The Porsche Penske Motorsport works team is fighting for victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona. At the three-quarter race distance mark, the #6 Porsche 963 was running in the lead for a while, before swapping the lead spot with the #7 sister car shortly afterwards. The hybrid prototypes fielded by the customer teams Proton Competition and JDC-Miller MotorSports remain on course for a top result. In the GTD classes, all five Porsche 911 GT3 Rs are still in contention.

The aspirants for overall victory in the endurance classic at Daytona were radically diminished during the 13-hour night. After three-quarters of the race distance, only six of the ten hybrid prototypes that had started in the GTP class still had realistic chances of claiming a top position at around 7:40 am – including all four Porsche 963. After 584 laps on the 5.730-kilometre combination of high-speed oval and infield track, the #6 contender moved up to first place. However, after official sensors detected an energy usage infringement, the vehicle was handed a ten-second penalty shortly afterwards. As a result, the car dropped back to fifth position. The cockpit of the 519 kW (706 PS) race car fielded by the Porsche Penske Motorsport works team is shared by Nick Tandy from Great Britain, the two Frenchmen Mathieu Jaminet and Kévin Estre as well as Laurens Vanthoor from Belgium. The sister car driven by Brazilian Felipe Nasr, Matt Campbell from Australia and the two Americans Dane Cameron and Josef Newgarden shuffled up to second place as a result. A short time later, the #7 took the lead. Like the identical Porsche 963 campaigned by the two customer teams, they made it safely through the night without any major problems in mild air and tarmac temperatures of just over 20 degrees Celsius.

With six hours of racing to go, Proton Competition’s 963 was running in fourth place with drivers Neel Jani from Switzerland, Alessio Picariello from Belgium and the two works drivers Gianmaria Bruni (Italy) and Romain Dumas (France). JDC-Miller MotorSports’ race car defended its sixth spot. British drivers Richard Westbrook and Phil Hanson share the wheel with Dutchman Tijmen van der Helm and Ben Keating from the USA.

“Things are looking good for us. Six hours before the flag, the strategies of the top cars in the GTP class have pretty much aligned,” explains Urs Kuratle, Director Factory Motorsport LMDh. “We now have to keep our cool to the finish line. All four Porsche 963 are running virtually without any technical problems.”

GT classes: All five Porsche 911 GT3 R still in the race after 18 hours
In the GTD Pro class, AO Racing’s 911 GT3 R has put in solid drives throughout the night. Depending on the pit stop rhythm, the ca. 415 kW (565 PS) GT3 race car shared by UK driver Sebastian Priaulx, former Porsche Junior Laurin Heinrich from Germany and Danish Porsche works driver Michael Christensen alternated between a podium finish and fifth place. After 16 of 24 hours, the #77, fondly dubbed “Rexy”, was still within reach of the leaders – keeping the chance of a top result open.

The four Porsche contesting the GTD category are also still in the race. Wright Motorsports’ 911 GT3 R occupied seventh in its class, in which professionals share the cockpit with so-called gentlemen drivers. The entries from Andretti Motorsports, Kellymoss with Riley and MDK Motorsports followed in positions ten, twelve and 13.

The 24 Hours of Daytona finishes today, Sunday, at 1:40 pm local time (7:40 pm CET).

Drivers’ comments on the race so far
Nick Tandy (Porsche 963 #6): “In the last few hours of the night before sunrise, the asphalt temperatures were very low – that significantly helped the car, the tyres and also the crew in the pit lane. Driving in these conditions is a lot of fun. We’re within striking distance of the top and competitive. Let’s see what the last six hours of the race bring.”

Felipe Nasr (Porsche 963 #7): “We looking pretty good with our #7 Porsche, even though we switched to an alternative tactic compared to the sister car and ran the tyres over double stints. A lot of other cars were running on fresh tyres at the same time. We also did a good job with the refuelling strategy and can now really attack until the end. I think we’re well-positioned. If we stay focussed and avoid making any mistakes, we could end up with a good result.”

Neel Jani (Porsche 963 #5): “We experienced a few hiccups at one point and lost a lap as a result. We managed to catch up again in the early hours of the morning, which was important. Now everything is running more smoothly. This race is almost like a test for us – everyone else tested here in December, we’ve never driven here. Alessio Picariello and Romain Dumas climbed into the car for the first time so we’re learning lap by lap.”

Phil Hanson (Porsche 963 #85): “We used the softer tyre compound in my first stint, which was helpful. Now we want to continue to the end with single stints, which is good for our performance, especially in the second sector of the track. We’re running in the same lap as the leaders with six hours to go and still have every chance. Perhaps the final sprint will turn turbulent, which will benefit us.”

Laurin Heinrich (Porsche 911 GT3 R #77): “I drove the stint from night into daytime, which is always very nice. During my double stint, we changed the brakes as planned, but at an unfavourable time. As a result, we lost a lap. Maybe we’ll be lucky and make up the lap during a caution phase. Because the hydration system in the car failed, we had to switch from triple to double stints. We’re hoping for a decent final sprint.”

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