Posted on by Staff Report

MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Hattori Racing Enterprises (HRE) is pleased to announce that Ryan Truex, the 2009 and 2010 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Champion, will run a full-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) schedule in 2017, driving the No. 16 Toyota Tundra. Truex competed in 15 events with HRE in 2016 bringing home a career-best finish of second at Daytona International Speedway in February.

“I’m grateful for this opportunity to race my first full National Series Season with HRE and Toyota Racing in 2017,” Truex said. “We started 2016 on a strong note and were able to contend inside the playoffs prior to stepping out of the truck after Charlotte. I know we can have similar, if not better results in 2017 and I’m looking forward to contending for race wins and hopefully making the playoffs this season.”

Scott Zipadelli will take over the crew chief duties for Truex in 2017, his first season with HRE. In 2016, Zipadelli picked up his first-career NCWTS victory in August at Michigan International Speedway. The veteran crew chief also has three NASCAR XFINITY Series victories on his resume.

Truex made his HRE debut at Daytona last year and competed in select events throughout the 2016 season. In 15 starts the 24-year-old compiled one top-five and four top-10 finishes. Truex has three career NCWTS starts at Daytona, bringing home two top-fives.

“Ryan has the pedigree of a great driver and is even a better person,” said team owner Shige Hattori. “It was an honor to have him drive our trucks last season and I’m looking forward to competing for the championship with him and the team this season. We recently moved into a new state-of-the-art shop facility and have recruited fantastic team personnel for this season. We feel like we’ve done everything to improve our organization which should result in competitive results. I know the No. 16 Toyota Tundra will compete for race wins this season.”

The HRE No. 16 Toyota Tundra gets on track Friday, February 24th at 7:30 p.m. ET for the NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona International Speedway.

There are opportunities to sponsor the HRE Toyota Tundra this season. There will be several sponsor announcements coming at a later date.

 

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Phoenix Raceway, along with parent company International Speedway Corporation, announced on Monday a massive, $178 million modernization project designed to make the fan and race experience even better.


The project is set to debut in the fall of 2018, but drivers, teams and other tracks were already talking about it.


Here’s what was said on social media. 

Posted on by Staff Report

ThorSport Racing announced Monday the addition of Cody Coughlin to its 2017 driver lineup in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

 

Coughlin, 21, will drive ThorSport’s No. 13 Toyota in his first full season in the series. Michael Shelton will serve as crew chief, and primary sponsorship will come from JEGS and Ride TV.

 

Coughlin, who rose through the Late Model and ARCA ranks, has 12 career starts in the Camping World Truck Series over the last two years. He’ll compete for Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors in 2017 after claiming two Late Model titles under the Champion Racing Associations (CRA) banner last season.

 

“ThorSport Racing is a great team, one I’ve always admired at the race track,” Coughlin said in a news release provided by the team. “Their professionalism, the speed they display, and their record, speaks for itself. Considering the team and I are both based in Ohio, it makes for a great fit, and I’m proud to be part of this championship-caliber organization.”

 

Coughlin said he became close friends with ThorSport driver and new teammate Matt Crafton on the circuit last season. Crafton will return to the ThorSport No. 88 this season in search of his third series title.

 

Veteran crew chief Shelton teamed with driver James Buescher to claim the series championship in 2012. He most recently worked with John Wes Townley last season, helping him to one victory and one pole position during their time together.

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RELATED: Full Rolex 24 schedule, TV channels


DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.  — A challenging combination of darkness and rain has proven to be the great equalizer throughout the overnight portion of the 55th Rolex 24 At Daytona, with class battles tightening as the race hits the halfway mark.


While a steady rain has proved treacherous for several IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competitors, the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R of Max Angelelli has risen to the top of the leaderboard claiming the maximum five points in the second Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup segment.


Angelelli – joined by co-drivers Jeff Gordon, Ricky Taylor and Jordan Taylor – leads the No. 90 Visit Florida Gibson/Riley of Rene Rast by one minute, 31.646 seconds. The No. 5 Mustang Sampling Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R co-driven by Christian Fittipaldi, Joao Barbosa and Felipe Albuquerque sits third in Prototype after leading the opening Patrón Endurance Cup segment. The No. 10 and No. 5 Cadillacs sit tied in the Patrón Endurance Cup with eight points apiece after two segments.


Using the rain to its advantage, Porsche holds the top two spots in GT Le Mans (GTLM) at the halfway mark with Kevin Estre in the No. 912 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR leading teammate Patrick Pilet in the No. 911 Porsche GT Team by 10.4 seconds. Despite running second, the No. 911 Porsche entry co-driven by Pilet, Dirk Werner and Frederic Makowiecki leads the Patrón Endurance Cup with nine points, after leading the opening segment.


Four GTLM entries remain on the lead lap with the No. 66 Ford GT of Joey Hand, Dirk Mueller and Sebastian Bourdais rounding out the top three, 21.125 seconds back.


Jeff Segal leads GT Daytona (GTD) in the No. 86 Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura NSX GT3 he co-drives with Ozz Negri, Tom Dyer and Ryan Hunter-Reay. Four different OEMs make up the top four spots in the class, with the No. 29 Audi R8 LMS GT3 of Connor De Phillippi, the No. 33 Mercedes AMG GT3 of Adam Christodoulou within striking distance on the lead lap.


The No. 63 Ferrari 488 GT3 of Alessandro Balzan leads five cars one lap down.


Nicholas Boulle holds a comfortable lead in Prototype Challenge in the No. 38 Performance Tech Motorsports ORECA FLM09. Boulle – joined by co-drivers by James French, Patricio O’Ward and Kyle Masson – holds the spot by five laps over Buddy Rice in the No. 8 ORECA FLM09 for Starworks Motorsport. Trent Hindman sits third, eight laps down, in BAR1 Motorsports’ No. 26 ORECA FLM09.


Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Full Rolex 24 schedule, TV channels


DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The No. 10 Konica Minolta Corvette DPi-V.R, which has run inside the top three throughout the 55th Rolex 24 At Daytona, held the lead after three Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup segments.


The No. 10 Cadillac – which is being co-driven by Jordan and Ricky Taylor, Max Angelelli and retired NASCAR star Jeff Gordon – had a total of 13 Patrón Endurance Cup points at the 18-hour mark to take a one-point lead over the No. 5 Mustang Sampling Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R, the team that has won all three previous Patrón Endurance Cups in the Prototype class.


Patrón Endurance Cup points in the Rolex 24 are awarded at six-hour intervals with five points for the leader at the end of the segment, four points for second place, three points for third and two points for every car running from fourth place on. Angelelli led Marc Goossens in the No. 90 Visit Florida Racing Multimatic/Riley LM P2 after 18 hours, with Filipe Albuquerque in third aboard the No. 5 Cadillac.


The No. 911 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR shared by Patrick Pilet, Dirk Werner and Frederic Makowiecki led the GT Le Mans (GTLM) Patrón Endurance Cup points at 18 hours. The No. 911 team had a total of 14 points, including the maximum five for leading at the 18-hour mark with Makowiecki at the wheel. The No. 66 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT of Dirk Mueller, Joey Hand and Sebastien Bourdais was second in both the Patrón Endurance Cup standings (with 11 points) and the GTLM running order in the race.


The No. 86 Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian Acura NSX GT3 shared by Jeff Segal, Ozz Negri, Tom Dyer and Ryan Hunter-Reay parlayed the 12- and 18-hour GT Daytona (GTD) race lead into the Patrón Endurance Cup lead as well. The No. 86 team leads with 12 points, with the No. 50 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 team second with nine points. Segal was leading the race after 18 hours in the new Acura.


In Prototype Challenge, the No. 38 Performance Tech Motorsports ORECA FLM09 team of James French, Patricio O’Ward, Kyle Masson and Nick Boulle had a perfect score of 15 points toward the Patrón Endurance Cup as the class leader in all three segments. O’Ward, a 17-year-old from Mexico, was at the wheel at 18 hours.


View full results via Al Kamel Systems at Results.IMSA.com.


NOTEBOOK

  • Cold and rainy conditions led to a lengthy full-course caution period during the third quarter of the race. The race was run behind the safety car from the 14:48 mark until restarting at 16:25.


  • The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R co-driven by Eric Curran, Dane Cameron, Seb Morris and Mike Conway was among the Prototype class front runners through 12 hours, but endured a lengthy stay in the garage shortly thereafter. The car has battled transmission, bearing and electrical issues at different points in the race.


  • The No. 68 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT team of Stefan Mucke, Olivier Pla and Billy Johnson was a top-three runner until 16-and-a-half hours, when it plummeted down the GTLM running order. The team battled visibility issues and also encountered multiple penalties which dropped the No. 68 off the lead lap.


  • The No. 50 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 shared by Cooper MacNeil, Gunnar Jeannette, Thomas Jaeger and Shane van Gisbergen was a strong performer in a stacked GTD class through halfway. Just shy of the 14-hour mark, however, MacNeil was involved in an incident in Turn 3 that sent the car to the garage.


  • The Rolex 24 At Daytona is currently airing live on FS2. Television coverage will switch to FS1 at 1 p.m. through the race finish.


Posted on by Staff Report

The 2017 Rolex 24 belonged to the Cadillac DPi V.R teams, and Jeff Gordon and the No. 10 team won as Ricky Taylor finished out front at Daytona International Speedway.

 

Taylor and teammates Jeff Gordon, Jordan Taylor and Max Angelelli benefited from a no-call as the No. 10 and No. 5 Cadillac made contact late in the race, which ended with the No. 10 passing for the lead. The No. 5 Mustang Express and No. 10 teams traded leads and held top-three spots throughout the IMSA event at Daytona.

 

"I haven’t been this emotional for a win and an experience like this for a very long time," Gordon told reporters. "The reason is because I know what this means to this team. Oh my gosh. This is amazing — Daytona has always been special, but this one sent me over the top. I’m just blown away right now."

 

Gordon is in historic company following Sunday’s win, joining Mario Andretti, A.J. Foyt and Jamie McMurray as the only drivers to win both the Daytona 500 and the Rolex 24.

 

Meanwhile, the GTLM class gave Chip Ganassi yet another chance to show his Rolex 24 prowess, as the No. 66 Ford won its class and finished fifth overall with drivers Joey Hand and Dirk Mueller.

 

The No. 10 Wayne Taylor racing foursome of Gordon, Ricky and Jordan Taylor and Angelelli won the second and third segments of the race, entering the fourth and final 6-hour segment with a one-point lead over the No. 5 team of Joao Barbosa, Christian Fittipaldi and Filipe Albuquerque.

 

Ricky Taylor was in the seat at the end, making contact with the No. 5 driven by Albuquerque. Taylor drove down into the Turn 1 corner cleanly, but the two cars came together shortly thereafter, sending Albuquerque spinning into the grass. An official review followed, and no action (such as a time penalty for the No. 10 team) was deemed necessary for intentional contact.

 

"Well, it was a good fight, until I got hit, to be honest," Albuquerque said. "There is not much to say. I had some GTs ahead of me so I could not brake so late, and I closed the door, but then I got spun. There is not much to say, and yeah, the officials took the decision. That’s what it is. We finished second."

 

Ricky Taylor didn’t see it that way.

"The way I saw it, we came through GT traffic. I was closer than I had been, (and) he’d been struggling in Turn 1," Taylor said. "Their car didn’t look very good there, and we were really strong on the brakes. … I think he saw me coming, he saw me committing, and like he said, I guess, he closed the door. But the way ‑‑ from my perspective … there’s a lot of emotions going on.  I wanted to win terribly. We were either going to make a move and do something and win or sit there in second and wait for ‑‑ wait until next year, basically. I didn’t want to do that."
 

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Gordon, No. 10 team win Rolex 24 overall title

 

Sunday was a very good day for Jeff Gordon and Chip Ganassi, as “Four-Time” won another race with his No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac DPi team, and Ganassi won the GTLM class with his No. 66 Ford in the Rolex 24.

 

NASCAR drivers, fans and insiders sent congratulations to the winners of a dramatic race via Twitter.

 

 

 

Jamie McMurray has driven for his NASCAR team owner in the IMSA event before, and took pride in the 2017 team’s performance as well as Gordon’s victory.

 

 

 

Fellow Ganassi NASCAR driver Kyle Larson sent regards, too, after tweeting throughout the weekend race.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Gordon, No. 10 team win Rolex 24

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Before the Rolex 24 trophy hoisting, the hugs, handshakes and high-fives Sunday afternoon, Jeff Gordon and his Wayne Taylor Racing teammates paused to — at last — take a big breath. A HUGE breath of the freshest of air. Victory.

 

It was an unbelievably tense and emotional final hour of a 24-hour race with 27-year-old Ricky Taylor prevailing in a gritty bump-and-run for the lead with less than 10 minutes remaining. It was a winning move every bit reminiscent of his co-driver Gordon’s NASCAR world.

 

"At the end of the day you have to go for it, so I went for it," Taylor said.

 

The friends and crew members crowded into the Taylor team’s pit stall alongside the famed Daytona International Speedway were mostly silent for the final hour of the race — all but for the controlled variation of fist pumps and quiet cheers as they watched Taylor triumph in that must-take, dramatic final pass for the lead following more than 23-3/4 hours of perhaps the most all-around competitive and best-attended Rolex ever.

 

It was indicative of this event. An Alegra Motorsports Porsche won the GTD class by less than a second (0.293 seconds).  And NASCAR team owner Chip Ganassi Racing‘s Ford GT won a super competitive GT LeMans class by 2.9 seconds — remarkably eight class cars finishing nose-to-tail on the same lap.

 

As the white flag waved to signal the final lap of the race, people in the Taylor team pit box looked around smiling and quite obviously trying to contain the emotion. And then finally, as Ricky Taylor drove across the start/finish line, you could distinguish Gordon’s cheers among the emotional celebration.

 

He is the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion to take overall victory in this iconic event and only the fourth driver (joining A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti and Jamie McMurray) to win both the Daytona 500 and the Rolex 24.

 

RELATED: NASCAR drivers’ history in Rolex 24

 

Team owner Wayne Taylor — who last won here as a driver in 2005 — ran out to his son, who slowed the car on pit road. He opened the door and leaned in for an embrace, then Wayne climbed onto the side of the race car. Youngest son Jordan Taylor, 25, who also drove the car, took position on the other side of the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi as Ricky triumphantly drove the family to Daytona’s Victory Lane.

 

Gordon, along with the team’s veteran driver Max Angelelli — who was making his final race start — walked down pit road to meet them, receiving all the accolades deserved after such an impressive victory.

 

"This is unbelievable, I haven’t been this emotional for a win and an experience like this for a very long time," a smiling and effusive Gordon said, amid the cheering and congratulations. "The reason is because I know what this means to this team, Wayne (Taylor), these kids (Ricky and Jordan), Max. Oh my gosh. This is amazing. Daytona has always been special, but this one sent me over the top. I’m just blown away right now.

 

"It’s unbelievable that it came down to that. What a battle, what a race. Cadillac, I’m so impressed with this race car. It’s not just beautiful, it’s strong."

 

WATCH: Junior talks about his Rolex 24 experience, Gordon, more

 

Twice in the previous three years, Taylor’s team has finished runner-up in this grueling Daytona Speedweeks opener. It has been heartbreaking and yet, also so extremely motivating to the Taylor family.

 

As the five men joined together late Sunday to speak about the race, they alternately sported wide smiles and conceded earlier tears.

 

This was the hugest of triumphs among years of determined efforts. And they were so grateful to share the special day with Gordon, who joked about racing in the rain Saturday night, but repeatedly spoke about the great respect he has gained for the young Taylors’ racing talent.

 

"I’ve built enough of a bond with this group, I’d love to see them get other opportunities out there," Gordon said. "They have the personality and the talent.

 

"All I’ve been thinking about is how can I get them to some ovals in a bigger, heavier car."

 

RELATED: NASCAR family cheers Gordon and Ganassi

 

Gordon even suggested that the winning experience may motivate him to do the race again next year.

 

"I felt more prepared and it was an even better experience than 2007 so who knows, maybe there’s a chance of another one," Gordon said. "I want to contribute and add and help this team win. These are the real winners. But I did my part and I’m proud of that."

 

Every time the Taylor brothers and their father spoke of the winning moments, they talked about how much more special it was because Gordon was with them.

 

As the team gathered on the starting grid in the minutes before the race, Gordon and the Taylors revealed temporary tattoos of a Rolex watch — extra motivation that had worn off by the checkered flag.

 

Only to be replaced by the real thing, capping off a race weekend that Gordon, his teammates and sports car fandom will remember for a very, very long time.

 

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Complete Rolex 24 schedule, TV channels

 

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."

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RELATED: NASCAR reveals format enhancements

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Jeff Gordon‘s presence in this weekend’s Rolex 24 gave the international media a chance to get his perspective on NASCAR’s recent rule enhancements for its three national series.

 

Gordon revealed that the new format — which awards points to drivers after two early race stages in addition to the final finish — was a work in progress right up until the last minute. And, he said, having the historic season-opening Daytona 500 included in the new look was also a topic of debate initially.

 

"I was in those meetings, and the format started getting so much momentum and positive feedback from people in the room making the decisions," Gordon revealed. "Initially, we weren’t going to start the season at Daytona with that format and stages but as we went along, we were like, we really like what this is turning into, why not also have it at Daytona?

 

"It’s our biggest event. More eyes are on this than any race all year long. And it is the largest track so gives the sport a chance to have a practice session on how it plays out.

 

"I love they are doing it at Daytona and I love they are giving points in the Duels. I think it will make the Duels more interesting and exciting and will only add to the Daytona’s prestige."