DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA — Roger Penske kicked off his team’s 60th anniversary with a victory in the first race of the year at the Rolex 24 at Daytona – a three-peat, no less.
The Penske squad became the third team to win three in a row in the 64-year history of the most prestigious endurance race in the United States. His Porsche Penske Motorsports team joined Chip Ganassi Racing and Wayne Taylor Racing as the only teams to win three consecutive sports car races at Daytona International Speedway.
This was Porsche’s 21st victory in this event.
What’s most impressive for the 88-year-old Penske is that the team has won three years in a row with three different lineups; brazilian driver Felipe NasrPenske’s closer, the only mainstay on all three entries.
“The driving he ultimately did for us was probably one of the best drives I’ve ever seen,” Penske said Sunday.
For Porsche it was Rolex’s fifth overall win at the event and for Penske the 46th IMSA win.
It was not easy for Nasr, driving in front of what Daytona officials called the largest Rolex crowd in race history, as he held off the Cadillac from Action Express Racing in the final hour to win the title. The Action Express is owned by NASCAR and IMSA president Jim France, and the car originally won the pole but was disqualified in post-qualifying inspection.
This forced the No. 31 Cadillac to start last in the class, and the lineup jack aitken, earl bamberMercedes Formula 1 Reserve Driver fred westie And NASCAR’s rising star Connor Zylisch Reached second place in 24 hours.
Nasr and Aitken finished the race for their respective teams. Aitken had several good chances to pass Nasr for victory in the final 25 minutes, but Nasr closed the door on him on every occasion.
Nasr won with teammates Julian Andlauer and Laurin Heinrich in an overhauled No. 7 Porsche 963. Porsche defeated Cadillac by 1 minute, 0.569 seconds.
Nasr said, “This is a moment I dreamed of – the desire to win is what drives you further and further.” “I love this game, I love this series, and to have a 24-hour decision taken in the last few minutes is incredible.”
This achievement by Nasr makes the Brazilian driver a part of the winning team for six consecutive years. Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves Was in the winning team in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
The No. 24 BMW M Team WRT finished third in the top GTP class with the quartet of Sheldon van der Linde, Dries Vanthoor. robin frizens And René Rust.
The caution came out shortly before 1 a.m. due to foggy conditions and the race lasted a record 6 hours, 33 minutes, 25 seconds, consisting of 120 laps. The caution lasted so long that Penske, who prided himself on staying awake and standing in the pits the entire 24 hours, actually took a midrace break.
Rolex marks the unofficial start of the motorsports season, and this year’s race featured 60 cars from 12 automakers, 228 drivers from 32 countries, and no clear favorite.
In the LMP2 class, CrowdStrike Racing by APR took victory in an Oreca LMP2 07 with a lineup of George Kurtz, Alex Quinn, Toby Sowery and Malthe Jacobsen. The Interpol Europol Competition Oreca LMP2 07 pair were second and third.
In the GTD Pro class, Paul Miller Racing took victory in a BMW M4 GT3 EVO. All-Australian 75 Express Team, which included IndyCar star Will-Power In his Rolex debut, he finished second in a Mercedes-AMG GT3. Winward Racing finished third in a Mercedes-AMG GT3.
In the GTD class, Winward Racing took victory in a Mercedes-AMG GT3. Magnus Racing was second in an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 EVO, followed by Heart of Racing Team in the second Aston Martin.
