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GRAND-AM
DIFFEY: Keys To Winning The Rolex 24
I think this year, more-so than ever, everyone is talking about reliability...
With a stacked field of Daytona Prototype and GT cars ready to take part in the 50th Rolex 24 at Daytona, we often forget some of the key ingredients needed for success in GRAND-AM’s toughest, and longest race of the year.
I think this year, more-so than ever, everyone is talking about reliability. That will be a factor. But I think the nature of this year's field being GT dominant, particularly for the Daytona Prototype drivers there, it will all be about patience.
At the Roar Before the 24 test earlier this month, GT drivers were talking about GT traffic, so for the Daytona Prototype teams and drivers, it won't only be the big "R" word, Reliability, but also the big "P" word, Patience. Following three GT cars side by side into a corner, you're just going to have to be patient if someone's right on your tail.
We saw that perhaps bite Juan Pablo Montoya in years’ gone by where he's rammed people in frustration. You're not going to be able to do that this year. It's such a different year with all of these new cars.
People like Scott Pruett are even saying that while they like the look of their new car, it's still early days. They have to rub on it some more and battle through a few little issues. So I think at the moment, there are no clear cut favorites. But it will be interesting to see which of the new cars are the best.
Of course the good teams are always going to be the good teams, whether it's Ganassi, GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, SunTrust Racing and the like. Whether it's because he's a good guy or not, I always come here for some hopeful optimism for Mike Shank.
For him to be able to conquer some of the big teams, being on a limited budget and being the underdog who doesn't give up, I think that would be a really good feel-good story if Mike Shank could be able to do it. Especially now, with one of his drivers, AJ Allmendinger, having just been signed for Penske in NASCAR and also Justin Wilson making his comeback after his back injury at Mid-Ohio. A win would make the story even better.
In GT, I think when you come to Daytona, you know that Porsche is going to be hard to beat. In that, it would either be a TRG Porsche or this year perhaps a Magnus Porsche. But with that being said, the Turner BMWs are going to be incredibly strong. They have their act together and know the car after a solid year of running. I think it's way too early for the Audis and it might be the same question for the Ferraris, although they showed incredible pace at the test.
I think the GM cars will also be strong. If you look at the Stevenson cars, particularly the No. 57 car and the Autohaus Camaro, they could be right there. Maybe there's some spoiler Porsches in the background that could spring some surprises. After all, look at the Paul Miller Racing Porsche that finished second here last year. It may be a bit different in Daytona Prototypes, but in GT, we'll have a real feast and it's going to be one that we'll enjoy.
Leigh Diffey brings his considerable hosting talents and personality to a number of SPEED's road racing broadcasts after years of covering every major form of international motorsports in his native Australia and abroad.
The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEED.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or SPEED
I think this year, more-so than ever, everyone is talking about reliability. That will be a factor. But I think the nature of this year's field being GT dominant, particularly for the Daytona Prototype drivers there, it will all be about patience.
At the Roar Before the 24 test earlier this month, GT drivers were talking about GT traffic, so for the Daytona Prototype teams and drivers, it won't only be the big "R" word, Reliability, but also the big "P" word, Patience. Following three GT cars side by side into a corner, you're just going to have to be patient if someone's right on your tail.
We saw that perhaps bite Juan Pablo Montoya in years’ gone by where he's rammed people in frustration. You're not going to be able to do that this year. It's such a different year with all of these new cars.
People like Scott Pruett are even saying that while they like the look of their new car, it's still early days. They have to rub on it some more and battle through a few little issues. So I think at the moment, there are no clear cut favorites. But it will be interesting to see which of the new cars are the best.
Of course the good teams are always going to be the good teams, whether it's Ganassi, GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, SunTrust Racing and the like. Whether it's because he's a good guy or not, I always come here for some hopeful optimism for Mike Shank.
For him to be able to conquer some of the big teams, being on a limited budget and being the underdog who doesn't give up, I think that would be a really good feel-good story if Mike Shank could be able to do it. Especially now, with one of his drivers, AJ Allmendinger, having just been signed for Penske in NASCAR and also Justin Wilson making his comeback after his back injury at Mid-Ohio. A win would make the story even better.
In GT, I think when you come to Daytona, you know that Porsche is going to be hard to beat. In that, it would either be a TRG Porsche or this year perhaps a Magnus Porsche. But with that being said, the Turner BMWs are going to be incredibly strong. They have their act together and know the car after a solid year of running. I think it's way too early for the Audis and it might be the same question for the Ferraris, although they showed incredible pace at the test.
I think the GM cars will also be strong. If you look at the Stevenson cars, particularly the No. 57 car and the Autohaus Camaro, they could be right there. Maybe there's some spoiler Porsches in the background that could spring some surprises. After all, look at the Paul Miller Racing Porsche that finished second here last year. It may be a bit different in Daytona Prototypes, but in GT, we'll have a real feast and it's going to be one that we'll enjoy.
Leigh Diffey brings his considerable hosting talents and personality to a number of SPEED's road racing broadcasts after years of covering every major form of international motorsports in his native Australia and abroad.
The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEED.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or SPEED
Road Atlanta
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