Porsche Dominates Daytona 24 Hours, Leads GTP Field
DAYTONA BEACH, FL — As the Daytona 24 Hours heads into its final hours, Porsche continues to assert its dominance with a commanding performance from its two factory Penske prototypes. The #7 Porsche 963 LMDh, piloted by Nick Tandy, leads with a margin of 5.6 seconds over the sister #6 car driven by Matt Campbell.
During a race marked by intense competition and numerous safety car periods, the Porsche entries maintained a strong position in the GTP field, especially after nearly three hours of uninterrupted green flag racing. Both cars navigated pit strategies effectively, with the #6 leading the mid-cycle pitstop while Kevin Estre temporarily gained an edge over Felipe Nasr in the #7.
As the race reached the three-quarter mark, the #6 and #7 teams executed flawless pitstops that allowed Tandy to reclaim the lead shortly thereafter with 20 minutes remaining in the hour.
Despite Porsche’s dominance, the #24 Rahal BMW M Hybrid V8 LMDh, driven by Philipp Eng, trailed the second Porsche by half a minute. Scott Dixon’s #60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06 sits in fourth, also 30 seconds off the pace after a recovery following a mid-race incident.
The BMW entries, aspiring for their first overall Daytona victory since 1976, faced challenges, particularly the #25 which fell two laps behind due to mechanical issues with its left rear corner.
In the battle amongst Cadillacs, only the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing entry, driven by Brendon Hartley, remains competitive, sitting in fifth. The sister #40 entry, which had shown promise earlier, succumbed to a crash, while Action Express Racing’s #31 Caddy lost time due to extensive repairs.
In LMP2, AO Racing is in control with Christian Rasmussen leading by over five seconds, while in GT Daytona Pro, Madison Snow surged to the front in the #1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO, overtaking Klaus Bachler’s AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3-R.
With the clock winding down, the remaining hours promise high-stakes drama as teams vie for overall and class honors in this grueling endurance race.
