A new year brings the beginning of a new era for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, which will open the 2023 schedule with round 61 of the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
A new master class for Prototypes is the dominant story entry in the 24-hour endurance race that unofficially kicks off the Major League Racing season.
New Le Mans Daytona Hybrid (LMDh) Series 1 Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) Cars It will recreate a bridge to the 24 Hours of Le Mans Bringing a new layer of engine electrification to IMSA.
With at least a few cars on the grid at Daytona also set to race Le Mans in June, it is possible for the first time in decades (Since the “Ford vs. Ferrari” battles) to get the same car to win the overall titles at Daytona and Le Mans.
The GTP class will feature four manufacturers, two of whom are new to IMSA’s Premier Division. Porsche Motorsport (with Team Penske) and BMW (with Rahal Letterman Lanegan) will field prototypes of the LMDh, and the (now defunct) DPi-class is joined by Acura (Meyer Shank Racing, Wayne Taylor Racing) and Cadillac (Chip Ganassi Racing, USA). Action Express Racing).
Here’s what else you need to know before the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season opener January 29-30 at Daytona International Speedway:
Notable driver additions
The Rolex 24 will appear 10 active NTT IndyCar Series driversincluding the IMSA debuts of Team Penske drivers Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin, who will be co-introducing LMP2 (Colleague Will Bauer Unfortunately he had to withdraw from this debut).
Colton Herta will move up to the GTP class with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Hélio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud return with Team Meyer Shank Racing to defend their overall victory in the Rolex 24 for 2022. Scott Dixon also returns in Class 1 with Chip Ganassi Racing for his Rolex 24 start and third in a row in the No. 01 Cadillac.
Other IndyCar drivers in the field: Romain Grosjean will make his GTD Pro debut with Iron Lynx Racing (in preparation for driving next year’s GTP Lamborghini); Devlin DeFrancesco (Rick Ware Racing) and Rinus VeeKay (TDS Racing) in LMP2; Kyle Kirkwood will be back in the GTD Championship with Wasser Sullivan.
Also returning is Daytona 500 winner Austin Cindrick, Collaborating with DeFrancesco on an LMP2 entry For Rick Ware Racing.
car numbers
Rolex Square 24 61 cars, matching last year’s field (which was the largest since 2014). The field was capped by space limitations for GTP’s LMDh cars in pits and garages.
Click here for the official 2023 Rolex 24 in Daytona entry list.
The starting lineup
Tom Blomqvist earned the GTP era pole position, as defending champion Meyer Shank Racing qualified on pole with the No. 60 ARX-06 Acura shared with Colin Braun, Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud.
The No. 7 Porsche 963 of Penske Motorsports would start second.
Click here for the 2023 Rolex 24 in the Daytona starting lineup
Race broadcast
The Rolex 24 No. 61 of Daytona will be broadcast via NBC Sports appAnd NBCSports.com and Peacock, which will be covering the event from flag to flag.
Broadcast coverage of the race will begin Saturday, January 28 at 1:30 p.m. ET on NBC, move to USA Network from 2:30-8 p.m., and then will be exclusive on Peacock and IMSA.TV. From 8 to 10 p.m. It will return to USA Network from 10 p.m. to midnight and then move to Peacock/IMSA.TV until 6 a.m.
From 6 a.m. to noon on Sunday, January 29, coverage of Rolex 24 will be available on the USA Network. The Rolex 24 wrap-up will run from noon to 2 p.m. on NBC.
HOW TO WATCH IMSA ON NBC SPORTS: Broadcast schedule for 2023
Other events that will be broadcast on Peacock from Daytona during January (all times ET):
–Jan 21: IMSA VP Racing Sports Car Challenge, 2:05 p.m
–Jan 22: IMSA VP Racing Sports Car Challenge, 12:20 p.m
–Jan 22: IMSA Rolex 24 Qualifiers, 1:25 p.m
–Jan 27th: BMW Endurance Michelin Pilot Challenge, 1:45 p.m
Coverage of the Rolex 24 from NBC Sports
Roger Penske, Chip Ganassi take their rivalry to a new level at Daytona
Pfaff Motorsports returns the Rolex 24 in the main parking spot punching above its weight
Cadillac, Acura vie for the top of the speed charts
Hertha and Rahal team up with BMW to take the overall win at the Rolex 24
Wayne Taylor Racing is taking it a step to the next level with Andretti Autosport
Austin Cindrick seeks to join the legendary club of Rolex 24-Daytona 500 winners
Hélio Castroneves recalls the “Days of Thunder” moment in the 2022 Rolex Triumph 24
“Bus Bros” gets into the “bus stop” for the Rolex 24 Hours in Daytona for the first time
Romain Grosjean adds a Rolex 24 in Daytona to his jewelry career
Tom Blomqvist beats the clock to win the Rolex 24 on pole at Daytona
GTP cars first appeared in traffic at the ‘Gymkhana’ level
Five things to watch in the new GTP class as the golden age of sports cars returns
Cadillac reveals paint schemes for LMDh vehicles
Austin Cindrick, Devlin DiFrancesco, and Pietro Fittipaldi team up in LMP2
IndyCar drivers in Rolex 24 No. 61
Rolex daily schedule 24, start on dates
Here’s a recap of everything happening at Daytona International Speedway over the past two weeks in January, starting with the Roar test session. Rolex 24 start hours and full schedule:
Wednesday, January 18th
7 am: GTP garages are open
4 mNon-GTP garages are open
4 m: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Truck Loaders (park only)
6:30 pm: Garages are non-GTP closed
9:30 pm: GTP Garages closed
Thursday, January 19th
7 am: Garages, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship open
8:30 am: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Safety Inspection
10 am: Rolex 24 Media Day
2:00 p.m. Driver and Team Manager Briefing for the Michelin Pilot Challenge
15:00: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Driver and Team Manager Briefing
5:15 pm: walking path
7:30 pm: Garages are non-GTP closed
9:30 pm: GTP Garages closed
Friday 20 January
7 am: garages are open
8:45-9:15 a.m: Practice VP Racing SportsCar Challenge
9:30 – 10:45 a.m: Practice Michelin Pilot Challenge
11 AM – 12:30 PM: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
1:45-2:15 p.m: Practice VP Racing SportsCar Challenge
2:30-4 p.m: Practice Michelin Pilot Challenge
4:15 – 6 pm: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Practice (GTD/LMP3/LMP2 4:15-5:45; 4:30-6: GTD Pro, GTP)
8 m: Garages are not closed GTP
9:30 pm: Close GTP Garages
Saturday 21st January
7 am: garages are open
8:40 – 9:15 am: VP Racing SportsCar Challenge Qualifier
9:30 – 11 am: Practice Michelin Pilot Challenge
11:15 AM -12:45 PM: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
2:05-2:50 PM: VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, Race 1 (streaming on Peacock)
3:10 PM: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
4:30 – 5:30 pm: Practice Michelin Pilot Challenge
6:30 – 8:30 pm: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
10 pm: Close garages
Sunday 22nd January
7 am: garages are open
10:15-11:15 a.m: Practice Michelin Pilot Challenge
12:20-1:05 PM: VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, Race 2 (streaming on Peacock)
1:25-3 p.m: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Rolex 24 Qualifier (streaming on Peacock)
8:30 pm: Close garages
Wed 25 Jan
6 am: garages are open
7:30 – 10 am: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Safety Check Championship, Non-GTP
8 am: Download Mazda MX-5
10-11:30 a.m.: walking path
10 am – noon: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Car Pictures
11:30 am: Briefing by the Michelin Pilot Challenge Team Manager
the noon: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Team Manager’s Briefing
12:30 pm: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship New Driver Briefing
Noon – 2 p.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Safety and Technical Inspection Championship, Non-GTP
1:45-2:30 p.m: Mazda MX-5 practice
2:45-3:45 p.m.: Michelin Pilot Challenge practice
2:30 – 7:30 pm: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Safety Check Championship, GTP only
4-5:30 p.m: walking path
6:45 pm: Close garages
Thursday, January 26th
7 am: Garages are open
9-9:30 a.m: Mazda MX-5 practice
9:45-10:45 a.m.: Michelin Pilot Challenge practice
11:05 a.m. – 12:35 p.m: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
12:55-1:10 p.m.: Mazda MX-5 Qualification
2:25-3 p.mMichelin Pilot Challenge Qualifier
3:20-5:05 p.m: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Practice (3:20-5:05: GTD, LMP3, LMP2; 3:35-5:05: GTD Pro, GTP)
5:30-6:15 p.mMazda MX-5 Race 1
7:15-9 p.m: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
10:15 p.m: close the garages
Friday, January 27th
7 am: garages are open
9:25-9:55 a.m: Practice Michelin Pilot Challenge
10:15 – 11 a.m: Mazda MX-5, Racing 2
10:30 amBriefing for the driver and manager of the Michelin Pilot Team
11:20 AM -12:20 PM: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
1:45-5:45 p.m.: BMW M Endurance Challenge at Daytona (Michelin Pilot Challenge; Running on Peacock)
8:45 pm: Close garages
Saturday 28 January
6:30 am: Garages are open
9:45 AM: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Driver and Team Manager Briefing
12:30-12:40 PM: Rolex 24 engine warm-up
1:30-1:40 p.m.: Rolex 24 roll preform
1:40 pm: Rolex 24 No. 61 at Daytona (from NBC; flag broadcast on Peacock)
Sunday 29 January
1:40 pm: Rolex 24 No. 61 finish at Daytona
7:30 pm: Close garages