Penske Celebrates 60th Anniversary with Historic Triumph at Daytona
Daytona Beach, Fla. – Roger Penske inaugurated the 60th anniversary of his team with a resounding victory in the first race of the year, marking his third consecutive triumph in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. Team Penske joins a select group, becoming the third team in the history of this prestigious endurance race in the United States to achieve three consecutive victories. They share this achievement with Chip Ganassi Racing and Wayne Taylor Racing, the only teams that have accomplished the feat at Daytona International Speedway. This triumph represents the 21st victory for Porsche in this event. An impressive aspect for Penske, 88 years old, is that the team has won three consecutive years with different lineups. Brazilian driver Felipe Nasr, in charge of closing for Penske, is the only member who has participated in all three victories.This is the fifth overall Rolex win for Porsche and the 46th IMSA victory for Penske.The driving he did for us at the end was probably one of the best I’ve ever seen.
Roger Penske
The victory was not easy for Nasr, competing against what Daytona authorities described as the largest crowd in Rolex history. Nasr resisted the attacks of the Action Express Racing Cadillac during the last hour to secure the title. Action Express is owned by Jim France, president of NASCAR and IMSA, and the car, which originally won pole position, was disqualified after post-qualification inspection.
This forced the No. 31 Cadillac to start last in its category. The team, composed of Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber, Mercedes Formula 1 reserve driver Fred Vesti, and NASCAR rising star Connor Zilisch, managed to advance to second place after the 24 hours. Nasr and Aitken were in charge of closing the race for their respective teams. Aitken had several opportunities to overtake Nasr in the last 25 minutes, but Nasr closed the door on every attempt. Nasr secured the victory in a renewed Porsche 963 No. 7, alongside his teammates Julien Andlauer and Laurin Heinrich. The Porsche surpassed the Cadillac by 1 minute and 0.569 seconds. It’s a moment I dreamed of: the desire to win is what drives you to go further. I love this sport, I love this series, and that the 24 hours are decided in the last minutes is simply incredible.Nasr’s achievement marks six consecutive years in which a Brazilian driver has been part of the winning team. Helio Castroneves, four-time winner of the Indianapolis 500, was part of the winning team in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
The BMW M Team WRT No. 24 finished third in the main GTP category, with the quartet formed by Sheldon van der Linde, Dries Vanthoor, Robin Frijns, and Rene Rast. The yellow flag was deployed due to foggy conditions shortly before 1 a.m., and lasted a race record of 6 hours, 33 minutes and 25 seconds, covering 120 laps. The duration of the caution was such that Penske, known for staying awake and in the pit box for the entire 24 hours, even took a break mid-race. The Rolex marks the unofficial start of the motorsport season, and this year’s race featured 60 cars from 12 manufacturers, 228 drivers from 32 countries, and no clear favorite. In the LMP2 class, Crowdstrike Racing by APR won with an Oreca LMP2 07, with George Kurtz, Alex Quinn, Toby Sowery and Malthe Jakobsen. Interpol Europol Competition finished second and third with a pair of Oreca LMP2 07. In the GTD Pro class, Paul Miller Racing won with a BMW M4 GT3 EVO. The Australian team 75 Express, which featured IndyCar star Will Power in his Rolex debut, finished second with a Mercedes-AMG GT3. Winward Racing, with a Mercedes-AMG GT3, finished third. In the GTD class, Winward Racing won with a Mercedes-AMG GT3. Magnus Racing, with an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 EVO, finished second, followed by Heart of Racing Team with another Aston Martin.
