Grand-Am: Daytona field takes shape as Ferrari and Mazda announce GT entries
Posted: December 11, 2011 Filed under: American Le Mans, Grand Am | Tags: 24 Hours of Daytona, Dempsey Racing, Grand-Am Series, Le Mans, Mazda, Michael Waltrip, Patrick Dempsey, Risi Competizione, Speedsource Leave a comment »
Speedsource will convert from its usual black paint scheme to a more Mazda-friendly design (Photo: Mazdaspeed)
The 24 Hours of Daytona is shaping up to be one of the top sports car events outside of that other 24 hour race in France. Longtime ALMS GT entrant Risi Competizione has entered the January enduro with a Ferrari 458 specially prepared for the Grand-Am Series. John Dagys at Speed has a testing report here, including a driver change that sees Jaime Melo out and driver Rafael Matos in. The other interesting news is that Risi has yet to make up its mind about a 2012 program in the ALMS.
We’ve loved watching Risi carry the prancing horse’s flag in the ALMS for several years. We’re not sure if it relates to the ALMS’ lack of live television, but don’t be surprised if one or more teams begin to consider defecting. It’s great to see Ferrari return to Daytona in strength, especially as Audi enters the series. APR Motorsports has become the first team to step into the Audi R8 waters. The R8 is a spectacular supercar, and we think it is going to be a fan favorite.
NASCAR driver/broadcaster/team owner Michael Waltrip will also return to Daytona, in a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car owned by TRG and co-driven by Rob Kauffman (who co-drove a Ferrari with Waltrip at Le Mans earlier this year). Waltrip’s plans include a full-time a Ferrari operation in the Grand-Am, fielding a 458 Italia Grand-Am edition.
The Mazda squadron continues to make its presence known with at least two topline efforts: Speedsource and Dempsey Racing. Marino Franchitti and (now unemployed) IndyCar driver James Hinchcliffe will join Speedsource for Daytona. Both teams are returning with tried and true RX-8s. However, Dempsey Racing is hedging its bets and entering a prototype in the ALMS. Patrick Dempsey cannot race an open-top car, so the ALMS effort will be spearheaded by other drivers. This seems related to Dempsey’s desire to compete at Le Mans, which is now at the heart of the FIA-sanctioned World Endurance Challenge. At Le Mans, Patrick drove demo laps of Mazda’s Le Mans-winning prototype, and he enjoyed himself quite a bit. Dempsey and baseball pitcher CJ Wilson (both Mazda men) seem to be picking up where Paul Newman and Joe Gibbs left off.
Interesting times for sports car fans. January is shaping up to be a good month.
Dempsey Racing returns with support from Florida.
