By Briar Starr, Staff Writer
IMSA announced Thursday morning that the organization will be expanding the entry list of the 2023 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona to 61 cars. The original maximum size of the grid was planned to be 60 cars.
The latest to the entry list includes the No. 75 SunEnergy1 Racing machine fielded by Mercedes-AMG. The No. 75 SunEnergy1 team will round out a highly competitive GTD class at Daytona that now features 25 cars for the 61st Annual Rolex 24. Additionally, the SunEnergy1 team will compete in the full endurance championship season.
Also among the entries for the 24-hour race is the previously announced Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Autosport.
IMSA President, John Doonan, added with this year being the 61st running of the Rolex 24 hours, it only seemed natural to field one more car to the field.
“Having 61 cars for the 61st running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona seems only natural,” said IMSA President John Doonan. “After we previously announced a 60-car capacity for the field last month – and knowing that we received more than 70 entries – our IMSA team regrouped and eventually determined that we could accommodate one more entry to match our field size from last year. This is shaping up to be a Rolex 24 and a 2023 IMSA season for the ages.”
Now that the GTD class is at 25 cars, it will be the largest class in competition for the Rolex 24.
The green flag for the 61st running of the 24 Hours of Daytona is slated for Saturday, January 28 at 1:30 p.m./ET live on NBC. More hours of the race can be seen on USA Network. The entirety of the 24-hour race will also be streamed live on Peacock with no commercial breaks.