Official starting lineup grid for Rolex 24 at Daytona: Wayne Taylor Racing leads 60th field

By Jan 28, 2022, 2:00 PM EST
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DAYTONA BEACH, Florida — Seeking a record fourth consecutive Rolex 24 at Daytona victory, Wayne Taylor Racing will lead the official starting grid lineup to the green flag Saturday (1:30 p.m. ET, NBC).

The No. 10 Acura will be piloted at the start by Filipe Albuquerque, who returns from last year’s third consecutive victory Ricky Taylor and Alexander Rossi. Will Stevens is the team’s new fourth driver.

Albuquerque and Taylor combined to win the 100-minute qualifying race that set the field for the 60th Rolex 24 at Daytona.

STARTING GRID: Click here for the Rolex 24 lineup l Lineup by car number

INFORMATION FOR THE 60TH ROLEX 24: Schedules, start times, entry lists

HOW TO WATCH ON NBC SPORTS: All the information for 24 hours of viewing

Tristan Vautier will start second in the No. 5 Cadillac of JDC MotorSports, followed by Kamui Kobayashi in the No. 48 Ally Cadillac (with seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson among his co-drivers) for Action Express Racing.

The Rolex 24 at Daytona will feature 61 cars across five classes, the largest field for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season opener since 2014.

Here are the pole-sitters in other categories for the endurance race classic on the 12-turn, 3.56-mile road course:

LMP2: Ben Keating, No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA

LMP3: Jarett Andretti, No. 36 Andretti Autosport Ligier JS P320

GTD Pro: Marco Mapelli, No. 63 TR3 Racing Lamborhini Huracan GT3

GTD: Russell Ward, No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3

Click here for the Rolex 24 at Daytona starting lineup grid

ROLEX 24 COVERAGE FROM NBC SPORTS

Jarett Andretti, Robin Pemberton celebrate an emotional LMP3 pole position

‘Neurotic’ Wayne Taylor on the verge of making Rolex 24 history

Robert Wickens returns to racing for the first time since Pocono crash

Jordan Taylor’s unforgettable Rolex 24 restroom story

Colton Herta and Pato O’Ward relish transition from rivals to teammates

IMSA opener offers valuable experience for 12 full-time IndyCar drivers

Why is there only one NASCAR driver in this year’s race?

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IndyCar disappointed by delay of video game but aiming to launch at start of 2024

By Mar 27, 2023, 3:00 PM EDT
IndyCar video game 2024
IndyCar
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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”