Daytona Wednesday Notebook

Photo: Jurgen Tap/Porsche

***All 61 cars taking part in this weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona were assembled for a group photo on Wednesday morning, in what was a cold and rain-soaked day at Daytona International Speedway that saw IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship teams put the final touches on their cars ahead of tomorrow’s practice and qualifying sessions.

***A fire broke out in a building adjacent to the fuel station in the WeatherTech Championship paddock on Wednesday afternoon, prompting multiple trucks from the Daytona Beach, Fla. fire department to help put out the blaze. Michelin Pilot Challenge practice was briefly halted as a result of the fire.

***A statement from Daytona International Speedway read: “There was a structure fire located in the Yellow Garage area of Daytona International Speedway on [Wednesday] afternoon. There were no injuries and on-track activity resumed after a very brief delay. Thanks to the quick work of the Daytona Beach Fire Department and Daytona International Speedway Emergency Services team, the fire was quickly contained and extinguished. The state fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.”

***One Cadillac driver downplayed the Balance of Performance adjustments given to the Cadillac V-Series.R on Wednesday ahead of the start of official on-track activity, stating the car still holds a power disadvantage, especially at the first stage, which is still 20 kW (27 horsepower) less than the rest of the GTP field, which is all now at the maximum power output of 520 kW (697 hp). The Cadillac is also the heaviest GTP car, at 1060 kg.

***John Farano and Tower Motorsports are ready for the start of official on-track action tomorrow after an accident following the checkered flag in last weekend’s seventh and final test session at the Roar. Farano walked away from the incident, with only minor damage sustained to the car per a team spokesperson.

***Porsche LMDh factory director Urs Kuratle said the lap times from the Roar were “not so conclusive” which saw Gianmaria Bruni end up as the quickest in Porsche 963 machinery with the sixth best time of the weekend in the No. 85 JDC-Miller Motorsports entry.

***Kuratle said: “We feel like we’re in very good shape and we are well prepared for the race weekend. We’re in the final stages of preparation of the cars. We’re looking forward for the race weekend to start because there’s been a lot of preparation to the race weekend.”

***The hybrid system failure on the No. 7 Penske Porsche on Friday was “something new to us” according to Kuratle. “The hybrid partners are still investigating the problem,” he said. “It’s nothing to be afraid of for the race weekend. We could isolate the problem but the exact root cause has not been defined.”

***Kuratle added that both Proton Competition and JDC-Miller’s high voltage-related issues were unrelated to that from the No. 7 car, which returned to action for the remainder of the event with a fresh hybrid powertrain.

***Porsche Penske Motorsport managing director Jonathan Diuguid confirmed that Julien Andlauer is effectively the team’s reserve driver this weekend if “the sky started falling.” He indicated Penske has the authority to pull the Frenchman from Proton’s lineup should they have the need.

***The two Penske Porsches, along with the No. 40 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac V-Series.R, are the only GTP entries with three-driver lineups.

***Diuguid said the off-season updates to the 963, which resulted in the German manufacturer taking its second Evo joker, should help the Multimatic-chassied car in changing conditions.

***He said: “In November we got the first exposure to them at Daytona. Everything worked as expected. It’s really about opening the operational window of the car for a variety of temperature ranges and things like that and track conditions. We’re really looking forward to the 24-hour race and seeing what we experience.”

***Sportscar365 understands that GTP teams will likely again have the option to run Michelin’s Soft tire compound during periods of the race, although a bulletin confirming the specific timeframe and allowance has yet to be communicated. Softs will be allowed during Thursday’s night practice and were permitted throughout the Roar running.

***Mercedes-AMG teams spent the downtime further refining their new torque sensor setup, which made gains on Saturday and Sunday of the Roar after the German manufacturer produced a firmware update to fix a communication issue between the Mercedes-AMG and IMSA-controlled ECUs.

***SunEnergy1 Racing’s Kenny Habul said: “Thanks to Mercedes-AMG, we made a big step Sunday. The car felt more like what we’re used to. Still a lot of work to do, but the car was pretty much in the window for me and was fun in the wet. We still have a lot to do just to figure out the power and spiking and different things, but we’ve come a long way from [earlier in the weekend] so I’m happy.”

***NASCAR Cup Series star Austin Cindric revealed that he watched the entire IMSA season from afar last year and had been looking at ways to enter the Rolex 24 prior to his last-minute call-up to replace the injured Ben Barker in the No. 64 Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3.

***Cindric told Sportscar365: “I’ve definitely been bugging the Ford guys ever since they came out with a GT3 car, and in a lot of ways [I was] really happy when they decided to go racing in the GT category, but at the same time, personally, it also significantly limited any of my opportunities to do this race because as a Ford driver, I’m not going to race against racing against Fords.”

***Pilot Challenge team Precision Racing LA has partnered with the Salvation Army Los Angeles Chapter to aid those affected by the Los Angeles wildfires. A dedicated donation website has been established for the Eaton Canyon Fire Fund, with team members, fans and supported encouraged to contribute.

***IMSA Radio’s lineup for this year has gone through a change in the booth and pit lane, with Ryan Myrehn joining John Hindhaugh for the season. Jonny Palmer and Peter Mackay will complete the booth rotation for the Rolex 24, with Joe Bradley, Nick Daman and Jamie Howe on pit lane for the season opener.

***Jeremy Shaw is no longer part of IMSA Radio while Shea Adam will continue with coverage of Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup only.

***Robert Wickens, formerly of BHA Hyundai, who will step up to the WeatherTech Championship sprint races with DXDT Racing, will join Hindhaugh and Myrehn in the IMSA Radio booth for Friday’s BMW M Endurance Challenge Pilot Challenge season opener.

***Pratt Miller Motorsports will again offer an ‘alternative broadcast’ on its YouTube page for fans to follow the action. The stream will begin approximately 10 minutes before the green flag for all WeatherTech Championship races featuring the team’s GTD Pro Corvettes and its new-for-2025 LMP2 entry.

***The IMSA Twenty-Four Premier at One Daytona, a free-of-charge fan-filled preview event to the Rolex 24, is set for this evening from 5:30-8 p.m., located directly across the street from the speedway, and will feature selected race cars competing this weekend, driver autograph sessions, pit stop demonstrations and more.

Jonathan Grace contributed to this report