ROLEX 24 at Daytona

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2025 ROLEX 24 at Daytona

Rockenfeller Turns Back Time with Rolex 24 GTD PRO Pole

German Wins First IMSA Pole in 19 Years; Skeer Captures Maiden GTD Pole

January 23, 2025

By Holly Cain

IMSA Wire Service

Results

Videos

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Sports car ace Mike Rockenfeller paced a Ford front row shut-out claiming his first pole position in almost two decades, posting the fastest time Thursday in Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) qualifying for Saturday’s Rolex 24 At Daytona, which kicks off the 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season.

Under blustery, cool conditions, temperatures in the low-50s and a slight rain mist at Daytona International Speedway, the German Rockenfeller turned a fast lap of 1 minute, 45.523 seconds (121.452 mph) in the No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3.

It was Rockenfeller’s second Motul Pole Award of his IMSA career, and first since 2006 in a Daytona Prototype at Homestead-Miami Speedway. His time Thursday around the iconic 3.56-mile Daytona road course was 0.332 of a second faster than his Ford Multimatic teammate Frederic Vervisch giving Ford a front row sweep for the 15-car GTD PRO class.

“This is the biggest race of the year and we want to make sure Ford is proud,” said Rockenfeller, who will share the cockpit with British driver Sebastian Priaulx and 2022 Daytona 500 winner, NASCAR’s Austin Cindric. “It’s a super talented field with many, many good drivers in this category so you really need to push hard.”

He said the Ford team – in the make’s second year fielding the Mustang GT3 – focused on earning pole position so the front row sweep was very important. He acknowledged, however, winning pole is very different from racing 24 hours in the perpetually super talented GT field.

“It’s crazy competitive and I would say more competitive from last year for sure, so it’s going to be tough and we saw throughout the sessions, we are clearly good for one lap but we struggle a bit more over a stint with our tire (degradation), so that’s something I’m a bit worried about,” Rockenfeller acknowledged.

“But keep the wheels turning, that’s the key – at the end to be there,” he added with a smile.

Speaking to the high competition in these production-based GT categories, Thursday afternoon’s qualifying session marked the first time this week the Fords had topped the speed charts in the GTD PRO class.

Dan Harper in the No. 48 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO and Alexander Sims in the No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R were third and fourth quickest followed by Andrea Caldarelli in the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 – which paced the class in the Roar Before the Rolex 24 test last weekend.

Connor Zilisch, the 18-year-old NASCAR phenom and defending Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) Rolex 24 winner, was eighth fastest – less than a second off the GTD PRO class polesitter – in the No. 91 Trackhouse by TF Sport Corvette Z06 GT3.R featuring an all-star driver lineup of NASCAR Cup Series driver Shane van Gisbergen, IndyCar’s Scott McLaughlin and former Rolex 24 class winner Ben Keating.

Skeer Keeps Wright Rolling with GTD Pole

In the Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) class, Elliott Skeer claimed his first career pole position with a lap of 1 minute, 46.634 seconds (120.187 mph) in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) – just 0.018 of a second faster than the defending GTD class champion Philip Ellis in the 2024 Rolex 24-winning No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3.

Skeer and full-season co-driver Adam Adelson won their first IMSA WeatherTech Championship race at the 2024 TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks in Indianapolis, and Adelson swept the new Grand Touring Daytona X (GTDX) pair of IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge races in a similar Wright Porsche this past weekend.

This year the 15-car GTD PRO class and 22-car GTD class will be separated for the race start and all re-starts in the twice-around-the-clock season opener.

Behind Skeer and Ellis, Trent Hindman clocked in third in the No. 45 Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2. Last year’s GTD polesitter Parker Thompson will start fourth in the No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3. And Franck Perera – a past Rolex 24 GTD winner who led several practice sessions in last weekend’s Roar Before the 24 – was fifth fastest in the No. 78 Forte Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2.

The top 15 GTD qualifiers were within one second of Skeer’s pole-winning Mercedes.

“Definitely with the new rules this year on splitting the GTD and GTD PRO will be interesting for us,” Skeer said. “It minimizes clean air, so we’ll be spending a lot more time in dirty air especially come restarts which we know there’s going to be a fair bit of it in this race.

“A clean air, out on your own, qualifying run is one thing but then in the midst of what’s going to be an incredible battle throughout the day, that’s going to be a whole new thing. There’s still going to be so many things to learn, not just on the power side, but battling in aero, with some new drivers. There’s a lot to happen in a day’s worth of racing here.’’

The field will take the green flag for the 63rd running of the Rolex 24 at Daytona on Saturday at 1:40 p.m. The first hour of the race will be broadcast on NBC, shifting to USA Network for four hours, before returning to NBC for the finish. Flag-to-flag coverage is available on Peacock.

BMW Powers to Maiden GTP Pole for 63rd Rolex 24 At Daytona

Vanthoor Scores First IMSA Pole; Goldburg Ends Keating’s Rolex 24 LMP2 Pole Streak

January 23, 2025

By John Oreovicz

IMSA Wire Service

Results

Videos

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – A tough start turned into a strong finish for BMW M Team RLL in qualifying for the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the opening round of the 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The No. 25 BMW M Hybrid V8 driven by Sheldon van der Linde caused a red flag when it stalled on track less than five minutes into the 15-minute Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class qualifying session. But Dries Vanthoor saved the day as he drove the team’s No. 24 entry to the GTP and overall pole for Saturday’s 24-hour contest.

BMW was extremely competitive in the annual Roar Before the Rolex 24 test sessions, with Vanthoor setting the fastest overall time. The 26-year-old Belgian, who is embarking on his first full season of IMSA competition, repeated that form when it counted in qualifying.

It was Vanthoor’s first IMSA Motul Pole Award and also the first for BMW within GTP, as the manufacturer enters its third year in the new class. With the stoppage for the stalled No. 25 BMW, he and the other GTP contestants had time for only two flying laps. The younger Vanthoor brother (older brother Laurens is the endurance driver in the No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963) will share the polesitting No. 24 BMW with full-season co-driver Philipp Eng, Formula 1 veteran Kevin Magnussen and Raffaele Marciello.

“For sure it wasn’t easy with the red flag,” said Vanthoor, whose Motul Pole Award winning lap was timed at 1 minute, 33.895 seconds (136.493 mph). “It makes tire warming a bit more difficult for everyone. That was a big struggle for us last year, but we have been improving a lot. Then it was just about getting the lap together and trying to do the best that I could. That worked out, luckily, so I am very happy.

“We’ve been working hard,” he added. “It’s nice to see that it’s working for everyone here, and also everyone back at the factory. I think everybody can be happy and proud of that, but (the pole) is a little cherry on a big cake and there’s still a big thing still to happen. That’s the race, and that can go any way.”

Nick Yelloly qualified the No. 93 Acura ARX-06 on the outside of the front row in Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian’s return to IMSA competition after a year off at 1:34.186 (136.071 mph). Defending GTP class champion Felipe Nasr was third in the No. 7 Penske Porsche (1:34.280, 135.935 mph).

Qualifying was staged in difficult, cold conditions, with wind chills at Daytona in the low 40s ambient, and track temperatures not much warmer. Vanthoor wore a heavy parka and ski cap when he met the media after qualifying.

“It’s a bit cold in the car, but when you come out you’re sweating a lot,” he remarked. “You can get sick easily, and that would be the last thing we need going into a 24-hour race.”

LMP2: United Autosports Dominates as Goldburg Breaks Through

United Autosports USA dominated Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class qualifying for the Rolex 24 At Daytona, with Daniel Goldburg and Nick Boulle securing first and third on the grid for the team co-owned by McLaren Formula 1 team principal Zak Brown and Richard Dean.

It’s Goldburg’s second career Motul Pole Award in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competition, and first since Road America in August 2021 in the former Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class.

Additionally, Goldburg’s lap ended Ben Keating’s run of five straight pole positions achieved at the Rolex 24 through either traditional qualifying or the Motul Pole Award 100 qualifying race, which ran for two years.

Bronze-rated drivers qualify in LMP2 and while Goldburg came close to pole several times in 2024, he came up short with four second-place efforts and seven top-five efforts in as many races.

“This is our moment to stack up against each other in the Bronze category,” Goldburg said after a pole-winning lap timed at 1 minute, 38.676 seconds (129.879 mph). “I’m super excited. I’ve been chasing this pole for all of the last year, and been a couple tenths off a bunch of times. That pole was elusive for me. So, this feels really good. I’ve been putting in a ton of work.

“It’s a long race ahead, but this is a great first notch,” continued Goldburg, who shares the No. 22 ORECA LMP2 07 this week with Paul di Resta, Rasmus Lindh and 2023 LMP2 Rolex 24 winner James Allen. “I’ve got great teammates and have been able to compare a lot of great data. I’m just inching closer and closer to what they do. After every session, I watch the video and chase the data and just trying to keep inching closer.”

Two-time IMSA LMP2 class champion Keating split his former team, United Autosports, in the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA LMP2 07 and will start on the outside of the front row.

Nick Boulle, who co-drove with Tom Dillmann to the IMSA LMP2 championship last year, will make his first start for United Autosports in the No. 2 ORECA from third place as he contests all Michelin Endurance Cup rounds of the WeatherTech Championship.

The field will take the green flag for the 63rd running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Saturday at 1:40 p.m. The first hour of the race will be broadcast on NBC, shifting to USA Network for four hours, before returning to NBC for the finish. Flag-to-flag coverage is available on Peacock.

Qualifying Results | WeatherTech Championship

Rolex 24 At Daytona

Daytona International Speedway - Thursday, January 23, 2025

Qualifying Results

Practice 1 Results

Additional results are available at results.imsa.com.

Practice Results | WeatherTech Championship

Rolex 24 At Daytona

Daytona International Speedway - Thursday, January 23, 2025

Practice 2 Results

Qualifying Results

Practice 1 Results

Additional results are available at results.imsa.com.

2025 Rolex 24 At Daytona

Post-Qualifying Press Conference Transcript

Interviews with Elliott Skeer, Mike Rockenfeller, Daniel Goldburg and Dries Vanthoor

THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. We are pleased to be joined by our Motul Pole Award winners for three of the four classes here at the 63rd Rolex 24 at Daytona. We will start to your left with the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R, Elliott Skeer.

Elliott's best lap was 1:46.634 seconds. This is his first career IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

He and his teammates won their first race, first WeatherTech Championship race last September at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The top 16 qualifiers in GTD qualified within a second of Elliott's time.

Elliott, congratulations on the pole. What made the difference in that session and how important is it for you and the team to be starting up front for this race?

ELLIOTT SKEER: Thank you. It's quite a special feeling. Obviously for a 24-hour race it's not the most important pole of the year in terms of position, but for morale, for having new systems in the car, a whole new engineering philosophy needed to get performance out of these cars, the torque sensors.

It just helps us show that the way we're going about it we think is working for us. So ultimately as the driver now, you're not only dealing with the car but with the torque, we're flying back to the engineers, they're making adjustments as well.

There's so much going on, so it really takes a cohesive team not only to get one lap going, but a full stint going. We still don't know how it's going to race, and that's the big question here.

Ultimately for the first goal of the weekend we checked the box and just everything went right with it, got a little draft, and ultimately just had enough to get it at the end.

THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Elliott. Let's slide over to the center in the GTD Pro pole award winner in the No. 64 Ford Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3, Mike Rockenfeller. Mike's best lap was 1:45.523 seconds. This is his second IMSA championship level pole position; first since the GRAND-AM Rolex Series at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 25, 2006, when he was on the pole in the Daytona Prototype class and overall.

This is his second pole position for the Mustang GT3 in the WeatherTech Championship. First was Gianmarco Levorato in the GTD class at Virginia International Raceway last August.

This is the first GTD Pro pole for Ford. The team swept the first two positions in GTD pole qualifying. It's been a long time coming since the last pole. Do you remember that pole, and what does it mean for you to get up front here today?

MIKE ROCKENFELLER: Yeah, I don't remember that pole, to be fair. But yes, it's obviously a great day. I think you said it right at the end. It's one thing you would like to get, but really the race on Sunday is what we all want to win.

It doesn't mean a whole lot for the race, but for us as a team with Ford in the second year now with the Mustang, I think it's a great achievement.

We really focused on that. It was something we wanted to get, as well, even though we all know it's not that important for the race, but still, it's important for our team, for our program.

We really prepared for it. The car was fantastic to drive, as you can imagine, to do those laps. Yeah, I could really push it.

I think the big difference was I don't know why nobody did it, but I did this kind of heat soak. So I went back in the pits right after my out lap and I was waiting just the brake temps that they get into the tire. And then it's so cold that it gave me a lot more grip.

You could see it to the sister car, as well, and I think that was a good decision and it worked out. That's why we're on pole.

We will enjoy it until we go racing.

THE MODERATOR: We'll slide over to your right in the LMP2 class pole award winner, No. 22 United Autosports Oreca LMP2 Daniel Goldburg. His best lap was 1:38.676. This is his second career IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship pole, first since 2021, August of 2021 at Road America in the LMP3 class. Daniel snapped a run of five consecutive Rolex 24 pole positions by Ben Keating.

Congratulations. Very hard-fought session. A lot of different drivers changing position there at the top. How did you pull it off?

DANIEL GOLDBURG: It's been a lot of work with the team. Last year was our first year together and I was close a few times, a couple tenths away. The pole was elusive for me, and this year just worked a lot in the off-season on myself and worked really hard with the team. I got a lot of great co-drivers that I get to chase their data, their video, and try to inch closer and closer.

I will say our engineers were watching the GTD Pro session and took a little cue and we came in and, let the warm brakes heat up my tires a little better, so thanks for that.

It feels really good. I've been chasing this for the whole season, and really excited.

Q. If you could size up the field a little bit, there have been different makes up front, even through the Roar, different ones. As you acknowledge it's important to start there, but this is a very competitive field.

MIKE ROCKENFELLER: Yeah, I mean, it's crazy competitive, and I would say more competitive than last year for sure. It's going to be tough, and I think we saw throughout the sessions that we are clearly good on one lap. I think we struggle a bit more over a stint with our tire deg.

That's something I'm a bit worried about, and if you see in qually, it's always the tire kind of over -- yeah, it over comes the issues you have a bit, and that's why I said, the way we treated it for qually I think was really good and spot on, and that gave us an advantage, but that is not valid for the race.

Being in the race is a whole different story, and you will see we will have to fight a lot, and that's good. It's 24 hours; everybody should have a good chance here. You don't make mistakes, you stay out of the pits and you keep the wheels turning, I think that's the key at the end to be there, and then we see Sunday, three, four hours to go if we have a shot or not.

Q. Question for Elliott. As you probably know, the combined classification is separate for the classes. How's is going to be like, you're not going to be in the midst of GTD Pro cars, you're going to the in the field?

ELLIOTT SKEER: Yeah, it's definitely with the new rules this year on the GT to GTD Pro will be interesting for us especially. It minimizes clean air, so we're going to be spending a lot more time in dirty air, especially come restarts, which we know there's going to be obviously a fair bit of in this race.

Yeah, clean air on your own qualifying run is one thing, but then in the midst of what is going to be an incredible battle for an entire day, that's going to be a whole new thing. So there is still so many things to learn, not just power side, but in battling in aero with some new drivers. There's a lot to happen in a day's worth of racing here.

Who knows, right? Some of the guys you might pass a couple laps before on a restart are ahead of you again. They had to deal with it last year; we're dealing with it this year. We'll see where it evolves to. It does make it a little nicer, though, in terms of the guys around you are most likely poor position, so it does clean up a little bit of that, but ultimately we need to go racing and see how it performs.

Q. You came close so many times in the last year and now you've finally broken through and done it. What's the dominant emotion? Is it pride, satisfaction, maybe just relief?

DANIEL GOLDBURG: I'll say satisfaction. I've been really working for this. The guys have said it; it doesn't mean as much for this race, but especially in our class that stacks up the bronzes against each other, definitely everyone feels good.

Q. Daniel, that was a close session for the bronze drivers. How tough is it to be on top of that tree?

DANIEL GOLDBURG: Yeah, it's very, very competitive. That's how bronze is. Last year most qualifyings were within a few tenths. It's extremely competitive. We all work really hard on our craft, as well, just like all the other drivers out here. It's gotten quite competitive, in particular last year.

THE MODERATOR: We now have our overall and GTP class Motul Pole Award winner in the No. 24 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V-8, Dries Vanthoor. His best lap was 1:33.895 seconds.

This is his first career WeatherTech Sports Car championship pole position and the first GTP pole for the BMW M Hybrid V-8. Dries, congratulations. Obviously the session came together late as far as the quick times right at the very end. Tell us about what you had to do to bring home a pole.

DRIES VANTHOOR: Yeah, for sure it wasn't easy with the red flag. It made tire warming a bit more difficult for everyone, I guess. Yeah, I think we've been improving on that quite a lot, especially over the last year, which has been a big struggle point for us last year.

But it seems it was working out today, and then it was just all about getting the lap together and trying to do the best that I could, and that worked out luckily. Yeah, very happy.

Q. You're wearing a winter coat and stocking hat. Is it cold in the car?

DRIES VANTHOOR: Yeah, a bit cold. I also get cold -- it's getting a bit on me, so I need to make sure it doesn't go too much. It's a long race to go, so I have to stay fresh, but especially when you come out, when you're sweating, when it's that cold you get sick easily, so I don't want to get sick. That's the last thing that would be nice going into a 24-hour race.

Q. Dries, obviously last weekend your cars were quick the entire Roar. Do you feel like this validates that performance from last week, as well?

DRIES VANTHOOR: Well, yeah. I guess you could say so. Last week we were also looking strong, and we are again looking strong. We've been working hard, and I think it's nice to see for everyone here and also working back at the factory and everywhere that it's working, and I think everybody can be happy and proud of that.

But again, it's a little cherry on a big cake, so there's still a big thing still to happen, and that's the race, and this can go any way. It's a long ways to go.

Q. Have you learned the reason why the other cars stopped, and did that cause you any concern during the red flag?

DRIES VANTHOOR: You mean what caused the red flag?

Q. Yeah.

DRIES VANTHOOR: Yeah, no, I did not know the exact reason what happened to them. Unfortunately they couldn't continue the session. But no, I do not know the exact reason why they stopped.

What to Watch For: 63rd Rolex 24 At Daytona

The Stars Come Out, Timepieces Can Lead to Titles, and GTP Deck Gets Reshuffled

January 23, 2025

By David Phillips

IMSA Wire Service

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – “Excitement?” “Intrigue?” The 63rd Rolex 24 At Daytona figures to feature a full IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season’s worth of excitement and intrigue in one race.

With 61 cars in four classes at the 3.56-mile Daytona International Speedway, it launches what promises to be an exciting, not to mention intriguing, season of sports car racing featuring the world’s leading marques, many of the sport’s top drivers and teams, and 11 of North America’s most iconic motorsports venues.

The Stars Come Out

The stars will come out at Daytona, and not just because the sun sets at 5:56 p.m. Saturday evening and reappears at 7:15 a.m. Sunday morning. Rather, as usual, a veritable motorsport “Who’s Who” from Formula 1, NASCAR, IndyCar and others will join a lineup of international sports car luminaries contesting the full WeatherTech Championship for the Rolex 24.

A partial list of top-flight drivers making cameo appearances includes:

Multiple IndyCar champions Scott Dixon and Alex Palou, and race winners Colton Herta and Felix Rosenqvist
2008 World Championship runner-up Felipe Massa and fellow Formula 1 veterans Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen
World Endurance Champions Kamui Kobayashi, Kevin Estre, Laurens Vanthoor and Brendon Hartley
Double duty drivers and NBC Sports broadcasters James Hinchcliffe, Townsend Bell and Parker Kligerman
V8 Supercar champions Scott McLaughlin and Shane van Gisbergen who now ply their trades in IndyCars and NASCAR, respectively
Daytona 500 champion Austin Cindric and rising NASCAR star Connor Zilisch
FIA Formula E champions Pascal Wehrlein and Antonio Felix da Costa

These stars aren’t just coming out to “play.” A full-time IndyCar Series driver has been part of the winning team in the past five Rolex 24s and also, F1 World Champion Fernando Alonso and NASCAR Cup champions Jeff Gordon and Kyle Larson all have won overall in the last decade.

It’s entirely possible – if not downright likely – that one or more drivers whose day jobs do not include the WeatherTech Championship for the balance of 2025 will be sporting a brand-new Rolex Daytona from Rolex, now the Official Timepiece of IMSA.

From Timepieces to Titles

Speaking of Rolex Daytonas, although it’s just one event in a 11-race season that stretches over 10 months, the Rolex 24 At Daytona can – and often does – play a major role in determining the WeatherTech Championship’s overall winners.

Recently, Porsche Penske Motorsport and Winward Racing (2024, Grand Touring Prototype and Grand Touring Daytona) and Acura Meyer Shank Racing and Pfaff Motorsports (2022, Daytona Prototype international and GTD PRO) have won both the Rolex 24 and their respective class titles in the same year.

As Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian team co-owner Mike Shank explained, preparation is everything.

“A strong finish gives the team momentum that carries through the heart of the season,” Shank said. “We’re bringing four transporters worth of equipment to Daytona to make sure we have everything we need to fix or repair our cars.

“We’re also bringing our full IndyCar team, so we’ll essentially have two full shifts of (fresh) people on hand throughout the 24 hours. We want to do everything we can to get a podium finish or, better yet, a win in the Rolex 24 to start the season.”

Conversely, a poor showing in the Rolex 24 can put a team in such a deep hole that they spend the remainder of the season playing catch-up.

Vasser Sullivan won the 2023 GTD PRO title but began 2024 with a self-described “dumpster fire” per team co-owner Jimmy Vasser, when one car crashed and the other caught fire after a pit stop, resulting in two DNFs. The team’s No. 14 GTD PRO class Lexus RC F GT3 won the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, but didn’t recapture the title-winning magic.

“We’ve won Sebring, we’ve won Petit Le Mans, we’ve won Watkins Glen but we haven’t won the 24,” said Vasser. “So, it’s number one on our list of things to achieve. We’ve gotta win the 24!”

No wonder. Although earning a Rolex Daytona is not a prerequisite for a WeatherTech Championship title, a team’s performance in the Rolex 24 Hours can certainly set the stage for the coming season.

Reshuffled GTP Deck

So shuffled is the 2025 GTP class, it’s all but unrecognizable when compared to last year’s lineup. Sure, there’s a dozen ultra sophisticated Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Lamborghini and Porsche hybrids are back for another season of ultra-fast sports prototype competition, with Lamborghini set for its Daytona GTP debut. And they’ll all be using VP R80 fuel to put their Michelin rubber to the tarmac.

But apart from those constants, every marque and/or team is different in some way from their 2024 version be it with a new driver lineup or new - or at least different - alliances between manufacturers and teams.

Shank explained the team’s changes since it made its last IMSA start in 2023.

“The (Acura GTP) program has certainly progressed since 2023, but we kept our GTP team intact last season and added to our capabilities as well,” he said. “We were back on track with the Acura ARX-06 two and a half weeks after Petit Le Mans last fall, and we picked up right where we left off. Our expectation is that we’ll be competing for podium finishes at the Rolex 24 Hours.”

A similar reunion comes with Cadillac and Wayne Taylor Racing, having won Rolex 24s and titles together in their past collaboration.

“It’s really like the family has come back together,” Taylor said. “Of all the programs I’ve done this program, I am more passionate about this than any other one.”

Additionally, the Cadillac V-Series.R uses the Dallara-built chassis. WTR’s Filipe Albuquerque had been in the ORECA-based Acura ARX-06 the past two seasons but feels at home in the Dallara.

“When I went back to the Dallara simulator in Indianapolis, I could see the box with my name and some (driving) gloves that I left there from the past,” Albuquerque said.

“We just picked up where we left off and the good people are still around. Obviously, there are more people around because there is now the electric part of the car, which in the past there was not. But it’s not totally new.”

The Plaid Shall Rise Again

Speaking of reunions, some of the best news in the offseason came in the form of the decision by Pfaff Motorsports to “go plaid” again. Fans will doubtless recall the plaid Pfaff Porsche 911 GT3 R that cruised to the 2021 GTD and 2022 GTD Pro championships.

After a season campaigning a papaya-dominated McLaren 720S GT3 EVO, the Canadian team’s plaid livery pops on its new No.9 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2.

See these and all the other competitors set to compete in the 63rd Rolex 24 At Daytona, with the race on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. ET live on NBC and streaming for its entirety on Peacock (U.S.) and YouTube.com/@IMSAOfficial (International).

Michelin Pilot Challenge Sets Off On 2025 Campaign in Daytona

Four-Hour BMW M Endurance Challenge Race Set to Pack Action, Drama

January 21, 2025

By Tony DiZinno

IMSA Wire Service

Entry List (Click Here)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Over the past 24 years, the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series has regularly provided some of the best racing of an entire IMSA weekend and season. The mix of wide-open competition and the camaraderie among many of its drivers often delivers a wild race affair, usually in the closing minutes of the standard two-hour race or endurance-type four-hour race.

As the BMW M Endurance Challenge is a latter race type, the four-hour race on the 3.56-mile Daytona International Speedway often comes down to the final four minutes as teams try to stretch fuel mileage and/or engage in hard-fought battles for the lead.

Those entered include 26 Grand Sport (GS) class competitors from seven auto manufacturers (Aston Martin, BMW, Ford, McLaren, Mercedes-AMG, Porsche, Toyota) and 16 Touring Car (TCR) class competitors from four (Audi, Cupra, Honda, Hyundai).

Neither will have a repeat Daytona winner in the same class in 2025. The Kellymoss with Riley team, whose young trio of Riley Dickinson, Michael McCarthy and Brady Golan eked out just enough fuel in their No. 91 Porsche 718 GT4 RS CS to win overall, eschews an entry this year.

Meanwhile, TCR winners UniTronic/JDC-Miller MotorSports’ Chris Miller and Mikey Taylor had a heroic effort to even make the start in their No 17 Audi RS3 LMS TCR entry with a last-second replacement part installed within an hour of the green flag.

Grand Sport: 26 Contenders from 7 Brands

Instead of adding just a new part, TCR season champions Miller and Taylor are adding both a new car and a new class to their season: a Porsche they’ll race in GS. They’re one of five entered.

Porsche has two returning 2024 race-winning teams in RS1 and BGB Motorsports, plus CSM and CDR Valkyrie. RS1’s new lineup of Jan Heylen and Luca Mars (No. 28 Porsche) and BGB’s regular pair of Spencer Pumpelly and Thomas Collingwood (No. 38 Porsche) should contend for wins, especially as Heylen, Pumpelly and Mars have won either Michelin Pilot Challenge or VP Racing SportsCar Challenge titles.

Aston Martin enters 2025 as the defending GS manufacturer champion, thanks in large part to Team TGM’s efforts with its two AMR Vantage GT4 EVOs. Defending driver champion Matt Plumb is back with Paul Holton in their quest to repeat, although this time Holton will have the advantage of sharing the No. 46 car for the full year after coming on board at Sebring in 2025.

There’s another goal for Plumb in 2025: re-establish himself as the series’ all-time wins leader. He and Billy Johnson are tied on 24, with his most recent win coming at Watkins Glen International last June. Beyond Team TGM, Rebel Rock Racing and van der Steur Racing field the other three Aston Martins.

Johnson’s full-time series return is one of Ford’s key story lines for the season among its five cars. He’s with past GS and last year’s VP Challenge GSX title-winning team KOHR Motorsports, in one of the team’s two cars. He’ll share the No. 59 Ford Mustang GT4 with Bob Michaelian and should figure at the front often during the year.

Keep an eye as well on the young pairing of Jenson Altzman and Sam Paley in the No. 13 McCumbee McAleer Racing with AEROSPORT entry. Both have shown promise in their IMSA development series careers and may break through for their first GS wins in 2025. Single Stephen Cameron Racing and LAP Motorsports Fords complete the quintet.

Although the five Aston Martins, Fords and Porsches apiece comprise 15 of the 26 GS entries at Daytona, it’s race sponsor BMW that is the most popular model in action to kick off the year.

Six M4 GT4s – split three apiece between the initial M4 and new-for-2025 EVO version – will vie to bring BMW back to GS victory lane at Daytona for the first time since 2014 (Shelby Blackstock and Ashley Freiberg shared the winning BMW M3). Turner Motorsport’s pair of BMW M4 GT4 EVOs have revised lineups while CarBahn with Peregrine Racing’s pair of past GS champion Jeff Westphal and Sean McAlister are back in their No. 39 BMW M4 GT4; they won most recently at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in September.

Stevan McAleer switches to Auto Technic’s No 27 BMW M4 GT4 EVO for 2025 from RS1 as he searches for an elusive GS title to add to his 2015 Street Tuner (ST) crown. Team ACP-Tangerine has two Bronze Cup-entered BMW M4 GT4s.

The five remaining entries are three Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2 cars, with past Michelin Pilot Challenge winners Hattori Motorsports and newcomers RAFA Racing and Kingpin Racing present, and a single entry apiece from McLaren (Accelerating Performance) and Mercedes-AMG (Winward Racing).

Touring Car: Hyundai Heavy with Audi, Honda, Cupra Challengers

Hyundai’s five-year run atop the TCR driver’s championship (2019 through 2023) ended in 2024, although the brand’s strength in numbers ensured it completed a six-pack of TCR manufacturer titles. As it prepares to regain the driver’s crown in 2025 with Miller and Taylor moving into GS, there are seven Hyundai Veloster N TCR cars, most in with a title shout.

Perennial championship contenders Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian won all those five and has two past champions back this year. Mark Wilkins (2019, with Michael Lewis) and Harry Gottsacker (2023, with Robert Wickens) will fly the flag in BHA’s now-traditional Nos. 33 and 98 Hyundais, respectively.

Wilkins will race alongside rising star Bryson Morris while Gottsacker sees Wickens head to the WeatherTech Championship with DXDT Racing, and will race alongside fellow Hyundai veteran Mason Filippi instead. Denis Dupont and Preston Brown (No. 76) and team newcomers Maddie Aust and Suellio Almeida (No. 9) complete the BHA quartet. Two Victor Gonzalez Racing and one Pegram Racing Hyundai finish the set.

Audi is next up in volume with five cars. Two Precision Racing LA entries will be worth watching, with IMSA Diverse Driver Development Scholarship recipient Celso Neto and past TCR race winner Ryan Eversley spearheading the team’s No. 7 car. Single entries from Baker Racing, Rockwell Autosport Development and Rumcastle Racing by Speed Syndicate round out the class.

Honda has three intriguing entries. MMG (Montreal Motorsports Group) returns after a 2024 VIR win with the pair of Dai Yoshihara and Karl Wittmer in its No. 93 Honda Civic FL5 TCR. Longtime Honda of America associates are back in the No. 89 HART entry, which runs sporadic IMSA events. New to the fold this year is KMW Motorsports with TMR Engineering, leaving its plucky Alfa Romeo for a Honda for the pair of Tim Lewis Jr. and William Tally.

A single Cupra completes the field, as Gou Racing shifts from Audi to IMSA’s newest automotive brand.

Family Ties: Eight Families to Watch This Season

This year’s Michelin Pilot Challenge field begins with seven different sets of families competing in the same car, and an eighth in separate cars:

Brothers Matt (No. 46) and Hugh (No. 64) Plumb split in the two No. 46 Team TGM Aston Martin AMR GT4 Evo cars in GS; Hugh Plumb and Ted Giovanis were the 2024 GS Bronze Cup champions.
Husband-and-wife Ben and Christine Sloss in the No. 15 van der Steur Racing Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 Evo, a Bronze Cup entry in GS.
Father-and-son Roland and Austin Krainz share the No. 27 Auto Technic Racing BMW M4 GT4 EVO, sharing with Stevan McAleer. McAleer and Austin Krainz will race the full calendar with Roland third driver in four-hour races.
Father-and-son Eddie and Eduardo Gou share the No. 55 Gou Racing CUPRA Leon VZ, as they move over from Audi.
Father-and-son Alex and Eric Rockwell share the No. 10 Rockwell Autosport Development Audi RS3 LMS TCR with Christina Lam; the Rockwells have run occasional races for several years.
Father-and-son Dean and Sam Baker share the No. 52 Baker Racing Audi RS3 LMS TCR with James Vance at Daytona; the Bakers ran occasional 2024 races.
Father-and-daughter Larry and Riley Pegram share the No. 72 Pegram Racing Hyundai Veloster N TCR; ran occasional 2024 races.
Father-and-daughter Ron and Megan Tomlinson share the No. 37 Precision Racing LA Audi RS3 LMS TCR; new to the championship in 2025.

The Michelin Pilot Challenge has two one-hour practice sessions, Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET and Thursday at 8:45 a.m. ET. Qualifying takes place Thursday 1:15 p.m. ET. A final 30-minute practice session takes place Friday morning at 9:25 a.m. ET before the green flag of the four-hour race at 1:45 p.m. ET. Live coverage streams on Peacock (U.S.) and YouTube.com/IMSAOfficial (outside the U.S.).

Fast Facts

BMW M Endurance Challenge

Daytona International Speedway – Daytona Beach, Fla.

Jan. 22-24, 2025

Race Day/Time: Friday, Jan. 24, 1:45 p.m. ET
Peacock Streaming Coverage: LIVE – Flag-to-flag beginning at 1:40 p.m. (available outside the U.S. on IMSA.tv and youtube.com/IMSAOfficial)
Circuit Type: 3.56-mile, 12-turn road course
Classes Competing: Grand Sport (GS), Touring Car (TCR)
Race Length: Four hours

Michelin Pilot Challenge Track Records

GS: Paul Holton, McLaren GT4, 1:52.143 / 114.227 mph, January 2019 (Qualifying)
TCR: Harry Gottsacker, Hyundai Elantra N TCR, 1:56.757 / 109.766 mph, January 2024 (Qualifying)

2024 BMW M Endurance Challenge Winners

GS: Riley Dickinson/Michael McCarthy/Brady Golan, No. 91 Kellymoss with Riley Porsche 718 GT4 RS CS
TCR: Chris Miller/Mikey Taylor, No. 17 Unitronic/JDC-Miller MotorSports Audi RS3 LMS TCR

Charting the 2025 IMSA GTP Changes

Significantly Different Landscape Beckons for 2025 GTP Season

January 21, 2025

By John Oreovicz

IMSA Wire Service