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47th Annual Rolex 24 Hours Of Daytona Preview

The racing season is back this weekend with one of my favorite events, the 47th annual Rolex 24 at Daytona. This event is nice because you can tune in and out throughout the day and night to check in on your favorite drivers. This event should have a favorite for any type of race fan, whether, road racing of course, but IndyCar, NASCAR, renowned motorcycle riders and even television stars are featured.

Everyone is aiming for Chip Ganassi Racing and their star-studded two-car roster. The Ganassi team is the defending Daytona Prototype champion and will have Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas return in the #01 TELMEX/Target-Ganassi Lexus Riley. Winning NASCAR driver and 2000 Indianapolis 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya will join Pruett and Rojas. Dario Franchitti who was also part of the ’08 winning car, joins the #02 Target/TELMEX Lexus Riley with 2006 Rolex 24 winner Scott Dixon and Alex Lloyd.

The Ganassi team is shooting for their unprecedented fourth consecutive triumph in the event, however it won’t be easy as their competitors are lined up and ready to take their shot.

Twenty Daytona Prototypes are entered, which will also feature 31 entries in the GT class. A number of powerful entries with compelling story lines look to end the Ganassi domination of the event. Jimmie Johnson, riding a three-year championship streak in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, joins 2007 Daytona Prototype champs Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty plus 1996 Champ Car champion Jimmy Vasser in the #99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac Riley. The team is seeking its first victory in the Rolex 24, while Johnson is looking to step up after finishing twice in the event.

Penske Racing celebrates the 40th anniversary of its victory in the 1969 Rolex 24, won by Mark Donohue and Chuck Parsons. Two-time Rolex 24 winner Timo Bernhard and Romain Dumas – Penske’s regular drivers in 2009 Daytona Prototype competition – share the Number 16 Crown Royal Cask #16 Porsche Riley with Penske IndyCar Series driver Ryan Briscoe. Last year, Briscoe was part of a joint venture between Penske Racing and Wayne Taylor Racing, which took third in the Rolex 24.

Legendary Brumos Racing, which dominated the Rolex 24 in the 1970s, has a solid two-car lineup with Darren Law, David Donohue, Terry Borcheller and 2004 Indy 500 winner Buddy Rice in the famiular #58 Porsche Riley, joined by five-time Rolex 24 winner Hurley Haywood, Joao Barbosa, JC France and Antonio Garcia in the team’s famous #59 car.

Childress-Howard Motorsports makes its Rolex 24 debut with three-time winner Andy Wallace joined by NASCAR’s Casey Mears, IndyCar’s Danica Patrick and Rob Finlay in the #2 Pontiac Crawford. Michael Shank Racing captured both front-row starting positions for the 2008 Rolex 24, and ended last year’s campaign by winning the final two races. Pole winner Ozz Negri returns in the #60 Ford Riley, joined by Mark Patterson, Ryan Hunter-Reay and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular Colin Braun. NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular AJ Allmendinger partners with John Pew, Michael Valiante and Ian James in the team’s #6 entry. SunTrust Racing, the 2005 Rolex 24 winner, rolls out a new combination with the #10 Ford-powered Dallara driven by two-time event winner Wayne Taylor, Max Angelelli, Brian Frisselle and Pedro Lamy.

A trio of motorcycle champions shares the #09 Spirit of Daytona Racing AMA Pro Racing Porsche Coyote. Scott Russell, a five-time Daytona 200 By Honda winner, co-drives with motocross legend Jeff Ward and Jason Pridmore, joined by Rolex Series veteran Guy Cosmo. Orbit Racing begins a full season in the Daytona Prototypes with NASCAR veterans Kyle Petty and Bill Lester joined by IndyCar Series driver Darren Manning and Leo Hindery Jr. in the #45 BMW Riley. Krohn Racing returns both driver lineups from the team that placed two cars in the top 10 of the 2008 Rolex 24, although the team is now running Ford-powered Lolas. Ricardo Zonta, Nic Jonsson and Darren Turner pilot the #76, with team owner Tracy Krohn joined by Eric van de Poele in the #75. A pair of BMW-powered Rileys were among the fastest cars in pre-season testing. Christophe Bouchut, the 1995 Rolex 24 winner, joins 2008 GT winner Raphael Matos, team owner Scott Tucker and Ed Zabinski in the #55 Supercar Life LevelFive Motorsports machine. Alegra Motorsports, the 2007 Rolex 24 GT winner, moves up to Daytona Prototype with Carlos de Quesada, Jean-Francois Dumoulin, Ryan Dalziel, Tomas Enge and Chapman Ducote in the #22. Among other entries, Doran Racing debuts McDonald’s sponsorship on the #77 Ford Dallara for Matteo Bobbi, Memo Gidley, Brad Jaeger and Fabrizio Gollin. Mark Wilkins, a two-time Rolex Series winner in 2008, teams with Burt Frisselle, David Empringham, Alex Figge and John Farano in the #61 AIM Autosport Ford Riley. Jordan and Ricky Taylor, sons of the two-time Rolex 24 winner, share the #13 Beyer Racing Pontiac Riley with Jared Beyer.

Practice for the Rolex 24 begins at 10 a.m. Thursday, with qualifying set for 3:45 p.m. and night practice at 6:30 p.m. Final qualifying begins Friday at 11 a.m., followed by the Fresh From Florida 200 KONI Sports Car Challenge race.

The Rolex 24 takes the green flag at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday. The opening portion of the race will be televised live on FOX (3-4:30 p.m.), with SPEED resuming coverage from 4:30 – 10 p.m. ET and covering Sunday’s activities from 7 a.m. – 4 p.m. ET.

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