Defending Rolex 24 at Daytona and series champions – Acura and Meyer Shank Racing – combined to score their second consecutive Rolex 24 victory at Daytona International Speedway, in the start of the GTP hybrid racing era in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship.
The event marked the successful racing debut for the electrified Acura ARX-06 prototype sports car, the second successive win at Daytona for the Meyer Shank Racing team, and the third consecutive Rolex 24 win for Acura in the North American crown jewel of endurance sports car racing.
Starting from the pole, the MSR Acura driver lineup of Tom Blomqvist, Colin Braun, Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud led the opening hour, and dominated early portions of the twice-around-the-clock contest; until a series of caution flags closed up the field for the final eight hours of the race.
However, the caution flags also enabled the Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport Acura ARX-06 recover from a series of minor earlier delays, moving into second place in the final hours. Together, the two Acura teams fought off the competition throughout the closing laps to score their second consecutive Acura 1-2 at Daytona.
In the production-based GTD class, Acura NSX GT3 Evo22s from Gradient Racing and Racers Edge Motorsports with WTR both persevered to take home fourth and sixth place finishes respectively.
Gradient Racing, with a lineup comprised of veteran Acura NSX driver Katherine Legge, Mario Farnbacher and Marc Miller, partnered with rookie Sheena Monk on her IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship debut for the Rolex 24. The team overcame a late race fuel fire that set them off strategy, coupled with a massive fuel-saving effort at the finish, to bring their #66 Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 home fourth.
At Racers Edge Motorsports with WTR, Ashton Harrison, the reigning Fanatec GT World Challenge America presented by AWS champion for Acura, partnered with Wayne Taylor Racing Super Trofeo drivers Danny Formal and Kyle Marcelli, as well as NTT INDYCAR SERIES race-winner Ryan Briscoe to bring home a sixth-place finish to open their 2023 Michelin Endurance Cup campaign.
Rolex 24 Race Results:
- 1st overall – #60 Tom Blomqvist, Colin Braun, Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaug; Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06
- 2nd overall – #10 Filipe Albuquerque, Louis Deletraz, Brendon Hartley and Ricky Taylor; Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport Acura ARX-06
- 4th GTD – #66 Mario Farnbacher, Katherine Legge, Marc Miller and Sheena Monk; Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo22
- 6th GTD – #93 Ryan Briscoe, Danny Formal, Ashton Harrison and Kyle Marcelli; Racers Edge Motorsports with WTR Acura NSX GT3 Evo22
“It’s a team effort,” said Rolex 24 Race Winner Tom Blomqvist (#60 Meyer Shank Racing Acura ARX-06). “What’s amazing here at MSR is that everyone is able to achieve and reach their potential and that’s really important. What Mike [Shank] and Jim [Meyer] have done to create a good atmosphere within the team, it’s such an open book and I think that allows everyone to work to the best of their abilities. Especially for me, I’m confident because they put a lot of trust and faith in me and I am so grateful for that. Last year I was on the stand watching at the end and this year I felt a lot better about being in the car because I was in control of our own destiny. The feeling I had when I exited the Le Mans Chicane on the last lap and of course seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces is incredible.”
| DPi Manufacturers’ Championship | Teams’ Championship (after 1 of 9 rounds) | ||
| 1. Acura | 385 | 1. Meyer Shank Racing | 378 |
| 2. Cadillac | 350 | 2. Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport | 355 |
| 3. BMW | 328 | 3. Cadillac Racing with Chip Ganassi | 332 |
| 4. BMW | 312 | 4. Action Express Racing | 304 |
| Michelin Endurance Cup Manufacturers | Teams (after 1 of 4 endurance races) | ||
| 1. Acura | 15 | 1. Meyer Shank Racing | 13 |
| 2. Cadillac | 12 | 2. Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti | 10 |
| 3. Porsche | 8 | 3. Action Express | 10 |
| 4. BMW | 7 | 4. Cadillac Racing with Chip Ganassi | 8 |
“I obviously ecstatic to finish fourth in my first IMSA GTD race,” said Sheena Monk (#66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo22), who finished fourth in her GTD debut. “The start was daunting, but I was very aware role: maintain a strong pace and keep the car safe. I’m really happy with my effort. I’m just growing and learning; and incredibly grateful to be alongside a bunch of experienced people for it.”
“Winning today is unbelievable, to be honest,” said David Salters, President, Honda Performance Development. “This program involves a lot of people, all of whom work really, really, really hard to do this.”
The 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship now moves to Sebring, Florida for the 71st annual Mobil-1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, Saturday, March 18th.
