By alley - Jan 27, 2016, 1:19 PM ET

ROLEX 24: Wednesday notebook 2016

Heavy rain blanketed Daytona Beach Wednesday morning, continuing until late morning. The downpour formed IMSA to abandon its plans to capture a shot of the full 54-car grid on pit lane, and with teams looking to complete final preparations ahead of tomorrow's busy four-session day, some work has even been carried outside the garages.

• 2008 Rolex 24 winner Juan Montoya last drove in the race in 2013 with Chip Ganassi Racing, yet with his move the Team Penske the following year, the two-time Indy 500 winner has not been part of the new-look IMSA series. Speaking with RACER, JPM says he'd welcome a return to the Rolex 24...provided he's actually contacted to drive... "You know, not once have I been asked to race [at the Rolex 24] since I left Chip," he said. "Not one call, but it would be cool to do the race again."

• NASCAR veteran Brendan Gaughan was a late addition to the BAR1 PC program for Daytona. The Californian opted in after his friend Ryan Eversley, who was already slated to drive BAR1's No. 26 PC (LEFT), piqued his interest. After a five-year hiatus at the Rolex 24, Gaughan is clearly enthused about the chance to race a prototype after driving a Porsche GT entry with TRG in 2011.

"I can't remember the last time I was this excited to drive a racecar," he said. "When I was growing up my favorite racecar was the old Can-Am cars. This has been the style of car I have been wanting to drive since those days. It's great to be working with BAR1 and I can't wait to get some seat time. I know I'm bit behind the curve since I missed the Roar, but the team looked fast at the test so I'll try and grab [some Roar] data and do my best to keep a solid pace."

• Defending Verizon IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon's is already 31 miles up on the Rolex 24 field. The Kiwi joined his friend, PitFit owner/trainer Jim Leo, for a charity event at the Indianapolis-based fitness center, where the two spent hours using a rowing machine to raise funds for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Taking place between the Jan. 8-10 Roar Before The 24 and this week's 24-hour season opener, Dixon logged 3h32m on his rower, and with donations coming in for both men, $4005 was donated for their efforts.

• Wayne Taylor says his IMSA Prototype team will continue after his sons move on to other opportunities. "I expect Ricky and Jordan to continue their careers somewhere else at some point; this team isn't here only for them," he told RACER. "They both have great relationships with GM, and they've become bigger parts of the Corvette [Racing] program, so wherever they go, I'll fully support them, and to be absolutely clear, once they're driving something else, we'll find new drivers to take their place in Wayne Taylor Racing."

• HPD CEO Art St. Cyr will make his first visit to the Rolex 24 this week. "I've always been busy at this time, so I haven't had the chance to go, so I'm looking forward to getting there and seeing our [Honda-powered Ligier P2s] run."

• Antonio Perez, the father of Force India Formula 1 driver Sergio Perez is thoroughly enjoying himself at Daytona International Speedway. His other son and namesake, Antonio Perez, is

part of a Mexican driver-themed entry from Kevin Buckler's TRG-AMR GT Daytona program

, and according to Buckler, the Perez family patriarch has become an esteemed member of the team. We call him Papa Perez, and he loves it," he said. "In Mr. Perez, I have a guy who understands the sport, understands what we are doing. He has two sons and he treats them quite evenly. And although he's extremely proud of Sergio, Antonio is super-fast, and Papa Perez could be our secret weapon to get the most out of everyone this weekend."

Mr. Perez has been soaking up the Daytona experience, posing for photos on the interview stage in the media center, and snapping his own images of the complex. Compared to the F1 events he's attended, it would appear Daytona ranks rather high on his list.

• I in the Sky: Max Papis won't be racing this weekend, but the bubbly Italian will be at Daytona with an endurance job to handle as he spots for the Ford Chip Ganassi Racing team.

• 29 Ford GTs are in the Ford car corral at Daytona this weekend.

• Visit Florida Racing driver Ryan Hunter-Reay is taking part in his 10th Rolex 24 this weekend, and his third under IMSA sanction. The 2012 IndyCar Series champion and 2014 Indy 500 winner hopes to capture his first Daytona victory in the No. 90 Corvette DP, and says he's impressed with how far the series has come since its launch in 2014.

"The buzz in the paddock seems to be right," he said. "Certainly, the GTLM class is awesome. I spent some time there as well. Just seeing the new Ford GT roll up and you have the new [Ferrari] 488. It such a cool, cool series with hopefully a very bright future. I think it does."

RACER video from the Rolex 24: