Although there are more than two months remaining until the race, the lineup already features 56 drivers that have captured victories in the season-opening endurance classic of the IMSA SportsCar Championship.
“We could not be prouder to release this preliminary list of participants for the Rolex 24 At Daytona significantly earlier than we ever have before,” said IMSA President John Doonan.
“Looking up and down the lineup, we will have a tremendous field of teams, cars and drivers and no shortage of compelling storylines to develop and follow in the next two months as we lead up to the race. With such a stacked field, it would be impossible to identify a favorite in any of the four classes.”
The GTP field features 10 entries among four different manufactures, while LMP2 is expected to expand to a 12-car grid. Meanwhile, GTD Pro has a record-tying 13-car field with 10 different manufacturers represented. The largest class is GTD, which will have 11 different manufacturers making up a 25-car field.
Grand Touring Prototype (GTP)
The second year of the hybrid platform sees the return of Acura, BMW, Cadillac and Porsche set for battle at the 3.56-mile road course at Daytona International Speedway. Acura has been secured overall victory for three consecutive years in the Rolex 24.
Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti has expanded its lineup to two cars, armed with a pair of Acura ARX-06 machines and a stacked driver roster. In the #10 entry is previous Rolex 24 overall winners Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque, Brendon Hartley – a 24 Hours of Le Mans winner and FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) champion – and 2022 Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson. The team’s new #40 entry is just as stout, with previous Rolex 24 winners Jordan Taylor and Colton Herta, rising sports car star Louis Deletraz and 2009 F1 World Champion Jenson Button.
Chip Ganassi Racing’s #01 Cadillac V-Series.R is equipped with three previous Rolex winners – two-time Rolex winners Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande along with four-time Daytona winner Scott Dixon, who also is a six-time IndyCar Series champion and 2008 Indianapolis 500 winner.
The reigning class champions, Action Express Racing, will have previous event winner Pipo Derani two-time defending Rolex 24 winner and 2022 DPi champion Tom Blomqvist, and Jack Aitken in its #31 Cadillac V-Series.R.
Porsche Penske Motorsport will have two entries, with its #6 963 being piloted by former Rolex 24 winners Nick Tandy and Mathieu Jaminet, alongside Le Mans winners Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor. The #7 sister car will be led by former IMSA champions and Rolex 24 winners Matt Campbell and Felipe Nasr, along with Frederic Makowiecki and Josef Newgarden – the 2023 Indianapolis 500 winner and a two-time IndyCar Series champion.
Another Porsche 963 is handled by JDC-Miller MotorSports, winners in 2016 in the Prototype Challenge class. The team will field the #5 Porsche 963 for Tijmen van der Helm, Phil Hanson, Ben Keating, who is again pulling double duty in the event with an LMP2 entry as well. Previous Rolex 24 winner Richard Westbrook comes in as the fourth driver for the squad.
Proton Competition #59 Porsche 963 is set to have Gianmaria Bruni and Neel Jani so far confirmed for its driver lineup.
BMW M Team RLL returns its two-car BMW M Hybrid V8 program, with the #24 including a pair of previous Rolex 24 class winners in Jesse Krohn and Augusto Farfus, alongside Dries Vanthoor and an additional driver to be named later. The #25 BMW has another previous Rolex 24 class winner in Connor De Phillippi, who is sharing the car with Nick Yelloly, Maxime Martin and another driver to be announced.
Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2)
The aforementioned Keating is back to defend his 2023 LMP2 title, but with a new team in United Autosports. The two-car effort and will team with 2020 Rolex 24 LMP2 winner Ben Hanley, Nico Pino and a driver to be named later in the #2 ORECA LMP2 07. United’s #22 ORECA will be manned by Dan Goldburg, Paul di Resta and two drivers to be named.
CrowdStrike Racing by APR’s #04 sees the return of George Kurtz, who will team with three-time and defending overall Rolex 24 winner Colin Braun and two drivers to be named.
Steven Thomas and Mikkel Jensen, who took third in the 2023 LMP2 championship, return in the #11 ORECA for TDS Racing. The duo will be joined by Hunter McElrea, who finished runner-up in the 2023 Indy NXT title race, and a driver to be named.
The #18 Era Motorsport ORECA returns 2021 class winners Dwight Merriman and Ryan Dalziel, the latter also the overall Rolex 24 victory in 2010. Two additional co-drivers will be named later.
Gar Robinson and the Riley team, fresh off winning the final Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) championship, move to LMP2 in the #74 ORECA in 2024. Felipe Fraga and Josh Burdon, who each assisted in winning the LMP3 crown, will co-drive with Robinson at Daytona along with a fourth driver to be named.
The #33 for Sean Creech Motorsport also moves up to LMP2 after operating in LMP3 last year. The outfit is the only one to be running with a Ligier JS P217 chassis, which will be handled by four-time Rolex 24 winner Joao Barbosa, Lance Willsey and two drivers to be named. Paul-Loup Chatin, who shared the 2023 LMP2 title with Keating, will drive the # ORECA for AO Racing, joining PJ Hyett and two drivers to be named.
Tower Motorsports has yet to reveal the lineup for its #8 entry, while the #20 High Class Racing machine will feature Seth Lucas, Dennis Andresen and two yet to be named. Inter Europol by PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports’ #51 will have Jakub Smiechowski, along three to be named. Lastly, the #88 AF Corse will be driven by Luis Perez Companc, Niklas Nielsen, Lilou Wadoux, and one to be named.
GT Daytona Pro (GTD Pro)
Ford is back competing in the IMSA SportsCar Championship after a five-year absence, sporting a pair of Mustang GT3s. Mike Rockenfeller, the 2010 overall Rolex 24 winner, joins Harry Tincknell in the #64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Mustang, with a pair of past event winners, Joey Hand and Dirk Mueller, in the sister car #65 Mustang. Additional drivers for both entries will be announced later.
Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports also has a pair of entries, led by three-time Rolex 24 winner Antonio Garcia, 2023 GTD PRO Rolex 24 winner Daniel Juncadella and 2023 GTP season champion Alexander Sims in the #3 Corvette Z06 GT3.R. Tommy Milner and Nicky Catsburg – each a past Rolex 24 winner for Corvette – have been paired with Earl Bamber in the #4 Corvette.
The #14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 begins defense of its 2023 class title, returning Ben Barnicoat, Jack Hawksworth and IndyCar Series regular Kyle Kirkwood for Daytona, along with a fourth driver to be named.
Paul Miller Racing, who captured the 2023 GTD title, are moving up in class with the #1 BMW M4 GT3 beginning at Daytona. Champion co-drivers Bryan Sellers and Madison Snow, each also a past Rolex 24 winner, will be joined by Neil Verhagen and Sheldon van der Linde at Daytona.
A pair of former event winners in Oliver Jarvis and IndyCar regular Alexander Rossi, the 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner, will be joined by James Hinchcliffe and Marvin Kirchhoefer in Pfaff Motorsports’ #9 McLaren 720S GT3.
After impressing in its maiden Rolex 24 last year, Iron Lynx brings back three of the drivers – Mirko Bortolotti, Andrea Caldarelli and Franck Perera, all past Rolex 24 winners. The fourth driver in the team’s #19 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 will be Jordan Pepper.
Alessandro Pier Guidi, the 2014 GTD Rolex 24 winner, heads Risi Competizione #62 Ferrari 296 GT3 lineup. He will be joined by Davide Rigon and Daniel Serra. The #23 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 team added Mario Farnbacher to pair with returning Ross Gunn and Alex Riberas for Daytona.
In addition to its LMP2 entry, AO Racing is entering the GTD Pro class with Seb Priaulx, Laurin Heinrich and a driver to be named in its #77 Porsche 911 GT3 R. Kellymoss with Riley also is fielding a Porsche with its drivers to be named, as is the same for the #75 SunEnergy1 Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3.
Grand Touring Daytona (GTD)
Defending class winners, the #27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3, is back with three-quarters of its winning lineup – Roman De Angelis, Marco Sorensen and Ian James. The newbie coming in is Zacharie Robichon, who claimed a Rolex 24 GTD class victory in 2022.
The GTD class also includes another group of 2023 Rolex 24 winners in the #17 AWA Corvette Z06 GT3.R. Co-drivers Anthony Mantella, Nico Varrone and Thomas Merrill were part of the team’s winning lineup in the LMP3 class earlier this year. In January, they’ll be joined by Charlie Eastwood as they go in search of a repeat win. The Canada-based AWA team will bring a pair of brand-new customer Corvettes to Daytona, with Orey Fidani, Matthew Bell, Lars Kern and a driver to be named set to share the #13 Corvette.
The #44 Magnus Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 will be driven by two-time Rolex winners John Potter and Spencer Pumpelly teaming once again with Andy Lally and a fourth driver to be announced. Lally has more Rolex 24 wins (five) than anybody in the 2024 field.
Kenton Koch returns in 2024 to the #32 Korthoff/Preston Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3, alongside co-drivers Mike Skeen, Mikael Grenier and Mercedes-AMG factory driver Maxi Goetz. The Korthoff/Preston team also heads into the season as defending IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup champions.
Winward Racing brings another Mercedes-AMG entry to the class, with its #57 machine being wheeled by a pair of previous Rolex 24 winners in Russell Ward (GTD-2021) and Daniel Morad (GTD-2017) alongside two drivers still to be announced.
Misha Goikhberg also returns to Daytona in the GTD class aboard the #78 Forte Racing Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2, with Loris Spinelli as his lone named co-driver thus far.
Katherine Legge and Sheena Monk are slated to return in the #66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 with as-yet-unnamed co-drivers.
The # 83 Iron Dames Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 will once again feature an all-female driver roster at the Rolex 24, with Michelle Gatting, Sarah Bovy and Rahel Frey sharing the ride with another driver to be named.
