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GARRA: Rolex 24 at Daytona
The First Sportscar Race of 2001!
And a GTS Car Wins Again?!
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SPORTS RACING PROTOTYPES (SRP)
The 2001 Rolex 24 at Daytona could be described as an exciting race with an extremely disappointing ending. UNENDING RAIN and FROSTY TEMPERATURES were the theme of the race. The highlight of the race was the fantastic dual between the #12 Risi Competizione Ferrari 333SP of Kelleners/ McNish/ van de Poole/ Brabham, and the #16 Dyson Racing Riley & Scott MkIII of Weaver/ Wallace/ Leitzinger.
The pair were usually separated by less than two laps, many times racing side by side! Unfortunately, an alleged blown head gasket in the Ferrari 4.0litre DOHC V12 ended the dual far too early.
The #16 Dyson Riley & Scott MkIII continued to dominate until the big V8 called it quits... with only two hours to go! This is the second year in a row that engine gremlins have robbed Dyson of a sure victory.
The SRP class win went to the Kudzu Mazda of Jim Downing, which finished in 11th place overall.
So... The Sports Racing Prototypes again failed to take the OVERALL WIN for the second year straight.
A question remains: Will GARRA rethink their isolationist position in Sportscar Racing? Clearly, their funky rules don't encourage new Privateer Sports Racing Prototypes to compete in the Rolex. And their older SRP machines are, well... OLD!!!
Come On, GARRA! Give us some NEW Sports Racing Prototypes in the 2002 Rolex!
The Dyson Riley & Scott #16 Smoked Its Engine with only TWO HOURS REMAINING. Jeez....
Photo courtesy of: GARRA
The Risi Competizione Ferrari 333SP Blew a Head Gasket Just Past the Halfway Mark of the Race. Such a Pity...
Photo courtesy of: GARRA
OLD RELIABLE: The Kudzu Mazda wasn't the Fastest SRP, But it didn't BLOW UP!!!
Photo courtesy of: GARRA
LINK: Check Out the Official Daytona Site
LINK: Practice and/or Qualify Times
LINK: GARRA Daytona Photos
LINK: Full Race Results
LINK: Fast Details Daytona Photos
Weaver Ran a Flawless Race, But to NO AVAIL!
Bytzek Porsches Couldn't Match the Pace of the Corvette C5Rs
The Porsche Tie Fighters Placed as High as SECOND OVERALL!!!
The Overall Winners!
The Winning Corvette C5R
GRAND TOURING SPORTSCARS (GTS)
MEANWHILE... All of the GTS DOUBTERS have now been SILENCED! Once again, a "slower" class GTS machine has managed to capture the OVERALL WIN! In the midst of the SRP class carnage, the pair of yellow beasts were steadily clawing their way up the field.
The #3 Corvette C5R of Pilgrim/ Earnhardt/ Earnhardt/ Collins was denied a possible second place finish after time was lost in the pits replacing a misdiagnosed gearbox problem. After the Dyson R&S cried no more, the #2 Corvette C5R of Fellows/ Kneifel/ Freon/ O'Connell was promoted to the overall lead and subsequent victory.
The real story in the GTS class has to be the fantastic performance of the Marcos Racing Mantaras. They managed to split the Corvettes in class for the first half of the race! In contrast, the Bytzek Porsche GT1s couldn't match the pace of the Works C5Rs.
The Saleen DNF'd with suspension failure.
Corvettes Finished 1st and 4th OVERALL!!!
Photo courtesy of: GARRA
Marcos ran Second in GTS Class for Much of the Race!
Photo courtesy of: Marcos
GRAND TOURING SPORTSCARS (GT)
The talk of the GT class was the debut of the Mosler MT900-R, & the Jet Motorsports V8 powered BMW M3 GT-R. The Mosler snatched up the GT class pole, but fell out before the halfway mark. The V8 BMW M3 ran an exceptional race before retiring. Clearly, the V8 BMW M3 is a serious threat to Porsche. The rest of the GT class season should be a treat!
Of course, a Porsche won the GT class.
A GT Porsche 911 in SECOND OVERALL?
Photo courtesy of: GARRA
Some final thoughts: GT class Porsche 911 GT3Rs finished in SECOND & THIRD place OVERALL! Talk about attrition among the faster Sports Racing Prototypes.
Many of the AGT class contenders wrecked, and then ran sans body work for most of the race. Must have made their sponsors happy!
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