Daytona Rolex 24: Last practice for IMSA WeatherTech Championship cars
The Rolex 24 cars went through their final practice session Friday morning before this weekend’s race at Daytona International Speedway.
- Felipe Nasr has won the last two Rolex 24 races at Daytona International Speedway.
- Nasr is aiming for a third consecutive win, a feat only two other drivers have accomplished.
DAYTONA BEACH — Felipe Nasr wasn’t ready to break any news during IMSA Media Day last week.
After closing out back-to-back wins for the No. 7 Penske Porsche during the last two Rolex 24 races at Daytona International Speedway, he said he didn’t know whether he’d serve as his team’s final driver for the 2026 iteration this weekend.
He certainly wouldn’t turn down the opportunity, though.
“I’m ready for it,” the 33-year-old Brazilian said. “That’s always the team’s call. I think it all depends on how the race plays out and the way the pace of the race is heading toward the end and how the cycle between the drivers plays out. But yeah, I’ll be happy to be there in the end.”
Nasr has proven his late-inning mettle. The waning stages of the endurance classic require a completely different approach than the opening and middle portions.
“It’s different, because in the early hours of the race, you’re not going for every gap yet,” he said. “You’re not trying to defend the last position you can. It’s just trying to keep the car running and observing the pace of the car, how the tires are degrading, how the track is holding, all the things you pay attention to more.
“At the end, you really want to try to let it all out to play.”
He has.
In 2024, his second season in a Penske prototype, Nasr capitalized on a yellow flag in the final 50 minutes of the Rolex 24, snatching first place and keeping it after a restart.
In 2025, he used a tight inside move to overtake his own Penske teammate, Matt Campbell, with 22 minutes left. Nasr led the rest of the way.
A three-peat would place him in rarified air.
In the 63-year history of the 24 Hours of Daytona, only 16 drivers have collected three or more overall wins. Only two drivers have claimed three in a row. Helio Castroneves achieved the feat earlier this decade (2021-23), and Peter Gregg did it in 1973, 1975 and 1976. The 1974 race was scrapped due to the national energy crisis.
Nasr doesn’t view his past triumphs as added pressure.
“I feel like, instead, it gives you confidence knowing that you’ve done it two years in a row,” he said. “But you can never stay too attached to that as well. It’s how you let go and work for a new one again. I think that’s more the mindset of it. The pressure I leave for the others to try and beat us.”
This weekend, he’ll aim to repeat with the help of two new partners.
Julien Andlauer and Laurin Heinrich joined the No. 7 Porsche lineup this offseason. Andlauer drove the No. 5 Porsche prototype a year ago at Daytona while Heinrich was behind the wheel of a GTD Pro Porsche for AO Racing.
Nasr harbors no concerns about the trio. He doesn’t see a reason why they couldn’t be fighting for another victory on Sunday afternoon. That’s why he comes here.
“The start is always special,” Nasr said. “To see all the cars line up, you see the crowds in the start/finish. And then ending the race, it’s probably the most special part.”
He would know.
