Chasing the clock at Daytona
The Rolex 24 At Daytona in the US set the scene for a year of exciting endurance racing
ONCE again the Rolex 24 At Daytona lived up to its reputation as the greatest endurance race in North America, and being worthy of mention in the same breath as its European counterpart, the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Spectators at the Daytona International Speedway and a global television audience were treated to a feast of top-flight sports car racing in a contest of brutal attrition. You did not need to be the fastest car to win, you needed to have the best prepared. The fastest drivers were not essential, the most determined were. A single strategy did not need to last, it needed to adapt to an ever-evolving race. Knowledge and experience paid dividends in a sometimes hectic race.
Chip Ganassi Racing stole the show for a sixth time, its #02 car driven by Scott Dixon from New Zealand, Tony Kanaan (Brazil) and Americans Kyle Larson and Jamie McMurray dominating the 53-car field.
The final margin of overall victory was slim, a mere 1.334 seconds, with the lead changing hands 59 times in the race and five times alone in the 22nd hour of the race. It did not change at all in the final hour when the Ganassi Racing strategy at last bit firmly.
“The team was constantly working on strategy. When we realised we were going three or four laps longer on the (pit-stop) sequence, we knew we would spend less time in the pits.”
This edge was enough, something Chip Ganassi recognised: “I wish I could explain how close that race was in the last three or four hours. The win is a tribute to the combination of complete concentration by every single person on the team.”
Only 29 out of the 53 starters would be running by the end of the race. None of the class pole winners would convert that success to victory. Two former F1 drivers, Rubens Barrichello and Giancarlo Fisichella, are proof that success in one type of motorsport is no guarantee of success in another. Both have competed at Daytona twice. Neither has managed to finish the race.
This year’s was an ever-evolving race, rewarding patience and determination, punishing weaknesses in strategy and preparation. Cars that looked to have matters under control lost their way and places. Cars that struggled early on worked their way back into contention. Opportunity was present for the bold and resolute, while good luck and misfortune stalked the pits and track.
For Core Motorsport driver Colin Braun, who started on the front row in the Prototype Chal- lenge class, the race was particularly cruel. “I was passing a slower Prototype car. I’m not sure if he missed his braking mark but he pretty much squared me up into the right rear tyre and I think that broke the rear suspension. I got spun onto the grass and thought I could limp back to the pits. I think the suspension collapsed on the exit of the bus stop (chicane) and I hit the wall pretty hard.”
Adding salt to the wound, the car burst into flames but at least Braun walked away unscathed.
The eventual class winners, Mathiasen Motorsports, seemed almost embarrassed by their vic- tory with the Oreca, knowing a competitor´s ill-luck had played a major part. Their race had not been easy though, and they had had their own share of difficulties. The win was as much testament to the ethos of never giving up as it was to preparation and strategy. Mechanical issues had led to the car being six laps off the pace for a long period. Mike Guasch summed up the team’s attitude: “There’s always a lot of attrition in this class and we knew we just had to keep digging, digging, digging to stay in it.”
Corvette Racing saw off the challenge of BMW to win the GTLM class, while it was the Dodge Viper of Riley Motorsport that kept a bunch of Porsche 911s at bay to win the GTD class.
Occasionally there was also some black comedy too. Twothirds through the race a Magnus Racing entry suffered an oil leak that led to another car spinning off and crashing. While fixing the leak, the team discovered a dead possum in front of the rearengined car. It had apparently been hit hours earlier in an unrelated incident. The driver at the time, Andy Lally, is a vegan and supports animal rights!
Florida is known as the Sunshine State, and while it did rain on the morning of the start, the race was conducted in bright sunshine during daylight hours and clear skies at night. The temperature was unseasonably low, reflecting the winter storms that have struck the east coast of North America. This had an impact on tyre grip, particularly in the early hours of Sunday morning. It did nothing to cool the enthusiasm of the expectant crowd filling the infield. The 53 cars represented an array of automotive talent — Audi, Aston Martin, BMW, Chevrolet, Dodge, Ferrari, Ford, Honda, Mazda, and Porsche. The driver line-up was exceptional and from around the globe.