The inaugural season of the HSR Traditional Endurance Championship offered by Mission Meals got here to a colourful and aggressive conclusion Saturday and Sunday at Daytona Worldwide Speedway (DIS) with the profitable eleventh operating of the HSR Daytona Traditional 24 Hour offered by Mission Meals. 5 full days of on-track motion culminated with the HSR Daytona Traditional 24-hour twice-around-the-clock race from Saturday at 2 p.m. till simply earlier than the identical hour as we speak.
The longest and oldest race on the HSR Traditional Endurance Championship offered by Mission Meals schedule, the HSR Daytona Traditional 24 Hour featured Run Teams A via G competing in succession – with Teams C and D sharing the monitor – for a full 24 hours on the enduring DIS street course. Every of the six Run Group general winners have been offered with B.R.M. Chronographes “The Kube” Black Engraved Desk Clocks after the ultimate checkered flags waved all through Sunday morning and early afternoon.
The weekend’s predominant headline was written by European-based Iconic Racing that added to the staff’s already stellar “HSR Traditional” win file with its first triple-sweep of victories within the eleventh HSR Daytona Traditional 24. The spectacular first-place haul was anchored by the duo of Gérard Lopez and former World Endurance Champion Marcel Fässler, who mixed to win each Run Group A and F for the second time on the HSR Daytona Traditional prior to now three years.
The Group A triumph was a triple-sweep of its personal as Lopez and Fassler gained for the third-straight yr at Daytona within the white, purple and blue 1969 Lola T70 MkII to stay undefeated in Group A on the “World Middle of Racing.” The one factor that has modified on the Lola is its automobile quantity, which is now No. 27 after carrying No. 60 the primary two years.
The primary Lola win in 2023 was secured by Lopez and Fassler along with a victory in Run Group F in an ex-JDC Motorsports 2019 No. 5 Cadillac DPi, the identical automobile the Iconic staff and drivers drove to a different win within the division this weekend.
The competitors in Group F was a bit extra intense than Group A this weekend as Lopez and Fassler as soon as once more battled with the same Cadillac DPi entries of Mission Meals and Juan Gonzalez and Matador Motorsports and Pierce Marshall. The Cadillac trio additionally clashed earlier this yr within the HSR Watkins Glen Traditional 6 Hour the place the No. 5 staff and drivers additionally prevailed over the Mission Meals and Matador entries.
This weekend, it was Gonzalez, his nephew Roberto Gonzalez and three-time Rolex 24 At Daytona winner Butch Leitzinger that garnered runner-up honors within the 2017 No. 81 Mission Meals/GMT Racing Cadillac DPi. The always-competitive successful duo of Marshall, his coach and co-driver Eric Foss and the Matador Motorsports 2017 No. 02 Cadillac DPi took third-place honors.
Iconic’s third victory was delivered by Florent Moulin, who gained his first HSR Traditional race on this decade in his 2000 No. 92 Dodge Viper GTS-R. Moulin, Iconic and Artwork and Revs introduced the pristine Viper again to Daytona 25 years after the automobile completed fifth within the inaugural Grand-Am Rolex Sports activities Automobile Collection Rolex 24 At Daytona in 2000.
In Run Group B, Todd Treffert mixed the good tempo he has proven all yr, and the unlucky retirements of his prime rivals, to comfortably safe his third HSR Traditional group victory in 4 makes an attempt this season. As he did within the season-opening HSR Traditional Sebring 12 Hour final March and in September on the inaugural HSR Traditional Street Atlanta 10 Hour, Treffert took management of the Traditional 24 by the midway level regardless of a fast Camaro and a pair of quick Chevrons that ran on tempo with Treffert’s sharp 1974 No. 41 Porsche 911 Carrera Cup RSR “Child” Turbo ready by the 901 Store. After the Camaro and the Chevrons all retired, Treffert cruised to a cushty one-lap lead over the second-place finisher.
The race’s most commanding victory was turned in by Owen Trinkler who was given the keys to the Gil West 2019 No. 911 Porsche 991.2 GT3 R in Run Group E. Trinkler swept all 4 segments, and led nearly each race lap, within the Classic Racing Firm ready Porsche to take the victory by 21.292 seconds over the second-place Autometrics 2016 No. 515 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Cory Friedman.
Run Group G joined Group E in delivering a flat-out and livid battle between mega quantities of GT Fashionable automobiles and rivals that are actually eligible within the just lately introduced Mission Meals GT Problem. The winners, who emerged from a decent pack of main entrance runners, have been the British duo of Mike Jordan and his son Andrew Jordan who gained by lower than a minute of their Jordan Racing Group 2010 No. 77 Porsche 997.2 GT3 Cup. The Jordans first gained in HSR Traditional 24 competitors at Daytona in 2023.
The weekend’s closing Run Group winner was the 1985 No. 75 Porsche 962 of Preston Brown and Denis Dupont who co-drove to Group C honors. The victory was primarily uncontested, however the No. 75 staff and drivers by no means stop racing and made it to victory lane with the equally Jagermeister-adorned 1979 No. 52 Porsche 935 K3 of Dr. Mike Smith, who took Group C GT class honors.
Dr. Smith additionally performed a significant position in one of many weekend’s prime off-track highlights. In HSR Traditional Daytona 24 Hour pre-race ceremonies, a particular presentation was made by well-liked Italian driver Max Papis on behalf of his firm MPI™ Inc., the main motorsports steering wheel producer and the “Official Steering Wheel Provider of HSR.” A part of MPI’s huge HSR help is the brand new MPI Efficiency & Ardour Award, which is an honor bestowed on the competitor within the HSR Traditional Daytona 24 demonstrating the very best “coronary heart, hustle and horsepower” all through the oldest HSR Traditional Endurance Championship offered by Mission Meals race.
The choice committee selected Dr. Smith as a worthy recipient who, not surprisingly, the outgoing and gregarious Papis is aware of nicely. Dr. Smith has fielded his pristine assortment of Porsche 935s within the HSR Traditional 24 for the reason that inaugural occasion in 2014. The steady features a Martini Porsche 935 and each the Blue Coral and Jagermeister Porsche 935 K3s. Dr. Smith is a chiropractor by commerce and related with Papis early on when “Mad Max” left no stone unturned in researching even the right placement and ergonomics of steering wheel design and positioning and the way it pertains to driver posture. HSR President John Doonan joined each Smith and Papis for the presentation.
One other podium sweep on this weekend’s Traditional 24 included the short trio of 50-plus years previous Porsche 911 S/T entries from the 901 Store that swept GT in Run Group A. David Agretelis garnered one other HSR Traditional triumph and led his 901 teammates Robert Spence and Craig Watkins within the general ending order.
Subsequent up on the HSR schedule is the season-ending HSR Sebring Pistons and Props, offered by the Alan Jay Automotive Community, December 4 – 7.
