Fernando Alonso (and co) won the 24 hours of Daytona

By topgear, 29 January 2019
1

We love the unpredictability of motorsport. Whether you’re racing for an hour or a whole day, anything can happen. Pair that with a biblical amount of rain, and the ensuing carnage will look something like this weekend’s 24 hours of Daytona.

After many yellow flags and two reds, the number 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac was eventually victorious. It’s drivers? Ex-F1 overtaking ace Kamui Kobayashi, Dutchman Renger van der Zande, son of the team owner (and Insta-hero) Jordan Taylor and two-time F1 World champion Fernando Alonso. Quite a line-up then. Click through our gallery for the best pictures from the wet weekend in Florida…

It was a typically low-key weekend of American motorsport.

After an impressive qualifying session, during which the 26-year-old lap record was broken by Olly Jarvis in the Mazda RT24-P, the front of the field was dominated by both Mazda and Acura for the start of the race.

Thanks to it being the 50th anniversary of the IMSA there were a number of brilliant retro liveries on display. This isn’t one of them.

This kind of weather unfortunately didn’t last long.

Conditions for much of the race were more similar to this, with mega amounts of standing water causing plenty of drivers to aquaplane off the track and out of the race.

Red flags = the world’s most exclusive traffic jam.

Sir, Madam – whoever you are at the bottom of this shot - we salute you.

One of the stories of the weekend was undoubtedly the drive of Alex Zanardi. A problem-plagued race meant his team finished 32nd overall, but it was never about the end result for Zanardi, who lost both legs in a crash back in 2001 and was making his return to racing in North America. After his accident, the hugely popular Italian designed his own prosthetic legs, won four Paralympic gold medals and now drives with specially designed hand controls. What a man.

Reason 1 to love endurance racing: supercars, hypercars and insane racers sharing the same track. Reason 2: diffusers, big diffusers.

A very American BMW M6 GT3 clashes with an extremely Brazilian Ferrari 488 GT3.

The eventual winning car. The decisive move came when Alonso took the lead from the number 31 Action Express Cadillac of fellow ex-F1 driver Felipe Nasr shortly before the race was stopped due to bad weather.

Your winner, ladies and gentlemen. Wait, where?

Ahh there we are. Alonso, who has already won Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix, will go for the triple crown by competing in the Indy 500 for the second time in May. Quite a career he is having.

So, until next year…

  • It was a typically low-key weekend of American motorsport.
  • After an impressive qualifying session, during which the 26-year-old lap record was broken by Olly Jarvis in the Mazda RT24-P, the front of the field was dominated by both Mazda and Acura for the start of the race.
  • Thanks to it being the 50th anniversary of the IMSA there were a number of brilliant retro liveries on display. This isn’t one of them.
  • This kind of weather unfortunately didn’t last long.
  • Conditions for much of the race were more similar to this, with mega amounts of standing water causing plenty of drivers to aquaplane off the track and out of the race.
  • Red flags = the world’s most exclusive traffic jam.
  • Sir, Madam – whoever you are at the bottom of this shot - we salute you.
  • One of the stories of the weekend was undoubtedly the drive of Alex Zanardi. A problem-plagued race meant his team finished 32nd overall, but it was never about the end result for Zanardi, who lost both legs in a crash back in 2001 and was making his return to racing in North America. After his accident, the hugely popular Italian designed his own prosthetic legs, won four Paralympic gold medals and now drives with specially designed hand controls. What a man.
  • Reason 1 to love endurance racing: supercars, hypercars and insane racers sharing the same track. Reason 2: diffusers, big diffusers.
  • A very American BMW M6 GT3 clashes with an extremely Brazilian Ferrari 488 GT3.
  • The eventual winning car. The decisive move came when Alonso took the lead from the number 31 Action Express Cadillac of fellow ex-F1 driver Felipe Nasr shortly before the race was stopped due to bad weather.
  • Your winner, ladies and gentlemen. Wait, where?
  • Ahh there we are. Alonso, who has already won Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix, will go for the triple crown by competing in the Indy 500 for the second time in May. Quite a career he is having.
  • So, until next year…
Profile picture for user topgear
TopGear Malaysia

Local and international automotive news, test drive reports, and everything in between. Buy the magazine, bookmark this website on your browser, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and our YouTube channel.