![Daytona International Speedway - Road Course](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Daytona_International_Speedway_-_Road_Course.svg)
The 2021 24 Hours of Daytona (formally the 2021 Rolex 24 at Daytona) was an
endurance sports car race sanctioned by the
International Motor Sports Association
The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) is a North American sports car racing sanctioning body based in Daytona Beach, Florida under the jurisdiction of the ACCUS arm of the FIA. It was started by John Bishop, a former executive direc ...
(IMSA). The event was held at
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NA ...
combined road course in
Daytona Beach, Florida
Daytona Beach, or simply Daytona, is a coastal Resort town, resort-city in east-central Florida. Located on the eastern edge of Volusia County, Florida, Volusia County near the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic coastline, its population ...
, on January 30–31, 2021. This event was the 59th running of the
24 Hours of Daytona
The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on the Sports Car Course layou ...
, and the first of 12 races across multiple classes in the
2021 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
The 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship was the 51st racing season sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) which traces its lineage back to the 1971 IMSA GT Championship. This was also the eighth United SportsCar Championsh ...
, as well as the first of four rounds in the 2021 Michelin Endurance Cup.
Entries
With the addition of the Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class, despite the onset of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, the number of entrants to the 24-hour race saw a marked improvement from the 2020 running of the event, with 50 entries registered. There were seven entries in the Daytona Prototype International (DPi) class, ten in LMP2, seven in LMP3, six in GT Le Mans (GTLM), and 20 in GT Daytona (GTD). Some notable entries include
Chip Ganassi Racing
Chip Ganassi Racing, LLC (CGR), also sometimes branded as Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, is an American auto racing organization with teams competing in the IndyCar Series, NTT IndyCar Series, International Motor Sports Association, IMSA WeatherTech ...
, who are registered to participate in the Daytona Prototype international (DPi) class with the
Cadillac DPi-V.R
The Cadillac DPi-V.R is a sports prototype racing car which started competing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in North America in 2017. It is the manufacturer variation of Dallara P217 base, and replaces the Corvette DP. It marked C ...
. This marks Chip Ganassi Racing's return to top-level sportscar competition in America after a one-year absence following the withdrawal of their
Ford GTE program at the end of the 2019 season, and their first race in prototypes since the
2016 edition of the 24-hour race.
The Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class also saw a flourish of international interest, with ten entries registered, the highest entry count since LMP2 was made its own class. Several of the teams, such as
DragonSpeed
DragonSpeed Racing is an American racing team that competes in the European Le Mans Series, FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In 2019, the team entered the NTT IndyCar Series with a five race schedule, including th ...
,
Racing Team Nederland
Racing Team Nederland is a Dutch endurance racing team founded by F1 driver and Le Mans winner Jan Lammers and businessman .
History
, was one of the sponsors of Racing for Holland with his company ( Jumbo Supermarket), owned by Lammers fro ...
, and High Class Racing, are mainstays of the
FIA World Endurance Championship
The FIA World Endurance Championship is an auto racing world championship organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The series supersedes the ACO's former Intercont ...
. Many of the LMP2 driver rosters include world-class drivers, such as
Nicolas Lapierre
Nicolas Lapierre (born 2 April 1984) is a French professional racing driver. He raced with Toyota and with Alpine Racing in the past seasons of the FIA World Endurance Championship. He is a two-time winner of the 12 Hours of Sebring, with overa ...
,
Giedo van der Garde, and
Ben Hanley, among others.
The entry count would drop to 49 for the race itself. Just prior to the testing weekend, the team owner of Porsche GT Daytona entrant Black Swan Racing,
Tim Pappas
Tim Pappas (born September 14, 1973 in New York City) is an American racing driver and businessman who competes in the American Le Mans Series with his Black Swan Racing team. He won the 2010 and 2011 American Le Mans Series GTC Drivers Championsh ...
, tested positive for
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. He had contracted it after racing in the
2021 Dubai 24 Hour
The 2021 Hankook Dubai 24 Hour was the 16th running of the Dubai 24 Hour. It was also the first round of the 2021 24H GT Series and TCE Series. The race was won by Julien Andlauer, Frédéric Fatien, Alain Ferté, Mathieu Jaminet and Axcil Jeffe ...
event two weeks prior. As a safety precaution, Pappas withdrew the entire team, which consisted of himself, Porsche factory driver
Patrick Pilet
Patrick Pilet (born October 8, 1981) is a French professional racing driver. He has competed in major sports car endurance races like the 24 Hours of Le Mans, 24 Hours of Daytona, 24 Hours of Spa, 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans.
Born in ...
,
Patrick Lindsey, and
Larry ten Voorde, who also tested positive for COVID-19 shortly after Pappas.
Pre-Race
Balance of Performance
Prior to the 24-hour race, and indeed the mandatory testing session that came a week prior, IMSA released a technical bulletin regarding the Balance of Performance for the 24 Hours of Daytona. Every year a unique set of BoP constraints are determined exclusively for the 24-hour event, due to the unique challenges the length of the race brings relative to the other events in the IMSA calendar. There was a large focus on changes in the GT classes. After winning both the
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
and
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
editions of the Rolex, the BMW M8 GTE was put at a 10-kilogram weight disadvantage, along with restricted levels of turbo boost. Meanwhile, the Porsche 911 RSR and Chevrolet Corvette C8.R were both given increases in the sizes of their air restrictors, with the latter being made 10 kilograms lighter. In GTD, several cars had their constraints changed, most notably the Porsche 911 GT3 R and 2020-edition-winning Lamborghini Huracan GT3. The former was given a hefty 20-kilogram weight increase, and the latter would run at restricted power levels.
Roar Before the 24
Motul Pole Award 100
The Motul Pole Award 100 was held January 24. It was a qualifying race, awarding qualifying points and determining the starting lineup for the 24 Hours of Daytona.
Results
Class winners in bold.
†: Post-event penalty. Moved to back of class.
Results
Class winners denoted in bold and with
References
{{24 Hours of Daytona
24 Hours of Daytona
2021 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season
Daytona Daytona refers to the city of Daytona Beach, Florida, or things named after it.
Daytona may also refer to:
Locations
* Daytona Beach Shores, Florida
* South Daytona, Florida
* The Daytona Beach metropolitan area
* Halifax area, also known as Da ...
2021 24 Hours of Daytona