Photography Credit: Chris Tropea
A new class of prototypes. A strong field of 61 cars. But the same challenge since 1966: surviving 24 hours.
The all-new GTP class features a total of nine cars, with representation from Acura, BMW, Cadillac and Porsche. The machines feature a hybrid drivetrain with the same electric motors but their manufacturer’s own engines. BMW, Cadillac and Porsche went with V8s; Acura installed a V6.
Acura currently holds pole position for this weekend’s race with the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing ARX-06, but the No. 7 Porsche Penske 963 is right behind, while the No. 10 Acura ARX-06 of Konica Minolta starts in third.
The top three qualifiers among the 10-car LMP2 field are the No. 52 car of PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports, followed by the No. 35 and No. 11 cars of TDS Racing.
As for LMP3, the nine-car field is led by the No. 33 car of Sean Creech Motorsport, then the No. 36 car of Andretti Autosport and the No. 38 car of Performance Tech Motorsports
The prototypes may be the tip of the performance spear, but there’s still the 33-strong GT field, composed of nine GTD Pro teams and 24 GTD teams.
Mercedes-Benz, with its Mercedes-AMG GT3, holds the top starting positions in GTD. The No. 57 of Winward Racing qualified first, No. 75 of Sun Energy 1 took second and No. 32 of Team Korthoff Motorsports placed third.
GTD Pro gets a little more variation. A Mercedes-AMG GT3–the No. 79 car of WeatherTech Racing–took the top spot, but it's joined by the No. 23 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 of Heart of Racing and the No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3 of Vasser Sullivan.
The entire GTP field qualified within 0.8 second of each other. Is that any indication of how close the finish will be? There’s only one way to find out.
The green flag for the 61st Rolex 24 At Daytona is set to drop this Saturday, January 28, at 1:40 p.m. Check out our complete schedule of events here, and learn more about the rockstar hospitality we offer throughout the weekend by visiting grmexperience.com.
In addition, the complete list of all 61 entries can be viewed here.
Can’t make it in person this year? Click here for more information on where and how to watch.
is there a good "technical breakdown" of the the cars?
i.e. what engine/hybrid systems they're using, etc
most of the imsa links have been high on "fluff" and light on "detail"... or maybe I've just tuned out when this stuff has been discussed before?
And you can only watch it on Peacock?
In reply to carguy123 :
Looks like start and finish are on NBC with most of the other coverage on USA network.
The MX5 Cup races are up on the IMSA YouTube channel already. Now that's some fun racing to watch!
hobiercr said:In reply to carguy123 :
Looks like start and finish are on NBC with most of the other coverage on USA network.
For sure not everywhere. I was hoping my post an hour ago was not right that our current guide was wrong, but no- our local NBC isn't showing the 24 start live- so I have to watch Peacock. Thankfully, I have it, but it sucks for those who don't, for sure.
Man, 40 min in and Keating has a 12 second lead. If they can keep that up, that would be a +2 lap lead tomorrow.
There's a driver in GTP named Empty Net Goal?
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