Best Porsche 963 to start the 24 Hours of Daytona from second row

In cold conditions of just nine degrees Celsius, the GTP class drivers faced a challenging qualifying session. Red flags interrupted the 15-minute session early on, leaving less than six minutes to set a competitive lap time. Defending champion Felipe Nasr methodically warmed up the Michelin tyres on the number 7 Porsche 963 and ended the session with a time of 1:34.280 minutes, securing third place. His teammate Matt Campbell, however, was less fortunate. The Australian managed only two flying laps and was unable to capitalize on the improving grip levels.

‟It’s unfortunate that our number 6 car could not cross the finish line in time to complete another timed lap. Starting third and tenth isn’t ideal, but it’s not a disaster,” summarized Urs Kuratle, Director Factory Motorsport LMDh. ‟The low temperatures during qualifying posed a significant challenge. Conditions will be much milder over the next few days, and we are confident that we will have a fast and consistent car for the race. Congratulations to our customer team JDC-Miller MotorSports for an excellent qualifying performance, and kudos to BMW for claiming their first pole position.”

‟The red flag drastically shortened the session. While Felipe Nasr managed three timed laps in the number 7 car, Matt Campbell in the number 6 was limited to just two,” said Jonathan Diuguid, Managing Director of Porsche Penske Motorsport. ‟This result doesn’t reflect our true potential. Our full focus is now on the race.”

Italian driver Gianmaria Bruni delivered an impressive performance in the JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963, securing fifth place. Meanwhile, the Proton Competition 963 with the number 5 had to sit out qualifying due to damage sustained in a morning practice session. The German customer team’s car will start Saturday’s race from the back of the GTP field.

GT Categories: Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R takes pole in GTD
Wright Motorsports delivered an outstanding performance in the GTD class. Driving the number 120 Porsche 911 GT3 R, American Elliott Skeer set the fastest lap, clinching pole position for the team. This result follows the team’s strong showing the previous weekend when Skeer’s compatriot Adam Adelson won both IMSA VP Challenge races at Daytona International Speedway.

The Iron Dames will start their first IMSA race from eleventh in the GTD category. Michelle Gatting, a new addition to Porsche’s extended driver line-up, was only 0.347 seconds off Skeer’s pole time. The Danish driver will share the number 83 car with Swiss teammates Rahel Frey and Karen Gaillard, as well as Belgian Sarah Bovy.

In the GTD-Pro class, changing weather conditions added complexity to the session. A light rain shower at the start of the 15-minute qualifying made the track slippery, but it dried up as the session progressed, allowing lap times to improve. Reigning class champion Laurin Heinrich from Germany qualified seventh in AO Racing’s ‟Rexy,” the dinosaur-liveried Porsche 911 GT3 R. Porsche factory driver Thomas Preining from Austria secured 14th in the Proton Competition entry.

The classic race in a free livestream
The 63rd edition of the 24 Hours of Daytona will start on Saturday, January 25, at 1:40 PM local time (7:40 PM CET). The entire race will be streamed live for free on imsa.tv outside the USA and Canada. Live timing will be available on scoring.imsa.com.

Driver quotes after qualifying
Matt Campbell (Porsche 963 #6): ‟I was just unlucky. While everyone else managed three flying laps, I only had time for two. The session was simply too short due to the red flag. Under normal circumstances, a lot more would have been possible as the tyres were getting better with every lap. However, the starting position does not matter much in a 24-hour race.”

Felipe Nasr (Porsche 963 #7): ‟We did a good job. Third place is absolutely fine. After the red flag, I had to get the tyres into the optimal operating window as quickly as possible. That worked well, but it was still challenging. On the first lap, the car felt like it was on ice – but that was the same for everyone. Now, our focus is entirely on the race: we need to ensure we have a consistently fast car for Saturday and Sunday.”

Gianmaria Bruni (Porsche 963 #85): ‟It was a mini-qualifying. With such limited time, it’s not easy to set a competitive lap. However, everything came together well for us, and we maximized our potential. I’m satisfied with the result and optimistic for the race ahead. Our comparably small team is doing a fantastic job.”

Thomas Preining (Porsche 911 GT3 R #20): ‟We are significantly lacking top speed compared to others on the straights. We’ve analysed everything intensively but can’t pinpoint the cause. It is either a setup issue or something else entirely. The car feels fine, but we’re just not fast enough.”

Laurin Heinrich (Porsche 911 GT3 R #77): ‟The car felt great. The qualifying session was okay, although there might have been more potential here and there. Seventh place sounds solid, but the relatively large gaps aren’t encouraging. Now we’ll shift our focus to the race, where anything can happen.”

Michelle Gatting (Porsche 911 GT3 R #83): ‟I’m not entirely happy, especially knowing that another Porsche took pole position. It’s clear I could have done better. I know where I lost time. It was just over three-tenths of a second. However, you don’t win a race in qualifying. We now know the Porsche is fast.”

Elliott Skeer (Porsche 911 GT3 R #120): ‟What an incredible feeling to start the biggest IMSA race of the year from pole position! Our Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R had everything it needed to be fast today. The team put in tremendous effort during preparation, and it paid off with this excellent result. Now, we have 24 long hours of racing ahead of us. We’re starting from the best possible position.”

Qualifying Results
GTP Class:
1. Eng/Vanthoor/Magnussen/Marciello (AUT/BEL/DNK/ITA), BMW #24, 1:33.895 minutes
2. Van der Zande/Yelloly/Palou/Ohta (NLD/GBR/ESP/JPN), Acura #93, 1:34.186 minutes
3. Nasr/Tandy/Vanthoor (BRA/GBR/BEL), Porsche 963 #7, 1:34.280 minutes
5. Van der Helm/Bruni/Wehrlein/Aron (NLD/ITA/DEU/USA), Porsche 963 #85, 1:34.374 minutes
10. Jaminet/Campbell/Estre (FRA/AUS/FRA), Porsche 963 #6, 1:36.576 minutes

GTD-Pro Class:
1. Rockenfeller/Priaulx/Cindric (DEU/GBR/USA), Ford #64, 1:45.523 minutes
2. Mies/Vervisch/Olsen (DEU/BEL/NOR), Ford #65, 1:45.855 minutes
3. Harper/Hesse/Krohn/Farfus (GBR/DEU/FIN/BRA), BMW #48, 1:46.005 minutes
7. Heinrich/Bachler/Picariello (DEU/AUT/BEL), Porsche 911 GT3 R #77, 1:46.539 minutes
14. Schiavoni/Cressoni/Preining/Lietz (ITA/ITA/AUT/AUT), Porsche 911 GT3 R #20, 1:47.115 minutes

GTD Class:
1. Adelson/Skeer/Sargent/Guven (USA/USA/AUS/TUR), Porsche 911 GT3 R #120, 1:46.634
2. Ward/Ellis/Dontje/Auer (USA/GBR/NLD/AUT), Mercedes-AMG #57, 1:46.652
3. Formal/Hindman/Doyle/Marcelli (CRI/USA/USA/CAN), Lamborghini #45, 1:46.658
11. Bovy/Frey/Gatting/Gaillard (BEL/SUI/DNK/SUI), Porsche 911 GT3 R #83, 1:46.981

For complete results and championship standings, visit https://results.imsa.com.

Further information, film and photo material in the Porsche Newsroom: newsroom.porsche.com

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