| Sixty-One Cars and 230-Plus Skilled Drivers Fill Field January 27, 2022 By Mark Robinson IMSA Wire Service  Rolex 24 At Daytona Entry List DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The field for the 60th running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona is overloaded with racing talent. More than 230 drivers representing 61 cars – the most for the race since 2014 – are on the entry list. That group of drivers is chock full of endurance racing experts. Fifty-seven drivers have won at least once in class at the Rolex 24, led by Andy Lally’s five victories. Forty drivers have been winners at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, headed by Nicolas Lapierre’s four triumphs. Toss in four Indianapolis 500 winners and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, and it makes Daytona International Speedway THE place to be to open the 2022 motorsports season – both globally and for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. NBC Sports has complete race coverage beginning on NBC network at 1:30 p.m. ET Saturday. Stints will follow on USA network (4-7 p.m. Saturday; 10 p.m. Saturday-3 a.m. Sunday; 6 a.m.-noon Sunday) before returning to NBC for the dramatic conclusion from noon-2 p.m. Sunday. Peacock, IMSA’s new livestream home, has flag-to-flag coverage of all 24 hours in the U.S. The international livestream is available in most countries outside the U.S. at IMSA.com/TVLive. IMSA Radio also has complete coverage beginning with the “Michelin Countdown to Green” at 12:30 p.m. Saturday. Five Classes, Each with a Champion to Crown For the second straight year, five classes will be racing when the green flag drops at 1:40 p.m. ET Saturday. The starting grid was set by the results of Sunday’s 100-minute qualifying race at Daytona, with the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05 winning that race to earn the Motul Pole Award and first starting position. The Wayne Taylor Racing entry, with drivers Filipe Albuquerque, Ricky Taylor, Alexander Rossi and Will Stevens, is aiming to collect the overall and Daytona Prototype international (DPi) class wins a record fourth straight time. The No. 10 will face stiff competition from the other six DPi entries, including the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R that claimed the 2021 DPi championship on the final lap of the final race last season. Pipo Derani, Tristan Nunez and Mike Conway will share the No. 31 from Action Express Racing. Action Express also fields the No. 48 Ally Cadillac DPi that finished second in last year’s Rolex 24. Along with NASCAR-turned-IndyCar driver Johnson, the lineup includes two-time Rolex 24 winner Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez, who along with Conway were overall winners last August at Le Mans. Mike Rockenfeller, an overall champion at both the Rolex 24 and Le Mans, rounds out the stout No. 48 lineup. The Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) field again boasts 10 entries, including the No. 18 Era Motorsport ORECA LMP2 07 that returns its Rolex 24-winning lineup intact with Dwight Merriman, Kyle Tilley, Ryan Dalziel and Paul-Loup Chatin. Four-time Le Mans LMP2 winner Lapierre anchors the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA that won last year’s WeatherTech Championship LMP2 season title and IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup as well as Sunday’s qualifying race. The No. 52’s lineup includes Ben Keating, who’s pulling double duty by also co-driving the No. 5 JDC-Miller MotorSports Cadillac DPi. Beginning its second season in the WeatherTech Championship, the Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class has swelled to nine entries. The No 74 Riley Motorsports Ligier JS P320 won the Rolex 24 on its way to capturing the season championship and Michelin Endurance Cup title. Gar Robinson is the sole returning driver from the Rolex 24 winner, joined this year by Felipe Fraga, Kay van Berlo and Michael Cooper. The No. 54 CORE autosport Ligier finished second in the 2021 LMP2 championship with a lineup anchored by past Rolex 24 winners Jon Bennett and Colin Braun. Four-time Rolex 24 winner Joao Barbosa is back in the No. 33 Sean Creech Motorsport Ligier. Andretti Autosport, with a Rolex 24 entry for the first time, won the LMP3 portion of Sunday’s qualifying race behind full-season drivers Jarett Andretti and Josh Burdon. The Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) class makes its official WeatherTech Championship debut in the Rolex 24. GTD PRO, which aligns with international GT3 specifications, takes over for the GT Le Mans class and is a wide-open affair with eight manufacturers and 13 cars entered. The No. 63 TR3 Racing Lamborghini Huracán GT3, whose drivers have combined for five previous Rolex 24 victories, was the class winner in the qualifying race. Corvette Racing has struggled somewhat adapting its GTLM champion cars to the GT3 spec, but never count out three-time Rolex 24 winners Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor, who’ll share the No. 3 Corvette C8.R with Nicky Catsburg. The Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) class figures to be just as unpredictable with 22 entrants and nine manufacturers participating. Mercedes-AMG looks to replicate its 1-2 finish in last year’s Rolex 24 fashioned by the No. 57 Winward Racing and No. 75 Sun Energy 1 GT3s. The No. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R, without semi-retired Porsche factory driver Patrick Long, looks to improve on last year’s fourth-place Rolex 24 finish with a lineup that includes two-time Rolex 24 and three-time Le Mans winner Richard Lietz. The No. 44 Magnus Racing driver quartet boasts nine Rolex 24 and two Le Mans victories, though the team has switched to an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 this year. And then there’s Bill Auberlen, IMSA’s all-time winner at the top level (64 wins) who chases his first Rolex 24 victory in 24 years in Turner Motorsport’s new No. 96 BMW M4 GT3. Three WeatherTech Championship practices are set for Thursday, including a vital nighttime session. A final practice is set for Friday morning, the last opportunity to dial in cars before the historic race begins. Rolex 24 At Daytona Winners in 2022 Rolex 24 Field (57) Andy Lally (5): SRPII – 2001; GT – 2009, 2011, 2012; GTD – 2016 Joao Barbosa (4): GTS – 2003; DP/Overall –2010; P/Overall – 2014; DPi/Overall – 2018 Scott Dixon (4): DP/Overall – 2006; P/Overall – 2015; GTLM – 2018; DPi/Overall – 2020 Filipe Albuquerque (3): GT – 2013; P/Overall – 2018; DPi/Overall – 2021 Antonio Garcia (3): DP/Overall – 2009; GTLM – 2015, 2021 Jordan Taylor (3): P/Overall – 2017; DPi/Overall – 2019; GTLM – 2021 Bill Auberlen (2): GTS-3 – 1997; GT3 – 1998 Mirko Bortolotti (2): GTD – 2018, 2019 Sebastien Bourdais (2): P/Overall – 2014; GTLM – 2017 Colin Braun (2): PC – 2014; LMP2 – 2020 Ryan Dalziel (2): DP/Overall – 2010; LMP2 – 2021 Augusto Farfus (2): GTLM – 2019, 2020 Rolf Ineichen (2): GTD – 2018, 2019 Kamui Kobayashi (2): DPi/Overall – 2019, 2020 Richard Lietz (2): GT – 2012; GTLM – 2014 Dirk Mueller (2): GT1 – 1998; GTLM – 2017 John Potter (2): GT – 2012; GTD – 2016 Spencer Pumpelly (2): GT – 2006, 2011 Rene Rast (2): GT – 2012; GTD – 2016 Ricky Taylor (2): P/Overall – 2017; DPi/Overall – 2021 Renger van der Zande (2): DPi/Overall – 2019, 2020 Townsend Bell (1): GTD – 2014 Jonathan Bennett (1): PC – 2014 Jonathan Bomarito (1): GT – 2010 Nick Boulle (1): PC – 2017 Andrea Caldarelli (1): GTD – 2020 Helio Castroneves (1): DPi/Overall – 2021 Nicky Catsburg (1): GTLM – 2021 Paul-Loup Chatin (1): LMP2 – 2021 Connor De Phillippi (1): GTLM – 2019 Michael de Quesada (1): GTD – 2017 Pipo Derani (1): P/Overall – 2016 Indy Dontje (1): GTD – 2021 John Edwards (1): GTLM – 2020 Philip Ellis (1): GTD – 2021 Philipp Eng (1): GTLM – 2019 Misha Goikhberg (1): PC – 2016 Colton Herta (1): GTLM – 2019 Oliver Jarvis (1): GT – 2013 Ben Keating (1): GTD – 2015 Jesse Krohn (1): GTLM – 2020 Corey Lewis (1): GTD – 2020 Dwight Merriman (1): LMP2 – 2021 Tommy Milner (1): GTLM – 2016 Daniel Morad (1): GTD – 2017 Pato O’Ward (1): PC – 2017 Franck Perera (1): GTD – 2018 Alessandro Pier Guidi (1): GTD – 2014 Patrick Pilet (1): GTLM – 2014 Gar Robinson (1): LMP3 – 2021 Mike Rockenfeller (1): DP/Overall – 2010 Alexander Rossi (1): DPi/Overall – 2021 Jeff Segal (1): GTD – 2014 Nick Tandy (1): GTLM – 2014 Kyle Tilley (1): LMP2 – 2021 Russell Ward (1): GTD – 2021 Richard Westbrook (1): GTLM – 2018 IMSA Champions in 2022 Rolex 24 Field (42) Joao Barbosa (6): WeatherTech Championship Prototype – 2014, 2015; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Prototype – 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 Antonio Garcia (6): American Le Mans Series GT – 2013; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2015; WeatherTech Championship GTLM – 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021 Jeroen Bleekemolen (5): American Le Mans Series GTC – 2010, 2013; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD – 2017, 2018, 2019 Ben Keating (5): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD – 2017, 2018, 2019; WeatherTech Championship LMP2 – 2021; IMSA Michelin Cup Endurance LMP2 – 2021 Andy Lally (4): GRAND-AM SRPII – 2001; GRAND-AM SGS – 2004; GRAND-AM GT – 2006; GRAND-AM North American Endurance Cup GT – 2012 Tommy Milner (4): American Le Mans Series GT – 2012; WeatherTech Championship GTLM – 2016; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2016, 2021 Felipe Nasr (4): WeatherTech Championship Prototype – 2018; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Prototype – 2018; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup DPi – 2019; WeatherTech Championship DPi 2021 Jordan Taylor (4): GRAND-AM DP – 2013; WeatherTech Championship Prototype – 2017; WeatherTech Championship GTLM – 2020, 2021 Bill Auberlen (3): IMSA GTS-3 – 1997; GRAND-AM GT – 2002, 2004 Jonathan Bennett (3): WeatherTech Championship PC – 2014, 2015; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup PC – 2014 Colin Braun (3): WeatherTech Championship PC – 2014, 2015; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup PC – 2014 Mario Farnbacher (3): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD – 2017; WeatherTech Championship GTD – 2019, 2020 Dirk Mueller (3): American Le Mans Series GT – 2000, 2001; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2018 Ricky Taylor (3): WeatherTech Championship Prototype – 2017; WeatherTech Championship DPi – 2020; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup DPi – 2021 Filipe Albuquerque (2): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Prototype – 2017; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup DPi – 2021 Townsend Bell (2): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD – 2014; WeatherTech Championship GTD – 2015 Pipo Derani (2): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup DPi – 2019; WeatherTech Championship DPi – 2021 John Edwards (2): GRAND-AM North American Endurance Cup GT – 2013; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2020 Mikkel Jensen (2): WeatherTech Championship LMP2 – 2021; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup LMP2 – 2021 Cooper MacNeil (2): American Le Mans Series GTC – 2012, 2013 Pato O’Ward (2): WeatherTech Championship PC – 2017; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup PC – 2017 Tim Pappas (2): American Le Mans Series GTC – 2010, 2011 Patrick Pilet (2): WeatherTech Championship GTLM – 2015; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2017 Gar Robinson (2): WeatherTech Championship LMP3 – 2021; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup LMP3 – 2021 Jeff Segal (2): GRAND-AM GT – 2010, 2012 Renger van der Zande (2): WeatherTech Championship PC – 2016; IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup DPi – 2020 Laurens Vanthoor (2): WeatherTech Championship GTLM – 2019; WeatherTech Championship GTD – 2021 Earl Bamber (1): WeatherTech Championship GTLM – 2019 Helio Castroneves (1): WeatherTech Championship DPi – 2020 Felipe Fraga (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD – 2019 Jan Heylen (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD – 2021 Scott Huffaker (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup LMP2 – 2021 Ian James (1): American Le Mans Series P2 – 2004 Jesse Krohn (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2020 Corey Lewis (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTD – 2020 Simon Pagenaud (1): American Le Mans Series LMP – 2010 John Potter (1): GRAND-AM North American Endurance Cup GT – 2012 Zacharie Robichon (1): WeatherTech Championship GTD – 2021 Alexander Rossi (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup DPi – 2021 Guy Smith (1): American Le Mans Series P1 – 2011 Nick Tandy (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2021 Richard Westbrook (1): IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup GTLM – 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans Winners in 2022 Rolex 24 Field (40) Nicolas Lapierre (4): LMP2 – 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 Antonio Garcia (3):GT1 – 2008, 2009; GTE Pro – 2011 Richard Lietz (3): GT2 – 2007, 2010; GTE Pro – 2013 Darren Turner (3): GT1 – 2007, 2008; GTE Pro – 2017 Jonathan Adam (2): GTE Pro – 2017; GTE Am – 2020 Earl Bamber (2): LMP1/Overall – 2015, 2017 James Calado (2): GTE Pro – 2019, 2021 Tommy Milner (2): GTE Pro – 2011, 2015 Alessandro Pier Guidi (2): GTE Pro – 2019, 2021 Mike Rockenfeller (2): GT2 – 2005; LMP1/Overall – 2010 Daniel Serra (2): GTE Pro – 2017, 2019 Harry Tincknell (2): LMP2 – 2014; GTE Po – 2020 Toni Vilander (2): GTE Pro – 2012, 2014 Filipe Albuquerque (1): LMP2 – 2020 Townsend Bell (1): GTE Am – 2016 Jeroen Bleekemolen (1): LMP2 – 2008 Sebastien Bourdais (1): GTE Pro – 2016 Matt Campbell (1): GTE Am – 2018 Mike Conway (1): LMH/Overall – 2021 Ryan Dalziel (1): LMP2 – 2012 Loic Duval (1): LMP1/Overall – 2013 Charlie Eastwood (1): GTE Am – 2020 Ferdinand Habsburg-Lothringen (1): LMP2 – 2021 Phil Hanson (1): LMP2 – 2020 Oliver Jarvis (1): LMP2 – 2017 Kamui Kobayashi (1): LMH/Overall – 2021 Jose Maria Lopez (1): LMH/Overall – 2021 Alex Lynn (1): GTE Pro – 2020 Maxime Martin (1): GTE Pro – 2020 Dirk Mueller (1): GTE Pro – 2016 Nicklas Nielsen (1): GTE Am – 2021 Alessio Rovera (1): GTE Am – 2021 Jeff Segal (1): GTE Am – 2016 Guy Smith (1): LMGTP/Overall – 2003 Will Stevens (1): GTE Am – 2017 Bill Sweedler (1): GTE Am – 2016 Nick Tandy (1): LMP1/Overall – 2015 Jordan Taylor (1): GTE Pro – 2015 Nicki Thiim (1): GTE Am – 2014 Laurens Vanthoor (1): GTE Pro – 2018 IndyCar Champions in 2022 Rolex 24 Field (4) Scott Dixon (6): 2003, 2008, 2013, 2015, 2018, 2020 Sebastien Bourdais (4): 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Alex Palou (1): 2021 Simon Pagenaud (1): 2016 Indianapolis 500 Winners in 2022 Rolex 24 Field (4) Helio Castroneves (4): 2001, 2002, 2009, 2021 Scott Dixon (1): 2008 Simon Pagenaud (1): 2019 Alexander Rossi (1): 2016 NASCAR Cup Series Race Winners in 2022 Rolex 24 Field (1) Jimmie Johnson – 83 wins NASCAR Cup Series Champions in 2022 Rolex 24 Field (1) Jimmie Johnson – 7 titles |
