Four Ferrari 296 GT3 in top 7 combined GTD entries

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #62 Ferrari 296 GT3 winner GTD PRO and #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 winner GTD.

Risi Comptizione’s Ferrari 296 GT3 won overall combined GTD PRO and GTD classes and Winward Racing’s Mercedes AMG GT3 won GTD class finishing third of combined classes. Tremendous success for the Ferrari 296 GT3 with four of the five entries in the top 7 of combined classes.

Two GTD Pro topped GTD combined classes

The Ferrari 296 GT3 scored a historic result at the 62nd running of the 24 Hours of Daytona, taking the Prancing Horse back to the top step of the famous American endurance race on the 10th anniversary of the marque's previous victory. Official drivers Daniel Serra, Davide Rigon, Alessandro Pier Guidi and James Calado triumphed in the GTD Pro class with the Risi Competizione’s #62 beating the #77 Porsche by one lap.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #62 Ferrari 296 GT3.

Risi Competizione’s #62 Ferrari 296 GT3 took the lead for the first time on the stroke of the seventh hour. When twelve hours had elapsed on the clock, the Ferrari took the lead in the race and held it until early morning, confirming its steady position in the top 3. Despite a 2-minute 51-second pit stop needed to change the rear brakes with five hours to go, Calado was back on track putting in some excellent laps and putting the Ferrari back in the lead, while a three-way challenge for the win with the #1 BMW and the #77 Porsche was emerging. In the final two hours, Risi Competizione strengthened its lead over the chasing pack and, despite a Full Course Yellow re-compacting the group with 52 minutes to go, the team signed the win in Florida with Serra passing under the chequered flag, one lap ahead of the Porsche. Source: Ferrari press office

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. GTD PRO winners Serra, Rigon, Calado and Pier Guidi (from left to right)

ALESSANDRO PIER GUIDI: « Well, it's amazing. First of all, I think we deserved this victory. We were also trying a lot of times to achieve this victory. We finished twice second, and it's a long-time partnership between Risi and Ferrari, and we've been very close many times with us and the other drivers, but never have been able to achieve this victory.

Finally, we get it. If you see in the footage after the checkered flag and the picture is amazing. Everyone was crying, happy, and I went and I give a big hug to Giuseppe, because all the passion he put in here in this effort, he really deserved this. » Source: IMSA

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #77 Porsche 911 GT3 R

AO Racing secured the second podium step (GTD PRO and combined GTD) with the Porsche 911 GT3 R. At the wheel of the #77 “Rexy” race car, works driver Michael Christensen, Laurin Heinrich and Sebastian Priaulx drove a flawless race.

Michael Christensen (Porsche 911 GT3 R #77): “I’m very pleased. Despite having started the race from pole position, second place was the best result we could achieve in this competition. We knew after the first hour that we weren’t quite fast enough. We had to drive perfectly, deliver flawless pitstops, and choose the best strategy. That’s exactly what we managed to do over the entire distance and we all put in a first-class performance.” Source: Porsche

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #1 BMW M4 GT3

Paul Miller Racing showed an impressive comeback from twelfth place in the GTD PRO category and even led the race for long stretches in the #1 BMW M4 GT3. In the final hours of the race, however, the team was unable to compete for the win due to a problem during a pit stop, but it was enough for drivers Madison Snow, Bryan Sellers, Neil Verhagen, and Sheldon van der Linde to take third place on the GTD PRO podium, fifth combined GT entries. Source: BMW Group

Three Ferrari 296 GT3 among the top 4 GTD entries.

Winward Racing’s #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 was third in combined GTD classes and victorious in the GTD class, the car shared by Russell Ward, Philip Ellis, Indy Dontje and Daniel Morad.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3

The #57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 came to life after sunset on Saturday night. The adjustments made to get the car in the window to where it can compete in the long run turned out to pay off?

RUSSELL WARD: « A lot of this work was done at the BOP test. We had a bit of an advantage there and got to experience the new tire, which was quite a bit different from last year's tire. We just kind of set the call for the long run. That's what we all like, and it's nice to put a fast lap together, but at the end of the day, you just want to be good on the long run. I think the engineers did a great job of doing that. » Source: IMSA

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #21 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3.

AF Corse celebrated on the podium, with the Ferrari 296 GT3 #21 car driven by Miguel Molina, Simon Mann, François Heriau, Kei Cozzolino, and Conquest Racing, with the 34 entrusted to Albert Costa, Manny Franco, Alessandro Balzan and Cédric Sbirrazzuoli.  The two entries finished second and third respectively (2'731 and 1 lap behind the number 57 Mercedes) in GTD class. The Spanish driver and the Brazilian took the wheel in the last two stints, taking advantage of the excellent work done by team-mates Cozzolino (in the lead at the stop, two hours from the end) and Franco, trying in the final to take a second, historic victory for Ferrari.

AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 #21 was fourth combined GT3 entries.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #34 Ferrari 296 GT3

Sixth combined GTD entries were M. Franco, A. Costa Balboa, A. Balzan and C. Sbirrazzuoli with #34 Ferrari 296 GT3 from Conquest Racing.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Daytona 2024. #023 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3.

Triarsi Competizione in the #023 car entrusted to Alessio Rovera, Onofrio Triarsi, Charles Scardina, Riccardo Agostini (the driver from Veneto born in 1994 making his debut in a full day's test) had come to the fore in the central part of the race, taking the lead on Sunday morning. In the final hours, after losing a few positions, Rovera made a comeback in style by finishing fourth under the chequered flag, one-tenth down on the number 34 Ferrari. Source: Ferrari Press Office

#023 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3 was seventh combined GT3 entries.

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