The third row for Acura and WTRAndretti, a bad surprise?

This is the little surprise of the GTP category: the two Acuras from the Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti team did not manage to climb onto the first two lines this Sunday during the ROAR, and will have to settle for 5th (n °40) and 6th (n°10) places at the start of the 24 Hours of Daytona on Saturday. A surprise as Acura had dominated the event last year, for the premiere of its ARX-06 and the LMDh in Endurance. The Japanese manufacturer, owned by Honda, had taken pole position and the double with its new mount, at the time operated by Meyer Shank Racing and WTRAndretti.

In 2024, the two ARX-06s did not show themselves as much to their advantage: dominated by the three other manufacturers in the qualifying exercise (Cadillac 1st and 2nd, Porsche 3rd and BMW 4th), Acura and WTRAndretti were surprisingly discreet. For Louis Delétraz, there is no need to worry after qualifying. “We really attacked hard. The car was good in qualifying. We've struggled a bit since the first test, but the team has done a great job to continue improving the car, confided the Swiss driver of the No. 40 Acura, fifth on the grid. I think we found a good window for racing, and that’s what matters. Qualifying is interesting, but what matters next week is the 24-hour race. »

Acura and WTRAndretti are not worried

Same story for Filipe Albuquerque: the Portuguese wants to be reassuring one week before the start of the 24 Hours of Daytona, and believes that Acura has sufficient racing pace to achieve a fourth consecutive victory on Florida soil. “We start 6th for the race, it’s more than enough for a 24-hour round, he emphasizes. We are still working on the balance of the car, which was quite good. There's not much left in the car. Louis did a good job [qualifying fifth], so we are happy with what we accomplished. Obviously we will continue to work to improve the car for this week's race. »

Acura remains on three consecutive victories at the 24 Hours of Daytona – two with the ARX-05 (2021-2022), one with the ARX-06 (2023) – while the WTRAndretti team has been waiting for a victory since 2021.

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