Porsche Victorious At Daytona
Porsche has taken off into the 2014 racing season with a victory in the prestigious 24 Hours of Daytona this weekend in America. Porsche factory drivers Richard Lietz (Austria), Nick Tandy (Great Britain) and Patrick Pilet (France) won the highly-competitive GTLM class of the sports car race in Florida in their Porsche 911 RSR run by the Porsche North America factory squad.
With the 76th class win and the 40th for the Porsche 911, Porsche adds to its record as the most successful manufacturer in the history of this race. The 24 Hours of Daytona was the inaugural race of the Tudor United SportsCar Championship, the new sports car race series in the USA and Canada.
The 52nd running of the Daytona 24 hour race marks the start of a new era for Porsche. In the Tudor United SportsCar Championship, Porsche runs a works team for the first time in US sports car racing under the flag of the newly-formed team ‘Porsche North America’. The debut race was a complete success. When dawn broke after a long night around the Daytona International Speedway, the Porsche 911 RSR with the starting number 911 lay in the lead with Patrick Pilet at the wheel. The second 911 RSR with the number 912, in which Patrick Long (USA), Michael Christensen (Denmark) and Joerg Bergmeister (Germany) shared driving duties, followed in second place.
The 470 hp racer from the Porsche Motorsport base in Weissach, near Stuttgart, Germany, is based on the seventh generation of the iconic 911 sports car and celebrated its race debut last season, scoring a brilliant double victory at its first outing at the Le Mans 24 Hours. For 2014, the 911 RSR, with its extraordinary vehicle design representing the Porsche Le Mans slogan ‘Mission 2014. Our Return’, has gained improvements in many areas. At the Daytona premiere, however, a double victory was not possible: contesting his first race as a Porsche factory driver, Michael Christensen had to park the #912 Porsche 911 RSR after 489 trouble-free laps with an engine mechanical issue.
The number 911 vehicle, however, continued in flawless form. Patrick Pilet, Nick Tandy and Richard Lietz successfully warded off all attacks from factory-run BMW, Viper and Chevrolet rivals. However, it was these on-going gripping duels that clearly outshone the fight for overall victory. The spectators, many of whom traditionally follow the race action from the roofs of their motorhomes parked in the infield of the world famous race track, were thrilled. Two caution phases in the final laps made for a nail-biting situation. But the Porsche North America strategists in the pits made the right call and the drivers kept their cool in the hectic final phase. When Patrick Pilet finally crossed the finish line at 14.11 hrs, the Porsche pits erupted in cheers.
The new Porsche 911 GT America also celebrated a successful debut in the GTD class. After a spirited fight in the race car purpose-built for the Tudor United SportsCar Championship, American driver Madison Snow saw the flag in second place with Jan Heylen (Belgium) and Germany’s Marco Seefried. They finished less than one second shy of the winner.