I usually do not pay much attention to the 24 hours of Daytona but this year's race has me hooked. The sound of racing engines hath restored my soul and that howling winter wind outside will soon give way to gentler spring breezes. More and more well known drivers are finding that the Rolex 24 hours of Daytona is the place where they can show off their skills and compete with one another. Check out this partial list of drivers in this year's competition.
Ed Carpenter, Indianapolis, IN
Tomas Scheckter, Indianapolis, IN
Tony George, Indianapolis, IN
Anthony Foyt, Houston, TX
Scott Pruett, Auburn, CA
Juan Pablo Montoya, Colombia
Scott Dixon, New Zealand
Paul Tracy, Scarborough, ON Canada
AJ Allmendinger, Denver, CO
Jeff Gordon with the SunTrust Team
Jeff Gordon, Vallejo, CA
Patrick Carpentier, Las Vegas, NV
Darren Manning, England
Bill Lester, Atlanta, GA
Bobby Labonte, Corpus Christi, TX
Tony Stewart, Rushville, IN
Christian Fittipaldi, Brazil
Eddie Cheever Jr, Indianapolis, IN
Buddy Rice, Phoenix, AZ
Scott Sharp, Tequesta, FL
Helio Castroneves, Miami, FL
Sam Hornish Jr, Defiance, OH
Max Papis, Miami, FL
Oriol Servia, Miami, FL
Wally Dallenbach, Spring Branch, TX
Katherine Legge, Indianapolis, IN
Jimmie Johnson, El Cajon, CA
Ryan Hunter-Reay, Boca Raton, FL
Jimmy Vasser, Las Vegas, NV
Pontiac Racers Look Strong Going Into Night Fall at Daytona
Lowe's #91 Leads Pontiac Charge in DP, Banner in GT at Five Hours
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Jan. 27, 2007 - Pontiac powered Daytona Prototypes (DP) led the 69 car field to the green flag this afternoon for the start of the 45th running of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Special Reserve season opening Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Alex Gurney managed to lead the first six laps before having contact with a stricken GT car causing the pole sitter to limp around to the pits for extensive repairs. The result was the No. 99 Gainsco Pontiac Riley going 20 laps down.
The top running Pontiac powered DP car is currently the No. 91 Lowe's Pontiac Riley currently shown in second position. Reigning NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson just relinquished the wheel to teammate Ryan Hunter-Reay.
"I had a good run," Johnson relayed. "I was trying to keep pace with Montoya, on some laps I would gain and on some I would lose, but the gap was pretty close. The traffic with all of these cars really keeps you focused. The track, off the line, is pretty dirty and that will make it hard to pass as the night goes on. I am used to running around with here with guys going about the same speed. There is possible rain, I am looking forward to it. The last time I raced in the 24 it rained most of the night. The team has a good set-up in the rain and we should be strong."
Personally I like to cheer for "local" drivers. In this race I found a guy from Little Rock Arkansas. This kind of racing doesn't normally lend it self to what I typically think of when I consider Ozark Mountain folk, so I found this interesting. But there is no one in the race from Tennessee, Missouri, Louisiana, Iowa or Alabama. So I am making this Arkansan my homey.
47DPTruSpeed Motorsports
Charles Morgan, Little Rock, AR Rob Morgan, Ladera Ranch, CA Timo Bernhard, Germany BJ Zacharias, Cincinnati, OH
Porsche RileyQuerencia Golf Club, Los Cabos/ TruSpeed Motorcars/ Wright Motorsports
What is TruSpeed Motorsports?
When the Green Flag signals the start of the 45th Rolex 24 at Daytona Saturday, January 27th, the TruSpeed Motorsports team of Charles Morgan, Rob Morgan, Timo Bernhard and B.J. Zacharias will be ready put their No. 47 Querencia Golf Club, Los Cabos/TruSpeed Motor Cars/Wright Motorsports/VelocityVille.com Porsche Riley right into the thick of battle. Even though the team has extensive experience and success in the Rolex 24, there are so many variables in play as the race unfolds that it proves difficult to foresee all potential circumstances. And contrary to the sprint races that make up a sizeable portion of the Grand Am schedule, restraint and a steady pace pay dividends in the 24. While there are many stars of American and international motorsports in the field, many of the big names have little or no experience in endurance racing. TruSpeed Motorsports has endurance experience behind the wheel and experience behind pit wall.
Who is Charles Morgan?
Thirty-one of the 70 cars entered will have at least one driver on board with a previous victory in the twice-around-the-clock classic. And TruSpeed Motorsports is no exception. Charles Morgan has a pair of Rolex 24 class wins in his long and storied career, going to victory lane in 1989 (GTP-Light) and 1996 (GTS-1). Rob Morgan has earned one victory, also in 1996 (GTS-1) and finished second overall in 1997. German Timo Bernhard was part of the team that scored the overall win driving a GT class machine in 2003 and he also picked up a class win in 2002 (GT). The fourth member of the team, B.J. Zacharias, has yet to taste the victory champagne but was putting pressure on Bernhard in 2002 before settling for a fourth-place finish.
Get your TV over on Speed right now. Two more hours of coverage has just started.
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Jeff Gordon with the SunTrust Team
