There are so many switches on a sports car steering wheel and it is hard to get used to for a new driver like Chase Elliott is. We are getting close to coming back to green. Ian James continues to lead GT Daytona. The Heart of Racing made great strides at the end of 2020 even with the virus being around and the fact that the team had to take some time off. Aaron Telitz is next followed by Jan Heylen in the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R. Ryan Hardwick crashed their Michelin Pilot Challenge Porsche, as Hardwick recovers from a concussion. Trent Hindman is the co-driver for Klaus Bachler, Jan Heylen, and Patrick Long. Green flag, again! The DPi cars are all in a line. Filipe Albuquerque goes side by side with Loic Duval and Duval has some argy bargy with Simon Pagenaud. Renger van der Zande leads with Felipe Nasr second. Dane Cameron is pressing hard in the #60 Acura ARX-05 as well. As the night falls, the Acura drivers believe they will begin to go for it.
Renger van der Zande continues to lead. Felipe Nasr will end his stint soon and Chase Elliott will get into the car. Chase is under pressure as it is his first endurance race. Meantime, the #16 Wright Motorsports Porsche almost loses it! Thank heavens, Ryan Hardwick is out of the hospital and headed home to recover. Now, Laurens Vanthoor in the Pfaff Porsche is pressing hard as well. Loic Duval is closing up on Felipe Nasr. 26 different nations in this race. A Dutchman, a Brazilian, and a couple of Frenchmen. The #5 JDC-Miller Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R has a trio of French drivers with Loic Duval, Sebastien Bourdais, and Tristan Vautier.
Meanwhile, Simon Pagenaud is being monstered by the #10 Konica Minolta Wayne Taylor Racing Acura. GTD now is a Lamborghini vs. Porsche battle as well. Furthermore, we have BMW, Corvette, and Ferrari scrapping for GTLM honors. So, plenty of action around the track here at Daytona International Speedway. We are racing towards the night with a gorgeous sunset. Cold, rain, and fog are commonplace at the Rolex 24. But tonight it will be clear and fairly warm. In LMP2, the battle is between the #47 Cetilar Racing Dallara and the #18 Era Motorsports Oreca. Antonio Fuoco of Italy leads Paul Loup Chatin of France.
Eric Lux and Ben Keating are next in line in LMP2. In LMP3, Rasmus Lindh leads Wayne Boyd, Gar Robinson, and Jon Bennett. Endurance racing is really becoming a good spot for drivers to go if they can't make it in open wheel racing according to Sebastien Bourdais and he is absolutely right as far as World Endurance and IMSA both. At Le Mans there are 60 cars on a 13.5 kilometer track with a lap time of 3:30. Here at Daytona, 49 cars on a shorter track for a 1:30 something lap time. Antonio Fuoco in the Cetilar entry #47 is sharing with countrymen Roberto Lacorte, Andrea Belicchi, and Giorgio Sernagiotto.
A crash here, look, through the Bus Stop as James Calado makes a banzai move around the #38 Performance Tech LMP3 car! Yikes! Cameron Cassels, the Canadian at the wheel of the #38. Full Course Yellow number four. Now, Chase Elliott is ready for something he has never done before. His first stint at the Rolex 24 at twilight. A fuel strategy mistake for the #31 and #48 Action Express Cadillac's. Chase Elliott is going into the car, as we are seeing the need for a fuel stop for both cars.
When we saw the #12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus in the pit lane in hour two, there was an electric problem for that automobile. To double back, Frits van Eerd had crashed the Racing Team Nederland Dallara LMP2 car. Van Eerd sharing with fellow Dutchmen Giedo van der Garde and Job Van Uitert, and Frenchman Charles Milesi. Now, the #31 Action Express Cadillac has pitted and had to take a penalty for emergency service. However, if Chase Elliott can get his bearings in the car, under yellow, he will now have a chance to get his bearings and boost his confidence.
This is such a different race compared to when yours truly was at the event in 2020. More yellows with more cars on track for sure. Keep mistake free and keep going. The action is now only just beginning and we have a long, long, long way to go. Lexus #14 is in the lane for service. This is the Jack Hawksworth, Kyle Kirkwood, Oliver Gavin, and Aaron Telitz car. Daytona International Speedway is soon to be fully bathed in darkness here. Pit stop time for DPi. Both Action Express Cadillac's in the lane,.
Fuel only. A splash and a dash for both Chase Elliott and for Simon Pagenaud. We are soon to head back to green flag racing. Lots of excitement and interest as the night has come. Le Mans, in the 24 hours there, there's very little darkness. But the Rolex 24 has almost 13 hours of darkness. Daytona is lit up like a Christmas tree, but the tire grip is huge as a factor. Ricky Taylor and Kevin Magnussen are pressing the leader, Tristan Vautier. Olivier Pla and Harry Tincknell also want a chance at this. Olivier Pla is a former Mazda DPi driver. Harry Tincknell is in the #55 car right now. A big traffic jam in GTLM and GTD and the #62 Risi Competizione Ferrari of James Calado will get a drive through penalty for incident responsibility for clouting Cameron Cassels.
This is the 20th Rolex 24 at Daytona for Risi Competizione. The 20th or 21st. Risi Competizione are the lone GTLM spec Ferrari 488 GTE. Chase Elliott is the third fastest DPi driver at the moment as we watch Tommy Milner leadng Jordan Taylor in GTLM. BMW going for the GTLM hat trick and an off and on for the #62, rubbing salt into their wounds, being snookered by the #64 Team TGM Porsche. Giovannis/Trinkler/Plumb/Plumb.
As the sun is setting, the DPi windscreens are being covered with clag already. Kevin Magnussen is in his maiden stint in the #01 Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac. Timothe Buret has taken over third in LMP2 in the #8 car. Buret and two other Frenchmen are sharing the #8 Tower Motorsports LMP2 Oreca, racing with Gabriel Aubry and Matthieu Vaxiviere, and Canadian John Farano. Harry Tincknell in the #55 Mazda is now fourth overall. Yikes! Tristan Vautier gets balked by a slower car leading Ricky Taylor, Kevin Magnussen, and Harry Tincknell.
Night racing, mentally and physically, is going to be very tough for the drivers. You try to get sleep if you can when you can. The adrenaline is still way up. Kyle Kirkwood leads GT Daytona and his team mate is Townsend Bell, who slept quite a lot in the 2019 race with all the rain. Both Corvette's are leading GT Le Mans right now. The idea is to now settle down and try hard to get through the nighttime hours. The amount of yellow we have seen has been unreal.
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