Rolex 24, Hour 4: Ford on a roll in GTD PRO, Porsche in charge in GTP
The sun is beginning to set over Daytona International Speedway to the benefit of Porsche Penske Motorsport. With four hours gone, FIA WEC Hypercar co-champions Laurens Vanthoor and Kevin Estre are…
The sun is beginning to set over Daytona International Speedway to the benefit of Porsche Penske Motorsport.
With four hours gone, FIA WEC Hypercar co-champions Laurens Vanthoor and Kevin Estre are running 1-2 overall and in GTP. Vanthoor in the No. 7 Porsche 963 has a seven-second advantage over Estre in the No. 6, which has fully recovered from its sluggish start as the track temperatures begin to sink.
But it’s two German brands vying for the lead with BMW M Team RLL’s two cars third and fourth. Robin Frijns in the No. 25 BMW M Hybrid V8 leads Rene Rast in the No. 24, while Felipe Drugovich has taken the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series R up to fifth at the top of the hour.
LMP2 has been mostly dominated by AO Racing and “Spike the LMP2 Dragon,” with Dane Cameron aboard for his first stint in the No. 99 ORECA 07, leading the class by over 45 seconds.
Nick Boulle is back in the No. 2 United Autosports USA machine in second, followed by Luis Perez Companc for AF Corse, and Daniel Goldburg in the No. 22 United Autosports car.
TDS Racing’s No. 11 ORECA is now behind the wall for repairs, joining the now-retired No. 63 Lamborghini SC63 as the only cars not circulating right now.
Rolex 24, Hour 3: Tandy moves Porsche ahead
Rolex 24, Hour 2: Pit error costs BMW
Rolex 24, Hour 1: BMW to the fore
The Blue Oval is still in front of GTD PRO, but Ford Multimatic Motorsports’ cars have changed placed — it’s now the No. 64 Mustang GT3 of Seb Priaulx ahead of the No. 65 of Dennis Olsen.
And there’s great news for Pfaff Motorsports fans — after the stuck wheel nut problem in the first hour, the No. 9 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 is back in contention with Marco Mapelli in third ahead of the No. 3 Corvette Racing Z06 GT3.R of Antonio Garcia. Nicky Catsburg is fifth in the No. 4 works Corvette.
Heart of Racing leads GTD with Casper Stevenson up front by over 15 seconds in the No. 27 Aston Martin Vantage GT3. He took the lead after a broken wing mirror for Forte Racing’s Lamborghini. The entire right-side door needed to be changed in the pit stop.
NASCAR driver/commentator Parker Kligerman is currently second in the No. 78 Lamborghini, with Ayhancan Guven back up to third in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche, and Marvin Kirchhofer moving up the field in the No. 13 AWA Corvette.
HOUR 4 STANDINGS