DAYTONA BEACH, Florida – Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing team Winward Racing secured its second Rolex 24 At Daytona GT Daytona (GTD) race win in the last four years while Korthoff Preston Motorsports moved its IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup (IMEC) title defense off to a fast start this weekend in the 62nd running of America’s premier 24-hour race at Daytona International Speedway. Russell Ward, Philip Ellis, Indy Dontje and Daniel Morad co-drove the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 to the team’s second Rolex 24 GTD win Saturday and Sunday at the “World Center of Racing” following 2021’s initial victory. Mike Skeen, Mikael Grenier, Kenton Koch and Maximilian Götz in turn finished fifth in GTD while securing enough segment points during the race to win the opening round of the 2024 IMEC in the GTD division.

Winward’s convincing victory was the second in a row and third in four years for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams in the Rolex 24. In addition to Winward’s pair of victories, WeatherTech Racing secured the GTD Pro win in last year’s Rolex 24.

Including Lone Star Racing, which finished eighth in its Rolex 24 debut, the three Mercedes-AMG GT3 entries competing in the GTD class combined to lead 424 of the race’s 731 laps over the 24 hours. The total was anchored by Winward’s GTD class-high 383 laps up front that saw each of the team’s four drivers lead the race at least once.

Morad was at the wheel for the finish and steadily opened a gap in the final 23 laps for a 2.731 seconds margin of victory. All four Winward drivers captured their second Rolex 24 victories, with Morad first earning the title in GTD in 2017 and Ward, Ellis and Dontje all part of Winward’s maiden Daytona victory in 2021.

Reigning IMEC GTD champions, the No. 32 Korthoff Preston Motorsports team and drivers battled in the lead pack for the majority of the race and led a total of 36 GTD laps. The team was ultimately just a tick off the front runners in the final fight to the finish, but they backed up their fifth-place result at the checkered flag by winning Daytona’s opening round of the IMEC in the GTD class.

The Daytona IMEC win was anchored by a first-place finish in the opening segment of the season at the race’s six-hour mark. The Korthoff Preston team and drivers and Mercedes-AMG head into round two of the five race IMEC championship in March at Sebring International Raceway leading the GTD standings.

Lone Star’s initial attempt at the Rolex 24 rarely looked like a first-time effort as team drivers Scott Andrews, Adam Christodoulou, Salih Yoluç and Rui Andrade joined Winward and Korthoff Preston in frequently contending for the lead. The No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 led five laps and finished eighth only because of some pit procedure penalties and an untimely late caution knocked them from a likely top-five result. Yoluç, Andrade and Andrews are set to co-drive the Lone Star No. 80 in the Sebring 12 Hour race in March.

Another race-leading performance was turned in by SunEnergy1 Racing that was the lone Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing team competing in the GTD Pro class. Kenny Habul, Maro Engel, Jules Gounon and Luca Stolz co-drove the No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 and, after leading six laps, were just settling in to battle with the class leaders Saturday evening when the entry retired with a technical issue.

Winward’s top weekend also included a close second-place finish in Friday’s season-opening IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race. With Morad once again the closing driver, the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 was catching the race leader on the final lap but settled for the runner-up result 1.936 seconds behind the race winner. Morad co-drives with Russell Ward’s father Bryce Ward who ran in the top-10 throughout his race-opening stint in the eight-hour race.

The Daytona opener also saw the debut of Mercedes-AMG GT4 standouts Michai Stephens and Jesse Webb who scored a top-10 Pilot Challenge GS-class finish in the No. 34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4.

Next up for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Customer Racing teams in both the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge is the 72nd running of the 12 Hours of Sebring, March 14 – 16 at Sebring International Raceway.

Russell Ward, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “This one is pretty special to me. The first victory wasn’t luck of course, everybody put their work in, but to come here and do it again is a great feeling. Our work really began at the mid-December test. We experienced the new Michelin tire, which is quite different from last year’s tire, and we just kind of set the car for the long run. That’s what we all like. You can put a fast lap together, but at the end of the day you just want a car that is good on the long run. The team did a great job on that, and that was big for our race this weekend. We have had a pretty consistent crew the last five years that has stayed with us and that really helps us be successful.”

Philip Ellis, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “We have done a flawless job. Our Mercedes-AMG GT3 was in top condition in the closing stages as well and that is the basic requirement to be able to push at the end. Generally, Winward Racing has done a great job. The strategy was always right and that is how we were able to work our way up step by step and remain in front. At the end, we had to give it our all once again, but fortunately, we had the better outcome. I am simply just grateful for being here.”

Daniel Morad, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 and Mercedes-AMG GT4: “It was just a perfect weekend, starting with the Michelin Pilot Challenge. We definitely had the performance against us, but we really over-achieved big time for the championship. Once that was all finished the focus went on to the big race with the Rolex 24. I just had a feeling we would be in the hunt. We worked so hard on the prep, Winward Racing gave us just an unbelievable car, and the Mercedes-AMG GT3 was just incredible with the tire degradation. That was a big key to the win: we had the rear tire, and the other guys did not.”

Indy Dontje, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “Obviously, it is a great feeling. A two-time winner of the Rolex 24 is a really amazing feeling, and I am happy to be able to do it together again with Winward Racing and all of our teammates from the first win. Daniel wasn’t there for the first one, but I am really happy he joined us for this race together. It was an exciting race at the end, and I really couldn’t watch!”

Maximilian Götz, Driver – No. 32 Korthoff Preston Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: “Fifth place is not what we had in mind. We had a very good pace at times but lost it again. Especially in comparison with Winward Racing, we have to sit down and analyze this. The heat in the last six or seven hours caused us problems. Unfortunately, we also had a drive-through penalty. The rear wheel spun in the air during a pit stop, which is not allowed. That threw us a bit out of rhythm. Congratulations to Winward Racing who did a great job. They were the benchmark. It’s nice to have a star at the top.”

Kenton Koch, Driver – No. 32 Korthoff Preston Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It feels good to get the endurance cup off to a good start but this year we want to go for wins and this weekend we fell short. It was unfortunate, and it wasn’t for a lack of trying, that’s for sure. Everyone here did everything they could this weekend. We were fast for a lot of the race and in certain conditions we just were not. That’s just how it goes sometimes but I feel very fortunate to be here again for the endurance races this year.”

Mike Skeen, Driver – No. 32 Korthoff Preston Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3: “The guys did an awesome job. We ran a really good race but unfortunately at the end we just didn’t have the pace the front-running cars had. We were in the mix all night, and kept the car up there without any mistakes, and not banging it up, but when the pace went up in the morning, we just didn’t have it. Frustrating in a lot of ways but very proud of the team and good points to start the season.”

Adam Christodoulou, Driver – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “What a roller coaster of a race. I started the race and straight away the car felt really, really nice. We were really on the backfoot here, this was kind of a last-minute deal and we missed all of the testing the other teams were able to do, but I was still happy to get the call up just five days before the Roar test. We started almost last and moved up to second, but some penalties and safety cars kept us always fighting to get back into the top three. In the end we were sixth but got caught out when we just passed the pits as a safety car came out. That led to some other issues and our race was basically done. I think we would have had a podium for sure but staying out of trouble is so key for this race.”

Scott Andrews, Driver – No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “It was a massive effort from everybody involved just to get here. We were the last car entered in this year’s Rolex 24. Less than two weeks ago the car we raced wasn’t even in IMSA specifications and we didn’t even have a full team assembled. I think if you had told us two weeks ago we would get a top-10, we would have taken it, but everybody saw how the race went. With our driver lineup and the pace of the Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, I think we deserved a podium for sure.”

Maro Engel, Driver – No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3: “We had a good car and a great team. Many thanks to SunEnergy1 Racing! The team spirit was great, and the car handled really well at the beginning of the race. However, we had an issue with the fuel system that forced us to retire. Sadly, something like that happens at times, there isn’t much one can do about it. Too bad, but we will fight back and compete for victory again next year. The atmosphere at Daytona was really great thanks to the record crowd.”

Bryce Ward, Driver – No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4: “We were hoping for a top-10 on Friday but honestly that was a win. To get a second-place finish is just incredible. The strategy just worked out so well, the pit stop crew worked so hard and were the reason we jumped two competitors, and what can you say about Daniel. He fought every single lap. So proud of everybody.”

Jesse Webb, Driver – No. 34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4: “We are getting in the rhythm, knowing how the pit stops work, knowing how IMSA works, just learning how everything operates. It was good to have that long race to give us more time to build an understanding of this big step and we learned a lot. We are definitely looking forward to building on that and Michai and I are both extremely grateful to even be here. Everybody on this entire JMF team worked extremely hard to have us here at Daytona and to get a top-10 in our first outing in GS is a great step. We will keep moving forward.”

Michai Stephens, Driver – No. 34 JMF Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT4: “We raised our flag high for the JMF Motorsports crew, and we did it with the support of Mercedes-AMG, rolling on Michelin tires, and we appreciate it all greatly. Long story short, we now know the height of the mountain, how far we need to climb, and I think as a unit we will be able to surpass that. This was our IMSA GS debut, and for the team in its entirety as well, so we are just going to continue to be one big family moving forward and the bond will grow stronger.”

Race, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Round 1, Daytona, Florida

• Daytona Beach, Florida, Jan. 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —
• Nasr/Cameron/Campbell/Newgarden dominate the nail-biting finale
• Porsche clinches 19th outright win at the 24 Hours of Daytona
• Second works-963 of Porsche Penske Motorsport finishes fourth
• Strong result in the GTP category for the Porsche customer teams
• Four Porsche 963 among the top six in the overall classification
• AO Racing’s 911 GT3 R secures second in the GTD Pro class

The No. 7 Porsche 963 fielded by the Porsche Penske Motorsport factory team has won the 24 Hours of Daytona. The four driver lineup included two American factory drivers including Dane Cameron (Glen Ellen, California) and 2023 Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden (Nashville, Tennessee) as well as Felipe Nasr from Brazil and Matt Campbell of Australia. The second-year program extended Porsche’s record number of overall victories to 19. The No. 6 sister car finished in fourth place with “works” drivers Mathieu Jaminet (France), Nick Tandy (Great Britain), Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium) and Kévin Estre (France). The Porsche 963 campaigned by the formidable customer teams Proton Competition and JDC-Miller MotorSports followed directly behind. In the GTD Pro class, AO Racing’s Porsche 911 GT3 R secured second place.

In an action-packed 24-hour endurance race witnessed by a record crowd, the two Porsche Penske Motorsport’s Porsche 963 hybrid race cars traded places at the front of the field with the competition around the Daytona International Speedway and around the clock… twice. In a nail-biting race between the manufacturers in the top GTP class, the last of 15 caution laps pushed the suspense to the edge leading to a 32-minute duel to take top honors in the crown jewel auto race. The final battle to glory went down to the wire with the No. 7 Porsche shared by Dane Cameron (Glen Ellen, California), 2023 Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden (Nashville, Tennessee) Matt Campbell (Australia) and Felipe Nasr (Brazil) in the No. 7 Porsche earning the overall victory. While it was the first win of the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, it was far from the first win for the German sports car manufacturer at the Daytona Beach, Florida-track. The victory was the 19th overall title for Porsche in the 24-hour classic.

The victory was far from certain right up until the checkered flag on Sunday afternoon. Nasr battled Briton Tom Blomquist at the wheel of a Cadillac prototype as the clock ticked towards 24-hours complete. In the last sprint, the Brazilian struggled with deteriorating tires but successfully fended off his rivals to earn his first overall victory at Daytona – his second total having captured the 2022 GTD Pro class win in a Porsche, a victory he shared with Campbell two years ago. This was an emotional first overall Daytona title for veteran Californian Cameron and for Newgarden who added the accolades to his popular first victory in the 2023 Indianapolis 500 driving for Team Penske, owned by Porsche Penske Motorsport team boss, Roger Penske.

Shortly after sunset on Saturday evening, the No. 6 car was in contention, taking the lead for the first time. However, several penalties forced the car shared by Mathieu Jaminet (France), Nick Tandy (United Kingdom), Laurens Vanthoor (Belgium) and Kévin Estre (France) back down the field. They would finish just off the podium in fourth place.

“What a fantastic win to start the year,” offered a delighted Michael Steiner, Member of the Executive Board for Development at Porsche. “The entire Porsche Penske Motorsport works team and everyone at the development center in Weissach [Germany] have worked extremely hard to lay the foundations for this success. My sincere thanks to all of our employees. We never gave up and didn’t let the tough setbacks from last year rock us. Now, we’re reaping the rewards of our hard work. In the final phase, the duel on the track made the unrivalled passion obvious. Nobody gave up, nobody backed off until the checkered flag. I found that absolutely thrilling, as I’m sure it did many motorsport fans around the world.”

“It’s difficult to put the emotions into words. We won the 2024 Daytona – amazing,” said a delighted Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President of Porsche Motorsport. “I’ve never experienced such a heart-stopping battle. We won one of the really big races today. Our package worked. Four Porsche 963, two from Porsche Penske Motorsport and two from our strong customer teams, made it through without any major technical problems – that’s quite a feat in itself. This was only possible thanks to the incredible work of everyone involved. Thank you so much! Second place for the Porsche 911 GT3 R from AO Racing in the GTD Pro class is also absolutely fantastic. Daytona was definitely worth the trip for us.”

“An amazing day for the entire Porsche Penske Motorsport organization,” said Roger Penske, Founder and Chairman of the Penske Corporation. “Both of our Porsches had great speed but more importantly, the reliability and the execution by our team allowed us to secure the overall win for the first time since 1969. Congratulations to the entire Porsche and Penske organization on this monumental victory.”

Strong results from customer teams in the top GTP class and GTD-Pro class

Finishing fifth and sixth, the two Porsche 963 privateer entries fielded by the Proton Competition and JDC-Miller MotorSports rounded out the banner result in the top GTP class. At times, both race cars were even on course for the podium and threatened for overall victory. With a mixture of seasoned drivers and younger talent at the wheel of Nos. 5 and 85 put in commanding drives with blistering lap times and clean performances.

In the GTD Pro category, AO Racing secured the second podium step with the Porsche 911 GT3 R race car. At the wheel of the No. 77 “Rexy” race car, works driver Michael Christensen (Denmark), former Porsche Junior Laurin Heinrich (Germany) and Sebastian Priaulx (United Kingdom) drove a flawless race – as did the entire customer outfit from the USA.

“This year’s 24-hour race once again underlined that you have to fight to the end. AO Racing kept its cool during its debut race in the GTD Pro class and secured a terrific result with second place,” commented Sebastian Golz, Project Manager Porsche 911 GT3 R. “All of the cars reached the finish line. Wright Motorsports managed to finish seventh in this grueling race and highly competitive field. That was obviously the maximum.” The identical 911 campaigned by Andretti Motorsports, Kellymoss with Riley and MDK Motorsports finished the race in ninth, eleventh and twelfth place.

Porsche kicks off the new IMSA season at the top of the table

With this win in the prestigious classic in Florida, Porsche has taken the lead in the manufacturers’ championship. After the season opener, the victorious drivers of the No. 7 car are also at the top the drivers’ leaderboard. Round two of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is set to be another highlight race, the traditional Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring will take place on March 16 in Sebring, Florida. The endurance race also counts as the second round in the Michelin Endurance Cup.

Felipe Nasr, Driver, No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963.

“Wow! Right after crossing the finish line, I had to take a moment and let it all sink in. To have the decision in a 24-hour race come down to the very last few meters in a head-to-head duel – unbelievable. The Cadillac was very strong, especially in the final phase as temperatures rose. We gave everything tactically and driving-wise to take this victory. It worked. I’m super proud of everyone in the team.”

Matt Campbell, Driver, No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963.

“We won the 24-hour race at Daytona – that’s just phenomenal! I can’t thank my colleagues Josef, Felipe and Dane enough. The team as a whole was simply perfect. We had an absolutely crazy battle with the Cadillac. It was back and forth over the entire distance. It was intense, exciting and exhausting. Now, it’s time to celebrate our success.”

Dane Cameron, Driver, No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963.

“A fantastic day for us all. The Porsche 963 was extremely strong in today’s race and showed that we’ve made the necessary progress in terms of reliability over the winter. I’m proud of everyone who enabled us to achieve this. Our team simply worked flawlessly. This is the first victory for the 963 in one of the really big races, and my first overall victory in the 24 Hours of Daytona – it couldn’t be better.”

Josef Newgarden, Driver, No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963.

“I’m over the moon and extremely proud. We had an outstanding car. The combination of Porsche and Team Penske was the perfect package. A massive thanks to everyone who helped us on the way to this huge success. A 24-hour race like this requires months of intensive preparation. I think we deserved to win. It’s a perfect start to the year. I wish the team a super successful season.”

Alessio Picariello, Driver, No. 5 proton Competition Porsche 963.

“I’m completely exhausted, but also relieved and delighted. It’s been a very intense weekend, and I learned an incredible amount. On top of that, I still had a fever on Friday. It doesn’t matter, when I got in the car, the adrenaline took over. I didn’t make any mistakes, kept our number 5 on course and so I’m satisfied with my performance.”

Richard Westbrook, Driver, No. 85 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963.

“There are plenty of positives. On the one hand, we’re all thrilled to have the first 24-hour race with the Porsche 963 behind us and to have scored lots of points in the process. The fact that we made it over the distance so well is also due to the great kit and the good support we received from Porsche. Unfortunately, a few minor things set us back a bit at the very end. Now, I’m looking forward to Sebring like a kid on the way to the candy shop.”

Michael Christensen, Driver, No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3.

“I’m very pleased. Despite having started the race from pole position, second place was the best result we could achieve in this competition. We knew after the first hour that we weren’t quite fast enough. We had to drive perfectly, deliver flawless pitstops and choose the best strategy. That’s exactly what we managed to do over the entire distance, and we all put in a first-class performance.”

Race result

GTP class:

1. Cameron/Nasr/Campbell/Newgarden (USA/BR/AUS/USA), Porsche 963 #7, 791 laps
2. Derani/Aitken/Blomqvist (BR/UK/UK), Cadillac #31, -2.112 s
3. Taylor/Deletraz/Herta/Button (USA/CH/USA/UK), Acura ARX-06 #40, -14.989 s
4. Tandy/Jaminet/Estre/Vanthoor (UK/F/F/B), Porsche 963 #6, -15.387 s
5. Bruni/Jani/Picariello/Dumas (I/CH/B/F), Porsche 963 #5, -44.479 s
6. Van der Helm/Westbrook/Hanson/Keating (NL/UK/UK/USA), Porsche 963 #85, – 2 laps

GTD-Pro class:

1. Serra/Rigon/Pier Guidi/Calado (BR/I/I/UK), Ferrari 293 GT3 #62, 733 laps
2. Heinrich/Priaulx/Christensen (D/UK/DK), Porsche 911 GT3 R #77, -34.999 s
3. Sellers/Snow/Verhagen/van der Linde (USA/USA/USA/RSA), BMW M4 GT3 #1, -2 laps

GTD class:

1. Ward/Ellis/Dontje/Morad (USA/UK/NL/CAN), Mercedes AMG GT3 #57, 731 laps
2. Adelson/Skeer/Heylen/Makowiecki (USA/USA/B/F), Porsche 911 GT3 R #120, -1 laps
3. Andretti/Chavez/Hargrove/Preining (USA/USA/CDN/A), Porsche 911 GT3 R #43, -3 laps
4. Brule/Udell/Hindman/Andlauer (USA/USA/USA/F), Porsche 911 GT3 R #92, -12 laps
5. Li/Fjordbach/Ten Voorde/Bachler (CHN/DK/NL/A), Porsche 911 GT3 R #86, -13 laps

Full results at https://imsa.alkamelsystems.com.

Toyota City, Japan, Jan 29, 2024 – (JCN Newswire) – TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team has started the 2024 FIA World Rally Championship season with a double podium finish at Rallye Monte-Carlo with Sébastien Ogier second and Elfyn Evans third.

Both Ogier and Evans were involved in an exciting fight for victory throughout the event, where drivers faced a challenging mix of conditions on the asphalt roads of the French Alps even if they were generally drier than usual.

Podium Ceremony
Ogier spectacularly claimed the lead during Saturday afternoon when he recorded the 700th stage win of his WRC career, and ultimately went into the final day on Sunday just 3.3 seconds away from first-placed Thierry Neuville (Hyundai).

Despite his best efforts in pursuit of a record-extending victory in Monte Carlo, Ogier and his co-driver Vincent Landais would eventually have to settle for second place, finishing 16.1s behind the winner.

Evans and his co-driver Scott Martin made an excellent start to their season when the rally got underway on Thursday night, claiming an early lead that they held until Saturday morning.

After banking good points under the championship’s new format by ending the penultimate day in third, Evans continued to push hard on Sunday when additional points were on offer for the fastest drivers. He took second in Sunday’s separate classification, plus fourth in the rally-ending Power Stage, to end the weekend with 21 points and third place in the standings. Ogier, who was second in the Power Stage and third-fastest across Sunday, is second on 24 points.

Takamoto Katsuta was among several drivers caught out on an icy corner on Friday morning, when he lost five minutes after sliding wide, but showed some strong pace as he and co-driver Aaron Johnston recovered to seventh place overall and also took third in the Power Stage.

With second and third in the overall results, in the Sunday classification and in the Power Stage, TGR-WRT leads the manufacturers’ championship by one point.

The GR Yaris Rally2 made its competitive WRC debut this weekend with three of the four entered cars completing the full rally distance in the hands of customer teams. Sami Pajari and Enni Mälkönen (Printsport) were the best-placed crew at the finish in 12th overall and fifth in class RC2.

Quotes:

Akio Toyoda (TGR-WRT Chairman)
“The start of our eighth WRC season was a new step for TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRT. Nine years ago, on 15 January 2015, I announced Toyota’s return to the WRC and explained the following: ‘Rally is the best place to strengthen people and cars because it is a sport in which you compete using cars based on production vehicles on the roads that our customers use in their daily life. We would like to come back to WRC to make ever-better cars and to make many people smile.’

After seven seasons, we were able to offer two more options for our customers in addition to the GR Yaris which we launched in 2020. The first are the two special editions supervised by the WRC champions: GR Yaris Sébastien Ogier Edition and GR Yaris Kalle Rovanperä Edition. They are not just commemorative models. Both world champions were involved in the development and achieved the taste they wanted. You can enjoy doing donuts with Kalle’s edition which I’m also looking forward to trying. Seb’s edition has ‘Morizo mode’. The “seasoning” Seb reached during the development was the same as what I liked. It should have been named ‘Seb Mode’ but thanks to Seb’s favour, my name was used. Thank you, Seb!

And the second is GR Yaris Rally2. Rallye Monte-Carlo was the very first competition for our Rally2 and we had four teams of customers on board. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all the teams who took on new challenges with the cars with unknown capabilities.

The first GR Yaris Rally2 in Japan is scheduled to be delivered to Morizo, ‘an ordinary man who loves cars’. When it’s delivered, I will try it right away and see if there’s anything we can improve. Then, the car will be rented out to a customer in Japan to participate in the Japanese Rally Championship (JRC).

In order to have the Rally2 cars ready for Monte Carlo and the first round of JRC, the team members in Finland have been working very hard. I am relieved that all four cars completed the rally in their debut round. This is just the start. We have to keep trying to improve the car itself and the support system to become the product to be chosen by customers. I‘m sure the team will continue their efforts.

For TOYOTA GAZOO Racing, WRC is not just a competition to win. We compete in WRC to make ever-better cars and make more people smile. The joys and disappointments we have experienced over the 85 events so far have led even closer to the cars for our customers. This is a very big step. We were not able to celebrate the victory this time, but the driving of three Rally1s and four Rally2s will certainly lead into future events. I trust Jari-Matti will lead the team like past years to continue to work hard and to make the 2024 season a great year.”

Jari-Matti Latvala (Team Principal)
“Overall it has been a good weekend for us to start the season. Of course, we were in the lead of the rally earlier in the weekend and things were looking really good. Things then changed a bit and we hoped that we could bounce back today on the final day and take the victory. I think Seb did what he could but it seems that Neuville had one of those days where as a driver you can push yourself to an extra level. But it was a great fight that was exciting for everybody to follow, and in the end we got strong points as a team for the manufacturers’ championship. Elfyn also showed some great pace and confidence this weekend and I think he was clever too in the end to make sure he took away some good points.”

Elfyn Evans (Driver car 33)
“We showed that the potential was there to win this weekend but we just missed the feeling on Saturday afternoon for some reason. Today was much better. There was a real mix of conditions again but we had to keep pushing to score some more points under the new system and it turned out OK. It’s been a solid enough weekend. We always want to win, but above all I really wanted to finish this rally with solid points and we’ve done that. Long term we want to win rallies and we will see what’s possible on the next rally in Sweden.”

Sébastien Ogier (Driver car 17)
“I think I can be proud of my weekend, I tried everything I could. It’s been a difficult week for me with a big rollercoaster of emotions. On Monday I had to say goodbye to someone very important to me who basically introduced me to motorsport. The start of the event was not easy for many reasons, so I’m happy that we managed to stay in the fight the whole way, and I think it was a super exciting fight for all of the fans to follow. In the end, Thierry was faster this weekend and he deserved the win. I still managed to bring strong points to the team. It’s also my 15th Rallye Monte-Carlo and 13th time on the podium, so I can be proud of my record on such a challenging rally.”

Takamoto Katsuta (Driver car 18)
“My rally changed after my mistake on Friday morning when we lost the opportunity to fight for a good result, which was a big disappointment. I’m happy that I could bring the car to the finish in seventh and also score some extra points on Sunday and in the Power Stage. The car was working very well and I enjoyed the driving. When I felt comfortable and the risks were not so high from the conditions, I felt able to push and the times were pretty good, so that’s positive. The next rally in Sweden is one of my favourite rallies so I will try my best to get a good result there.”

PROVISIONAL FINAL CLASSIFICATION, RALLYE MONTE-CARLO
1 Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1 HYBRID) 3h9m30.9s
2 Sébastien Ogier/Vincent Landais (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1 HYBRID) +16.1s
3 Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1 HYBRID) +45.2s
4 Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (Hyundai i20 N Rally1 HYBRID) +1m59.8s
5 Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (Ford Puma Rally1 HYBRID) +3m36.9s
6 Andreas Mikkelsen/Torstein Eriksen (Hyundai i20 N Rally1 HYBRID) +5m34.6s
7 Takamoto Katsuta/Aaron Johnston (Toyota GR YARIS Rally1 HYBRID) +8m28.5s
8 Yohan Rossel/Arnaud Dunand (Citroën C3 Rally2) +10m29.8s
9 Pepe López/David Vázquez (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) +10m33.8s
10 Nikolay Gryazin/Konstantin Aleksandrov (Citroën C3 Rally2) +10m45.2s(Results as of 13:30 on Sunday, for the latest results please visit www.wrc.com)

2024 FIA World Rally Championship for drivers after round 1:
1 Thierry Neuville 30 points
2 Sébastien Ogier 24
3 Elfyn Evans 21
4 Ott Tänak 15
5 Adrien Fourmaux 11
6 Takamoto Katsuta 9
7 Andreas Mikkelsen 6

2024 FIA World Rally Championship for manufacturers after round 1:
1 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team 46 points
2 Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team 45
3 M-Sport Ford World Rally Team 19

What’s next?

Rally Sweden (February 15-18) is the only full winter event of the season taking place on snow and ice. Metal studs inserted into the tyres bite into the surface to provide grip and allow for some of the highest speeds of the year.

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DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (January 28, 2024) – The No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 team made their debut at the Rolex 24 At Daytona to kick off the 2024 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti (WTRAndretti) driver Kyle Marcelli began the 24-hour sportscar racing classic from fourth on the GTD grid. In the opening sequence of the race, multiple cautions kept the field together including for the first pit stop cycle. Unfortunately, the team received two drive-thru penalties in what looked to be a promising day for the WTRAndretti GTD team which sent the No. 45 DEX Imaging machine a few laps down early in the race.

Danny Formal, Ashton Harrison and Graham Doyle got comfortable in the No. 45 DEX Imaging machine throughout their stints, with multiple cautions allowing the team to regain their laps back. The team then encountered a suspension issue after light contact during the overnight hours forcing the WTRAndretti crew to repair back at the garages.

Due to the multiple lap deficit to the GTD leader, the WTRAndretti used the remainder of the Rolex 24 At Daytona to gain valuable knowledge and experience on the No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2. The No. 45 team ended the 24-hour event 17th in the GTD class.

Next on the schedule for the WTRAndretti GTD Lamborghini team is another iconic endurance event – the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on March 16, 2024, at Sebring International Raceway. As an endurance event, the No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 will see full-time drivers Marcelli and Formal along with Doyle tackle the 12-hour race.
Wayne Taylor, Team Principal, WTRAndretti: “It was a good learning experience. My expectations were pretty high about that car actually. But other things happened. I’m really proud of all the drivers, Kyle, Danny, Ashton and especially Graham Doyle. It was a daunting situation for him to be in and he had the incident in the night. He got back in the car and thankfully he did, because he finished the race, and did a great job. Overall, it was a great learning day and I’m really proud of everyone on the team, the crew, drivers, and partners: DEX Imaging, Lamborghini, Harrison Contracting and Gainbridge, very excited to continue onto Sebring.”

No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2
Kyle Marcelli, 2024 Full Season Co-Driver: “These races are never easy. This one in particular tested our character and our strength. We didn’t really have the pace that we thought we were going to have. Certainly not the pace during the Roar and Qualifying. That sort of had us on our back foot. We had a little bit of attrition to deal with about halfway through the race. Just really proud of the No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 team for never giving up. All the teammates just kept digging and put the time in, and the guys on the stand kept calling the strategy and doing the right thing. At the end of the day, we finished 17th in class, and we finished! Huge learning experience. This was the first race for the team in GTD and I think we have shown, a lot of potential. I think we have a lot of great relationships that are forming with Lamborghini, DEX Imaging, Harrison Contracting Company and all the partners. The future is bright, and I am looking forward to the next round at Sebring.”

Danny Formal, 2024 Full Season Co-Driver: “We finished, that’s the number one win we take away from this. A new team, new program, and new drivers, at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona, so just finishing is a huge accomplishment. We had some issues in the middle of the night, but the team never stopped working. I’m so grateful for WTRAndretti, DEX Imaging, Lamborghini Squadra Corse, my teammates: Graham Doyle, Kyle Marcelli, Ashton Harrison and the entire crew. It’s a dream come true to be part of this organization. Obviously, it’s not the way we wanted it to end but this is just getting started for us. We’re a new program, but we have a great team behind us. We’re ready for the Sebring 12 Hour. I love that track and we did quite well last year. It’s where I signed my first contract with WTRAndretti at Sebring in 2020, so it brings back memories. I’m really excited to go there and show them what we’ve got.”

Graham Doyle, 2024 Endurance Co-Driver: “This race is definitely a special one. The start of hopefully many more endurance races to kick off to a great season ahead with WTRAndretti. The race didn’t exactly go to plan, we had an incident during the night session and went some laps down, but we really rallied as an entire team. WTRAndretti did an awesome job, and we got the No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini back together, got back out there and were able to finish the race. That’s pretty special and it’s going to mark a good season.”

Ashton Harrison, 2024 Rolex 24 Co-Driver: “I can’t believe it’s actually over. Now I am looking forward to some much-needed sleep. I’m super proud of everyone in the No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini GT3 EVO2 team. It’s been a long night with a lot of highs and lows. It was definitely a challenge, and we did our best. When we had hiccups on the road we overcame them, and the crew worked so tirelessly. It’s been very rewarding and I hope the WTRAndretti crew know how much we appreciate the hard work that they put in getting this car ready for the race and also throughout all the hiccups we had in the middle of the race. I’m looking forward to what’s to come and I’m excited for Danny and Kyle for their full season effort, plus to see Graham continue to perform in these endurance rounds.”

ABOUT WTRANDRETTI
Andretti Global and Wayne Taylor Racing announced a new, long-term partnership in 2023 that combines the resources of the two championship-caliber teams to compete in IMSA’s top classes. In 2024, Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti (WTRAndretti) has expanded to a two-car GTP program as well as competes in the GTD class. Coming off its 2023 championship winning effort, WTRAndretti continues its Driver Development Program competing in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America series with a full stable.

WTRAndretti’s global motorsports enterprise boasts two IMSA driver championships (2013 and 2017), and back-to-back IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Championships (2020, 2021) which contributed to nine IMSA manufacturer championships for Acura, Pontiac, Corvette and Cadillac. In its brief 17-year history, WTRAndretti has accumulated multiple victories in sportscar racing’s most iconic events: Rolex 24 At Daytona, Twelve Hours of Sebring, Petit Le Mans, Mid-Ohio, Road America and the Six Hours of The Glen. With its back-to-back PRO Class Championship wins (2022, 2023), WTR also has ten North America Lamborghini Super Trofeo Championship titles and a Lamborghini World Finals title.

Andretti Global, a Championship-winning motorsports organization, competes in additional racing categories worldwide, including the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, Extreme E, Australian Supercars and the Mexico SuperCopa Championship. Additionally, the racing enterprise commits to driver development through competition in INDY NXT by Firestone and through support of Sebastian and Oliver Wheldon’s racing careers.

WTRAndretti’s long term partnerships include Lamborghini Squadra Corse, DEX Imaging, Harrison Contracting Company and Gainbridge.