Chip Ganassi named grand marshal for Rolex 24 at Daytona - MotorSportsTalk

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) Renowned car owner Chip Ganassi will serve as grand marshal for the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway later this month.

Ganassi will give the command, “Drivers, start your engines,” before the twice-around-the-clock endurance race at Daytona International Speedway. The road-course race begins Jan. 27 and ends the following day.

Ganassi says “this is a really big honor for me to be recognized by a race that has meant so much to me over my career, both as a driver and an owner.”

We're excited to announce that @GanassiChip will be the Grand Marshal for the 2018 #Rolex24! pic.twitter.com/xMDql92efM

— Daytona International Speedway (@DISupdates) January 5, 2018

Chip Ganassi Racing entered the IMSA series in 2004 and captured its first overall victory two years later. That 2006 triumph was the first of seven victories in the series opener, with subsequent wins coming in 2007, ’08, ’11, ’13,’15 and `17.

Ganassi also fields race teams in NASCAR’s Cup Series, NASCAR’s Xfinity Series, the IndyCar Series and the FIA World Endurance Championship.

In a continuing effort to help fans keep track of the on track action, SuperMotocross is in the process of developing and implementing leader lights for the unified series.

Currently Supercross (SMX) utilizes stanchions in the infield that are triggered manually by a race official. At least two stanchions are used in each race as a way to draw the eye to the leader, which is especially useful in the tight confines of the stadium series when lapping often begins before the halfway mark in the 22-bike field. This system has been in place for the past two decades.

Later this year, a fully automated system will move to the bike itself to replace the old system. At that point, fans will be able to identify the leader regardless of where he is on track.

The leader lights were tested in the second Anaheim round this year. An example can be seen at the 1:45 mark in the video above on the No. 69 bike.

“What we don’t want to do is move too fast, where it’s confusing to people,” said Mike Muye, senior director of operations for Supercross and SMX in a press release. “We’ve really just focused on the leader at this point with the thought that maybe down the road we’ll introduce others.”

Scheduled to debut with the first SuperMotocross World Championship race at zMax Dragway, located just outside the Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 3D carbon fiber-printed LED light will be affixed to each motorcycle. Ten timing loops positioned around the track will trigger the lights of the leader, which will turn green.

SMX’s partner LiveTime Scoring helped develop and implement the system that has been tested in some form or fashion since 2019.

When the leader lights are successfully deployed, SuperMotocross will explore expanding the system to identify the second- and third-place riders. Depending on need and fan acceptance, more positions could be added.

SuperMotocross is exploring future enhancements, including allowing for live fan interaction with the lights and ways to use the lighting system during the race’s opening ceremony.

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