Press release
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january 30, 2023 - mercedes amg motorsport
Class win for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport in Rolex 24 At Daytona
- #79 WeatherTech #racing car secures GTD-Pro class win
- Class podium and three top ten results for the Mercedes-AMG GT4
Mercedes-AMG Motorsport got the new season in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship off to a successful start. In the legendary Rolex 24 At Daytona at Daytona International Speedway, Maro Engel (GER), Jules Gounon (AND), Daniel Juncadella (ESP) and Cooper MacNeil (USA) brought the #79 Mercedes-AMG GT3 run by WeatherTech #racing across the finish line as the second GT3 car and were able to celebrate a deserved podium success. In the process, the team also secured the class win in the hard-fought GTD-Pro classification.
In the official qualifying event, the Roar Before the Rolex 24, the four participating Mercedes-AMG GT3s had managed to post the four best lap times of all the GT3 cars (GTD/GTD-Pro classes). However, the fastest car, the #57 WINWARD #racing entry, was relegated to the back of the field for the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Following an accident in a practice session prior to the main race, the team from Texas had to change to a replacement car and lost its excellent grid position for the 24-hour race as a result. Moreover, driver Lucas Auer (AUT) got injured. The Austrian was treated in a hospital in Daytona and is on his way to recovery. Daniel Morad (CAN) stepped in as a last-minute replacement for Lucas Auer in the #57 car.
The 61st running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona got underway in dry conditions at 1.40pm local time (7.40pm CET). The three Mercedes-AMGs that started the race at the front of the 33-strong GT3 field made it through the opening part of the race without any problems. Starting drivers Fabian Schiller (#75, GER), Mike Skeen (#32, USA) and Maro Engel (#79) were able to defend their positions and subsequently established themselves in the front-running group. However, early and frequent yellow-flag situations led to numerous position changes throughout the field and also prevented participants to pull clear from the competition. One of the drivers to benefit from this was Russell Ward (USA), the starting driver in the #57 WINWARD #racing car. The American put in a strong stint, consistently made up positions and was back within reach of the top ten of the GT3 cars after one hour of #racing already.
Daniel Morad then consequently continued progress of the #57 car. As a result, all four Mercedes-AMG GT3s were among the first ten of the GT3 class again when darkness fell at around 6pm local time. The Mercedes-AMG customer sports teams also made it through the first hours of the night in commanding fashion. With around one third of the race completed, however, the #75 SunEnergy1 by AKKODIS APS car incurred radiator damage. The team initially continued its race but then was forced to park its car with 233 laps completed. Later on, the Team Korthoff Motorsports entry with starting number 32 suffered from a similar fate. Wheel bearing damage and subsequent repair were the reason the team lost valuable time and had to continue its race with gap of 14 laps to the leading GT3 car that proved impossible to make up. The driver quartet of Maximilian Götz (GER), Mikaël Grenier (CAN), Kenton Koch (USA) and Mike Skeen (USA, that had previously racked up numerous laps in the lead of the class, eventually crossed the finish line in P15 of the GTD class.
The two other Mercedes-AMG GT3 had more #racing luck: at sunrise, both Philip Ellis (SUI) with the #57 car and Daniel Juncadella behind the wheel of the #79 entry were still in the front-running group of the GT3 field. In the process, both cars also regularly racked up laps in the lead. This continued during the following hours of the race. 60 minutes before the chequered flag was out, there were still ten GT3 cars on the same lap and frequently staged spectacular duels in long and highly exciting position fights. However, in spite of partly very different strategies, none of the competitors was able to pull a decisive gap, also as a result of the still frequent yellow flags.
At the restart with 30 minutes remaining, there were various contacts in the field. One of the affected drivers was Philip Ellis. His #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 was damaged after contact while in a position with a good perspective and had to let the front-running group pull away. Already prior to the final dash, Maro Engel was able to secure the lead in the GTD-Pro classification with an entertaining move. As the final driver in the #79 car, he also defended his position in the hotly contested closing stages in dominant fashion and sealed the class win as a result.
Further information in the press release to download
mercedes amg rolex 24 at daytona podium
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mercedes amg rolex 24 at daytona weathertech racing podium
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mercedes amg gt3 rolex 24 at daytona sunenergy1 by akkodis asp 75
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mercedes amg gt3 rolex 24 at daytona team korthoff motorsports 32
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mercedes amg gt3 rolex 24 at daytona winward racing 57
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