Porsche Motorsports Rolex 24 Pre-Race Report

Porsche Profile. Event Story Lines

Porsche In Two Classes. 12 Seventh-Generation Porsche 911s Entered for 53rd Rolex 24 Porsche is the most successful sports car manufacturer at Daytona International Speedway (DIS) since the inception of the first Daytona Continental race in 1962, and the first 24 Hours of Daytona in 1966. In that time, the German marque has captured a record 22 overall victories, the first in 1968 and the most recent in 2010. Over half, 12, of those overall titles have come with another Porsche giving chase and finishing second. As recently as 2014’s GT Le Mans (GTLM) class victory for the No. 911 Porsche North America Porsche 911 RSR, Porsche has won 76 class victories. The venerable entry with the rear-engine layout has 12 opportunities to add a 77th and 78th title in 2015 with three Porsche 911 RSR racecars in the top GT category, GTLM, and nine Porsche 911 GT America racecars in the GT Daytona (GTD) class that will fight for the pair of GT victories available.GTLM Triad. Three Porsche 911 RSR Look for Repeat GTLM Victory at Rolex 24In 2014, Porsche North America, the first factory team in recent memory to focus on this continent, debuted at the Rolex 24 At Daytona. The pair of then new Porsche 911 RSR ran at or near the front throughout the 24-hour race with both in contention deep into the night. It wasn’t until the No. 912 suffered a rare mechanical issue that it would be left to the No. 911 to take Porsche’s 76th career class victory at Daytona. Now, the duo of Porsche works 911 RSR return to Daytona International Speedway joined by a third privateer entrant, Team Falken Tire. Porsche North America is back with 2014 winners Nick Tandy (Great Britain) and Patrick Pilet (France) teamed with Porsche 919 Hybrid driver Marc Lieb (Germany). The No. 912 has one of the veteran Porsche works drivers, Jörg Bergmeister (Germany), joined by sophomore factory driver Frédéric Makowiecki (France) and first-year works man Earl Bamber (New Zealand). The third entry, the No. 17 Team Falken Tire car is shared by longtime Falken teammates Wolf Henzler (Germany) and Bryan Sellers (Braselton, Georgia). They will gain the immense talent and experience of the United State’s only factory driver, Patrick Long (Manhattan Beach, California) for Daytona. The triad of the most iconic sports car in motorsports will face a field of 10 mostly factory entries in the ultra-competitive class.It’s a Small World. Second-Year GB Autosport Draws Drivers from Around the Globe GB Autosport was started in 2014 by Tully’s Coffee principal Michael Avenatti. He got his first taste of racing in 2011 with Bob Faieta’s Competition Motorsports in IMSA Porsche GT3 Cup competition, scoring a breakthrough podium finish at Laguna Seca in 2012 and then moved on to American Le Mans Series GTC competition. After recovering from back surgery last fall, Avenatti re-joins the team as a driver for its sophomore season. Scotland’s Rory Butcher (Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain), Poland’s Kuba Giermaziak (Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup), Ireland’s Damien Faulkner (Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain and returning GB driver) will join Americans Mike Skeen (Pirelli World Challenge) and Avenatti to make up the strongest lineup the team has ever had in its short existence for the No. 81 Tully’s Coffee Porsche 911 GT America. Team Manager Cole Scogham had the GB Porsche in contention for a podium finish in the GT Daytona class at several races last season, but bad luck and some on-track incidents prevented more top finishes. Still, the GB Porsche has had podium pace for most of the events, with a season-high fourth-place finish at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park last July.Porsche Point of View.Earl Bamber, Driver, No. 912 Porsche North America Porsche 911 RSR“It was a good way to kick things off for Team Porsche North America to be quickest at the Roar. However, the lap times showed the whole field was within one second over the three days. That is amazing and shows how competitive the series and the GTLM class are. It means we are going to have to be pushing all the way right until the last minute in the race. My favorite part about Daytona is the banking. It is massively impressive and you don't notice how steep it is until you follow the safety car and you feel like you’re going to fall down. It was great to have my first race for Porsche North America at Petit Le Man last year. It makes it easier to come to Daytona as I know the team and they know me. My teammates are two of the most experienced and highly rated GT drivers in the world so it’s great to be with them and learn as much as I can. It’s a very long race so I hope we can be there in the last two hours fighting for the win.”Jens Walther, President/CEO, Porsche Motorsport North America“We are entering the second season of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship with a lot of positive momentum with the Porsche 911 RSR and the Porsche 911 GT America. The test provided both our factory and customer teams, as well the Porsche Motorsports engineers, a valuable opportunity to see where we stand. We left with a good sense of what we needed to do before we returned and what we need to do this week as well. The competition has never been so close which is great for the fans. Our teams are well prepared and have secured strong driver line-ups for the 24hour race. We are looking forward to a good start and exciting racing in both classes throughout the season.”Connor De Phillippi, Driver, No. 18 Muehlner Motorsports America Porsche 911 GT America"2014 marked my first major win with Porsche in Europe, but also a difficult second half of the season with many hard lessons learned. I've grown stronger over the winter and I'm really looking forward to competing in the most coveted Porsche championship in the world, the Porsche Mobil 1 SuperCup. Coming from more of a sprint race format, the driving mentality for the Daytona 24 Hour will be a lot different due to the length and the fact that there are several different classes of cars on track at the same time. The Muehlner Motorsports America Porsche 911 GT America I'll be driving has several different performance upgrades compared to my 2014 Porsche Cup car, which will create new limits for me to explore and make the Rolex 24 Hour a very valuable experience for me!"