This past Sunday marked the IMSA WeatherTech Championship Series’ annual Rolex 24 race at Daytona International Speedway. It was a historic moment as the ultra-complex Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) hybrids made their impressive debut. The real excitement came from the photo finish in LeMans Prototype 2 (LMP2). Furthermore, there were plenty of fierce battles across two Grand Touring classes – making it an unforgettable experience for the record crowd who witnessed the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
It was an incredible turnout with 61 participants and 45 finishers! The highlight of the event, however, had to be Acura, BMW, Cadillac and Porsche’s teams and drivers for a remarkable first-time performance in the GTP class.
After 18 months of constructing their hybrid prototypes, 8 out of the 9 Grand Touring Prototypes (GTPs) ran smoothly but at the end of 24 hours, it was lead by two Acura ARX-06s in P1 and P2 and two Cadillac V-LMDhs in P3 and P4. Despite a few issues, Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 powered by the No. 25 BMW finished 100+ laps down and Porsche Penske Motorsports’ no. 6 Porsche 963 did not make it to the finish line due to gearbox problems.
Rolex 24 Winners List
GTP Class
Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb Agajanian – Acura ARX-06
T. Blomqvist / C. Braun / H.Castroneves / S. Pagenaud
LMP2 (Photo Finish)
Proton Competition – ORECA LMP2 07
F. Poordad / F. Pizzi / J. Allen / G. Bruni
LMP3
AWA – Duqueine D08
A. Mantella / W. Boyd / N. Varrone / T. Merrill
GTD-PRO
WeatherTech Racing – Mercedes-AMG GT3
C. MacNeil / D. Juncadella / J. Gounon / M. Engel
GTD (Actually finished in front of the GTD-PRO Drivers)
Heart of Racing Team – Aston Martin Vantage GT3
R. De Angelis / M. Sorensen / I. James / D. Turner
