Daytona Beach, Fla. (January 24th, 2021) The starting grid for the 59th Running of the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA was determined today during the Motul Pole Award 100 as the annual Roar Before the 24 event came to a close. The No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 will start next Saturday’s 24-hour event from the fifth position.
Full-time co-drivers, Filipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor, participated in the sprint race at the 3.56-mile, 12-turn permanent road course at Daytona International Speedway. Filipe Albuquerque started the 100-minute race under wet conditions with Michelin rain weather tires fitted, before transitioning to slick tires during the driver change with Ricky Taylor who brought home the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 in fifth position.
“It was nice to get everyone in the rhythm of racing together,” said Ricky Taylor. “Filipe did an amazing job. It was really nice to be back with Konica Minolta, Wayne Taylor Racing, and the Acura family. I think everyone is already gelling really well. We have a lot of positives to take out of today. The result isn’t exactly what we wanted, but the pace was there, and the team performed really well.”
“I’m quite happy with my job with the car because I didn’t know what to expect since it was my first time with this car on the rain tires,” said Filipe Albuquerque. “I ended my stint in third position and we had some good fights with the Cadillac who seem very strong at the moment. Ricky had a challenge because he had to run with the slicks on a very damp track. The most important part was to not have any issues, crashes or problems because we are all still learning about the car. It’s good enough to start the 24 Hours in fifth position, so now we continue to learn and get stronger.”
Practice for the Rolex 24 at DAYTONA begins this Thursday at 11:40 a.m. EST. The green flag for the race itself will wave at 3:40 p.m. EST on Saturday, January 30th with live coverage beginning at 3:30 p.m. EST at NBC.
About Konica Minolta
Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. is reshaping and revolutionizing the Workplace of the Future™ with its expansive smart office product portfolio from IT Services (All Covered), ECM, Managed Print Services and industrial and commercial print solutions. Konica Minolta has been recognized as the #1 Brand for Customer Loyalty in the MFP Office Copier Market by Brand Keys for thirteen consecutive years, and the World Technology Awards recently named the company a finalist in the IT Software category. Konica Minolta, Inc. has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for nine consecutive years and has spent three years on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World list. Konica Minolta partners with its clients to give shape to ideas and work to bring value to our society. For more information, please visit us online and follow Konica Minolta on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter. Wayne Taylor Racing’s existing lineup of partners that also features Harrison Contracting, Acura Motorsports and CIT.
