IMSA

IMSA / 24 H. of Daytona - Interesting figures in this morning's news

IMSA

22 Jan. 2023 • 12:00

Prior to the qualifying session, Colin Braun (#60 Acura ARX-06 / Meyer Shank Racing) has the fastest GTP lap time of the week : 1'35''038. He is ahead of four other Acura drivers. Philipp Eng placed the fastest BMW M Hyrid V8 at 0'334, Nick Tandy the fastest Porsche 963 at 0'460 and Scott Dixon the fastest Cadillac V-LMDh at 0'547.

In LMP2, Ben Hanley (Crowdstrike #04) topped the timesheets with a time of 1'38.633, but Mikkel Jensen (TDS #11) and Nicolas Lapierre (PR1 Mathiasen #52) are 0'097 and 0'244 behind. Two Andretti Autosport drivers (#36 Ligier) lead the way in LMP3, with Dakota Dickerson ahead of Gabby Chaves, while Ben Barnicoat (#14 Lexus) set the fastest time in GTD Pro, ahead of the #23 and #64 Aston Martins by 0'024 and 0'188 respectively. On the newcomers' side, the #62 296 GT3 Ferrari conceded 0''774 to the best mark, while the n°9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R type 992 is 1''8 behind ! Finally, in GTD, the McLaren 720S GT3 of Inception Racing placed two of its drivers at the top of the field : namely Frederik Schandorff and Marvin Kirchofer.

With 52 laps on the clock, Nyck Yelloly (BMW n°25) has been the most regular driver on track in GTP class ahead of Michael Christensen (Porsche n°7). But all classes combined, George Kurtz (Oreca n°04) has done better with 106 laps covered. The Crowdstrike Racing by APR driver was the only one, along with Sebastian Alvarez (Ligier n°43), to complete more than 100 laps. James Allen (Oreca n°55) and John Edwards (BMW n°95) had to make do with four and eight laps respectively, which is barely better than the nine laps covered by Axcil Jefferies (Mercedes n°75) and Alessio Rovera (Ferrari n°023, below).
© Courtesy of IMSA

Today's programme is lighter. The IMSA SportsCar Championship competitors have just one session on the menu today, but an important one as it is the qualifying. The GTD / GTD Pro cars will start at 7.25pm UTC+1, the LMP3s at 7.50pm, the LMP2s at 8.15pm and the GTPs at 8.40pm. You can follow the qualifying sessions live on Endurance-Info at 7.20pm.

A quick reminder before qualifying: last year's pole position was achieved by Tristan Vautier (Cadillac Dpi-V.R n°5 / JDC-Miller MotorSports) 1'34''034. Will this lap time fall this afternoon? Probably.

There are lot of people at Daytona International Speedway this weekend. It's looking good for the race, scheduled for next weekend. If attendance records could be broken, tickets are still available for sale on the track's official website. The new golden age of endurance racing has begun...

As a reminder, the Corvette Z06 GT3.R will be unveiled next week during the 24 Hours of Daytona. And Laura Wontrop-Klauser is looking forward to it. “We’re so excited to be working on the Corvette GT3 and getting to launch that, GM Sports Car Racing Program Manager. We’ll have a sneak peek at it for those that are here next week for those that want to see it. So that’s exciting. Everything we’ve learned from the C8.R has been transferred into that and will continue to transfer into that. Every time we run a racecar, we’re learning. Being able to work with the current cars in IMSA and the WEC in getting ready for the GT3 is great. We have a great heritage of winning races, and we do count them! We’re hoping to put some more on the board and get ready for the new car and show the world how cool it is, too.”

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