2021 24 Hours of Daytona

Map of the Daytona International Speedway combined road course

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 (IMSA). The event was held at Daytona International Speedway combined road course in Daytona Beach, Florida, on January 30–31, 2021. This event was the 59th running of the 24 Hours of Daytona, and the first of 12 races across multiple classes in the 2021 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, 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 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, who are registered to participate in the Daytona Prototype international (DPi) class with the Cadillac DPi-V.R. 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, Racing Team Nederland, and High Class Racing, are mainstays of the FIA World Endurance Championship. Many of the LMP2 driver rosters include world-class drivers, such as Nicolas Lapierre, 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, tested positive for COVID-19. He had contracted it after racing in the 2021 Dubai 24 Hour event two weeks prior. As a safety precaution, Pappas withdrew the entire team, which consisted of himself, Porsche factory driver Patrick Pilet, Patrick Lindsey, and Larry ten Voorde, who also tested positive for COVID-19 shortly after Pappas.^[1]

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 and 2020 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.^[2]

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[]

Pos	Class	No.	Team / Entrant	Drivers	Chassis	Laps	Time/Retired
					Engine
1	DPi	31	Whelen Engineering Racing	Pipo Derani Felipe Nasr	Cadillac DPi-V.R	51	1:41:06.688
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
2	DPi	55	Mazda Motorsports	Oliver Jarvis Harry Tincknell	Mazda RT24-P	51	+3.664
					Mazda MZ-2.0T 2.0 L Turbo I4
3	DPi	5	Mustang Sampling / JDC-Miller Motorsports	Loïc Duval Tristan Vautier	Cadillac DPi-V.R	51	+4.627
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
4	DPi	60	Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb-Agajanian	Dane Cameron Olivier Pla Juan Pablo Montoya	Acura ARX-05	51	+6.995
					Acura AR35TT 3.5 L Turbo V6
5	DPi	10	Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05	Filipe Albuquerque Ricky Taylor	Acura ARX-05	51	+8.997
					Acura AR35TT 3.5 L Turbo V6
6	DPi	48	Ally Cadillac Racing	Jimmie Johnson Kamui Kobayashi	Cadillac DPi-V.R	51	+19.985
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
7	DPi	01	Cadillac Chip Ganassi Racing	Kevin Magnussen Renger van der Zande	Cadillac DPi-V.R	51	+1:14.834
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
8	LMP2	52	PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports	Mikkel Jensen Ben Keating	Oreca 07	51	+1:33.798
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
9	LMP2	20	High Class Racing	Dennis Andersen Ferdinand von Habsburg	Oreca 07	50	+1 Lap
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
10	LMP2	8	Tower Motorsport	Gabriel Aubry John Farano	Oreca 07	50	+1 Lap
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
11	LMP2	29	Racing Team Nederland	Frits van Eerd Giedo van der Garde	Oreca 07	50	+1 Lap
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
12	LMP2	81	DragonSpeed USA LLC	Garett Grist Rob Hodes	Oreca 07	50	+1 Lap
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
13	LMP2	47	Cetilar Racing	Antonio Fuoco Roberto Lacorte	Dallara P217	50	+1 Lap
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
14	LMP2	18	Era Motorsport	Paul-Loup Chatin Dwight Merriman	Oreca 07	49	+2 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
15	LMP2	51	RWR-Eurasia	Cody Ware Salih Yoluç	Ligier JS P217	49	+2 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
16	GTLM	4	Corvette Racing	Alexander Sims Nick Tandy	Chevrolet Corvette C8.R	49	+2 Laps
					Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
17	GTLM	3	Corvette Racing	Nicky Catsburg Jordan Taylor	Chevrolet Corvette C8.R	49	+2 Laps
					Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
18	GTLM	79	WeatherTech Racing	Kévin Estre Cooper MacNeil	Porsche 911 RSR-19	49	+2 Laps
					Porsche 4.2 L Flat-6
19	LMP2	82	DragonSpeed USA LLC	Devlin DeFrancesco Eric Lux	Oreca 07	48	+3 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
20	LMP2	11	WIN Autosport	Tristan Nunez Steven Thomas	Oreca 07	48	+3 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 4.2 L V8
21	GTLM	62	Risi Competizione	James Calado Alessandro Pier Guidi	Ferrari 488 GTE	48	+3 Laps
					Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
22	GTD	96	Turner Motorsport	Bill Auberlen Robby Foley	BMW M6 GT3SUPER GT	48	+3 Laps
					BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
23	GTD	9	Pfaff Motorsports	Zach Robichon Laurens Vanthoor	Porsche 911 GT3 R SUPER GT	48	+3 Laps
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
24	GTD	111	GRT Grasser Racing Team	Mirko Bortolotti Rolf Ineichen	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO SUPER GT	48	+3 Laps
					Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
25	GTLM	25	BMW Team RLL	Philipp Eng Timo Glock	BMW M8 GTE	48	+3 Laps
					BMW S63 4.0 L Turbo V8
26	GTD	14	Vasser Sullivan	Oliver Gavin Aaron Telitz	Lexus RC F GT3	48	+3 Laps
					Lexus 5.4 L V8
27	LMP3	6	Mühlner Motorsports America	Laurents Hörr Moritz Kranz	Duqueine D-08	48	+3 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8
28	GTD	57	Winward Racing	Philip Ellis Russell Ward	Mercedes-AMG GT3	48	+3 Laps
					Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8
29	GTD	23	Heart of Racing Team	Roman De Angelis Ian James	Aston Martin Vantage GT3	47	+4 Laps
					Aston Martin 4.0 L Turbo V8
30	LMP3	7	Forty7 Motorsports	Mark Kvamme Ryan Norman	Duqueine D-08	47	+4 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8
31	GTLM	24	BMW Team RLL	Augusto Farfus Marco Wittmann	BMW M8 GTE	47	+4 Laps
					BMW S63 4.0 L Turbo V8
32	LMP3	54	CORE Autosport	Jon Bennett George Kurtz	Ligier JS P320	47	+4 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8
33	GTD	63	Scuderia Corsa	Bret Curtis Ed Jones	Ferrari 488 GT3	47	+4 Laps
					Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
34	GTD	16	Wright Motorsports	Ryan Hardwick Patrick Long	Porsche 911 GT3 R	47	+4 Laps
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
35	GTD	12	Vasser Sullivan	Robert Megennis Zach Veach	Lexus RC F GT3	46	+5 Laps
					Lexus 5.4 L V8
36	GTD	75	SunEnergy1	Kenny Habul Raffaele Marciello	Mercedes-AMG GT3	46	+5 Laps
					Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8
37	GTD	44	Magnus with Archangel	Andy Lally John Potter	Acura NSX GT3	45	+6 Laps
					Acura 3.5 L Turbo V6
38	GTD	97	TF Sport	Charlie Eastwood Max Root	Aston Martin Vantage GT3	45	+6 Laps
					Aston Martin 4.0 L Turbo V8
39	GTD	88	Team Hardpoint EBM	Earl Bamber Christina Nielsen	Porsche 911 GT3 R	45	+6 Laps
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
40	GTD	28	Alegra Motorsports	Daniel Morad Michael de Quesada	Mercedes-AMG GT3	45	+6 Laps
					Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8
41	GTD	21	AF Corse	Simon Mann Nicklas Nielsen	Ferrari 488 GT3	44	+7 Laps
					Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
42 DNF	LMP3	33	Sean Creech Motorsport	João Barbosa Lance Willsey	Ligier JS P320	30	Not Running
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8
43 DNF	GTD	42	NTE Sport	Andrew Davis Alan Metni	Audi R8 LMS GT3	18	Not Running
					Audi BXA 5.2 L V10
44 DNF	LMP3	38	Performance Tech Motorsports	Cameron Cassels Rasmus Lindh	Ligier JS P320	13	Not Running
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8
45 DNF	LMP3	91	Riley Motorsports	Jim Cox Dylan Murry	Ligier JS P320	8	Not Running
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8
46 DNF	GTD	1	Paul Miller Racing	Madison Snow Bryan Sellers	Lamborghini Huracán GT3	2	Not Running
					Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
47†	GTD	19	GRT Grasser Racing Team	Misha Goikhberg Franck Perera	Lamborghini Huracán GT3	48	+3 Laps
					Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
DNS	LMP3	74	Riley Motorsports	Spencer Pigot Gar Robinson	Ligier JS P320	0	Not Started
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8
DNS	GTD	64	Team TGM	Ted Giovanis Owen Trinkler	Porsche 911 GT3 R	0	Not Started
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
[3]

Class winners in bold.

†: Post-event penalty. Moved to back of class.

Results[]

Class winners denoted in bold and with

Pos	Class	No.	Team / Entrant	Drivers	Chassis	Laps	Time/Retired
					Engine
1	DPi	10	Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05	Filipe Albuquerque Hélio Castroneves Alexander Rossi Ricky Taylor	Acura ARX-05	807	24:00:14.673
					Acura AR35TT 3.5 L Turbo V6
2	DPi	48	Ally Cadillac Racing	Jimmie Johnson Kamui Kobayashi Simon Pagenaud Mike Rockenfeller	Cadillac DPi-V.R	807	+4.704
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
3	DPi	55	Mazda Motorsports	Jonathan Bomarito Oliver Jarvis Harry Tincknell	Mazda RT24-P	807	+6.562
					Mazda MZ-2.0T 2.0 L Turbo I4
4	DPi	60	Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian	A.J. Allmendinger Dane Cameron Juan Pablo Montoya Olivier Pla	Acura ARX-05	807	+54.418
					Acura AR35TT 3.5 L Turbo V6
5	DPi	01	Cadillac Chip Ganassi Racing	Scott Dixon Kevin Magnussen Renger van der Zande	Cadillac DPi-V.R	807	+1:07.744
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
6	LMP2	18	Era Motorsport	Paul-Loup Chatin Ryan Dalziel Dwight Merriman Kyle Tilley	Oreca 07	787	+20 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
7	LMP2	8	Tower Motorsports by Starworks	Gabriel Aubry Timothé Buret John Farano Matthieu Vaxivière	Oreca 07	787	+20 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
8	DPi	31	Whelen Engineering Racing	Mike Conway Pipo Derani Chase Elliott Felipe Nasr	Cadillac DPi-V.R	783	+24 Laps
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
9	LMP2	82	DragonSpeed USA LLC	Devlin DeFrancesco Eric Lux Christopher Mies Fabian Schiller	Oreca 07	783	+24 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
10	LMP2	51	RWR-Eurasia	Austin Dillon Sven Müller Cody Ware Salih Yoluç	Ligier JS P217	778	+29 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
11	GTLM	3	Corvette Racing	Nicky Catsburg Antonio García Jordan Taylor	Chevrolet Corvette C8.R	770	+37 Laps
					Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
12	GTLM	4	Corvette Racing	Tommy Milner Alexander Sims Nick Tandy	Chevrolet Corvette C8.R	770	+37 Laps
					Chevrolet 5.5 L V8
13	GTLM	24	BMW Team RLL	John Edwards Augusto Farfus Jesse Krohn Marco Wittmann	BMW M8 GTE	769	+38 Laps
					BMW S63 4.0 L Turbo V8
14	GTLM	62	Risi Competizione	James Calado Jules Gounon Alessandro Pier Guidi Davide Rigon	Ferrari 488 GTE	769	+38 Laps
					Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
15	GTLM	25	BMW Team RLL	Philipp Eng Timo Glock Connor De Phillippi Bruno Spengler	BMW M8 GTE	768	+39 Laps
					BMW S63 4.0 L Turbo V8
16	LMP2	11	WIN Autosport	Matthew Bell Thomas Merrill Tristan Nunez Steven Thomas	Oreca 07	764	+43 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
17	GTLM	79	WeatherTech Racing	Gianmaria Bruni Kévin Estre Richard Lietz Cooper MacNeil	Porsche 911 RSR-19	760	+47 Laps
					Porsche 4.2 L Flat-6
18	LMP3	74	Riley Motorsports	Scott Andrews Oliver Askew Spencer Pigot Gar Robinson	Ligier JS P320	757	+50 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8
19	LMP3	33	Sean Creech Motorsport	João Barbosa Wayne Boyd Yann Clairay Lance Willsey	Ligier JS P320	754	+53 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8
20	LMP3	6	Mühlner Motorsport America	Laurents Hörr Kenton Koch Mortiz Kranz Stevan McAleer	Duqueine M30 - D08	750	+57 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8
21	LMP3	91	Riley Motorsports	Jeroen Bleekemolen Jim Cox Austin McCusker Dylan Murry	Ligier JS P320	746	+61 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8
22	GTD	57	HTP Winward Racing	Indy Dontje Philip Ellis Maro Engel Russell Ward	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	745	+62 Laps
					Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8
23	GTD	75	SunEnergy1 Racing	Mikaël Grenier Kenny Habul Raffaele Marciello Luca Stolz	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	745	+62 Laps
					Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8
24	GTD	1	Paul Miller Racing	Andrea Caldarelli Corey Lewis Bryan Sellers Madison Snow	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo	745	+62 Laps
					Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
25	GTD	16	Wright Motorsports	Klaus Bachler Jan Heylen Trent Hindman Patrick Long	Porsche 911 GT3 R	745	+62 Laps
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
26	GTD	23	Heart of Racing Team	Roman De Angelis Ross Gunn Ian James Darren Turner	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3	745	+62 Laps
					Aston Martin 4.0 L Turbo V8
27	GTD	96	Turner Motorsport	Bill Auberlen Robby Foley Colton Herta Aidan Read	BMW M6 GT3	744	+63 Laps
					BMW 4.4 L Turbo V8
28	GTD	97	TF Sport	Charlie Eastwood Ben Keating Max Root Richard Westbrook	Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3	744	+63 Laps
					Aston Martin 4.0 L Turbo V8
29	GTD	21	AF Corse	Matteo Cressoni Simon Mann Nicklas Nielsen Daniel Serra	Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020	743	+64 Laps
					Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
30	GTD	28	Alegra Motorsports	Maximilian Buhk Billy Johnson Daniel Morad Mike Skeen	Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo	741	+66 Laps
					Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8
31	LMP3	54	CORE Autosport	Jon Bennett Colin Braun George Kurtz Matt McMurry	Ligier JS P320	737	+70 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8
32	GTD	88	Team Hardpoint EBM	Earl Bamber Rob Ferriol Katherine Legge Christina Nielsen	Porsche 911 GT3 R	737	+70 Laps
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
33	GTD	44	Magnus Racing with Archangel Motorsports	Mario Farnbacher Andy Lally John Potter Spencer Pumpelly	Acura NSX GT3 Evo	736	+71 Laps
					Acura 3.5 L Turbo V6
34 DNF	DPi	5	JDC-Mustang Sampling Racing	Sébastien Bourdais Loïc Duval Tristan Vautier	Cadillac DPi-V.R	723	Accident damage
					Cadillac 5.5 L V8
35	LMP2	47	Cetilar Racing	Andrea Belicchi Antonio Fuoco Roberto Lacorte Giorgio Sernagiotto	Dallara P217	710	+97 Laps
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
36	GTD	9	Pfaff Motorsports	Matt Campbell Lars Kern Zacharie Robichon Laurens Vanthoor	Porsche 911 GT3 R	702	+105 Laps
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
37	LMP3	38	Performance Tech Motorsports	Cameron Cassels Rasmus Lindh Mateo Llarena Ayrton Ori	Ligier JS P320	687	+120 Laps
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8
38	GTD	12	Vasser Sullivan Racing	Townsend Bell Robert Megennis Frankie Montecalvo Zach Veach	Lexus RC F GT3	681	+126 Laps
					Lexus 5.4 L V8
39 DNF	GTD	63	Scuderia Corsa	Ryan Briscoe Bret Curtis Marcos Gomes Ed Jones	Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020	676	Overheating
					Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8
40 DNF	GTD	42	NTE Sport	Andrew Davis J. R. Hildebrand Alan Metni Don Yount	Audi R8 LMS Evo	665	Gearbox
					Audi BXA 5.2 L V10
41 DNF	LMP2	52	PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports	Scott Huffaker Mikkel Jensen Ben Keating Nicolas Lapierre	Oreca 07	664	Starter motor
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
42 DNF	GTD	14	Vasser Sullivan Racing	Oliver Gavin Jack Hawksworth Kyle Kirkwood Aaron Telitz	Lexus RC F GT3	641	Mechanical
					Lexus 5.4 L V8
43 DNF	GTD	64	Team TGM	Ted Giovanis Hugh Plumb Matt Plumb Owen Trinkler	Porsche 911 GT3 R	515	Drivetrain
					Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6
44 DNF	LMP3	7	Forty7 Motorsports	Gabby Chaves Trenton Estep Mark Kvamme Ryan Norman	Duqueine M30 - D-08	413	Oil cooling pump
					Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8
45 DNF	GTD	111	GRT Grasser Racing Team	Mirko Bortolotti Rolf Ineichen Marco Mapelli Steijn Schothorst	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo	347	Electrical
					Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
46 DNF	GTD	19	GRT Grasser Racing Team	Albert Costa Misha Goikhberg Franck Perera Tim Zimmermann	Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo	195	Engine
					Lamborghini 5.2 L V10
47 DNF	LMP2	29	Racing Team Nederland	Frits van Eerd Giedo van der Garde Charles Milesi Job van Uitert	Oreca 07	64	Gearbox
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
48 DNF	LMP2	20	High Class Racing	Dennis Andersen Anders Fjordbach Ferdinand von Habsburg Robert Kubica	Oreca 07	56	Gearbox
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
49 DNF	LMP2	81	DragonSpeed USA LLC	Garett Grist Ben Hanley Rob Hodes Rinus VeeKay	Oreca 07	53	Misfire
					Gibson Technology GK428 V8
Box Score

References[]