The “Roar” has run at Daytona. The “Roar before the 24” sessions of testing and practice have run the laps and the countdown is on to the end of the month for the “ROLEX 24”.  Mark your calendars for the weekend of the 28th-29th and make sure you know where SPEED is on your TV system. (You should know that, anyway…)

This is a full 24 hours of racing! Multiple drivers for each car with two classes of cars running at the same time. The big and low Daytona Prototypes and the more “street common” GT class. Ford Mustangs and Chevy Camaros are on the track with Porsche, BMW, Mazda and Ferrari. These race converted sports cars share the laps with the BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Ford and Chevrolet powered Daytona Prototypes. There are vehicles and drivers in the “24” for every racing fan to get into.

As an example, Dario Franchitti of IndyCar, is sharing the ride with Juan Pablo Montoya and Jamie McMurray, both from NASCAR. The regular  ROLEX “points” drivers of many other teams are opening their seats to drivers from INDY, F1, NASCAR and others. Michael Waltrip was even testing a Ferrari during the “Roar”! Waltrip… in a Ferrari! That alone should be fun to watch!

Fan support should be a “no-brainer” for the ROLEX 24, as it should be for the entire season. It is a bit baffling, really, that the Grand-Am ROLEX races do not draw more. They hold their own but it is nowhere close to NASCAR, for example. Grand-Am racing has good driver and team access, fast and exciting racing, and pretty girls on the start grid. Straight away, driver access and pretty girls are a big step up from race day for NASCAR!

Bottom line – Don’t plan anything too far away from that new Christmas HDTV. The ROLEX 24 is on.

Grand-Am website: http://www.grand-am.com/

Race Information:  ROLEX 24