Rolex win 'dream come true' for WTR team

The post-race news conference for the overall winners of the Rolex 24 at Daytona revealed five characters immersed in five different realities. For team owner Wayne Taylor, a huge sense of relief was evident; after years of finishing second with his sons Ricky and Jordan behind the wheel, the boys delivered the goods for his team and sponsors.

For the Taylor brothers, a similar sense of relief was mixed with a tremendous feeling of accomplishment; the second-generation drivers, already sports car champions, filled the one entry left on an incredible CV.

And Max "the Ax" Angelelli, in his farewell sports car drive, sat doused in champagne after completing a fairytale ending to his driving career.

And then there was Jeff Gordon, the most popular – and most celebrated – person at the event. The NASCAR legend, now a Rolex 24 winner, smiled wide, laughed, and soaked in the experience of taming America's biggest endurance race after trading decades of stock car competition for the broadcast booth.

Of the five, Gordon spoke like he was the recipient of an incredible gift made possible by the Taylors and the Ax.

"I was so thankful when I got that call from Wayne earlier this year or in 2016, and he asked me if I wanted to be a part of this, and then of course told me about the Cadillac program that they were working on," said Gordon, who finished second with Taylor's Daytona Prototype team on his Rolex 24 debut in 2007.

"I just couldn't believe it. It was like a dream come true for me because I've always dreamt about driving a car, a beautiful, amazing car that could handle like this, that had the technology like this and could compete in a race like this.

"This is very surreal to me, this whole experience and moment, to have this on my résumé, it's a very elite group that's won the Daytona 500 and the Rolex 24 together. That's something I'm very, very proud of."

Ricky Taylor fought back tears as he described the impact Angelelli has had on his life – and his brother's – as the two have become two of America's brightest young talents.

"Starting off with a win here in Daytona, and then you've got Max's last race, and we've been family for 20 years now, and he's taught us everything we know," he said. "We used to have classes with Max. He used to be the Professor X, and he'd come over to our house, and we'd have a pen and paper, and he'd teach us about downforce and he'd teach us about overtaking.

"And then to finish – I mean, it was an emotional day, regardless if we won the race, to have our last race with Max. But to win was really cool."

Gordon, with the Taylor brothers as his sports car teachers, witnessed the immense talent they possess and believes they would thrive in other forms of racing.

"All I've been thinking about the whole time I've been together with these guys is how do I get them in some ovals in a bigger, heavier car?" he said, referring to NASCAR. "But I mean, to me the way you recognize talent is to know what equipment that they're in, so when you're a teammate to them and you're in the same equipment and you go out there in conditions that are very, very challenging and you know your own capabilities, and then you see them excel the way that they did, I've got to say, to me one of the highlight moments for me that I thought was a crucial moment for this race was when Jordan was on slicks and it started raining, and they stayed out.

"And when he was out there on slicks and it started getting really wet, just the fact to get that car back to pit road without wrecking, to get the wets I thought was an amazing moment. And then watching these guys just do what they did throughout the night in crazy conditions.

"So there's no doubt that that transfers over to other series, other cars. I've built enough of a bond with this group that I would love to see them get whatever opportunities were available to them out there. I mean, they've got the personality as well as the talent, and that's what you're always looking for."

"It's funny, I was telling somebody outside that the weirdest thing is as a father, people always ask me what's it like to have your kids racing because most mothers worry about the fear factor, which I never do," he said.

"And the great part I am proud of is that when they're in the car, I'm actually very relaxed because I do believe they know what they're doing, and I had no question in my mind that Ricky was not going to come home second today. There was no way he was going to do it."

Five men, at different places and stages in life, headed in new and exciting directions, forever tied together and unified by an amazing win. The power of the Rolex 24 was fully realized on Sunday.