DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (January 25, 2024) – Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Global (WTRAndretti) enters the Rolex 24 At Daytona for the first time with a full-time GTD entry. The No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 will start fourth for its’ debut in the sportscar classic. Full time co-driver Kyle Marcelli handled the qualifying duties at the Roar Before the 24 last weekend with co-drivers Danny Formal, Graham Doyle and Ashton Harrison also all getting comfortable behind the wheel throughout the test sessions.
Preparations for the Rolex 24 At Daytona begin with practice on Thursday, January 25th at 10:05 a.m. ET. The field will see the green flag fly for the iconic 24-hour event at 1:40 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 27th with IMSA radio and NBC’s family of networks (NBC, USA Network, Peacock) providing flag-to-flag coverage of the racing action.
Wayne Taylor, Team Principal, WTRAndretti: “Well, it is exciting for us to now be in GTD in a professional way through Lamborghini’s support to WTRAndretti, and also DEX Imaging, Harrison Contracting Company and Gainbridge coming on board as big partners with us. I think we have a strong package. It is the debut race for Graham Doyle, 17 years old. All he has done is a year of Lamborghini Super Trofeo where he did very well. We have our two lead drivers, Kyle Marcelli and Danny Formal, who will do the full season, as well as Ashton Harrison who has been driving for us for several years and won championships. It is nice to have someone else in the race in a different class. It is very new to me, and I think it is great as we can all learn together, both on the GTD and GTP side as we have a lot of cross over between mechanics and engineers. It all just makes our program all that stronger.”
No. 45 DEX Imaging Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2
Kyle Marcelli, 2024 Full Season Co-Driver: “We checked a lot of boxes during the two-day Roar Before the 24 test. There were a number of new car challenges to sort through but I’m very pleased with how we concluded the event. The Rolex 24 Hour At Daytona is now raced like a 24-hour sprint race! It’s flat out from the drop of the green flag. That said, the car needs to be in perfect condition for the last two hours. So, driving fast but more importantly smart is the key for the first twenty-two hours. GTD is now more competitive than ever. In my opinion, every car on the grid could win the race. It will be interesting and exciting!”
Danny Formal, 2024 Full Season Co-Driver: “Well, the Roar Before the 24 is done. An amazing weekend with an amazing car and crew. So grateful for this opportunity to be part of WTRAndretti, DEX Imaging, Lamborghini, everyone is just working so hard for us and trying to make us have a great Rolex 24. All the team that you know laps at night, did our pitstops, we work through everything. GTD is extremely competitive right now. There are 36 cars counting GTD PRO, so it’s just incredible how the growth of the class has just become one of the biggest classes in IMSA. We are ready. Kyle did a fantastic lap and put us P4 starting this week. Super excited, motivated and ready to try to win, try to fight for a nice big Rolex at the end of the race.””
Graham Doyle, 2024 Endurance Co-Driver: “During the two-day Roar Before the 24 test, I believe we truly made strides towards creating the best possible car for the Rolex 24 this coming weekend. As a team, I believe we work through some of the bugs and have found ourselves a very competitive strong car that is ready to take on the challenge of the race. The 24 Hours of Daytona is a race like none other. Instead of being a true long endurance race, I believe it should be considered a 24-hour sprint race because as we know it is flat out from start to finish. But you need to keep the car in one piece to truly compete. As a team, I believe we are ready to take on this challenge, and I think next weekend will be able to show how much we are capable of.”
Ashton Harrison, 2024 Rolex 24 Co-Driver: “The first race of 2024 is here. The entire WTRAndretti team did an incredible job giving us a fast Lamborghini at the Roar and into Qualifying. Really proud of the lap Kyle laid down to give us a great starting position for this ‘sprint’ race. Looking at the qualifying times just shows how competitive and strong this GTD class is and proves that every team has the capabilities to be up front. I’m excited to be attempting my second Rolex with WTRAndretti and with the boys. We’ll give it our absolute best and be prepared for anything with the overall goal of winning a Daytona Rolex.”
ABOUT WTRANDRETTI
Andretti Global and Wayne Taylor Racing announced a new, long-term partnership in 2023 that combines the resources of the two championship-caliber teams to compete in IMSA’s top classes. In 2024, Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti (WTRAndretti) has expanded to a two-car GTP program as well as competes in the GTD class. Coming off its 2023 championship winning effort, WTRAndretti continues its Driver Development Program competing in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America series with a full stable.
WTRAndretti’s global motorsports enterprise boasts two IMSA driver championships (2013 and 2017), and back-to-back IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Championships (2020, 2021) which contributed to nine IMSA manufacturer championships for Acura, Pontiac, Corvette and Cadillac. In its brief 17-year history, WTRAndretti has accumulated multiple victories in sportscar racing’s most iconic events: Rolex 24 At Daytona, Twelve Hours of Sebring, Petit Le Mans, Mid-Ohio, Road America and the Six Hours of The Glen. With its back-to-back PRO Class Championship wins (2022, 2023), WTR also has ten North America Lamborghini Super Trofeo Championship titles and a Lamborghini World Finals title.
Andretti Global, a Championship-winning motorsports organization, competes in additional racing categories worldwide, including the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, Extreme E, Australian Supercars and the Mexico SuperCopa Championship. Additionally, the racing enterprise commits to driver development through competition in INDY NXT by Firestone and through support of Sebastian and Oliver Wheldon’s racing careers.
WTRAndretti’s long term partnerships include Lamborghini Squadra Corse, DEX Imaging, Harrison Contracting Company and Gainbridge.
SOURCE Speedway Media
