A Few Reasons Why This Year's Daytona 24 Is Not Worth Missing

Motorsport fans from all over the world have had to wait months till the F1 season starts. But the first major racing event of the year is an endurance race that takes place at the Daytona International Speedway in Florida. The Rolex 24 at Daytona is a blockbuster event in the USA which is run as the season opener to the IMSA WeatherTech Championship. Below are a few things that you may need to know about it along with some reasons why it is definitely worth watching. 

The Classes

The Race will boast five categories this year with the addition of LMP3 cars to the grid. The frontrunner classes will be the DPi (Daytona Prototype International) and the LMP2 (Le Mans Prototype 2). There will also be the two GT classes ie. GTLM, GT Daytona. 

Intense Competition 

The drivers who come from all around the globe to compete in this race are some of the biggest names in motorsport. The top category (DPi) will feature Ex-Formula 1 drivers including Kevin Magnussen, Juan Pablo Montoya, Sébastien Bourdais, Felipe Nasr, Alexander Rossi and Kamui Kobayashi. NASCAR legend Jimmie Johnson is set to compete with current NASCAR champion Chase Elliott signed up as well. As well as these there will be some INDYCAR stars such as Simon Pagenaud taking part. The LMP2 category will also boast the likes of F1 race winner Robert Kubica.

It's the Ultimate test of Endurance 

Considering the immense talent that has been listed above, we now must discuss the skill required by the drivers to go on racing at incredible speeds for five to six hours without a break. A 24 hour race is nothing like an F1 race. It includes all sorts of other dramas including the concentration of the driver, the teammate switches, the reliability of the car and the skill of the drivers.

The Track

The Daytona International Speedway is definitely one of the greatest if not the greatest track located in the USA. The layout will start at a straight before a heavy breaking zone at the bustop chicane. It then goes onto the first high bank part of the track before breaking off the NASCAR part onto the road track which includes a few twisty corners before rejoining the NASCAR straight and then riding the second high bank and finishing off the lap.

Time and Date
The green flag will drop on Saturday, January 30 at 3:40 PM track time (Miami, USA). In other regions, the times and dates are:
England: January 30 at 8:40 PM
Rest of Europe: January 30 at 7:40 PM
India: January 31 at 2:10 AM
The Race will conclude exactly twenty-four hours after the above times.

Where to watch
In the USA, it will be live-streamed on NBC Sports or Trackpass on NBC Sports Gold. In all other regions, it will be streamed on imsa.com/tvlive .

The race will be starting quite soon and considering the competitive grid, the brilliant track, the different classes and manufacturers, it promises to be a thoroughly entertaining one. And in case you want to get familiar with the teams and drivers of the top class (DPi), you can check out the below slides.

Photo Credit: Richard Dole/ LAT Images & Motorsports on NBC