Cadillac Takes the Win at Rolex 24 Hours Race at Daytona
Two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso was one of the pilots behind the wheel of the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac DPi-V.R race car.
Cadillac has won the 57th running of the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona. The Konica Minolta Cadillac team soldiered through 24 hours of start-and-stop racing to give the Cadillac brand a Rolex 24 hat trick with their third win in as many years.
- Wayne Taylor led Konica Minolta Cadillac team wins second Rolex 24 with Cadillac.
- Whelen Engineering Cadillac second, last year’s prototype champions.
- Hat trick for Cadillac, third Rolex 24 Hour victory in a row.
- JDC/Miller Motorsports and Juncos Racing, new to Cadillac, have quality starts.
- Rain played a major role in the race.
At the start of the twice-around-the-clock classic at Daytona International Speedway, the six Cadillac DPi-V.R teams had their individual challenges throughout the event. Cool temperatures during the day Saturday and into the evening turned to rain at 5:30 a.m. The rain ignited the two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso behind the wheel of the No. 10 Konica Minolta Cadillac as he passed the two Acura prototypes ahead of him to take the lead some 35-minutes later. Soon after, IMSA WeatherTech Championship officials flew the red flag. The race was stopped for 1:45. When the race restarted, the Wayne Taylor led Cadillac team kept the lead after Alonso turned the controls over to Jordan Taylor.
With three hours remaining, it was Jordan Taylor versus Felipe Nasr driving the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R. The duo drove their V-Performance powered prototypes head-to-head in rainy conditions to the delight of the large but damp crowd at Daytona. Soon after Taylor handed the car back to Alonso, the race was red flagged and stopped again at 12:40 p.m. At 2:26 p.m. IMSA waved the checkered flag as the field was parked under a red flag to end the race.
The win by the Konica Minolta Cadillac team is the brand’s third in as many years. The Taylor led team won in 2017, the first year of the IMSA DPi cars. Then, Mustang Sampling Cadillac took the win last year.