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BMW And Porsche Lead The Way In Final Day Of Daytona 24 Tests

Daytona Beach, FL – Three days of Rolex Series testing concluded Monday at the Daytona International Speedway with BMW and Porsche-powered cars topping the time sheets in two practice sessions. The track will be quiet for the next 19 days as teams make final adjustments prior to the Rolex24 at Daytona on January 24 and 25.

NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson provided one of the day’s highlights when he climbed into the GAINSCO/Bob Stallings for the second day in a row. “It was nice to get back in a Daytona Prototype after 11 months off,” Johnson said. “I was so excited before getting here that I didn’t get much sleep the night before. I kept thinking about how to keep the car on the track, my braking points and the handling of the car.”

In the morning practice round, Darren Law drove the No. 58 Brumos Porsche to the fastest lap at 125.977 miles per hour. “It was a great way to start our weekend, and it shows we are very confident,” Law said. “We have been chasing the car all weekend and this morning we put on fresh tires and went for it.”

Christophe Bouchut was second fastest at 125.821 mph in the Level 5 Motorsports BMW and Ricardo Zonta was third quickest in the Krohn Racing Ford.

Leading the way in the GT class was Wolf Henzler in the No. 86 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3 entry at 114.956 mph. The Racers Edge Motorsports Mazda RX-8 was second fast trailed by one of four TRG Porsche GT3s.

Forty-three cars took part in this portion of the day’s program.

In the heat of the afternoon, Tomas Enge put the Alegra Motorsports BMW atop the charts with a lap speed of 125.751 mph. “It is great to have the fast lap but unfortunately we are not fastest for the whole weekend,” Enge stated. “After all of our small issues, we have sorted everything out and we are where we want to be. It is a good feeling.”

David Donohue pushed the No. 58 Brumos Porsche to the second position at 125.598 mph, and he was trailed by Darren Manning in the Orbit Racing BMW Riley at 125.384 mph.

Said Donohue after climbing from his hot car, “We would like to have been at the top of charts but it is bragging rights for the guys going back to the shop. We have our fair share of small problems that can really cost you in a long race. And our problems seem to materialize after long runs.”

Manning’s fast lap came on his last tour of track. “I locked it up on the last lap and ended up on the exit road after crossing the finish line,” said Manning with emotion. “I guess I got a bit excited with how good the car was. It is good to have that one up our sleeves. And there’s more to come.”

Once again, the No. 86 Farnbacher Loles Racing Porsche GT3 car was fastest at 115.583 mph. Dominik Farnbacher took the speed honors for this session and his speed was an unofficial track record.

“It was sort of a qualifying run that we did,” Farnbacher said. “We tried lots of differenet things and there were big time differences. After three days, we have a good solution for the car, and this is what we had such a good lap at the end.”

Three of the TRG Porsche GT3 Cup cars trailed the Farnbacher entry with Andy Lally leading the way in this group.

Forty cars took practice laps in the final round of tests.

After eight rounds of practice over three days, the No. 58 Brumos Porsche led the way with a lap speed of 125.977 mph. The Michael Shank Racing Ford No. 6 was second fastest at 125.943 mph and the Level 5 BMW was third at 125.821 mph.

On the GT side of the board, the No. 86 Farnbacher Loles Porsche GT3 at 115.583 mph.

Action resumes at the Daytona International Speedway when the Rolex Series competitors return for the 47th anniversary edition of the Rolex24.

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