Penske clearly confirmed within the very first stint of the 2026 Rolex 24 Hours that they’re the group to beat within the sixty fourth working of the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The 2 manufacturing facility Porsches had been the one vehicles able to lap instances underneath 1:37 minutes within the first six hours. The No. 60 Acura ultimately broke into the 1:36s because the race progressed, however barely.
Renger van der Zande, who accomplished the beginning stint within the # Meyer Shank Acura (van der Zande/Yelloly/Palou/Ohta), sounded downright demoralized throughout a post-stint interview with the media.
“That was a really demotivating stint. I am afraid that was the final time we’ll see the Porsches for the remainder of the 24 hours. They’re simply taking part in with us. It felt terrible—it wasn’t enjoyable on the market,” mentioned the 39-year-old.
Nevertheless, the Dutchman isn’t stunned by the German dominance: “I had hoped that we might maintain our personal, however that wasn’t the case.”
He did his greatest to maintain contact with the two-time defending winners, however to no avail: “The tire put on on the rear axle is fairly dangerous. I attempted to maintain up initially and possibly burned up my tires within the course of. That got here again to hang-out me on the finish of the double stint.”
He continued: “We’re specializing in our plan and attempting to get the very best out of our Acura and the group. If we nonetheless have an opportunity on the finish, we’ll take it. However this primary stint has roughly proven us the place we stand.”
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He has little hope of closing the hole solely by adjusting the stabilizers or tire strain through the race: “We will nonetheless enhance, however that will not make up for the deficit.”
Ricky Taylor: Have they got much more in them?
Ricky Taylor from the #10 WTR Cadillac entry (R. Taylor/Albuquerque/Stevens) was additionally impressed by Porsche within the opening stint, during which the 2 Porsches at instances constructed up a lead of 20+ seconds.
“What actually scares me is that Porsche would not often present the whole lot firstly of the race. After which they construct up such a lead. Now I am actually anxious that they’ve much more methods up their sleeve,” mentioned the older of the Taylor brothers, sounding alarmed.
Though their dominance appeared barely much less pronounced within the second stint on a set of tires, the general image stays bleak for the competitors. “They appear notably sturdy on a contemporary set of tires. We’re all watching, however they’re positively those to beat,” Taylor sums up.
And whereas the #7 Porsche stays probably the most dominant GTP automotive, the sister #6 Porsche (Vanthoor/Estre/Campbell), which reportedly suffered flooring harm as a result of some early contact, is correct again within the battle for the lead after fading for a number of hours. In the mean time, nothing is slowing these Penske Porsches as they march into the evening.
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