ally Bank Action Express Racing Cadillac is back on the pit lane.  Watch out for the dive planes.  There's all kinds of rubber, rocks, and sand pitting the front of the car.  Chunks taken out of the undertray will make the aerodynamics unworkable.  Simon Pagenaud is in the car.  The pit exit here at Daytona is 16 and a half feet wide, and the interstate is 12 feet wide.  Leaving that narrow pit lane on cold tires in the middle of the night, there's no room for error.  If you slide over to another lane on the interstate you are OK, but some of the best drivers in the world have slammed into the pit wall on the exit of the lane here at Daytona in the 24 hours.  It's bitten several drivers of all experience levels.

Filipe Albuquerque is now in the pit lane from what was the lead, and now, the #01 is back in and the #31 is as well.  Chase Elliott getting into the car and Pipo Derani out.  There's not much damage to the underbody on the #01 Cadillac.  Ganassi beats Action Express out of the pit lane.  Simon Pagenaud has moved up to second and Chase Elliott is now driving the #31 Whelen Cadillac, in fourth place.  The two Corvette boys are scrapping for the GTLM lead.  Nick Tandy is first in class and Jordan Taylor in second place.  It is 55 degrees in Daytona Beach, Florida, right now.  GT Le Mans is the only division in IMSA where there are different compounds for the tires.  Maro Engel leads GT Daytona in the #57 Winward Mercedes, and seven seconds in-arrears is the SunEnergy1 Mercedes AMG GT3 with Mikael Grenier at the wheel of it.

The real stories are going to start happening once the sun comes up.  We have more to talk about, more stories to tell.  Giorgio Sernagiotto is leading the LMP2 class for the #47 Cetilar Racing Dallara.  Scott Andrews in the Ligier for Riley Motorsports leads LMP3.  The top four in DPi are still fighting for it.  Filipe Albuquerque leading over Simon Pagenaud, and Chase Elliott.  The weather is very cold at Daytona sometimes.  Generally it is very nice during the daytime, but there have been frosts and also fog in the past in the middle of the night.  Again, when yours truly was at Daytona last year, it seemed very nippy during the overnight.

There's more variation here at Daytona in the wintertime than their would be in the summertime at Le Mans or Spa Francorchamps.  We are 40 minutes out from half distance and so far, the front of the field has ebbed and flowed between the top six.  The race is wide open for the time being or so it seems.  The early cautions broke the rhythm, but there have been some good, long green flag periods as well.  Filipe Albuquerque is now being monstered by Simon Pagenaud.  The turbo 3.5 liter V6 Acura vs. the normally aspirated 5.5 liter V8 Cadillac.  Albuquerque closes the door in Pagenaud's face.  Albuquerque and Pagenaud are into their third stints of driving in their respective cars at this point in time.  TThis is down to the drivers with a long, long, long way to go yet.

Fuel stints have ranged between 21-22 laps.  Simon Pagenaud is right in the slipstream of Filipe Albuquerque and therefore he is able to save fuel and could leapfrog their rival on the pit stop exchanges.  The DPi cars are based on the current LMP2 chassis' of course.  There are new chassis' that will be made for the new LMP2 homologated cars, and then, we will see the new LMDh cars in January 2023.  Porsche and Audi will be in IMSA for sure.  Acura has also confirmed something.  We have yet to hear about what Mazda and General Motors would like to do as we see the camera work from "Rooftop Ray", Ray Wentzel Jr.  

Nick Tandy and Jordan Taylor have made stops and so have Jesse Krohn and Jules Gounon.  Gounon ran 30 laps while the Corvette's ran 33.  BMW's have run 25 or so laps.  Bruno Spengler has replaced Phillip Eng in the BMW.  That has to be the #25 while the #24 car has Jesse Krohn at the keyboard.  In GT Daytona, we can see Maro Engel leading the class still over Daniel Serra in the AF Corse Ferrari, Mikael Grenier in the #75 SunEnergy1 Mercedes, and the #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R has now been passed by the #23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 of Darren Turner.  We are a shade under a half hour away from the halfway mark of the race.

Now, Kevin Magnussen seems to be nibbling away at the leaders.  Chase Elliott still runs fourth.  Simon Pagenaud is closing on Filipe Albuquerque.  This battle is getting spicy.  Now, Chase Elliott is losing some time, but he is still right in it, just ahead of Olivier Pla, the French sports car racing veteran. Elliott had not driven the car until the Roar Before the Rolex 24 last weekend.  Chase Elliott is very consistent for being a first-time endurance driver.  Pit stop time for the #48 Ally Cadillac.  This was a 20 lap stint for Simon Pagenaud and another new set of boots on the car.  Pagenaud is on cold tires and on full tanks, a full 100 liters of petrol.

Mike Rockenfeller has actually taken over aboard the #48 car.  He was on of the drivers on the team when Action Express won their first Rolex 24, over a decade ago in 2010.  Acura #60 is in the lane now too as well and it appears Olivier Pla is staying in the car.  The teams have been scrubbing in tires all week.  The edge can be taken off the tire once they have come out of their release agent chemicals.  In the lane as well, the #10 Konica Minolta Acura and now, Juan Pablo Montoya is in that automobile.  Now the #31 Whelen Action Express Cadillac has just made a pit stop and Chase Elliott is still in the car.  I was wrong.  Filipe Albuquerque stays in the Acura.

#01 is in the lane now as well and they are getting good gas mileage in that automobile.  Now, the #47 Cetilar Racing LMP2 Dallara is pitting and this is going to be a longer stop for this team but they are back on track.  Giorgio Sernagiotto is at the wheel of it.  Earl Bamber moves around the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche of Trent Hindman.  Now, that is the Wright Motorsports car, and also the #88 Earl Bamber Motorsports Porsche.  Patrick Long says he has just driven a three hour stint.  They were collected by the #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche as well which we saw earlier on.  Some damage in front of the left rear wheel of the car with the tow in knocked out and the rocker panel is also busted.  Plus there is no left hand mirror.

Maybe the solution for the future of sports car racing will be fewer classes and more opportunities for young drivers.  It's the "kiss" philosophy.  Keep it simple, stupid.  A spot of bother for the Win Autosport LMP2 car in the hands of Tristan Nunez.  It has gone straight back into the garage with a brake rotor issue.  nging the rotors all the way around.  They are doing a brake change on that LMP2 machine.  

Rolex 24: Hour 11

Kevin Magnussen seems to be enjoying driving here at Daytona.  The pit crew members just cannot sleep.  This is tiring for everybody.  One reason why four drivers is a good idea, is allowing other drivers to rest.  A triple stint is an hour and 45 minutes, but it takes you 15 minutes to go back and another 30 to get back to pit lane.  Nick Tandy is running really well in the #4 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R leading team mate Jordan Taylor in the sister car, #3.  Filipe Albuquerque is second in DPi and overall, and we see Simon Pagenaud third and Mike Conway fourth.  Simon Mann leads GT Daytona in the #21 AF Corse Ferrari.  Matthieu Vaxiviere leads the LMP2 class.  Aaron Telitz is second in GTD followed by Corey Lewis and Lars Kern.

The BMW's have not had the speed, but they want the fuel mileage, and those cars were lifting and coasting into turn one.  They are conserving fuel on long, green flag runs.  Lifting and coasting is how you make the fuel mileage, rolling speed into the corner.  Corvette Racing continues to run 1-2 in GTLM.  In the meantime, the #01 Ganassi Racing Cadillac continues to circulate in the lead of this motor race.  No real surprise there.  Trouble in paradise, look, for the #12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3.  The car is on fire.  Flames licking from the left front corner of the automobile.  What have we here?  

It looks like the marshals are putting it out.  Now, they were behind the wall for 45 minutes with radiator damage.  Frankie Montecalvo was at the wheel of the car.  He's way off the track.  There's fire belching out the exhausts on both sides.  Oil is spewing out of the exhaust and igniting on the white hot headers.  Montecalvo will steer the car as the marshals are going to push it.  We will see pit stops and maybe a restart in the next few moments.  So, it could be game over for the #12 Lexus of Frankie Montecalvo, Robert Megennis, Townsend Bell, and Zach Veach.  That would be a tough break for those boys, with Megennis and Veach being Rolex 24 rookies.

Yes.  Yes indeed.  A flat tow for the #12 car.  The race continues behind the Lexus LC500 safety car with well over 13 hours left to go.  The Rolex watch is one of the coolest things a driver can win as something that means even more than a trophy.  Pit stop time, and many cars and drivers will get new brakes.  Both Action Express Cadillac's are in the pit lane.  It is time for a brake change on the #31 car.  They are grinding the brakes down.  The brake change is also taking place on the #48 car.  When do you make the brake change?  There is more daylight running on Sunday.  Clearly Action Express is making their brake change now, under yellow.

A brake change has also gone on for the #60 MSR Acura.  Simon Pagenaud at the controls of the #48, and the car didn't start immediately, so the team had to push it.  Typically, the car has to start on it's own steam.  Both Corvette's come in for service.  The #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin' as well.  The prototypes and the GT cars are using similar levels of braking.  BMW are also taking a brake change, while Corvette did not at this point.  The BMW boys are playing it safe and not gambling.

The #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche also made a brake change as well.  Zach Robichon sharing with Lars Kern, Laurens Vanthoor, and Matt Campbell.  Pit stop time for a number of the teams including Wayne Taylor Racing and also Chip Ganassi Racing pit.  Mazda #55 was also in the lane for a rear wing change mandated by IMSA due to malfunctioning brake lights.  So this has put the #55 Mazda of Harry Tincknell, Oliver Jarvis, and Jonathan Bomarito behind the eight ball.  A lead change in GTD as the #75 SunEnergy1 Mercedes AMG GT3 has taken the lead, being driven by the quartet of Kenny Habul, Raffaele Marciello, Mikael Grenier, and Luca Stolz, a car that we've not called the number of for a wee while.

Back up on the high bamks, the battle is seemingly in full swing between the #10 Acura of Filipe Albuquerque and the #01 Cadillac of Kevin Magnussen.  Simon Pagenaud is still in this fight and so is Pipo Derani.  So, both of the Action Express Cadillac's are on the lead lap.  Olivier Pla in the fifth spot is also in the hunt in the #60 MSR Acura.  Maro Engel in the #57 Winward Racing Mercedes has passed Mikael Grenier in the SunEnergy1 Mercedes being assisted by Gradient Racing who raced an Acura NSX GT3 last year in 2020.  Maro Engel, the German, is in the #57 Mercedes AMG GT3 sharing with Philip Ellis from Germany, Russell Ward from the United States, and Dutchman Indy Dontje.  

Pipo Derani is beginning to reel in both Simon Pagenaud and Kevin Magnussen.  Filipe Albuquerque continues to lead the motor race for Acura and Wayne Taylor Racing.  They are a team that is going for a hat trick here at the Rolex 24 having won the past two years with Cadillac.  Ganassi and Action Express are trying to spoil their party and there's still a long way to go.  We won't be at the halfway mark of the motor race for another hour and ten minutes yet.  Brake discs glowing cherry red on the #10 Acura on the infield road course here at Daytona.  Going up one level, you can get an advantage in endurance racing.  It is just past 2:30 A.M. Eastern Time in Daytona Beach, Florida, 1:30 A.M. Central Time.

We are getting close to the end of the 11th hour, here at the Rolex 24.  Nighttime is indeed the right time right now, referencing that 1957 Nappy Brown R&B song once again.  The cars screaming down the front straight here at Daytona is a sight to behold, especially in the darkness.  Wayne Taylor Racing with Filipe Albuquerque and Acura are still leading.  We are an hour or so away from the middle point of this racing.  We've driven from Daytona to Jacksonville, and are already to Houston and San Antonio, Texas, and all the way to Santa Clarita, California.

364 laps, 1,296 miles run so far.  

Rolex 24: Hour 10

Kevin Magnussen is so excited about being a part of sports car racing and the fact that he is not under the same level of pressure as Formula 1.  Now, Thomas Merrill leads LMP2, Antonio Garcia leading GTLM, Stevan McAleer leads LMP3, and Matteo Cressoni leads GT Daytona.  Pit stop time for the #48 Action Express Racing Cadillac.  Fuel and tires, but a double stint for Jimmie Johnson, gunning the motor and doing a burnout as he leaves the pit lane.  Presumably he is running on sticker Michelin tires.  We also watch the #6 Muehlner Motorsports America LMP3 car.  This again is the Hoerr/Kranz/Koch/McAleer machine.  Stevan McAleer is leading in LMP3.  McAleer leads LMP3 over Joao Barbosa and Oliver Askew.  An incident is under review by Race Control as the #5 Mustang Sampling JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac back to the garage which was presumably hit by Patrick Long in the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R.  

Trent Hindman was drafted into the car after Ryan Hardwick's accident.  On the left side of the Porsche there was a mega sized hole in front of the left rear wheel.  The #5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac is being repaired but they will also have to serve a drive through penalty for incident responsibility with the Wright Motorsports Porsche.  In replay, was see both cars spinning backwards into corner number one and actually out onto the infield grass by he tri oval.  There's suspension damage and the whole undertray of the Cadillac will have to be replaced.  The left side sidepod is also damaged as well.  

The rear wing is missing an endplate.  So, heavy damage for the JDC-Miller team.  Patrick Long has raced all over the world for Porsche.  Patrick Long is on the ragged edge, leading for his class and he can't just push the disappear button.  Tristan Vautier, Loic Duval, and Sebastien Bourdais's race has gone to pieces.  Meanwhile, the #01 Cadillac pits for Chip Ganassi Racing.  Tires are being changed and fuel is added.  No driver change on that car that we can see.  He is down and away, back into the motor race.  Pit stop time as well for the Wright Motorsports Porsche and for the #60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-05.  

In the meantime, work continues on the JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac, frantically working on the #5 car.  Not a pretty scene for those chaps.  Jan Heylen was at the wheel of the #16 when Tristan Vautier plowed into him.  Patrick Long is getting set to get into the car.  Jan Heylen wonders what on earth that mess was all about.  We watch the sole Mazda RT24P in this race and also the #52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Wynn's liveried LMP2 Oreca making a pit stop.  That car being shared by Americans Ben Keating, and Scott Huffaker, Mikkel Jensen of Denmark, and Frenchman Nicolas Lapierre.  

It is now Sunday morning.  Midnight or so, the witching hour.  There was another car, in that incident between Jan Heylen and Tristan Vautier.  The #9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R did spin out into turn one.  It sounds like the #9 may have tagged the other cars.  Jan Heylen gave the DPi car the space, but Zacharie Robichon could easily have hit the #16 machine.  Race Control has other cameras that the TV staff at NBC Sports does not have.  Cadillac #5 will have a drive through penalty if they come back out, but it could be their race is over.  However, if it was not their fault, it could be a penalty for the Pfaff Motorsports Porsche.  

Jan Heylen believes he was hit by the #9 car.  The #9 boys did apologize to Wright Motorsports.  The #5 Mustang Sampling JDC-Miller Cadillac was an innocent bystander.  The #5 car was not at fault, and good sportsmanship too on the part of the #9 team.  A couple of major contenders have been impacted in their classes.  Cadillac looks to make it five in a row at the Rolex 24, but which team will it be?  Will it be Chip Ganassi Racing?  Will it be Action Express?  Pit stop time too for the #3 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R for fuel, tires, and a driver change.  Jordan Taylor looks to be in the car now.

Fourteen and a half hours still remain in the race.  We won't be at the halfway mark for another hour and a half yet.  Renger van der Zande leads Jimmie Johnson by 5.2 seconds.  From Race Control, we have news.  It sounds like they've spoken to Wright Motorsports and JDC-Miller Motorsports.  The #5 Cadillac will not serve a penalty when they get back out on the course.  Oliver Askew is really beginning to apply the blowtorch to Moritz Kranz in LMP3.  Goodness gracious.  Askew is a very, very quick driver.  Riley Motorsports, has a top team and a top lineup, and their sister car #91 was running well, too, until they had their issues earlier in the motor race.  Spencer Pigot and Oliver Askew sharing with Gar Robinson and Scott Andrews.  

#74 is in the lane.  Riley Motorsports are running a couple of Ligier's in LMP3.  Also in the lane, the #48 Ally Bank Cadillac.  Jimmie Johnson out, and now, Simon Pagenaud is back into the car for the real night shift and he will be able to uncork some really fast laps in the cool of the night.  They have done a number of pit stops on that car, unfortunately.  The car that has the advantage, or so it seems, is the #10 Acura, Alexander Rossi at the wheel of it.  Acura #10 is in the pit lane for service.  Alexander Rossi will get out of the car.  Not sure who will get in.  Is it Ricky Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque, or Helio Castroneves?

It is Filipe Albuquerque into the car.  Renger van der Zande still leads the motor race with Dane Cameron the new second place man aboard the #60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-05 DPi.  A spot of bother through the Bus Stop for the #6 LMP3 car again.  That's the Muehlner Motorsports America car we mentioned earlier.  A battle developing in GTLM as well with the #25 BMW M8 GTE for BMW Team RLL and the beleaguered #79 WeatherTech Racing Porsche 911 RSR-19.  Jimmie Johnson says AXR is trying to balance tire life, pace, and traffic.  Into the lane now, the #01 Chip Ganassi Cadillac.  Night racing is very difficult and mentally taxing for the drivers.  The drivers' vision is definitely affecting and sleep management is a major deal.

More off-track excursions for the #6 LMP3 car that we've seen in the wars throughout this motor race.  Moritz Kranz amazingly maintains the advantage in LMP3.  He was being pressured by other cars in other classes and overshoots the braking zone.  Lance Willsey has moved up to second in the #33 Sean Creech Motorsports entry while Filipe Albuquerque runs second in DPi and everything went dark in their pit lane.  Something was going on with their generator, their power source.  Kevin Magnussen continues to lead the motor race.  Magnussen is back aboard the #01 Ganassi Racing Cadillac with the two Action Express cars in third and fourth.

Rolex 24: Hour 9

Kamui Kobayashi has gone back to the lead of the motor race and holds an 8.7 second advantage over Renger van der Zande.  Grab a nap in the endurance sports car races whenever you can, especially at the Rolex 24.  You have to recharge at any time you can.  Chase Elliott looking on, along with Action Express team manager Tim Keane.  A.J. Allmendinger says he is racing well with the MSR Acura.  Jimmie Johnson is ready for another stint in the #48 Action Express Ally Bank Cadillac.  Jimmie Johnson looks dismayed, shaking his head on the pit box.  Now, is there a telemetry issue or something with the #48?  Kamui Kobayashi is still clobbering the curbs in the Bus Stop.  

In GT Daytona, Nicklas Nielsen is leading in GT Daytona for AF Corse.  Nielsen is being chased by Andrea Caldarelli in the #1 Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3.  The team has so much familiarity and Caldarelli is a factory Lamborghini driver, so a very plug and play kind of a driver indeed.  In endurance racing, sometimes you have to do your best if you are not the fastest bloke or woman in the trio or quartet.  Meanwhile, a close shave for Alexander Rossi in the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura getting squeezed by two GT Daytona cars, a Mercedes and an Aston Martin.  Rossi can put on a show in an IndyCar and also clearly in a sports car.  He also went over to Australia a few years ago and ran a V8 Supercar in the Bathurst 1,000 at Mount Panorama.  

Kamui Kobayashi continues to lead the motor race as darkness permeates the sky over Daytona Internatonal Speedway just past the witching hour of midnight.  So, it is indeed Sunday morning in Florida as we speak.  Kamui Kobayashi's lead has now ballooned to 18 seconds or so.  Jimmie Johnson will have a new routine with IndyCar and with doing other sports car races.  He can pick and choose where he wants to race now.  He is being a race car driver and chooses to race in certain places.  So his attitude, outlook, and perspective are totally different.  IMSA has such an open paddock compared to IndyCar and NASCAR.  The feeling is so different.  Yours truly has experienced it.

Hoping to come back to Daytona in 2022.  #31 is in the pit lane for routine service.  Mike Conway into the car after Felipe Nasr completes a stop.  Kamui Kobayashi pits and he will hand it to Jimmie Johnson with a mega sized lead.  Renger van der Zande is now back in the lead and we have seen the #10 Acura being more efficient with their pit stops than many of the other cars.  Johnson is hitting the curbs in the Bus Stop, but not as hard as Kamui Kobayashi did earlier on.  We are just over halfway through the ninth hour of the race.

The #1 Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini is pitting and so is the #10 Konica Minolta Wayne Taylor Racing Acura.  The #5 Mustang Sampling JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac is back into pit lane as well for scheduled service.  Not sure who is driving that car that we saw in the lead earlier on in the race.  We also can see the #01 car circulating on the road, through the International Horseshoe, back to turn six and up onto the banking another time.  Renger van der Zande has taken over the lead of the motor race and meanwhile, Thomas Merrill continues to lead in LMP2 for the WIN Autosport team in the #11 car.

The #01 Cadillac is in the lane and Kamui Kobayashi says his pace was conservative for the first time out, but then on new tires he gains more confidence.  He says there's still a long time to go, but the night is definitely the Happy Hour.  Kamui Kobayashi is probably telling Chase Elliott secrets of their success.  Dane Cameron meanwhile is in the #60 car, and the Acura is still having some handling issues.  It is a tough ask to have a new car for a team, even with championship caliber drivers at the controls.  When the sun comes up and the temperature rises, will the balance change?  Thomas Merrill is expected to pit soon.  He runs ahead of Antonio Fuoco, Gabriel Aubry, and Devlin DeFrancesco.  DeFrancesco will race Indy Lights later in the year.

Devlin DeFrancesco was born 15 weeks premature and is still driving a race car.  Jimmie Johnson, meanwhile, is back to the lead of the motor race.  Stay as focused as possible.  At sunrise it will be hard for the drivers to see.  Kevin Estre is still holding on in the #79 WeatherTech Racing Porsche 911 RSR-19.  They are not giving up.  Kevin Estre sharing with Cooper MacNeil, Richard Lietz, and Gianmaria Bruni.  The #9 Pfaff Motorsports team is running very well in GT Daytona.  Zacharie Robichon at the controls of the Pfaff Motorsports Porsche.  They qualified on the pole for the Rolex 24 last year.  They did not race for most of 2020 due to the virus pandemic.  If the pandemic continues wreaking havoc with travel, and there will be strict restrictions in Canada, but Pfaff Motorsports will stay in the United States should that happen.

Laurens Vanthoor is on the team, a former Porsche factory driver, along with Matt Campbell.  Lars Kern, too, a German Porsche test driver, and Zacharie Robichon is also a quick driver in addition to being a businessman.  Watching from pit lane, has to be absolutely incredible as NBC Sport's Parker Kligerman is doing right now.  The same is true for Leigh Diffey, taking in the experiences.  The transition across the apron from the oval to the road course is incredible.  Out of habit you go to places on the track to see what is going on.

I was on the observation deck at Daytona watching last year and I miss it having to call the race from home this year.  It is awe inspiring to just stand there and take things in with the cars going by.  Only three cars are retired from this race, all three LMP2 cars, the #81 DragonSpeed car, the #20 High Class Racing car, and the #29 Racing Team Nederland Jumbo Supermarkets entry.  Antonio Garcia is running really well for Corvette right now.  Devlin DeFrancesco says the biggest challenge of running an LMP2 car is managing traffic.  But he and his team mates are running very well.  DeFrancesco is ready to race for Andretti Steinbrenner Motorsports in the Indy Lights open wheel championship.

Renger van der Zande is whittling away the lead from Jimmie Johnson.  Jimmie Johnson though is comfortable behind the wheel of the Cadillac.  Jimmie has twice finished runner-up at the Rolex 24.  It is a two car battle at the sharp end of DPi before Alexander Rossi and Mike Conway come next.  For Jimmie Johnson, he says that navigating traffic while not losing time is the hardest part about driving an endurance sports car.  Especially one of these Daytona Prototype International cars.  In this race you just don't have a book on every driver to expect what on earth the bloke or lady is going to do.  But Jimmie Johnson is able to make consistent lap times and know how to make passes.

Rolex 24: Hour 8

The Kobayashi/Dixon battle continues as Scott Dixon clears the LMP2 car of Devlin DeFrancesco, the #82 DragonSpeed Oreca.  Scott Dixon is now in lapped traffic with the GT Daytona traffic.  Tommy Milner leads GTLM and Patrick Long leads GTD.  Oliver Gavin says the Vasser Sullivan team is coming back after there was a flat tire on the #14 with Gavin at the wheel.  He says it is refreshing to be in a front engine GT car again.  Townsend Bell is driving the #12 sister Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3.  Felipe Nasr and company have had trouble in the #31 Action Express Cadillac.  They are on pace now, but they were struggling earlier on.  Oliver Gavin is doing very well in the #14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus and the team will want a notebook from him on what to do to improve the car.  

Gavin spent two decades at Corvette Racing of course.  11 more cars in the field here at Daytona than there were last year when yours truly attended the race.  The five classes have coexisted together pretty well.  Two of the first yellow flags were caused by very experienced drivers making mistakes.  Patrick Long still leads GT Daytona, ahead by 1.8 seconds over the Lamborghini #1 of Bryan Sellers.  Scott Dixon continues to lead overall in the #01 Ganassi Racing Cadillac of Scott Dixon, Kevin Magnussen, and Renger van der Zande.  A good battle continues brewing in GT Daytona between the Wright Motorsports Porsche and the Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini.  

#16 is in the pit lane for fuel and a driver change.  It looks like maybe Jan Heylen stepped into the car but it is difficult to tell.  The windscreen is being cleaned, and the car is down and away.  So, right now, Scott Dixon leads over all, Tim Buret in LMP2, Kenton Koch in LMP3, Antonio Garcia in GTLM, and Daniel Serra in GTD.  It's time for the fireworks at Daytona International Speedway.  The fireworks look great.  It feels like it is normal in an abnormal time in the world, enjoying this wonderful and iconic sports car endurance race.

Scott Dixon and Kamui Kobayashi shared a car last year to the victory.  But now they are racing for different teams.  Kobayashi and Dixon have both been spectacular.  In reviewing the highlights, we saw the #111 GRT Grasser Lamborghini having issues.  Not sure if yours truly talked about that car.  That is the car of Rolf Ineichen of Switzerland, Dutchman Steijn Schothorst, and Italians Mirko Bortolotti and Marco Mapelli.  Scott Dixon just finished a triple stint in the #01 Chip Ganassi Cadillac.  Renger van der Zande is at the wheel of it now.

Corvette has been leading GTLM for a while and the positions were being swapped between #3 and #4. Will the Ferrari and the BMW's be able to come back?  The Corvette's are bish bash boshing it at the moment with the mid engine C8.R.  Chevrolet and Corvette will have to evolve into a GT3 based car now that GT3 is expanding.  It is for the benefit, health, and wealth of global sports car racing from 2022 and beyond.  The drivers really enjoy the fireworks and they can hear them out the side of the car.  It is a great tradition of Daytona.  It's fantastic for fans and drivers alike.  

Watching the cars circulate here at Daytona in the darkness is absolute magic.  Kamui Kobayashi leads the motor race in the #48 Ally Bank Action Express Cadillac.  He has to be more careful with hitting the curbs in the Bus Stop.  Corvette #4 in the lane for service.  Not sure who is driving at the moment.  Ganassi Racing had their former sports car mechanics come back to the team after working on the IndyCar team.  Daniel Serra brings the #21 AF Corse Ferrari to the pit lane.  Kamui Kobayashi leads the motor race currently, as mentioned, as we are close to 3/4 of the way through the eighth hour of the race.

Felipe Nasr has moved past A.J. Allmendinger for fourth place in Daytona Prototype International.  In LMP2, Win Autosport with the #11 car and Steven Thomas, who is a lawyer who owns the team, has done very well.  Thomas Merrill, one of his co-drivers is pressing really hard.  Tristan Nunez is the ace in the hole and they have someone one their team who also spent time on the factory Porsche squad in GTLM over the last number of years.  James Calado admitted he made a mistake in the #62 Ferrari when he had a run-in with an LMP3 car, a pro driver against a Bronze driver, and Elliott Forbes-Robinson, a legendary driver, once said, "if you think you can make a pass and can't be committed, you'll never make the pass."

This is Risi Competizione's 20th Rolex 24.  A couple LMP3 cars scrapping with each other, the #54 CORE Autosport entry and the #6 Muehlner Motorsports America entry.  The Muehlner Motorsports America Duqueine D08 Nissan is being shared by German drivers Moritz Krantz and Laurents Hoerr, alongside Stevan McAleer from England and American driver Kenton Koch.  Not sure who is at the wheel of the #6 at the moment although they are leading LMP3.  Ah.  It is indeed Stevan McAleer, an accomplished LMP3 driver.  The Muehlner Motorsports America team did a couple 24 hour tests, they had suspension damage earlier, fixed it, and are now leading in class.

Behind them is Joao Barbosa in the #33 Sean Creech Motorsports car, a former driver from Mustang Sampling Racing at both JDC-Miller and Action Express.  Barbosa is second in class.  McAleer, Barbosa, and then, Oliver Askew in the #74 Riley Motorsports car.  Stevan McAleer races in Prototype Challenge and owns a car with Chad McCumbee in Mazda MX-5 Cup.  Stevan McAleer's brother Sam was a fan of his brother, and unfortunately, Sam passed away from his heart condition.  His brother Sam who he lost in November, is pictured on the back of his helmet.  Moritz Kranz and Laurents Hoerr ran an LMP3 car in the Prototype Challenge race at Daytona last weekend.

Renger van der Zande is now back in the lead of the motor race.  Joao Barbosa met Sean Creech when he was testing a Peugeot 908 diesel LMP1 car for a classic car 24 hour race.  The next round of DPi pit stops are upon us as Loic Duval has pitted and now Renger van der Zande is pitting the #01 machine.  A.J. Allmendinger is second.  A.J. Allmendinger finished a double stint and Dane Cameron gets into the car.  So, Cameron is back in the car.  Alexander Rossi is next followed by Felipe Nasr.  Kamui Kobayashi moves back to the lead of the race.