IMSA Rolex 24: Update through first 2 hours

Wild. And dirty. That’s how drivers describe the opening couple of hours in the 2019 Rolex 24 at Daytona, the opening event of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

Wild, because some of the Prototype drivers are acting like every lap is the last one. “I don’t know how the two Action Express cars can race the way they are and be there at the end,” said Ricky Taylor, driver of the No. 7 Penske Acura that he shares with Helio Castroneves and Alex Rossi, both Indianapolis 500 winners.

The two Action Express cars he referenced as oddly aggressive are the Nos. 5 and 31 Cadillac DPis. Filipe Albuquerque, driver of the No. 5, disagrees: “I felt as though I was taking zero risk,” he said, “but I can understand what [Taylor] is saying.

Dirty, because despite very cool temperatures there is a lot of “pickup” on the track, Taylor said – that is bits and pieces of tires that make it especially slick if you drive outside the groove a little, usually to make a pass. The chunks of rubber are so prevalent that they are actually hitting, and denting, the windshield of the No. 5 car, Taylor said – the car has a limited number of clear plastic “tear offs” over the windshield, and the crew tears one off during pitstops when there is limited visibility. They are a little hard to replace, and Taylor made it sound like they may well be through the initial supply of tear offs before they planned.

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