Photo: Mike Levitt/IMSA
IMSA has confirmed a 60-car entry for next month’s Rolex 24 at Daytona, which will open the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season with the debut of the highly anticipated GTP class on Jan. 28-29.
Released on Thursday, the list comprises of nine GTP cars, ten LMP2 entries, nine LMP3 machines, eight GTD Pro cars and 24 GTD entries.
It comes after a reported 72 entry requests, with cars not selected having been placed on a reserve list, which has not been published by the sanctioning body.
An updated entry list including driver lineups will be released in early January.
Fifty-six of the entries have committed to the full four-round Michelin Endurance Cup season, with 45 cars planned for full-season WeatherTech Championship programs.
While one car less than this year’s 61-car field, the grid represents the maximum size due to the hybrid-powered LMDh cars requiring slightly larger pit boxes for safety reasons according to IMSA.
“More than 70 total entries and a 60-car field as we kick off a new era for WeatherTech Championship competition speaks volumes for the interest in international endurance sports car racing and our IMSA platform,” said IMSA President John Doonan.
“Arriving at this 60-car entry list for the 61st Rolex 24 At Daytona required a substantial effort from our team at IMSA.
“We are proud to present one of the strongest and most competitive fields we have seen and cannot wait to put on a tremendous show for a global audience of racing fans next month.”
As expected, the GTP class features factory entries from Acura, BMW, Cadillac and Porsche, with the absence of privateer Porsche 963s, which are not expected to debut until the fourth round of the season at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in May.
Porsche LMDh customer squad Proton Competition, however, has entered an Oreca 07 Gibson in the LMP2 class for the Rolex 24, with JDC-Miller Motorsports entrusting a Duqueine D08 Nissan in LMP3 for at least the first two rounds of the season.
Other notable additions to the Pro-Am-enforced prototype ranks include Orecas from Rick Ware Racing and AF Corse (LMP2), a two-car AWA squad (LMP3) and a Ligier JS P320 for MRS GT-Racing (LMP3).
The GTD Pro class features seven different GT3 manufacturers, including the race debut of the Ferrari 296 GT3, run by Risi Competizione, and the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 fielded by Iron Lynx.
A further three Ferraris are entered in GTD for AF Corse, Cetilar Racing and Triarsi Competizone, while Iron Lynx, Iron Dames, NTE Sport and US RaceTronics have Lamborghinis in the Pro-Am-enforced class.
The new Type-992 Porsche 911 GT3 R is represented by Pfaff Motorsports in GTD Pro and GTD entries from Wright Motorsports, Kelly Moss with Riley, MDK Motorsports and AO Racing, totaling seven cars.
BMW will have three M4 GT3s with the expanded two-car Turner Motorsport program alongside the returning Paul Miller Racing operation, with Aston Martin represented by The Heart of Racing, Team TGM/TF Sport, which is entered in GTD Pro, and Magnus Racing.
WeatherTech Racing’s new full-season Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo will be joined by GTD efforts from Winward Racing and Team Korthoff Motorsports, while Acura will have Gradient Racing and Racers Edge Motorsports with WTR on its roster.
Lexus has both of its Vasser Sullivan-run entries represented split between the two classes, while Corvette Racing’s single Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTD is confirmed in GTD Pro, along with a sole McLaren 720S GT3 for Inception Racing in GTD.
Among the teams not having been given confirmed entries include Racing Team Turkey (LMP2), KCMG (GTD Pro), SunEnergy1 Racing (GTD) and ST Racing (GTD), among others.
Sportscar365 understands that IMSA will update reserve teams on their status prior to Christmas and just after the New Year, should any of the confirmed entries withdraw.
The 60-car field will participate in the three-day Roar Before the Rolex 24 test on Jan. 20-22, culminating with Rolex 24 qualifying on Sunday, Jan. 22.
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December 16, 2022 at 03:33AM
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IMSA Confirms 60-Car Entry List for Rolex 24 – Sportscar365 - Sportscar365
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