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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Chip Ganassi is as calm, cool and collected as it gets. The winningest car owner in Rolex 24 history, he is royalty walking around Daytona International Speedway this weekend.
His race teams have claimed Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 trophies, gulped a lot of celebratory milk in Indianapolis 500 victory circle and have won enough Rolex watches in this great sports car race to fill a luxury store window.
Yet for all the success and stature he’s collected over the years, Ganassi is adamant that his primary focus remains quite simple.
“We approach every race as we just want to win the next race,” Ganassi said. “And the next race is today for us. I’ve been fortunate to work with some great people over the years and some great teams and great companies. It’s something someday I guess I’ll look back on and talk about, but right now our focus is on today’s race and the team of people we have here. My hat’s off to them.
“So that’s something when I’m sitting back with my grandkids I’ll talk about or something. Right now I just want to worry about tomorrow, what’s happening in the 24th hour.”
If all goes as planned and reasonably presumed, at least one of Ganassi’s four Ford GT cars should be challenging for a GT LeMans Class winner’s Rolex on Sunday afternoon.
It’s a familiar, if always satisfying, scenario.
Ganassi prototypes won the overall trophy in this legendary race a record six times — including a historic three consecutive times from 2006-2008.
Last year his prototype cars — driven by his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers Jamie McMurray and Kyle Larson — finished 13th overall.
He also brought the new Ford GTs only a few weeks after their delivery and essentially untested. They finished 30th and 39th overall in their Daytona debut but the team went on to win the great LeMans 24-hour event last summer.
Ganassi is now the only owner in racing history with victories in the Rolex 24, 24 Hours of LeMans, the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Daytona 500, the Brickyard 400, and the Indianapolis 500.
“It’s pretty impressive, obviously, to see what Chip’s achieved across many different formulas,” said Ganassi IndyCar driver (and champion) Scott Dixon, who is co-driving one of Ganassi’s Fords this weekend. “I think the most outstanding thing was being a part of LeMans … not just the winning car but seeing the emotions Chip and Ford achieved. It takes a very special group.
“I’m extremely happy for him and how he’s adding to his accolades. He’s a racer at heart and knows the ins and outs of it. He’s probably the most competitive person I know, and having that from the top is so important.”
Dario Franchitti, a three-time Indy 500 winner and former NASCAR competitor, echoed the sentiment. The now-retired driver is trackside at Daytona this weekend serving as the Grand Marshal.
“I almost drove for him a couple times before [I joined the team] and I’d watch him and you just wondered what made the team tick? What made him tick?” Franchitti said. “When I became part of the team I knew why they were so difficult to beat as a group because Chip puts the right people in positions and lets them get on with it.
“He doesn’t micromanage. But, he has a passion for racing and a passion for winning and if he’s not winning he wants to know why. He gives you all the tools to do the job, but he expects a result.”