Filed under: Daytona Int'l Speedway
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- It wasn't the team with the biggest budget, most famous driver lineup or highest pre-race expectations.
But after 24 hours of steady, careful, pedal-to-the-metal effort, the first-year, first-race Action Express Racing team led the mighty TELMEX Chip Ganassi Racing team across the finish line by less than a minute to claim the Rolex 24 at Daytona trophy on Sunday afternoon.
Action Express driver Mike Rockenfeller took the lead in the No. 9 Porsche-V8 Riley when Ganassi driver Justin Wilson pitted unexpectedly with less than three hours remaining, convinced there was a problem with the team's No. 01 BMW Riley. After a five-minute once-over in the Daytona International Speedway garage, the team couldn't find anything obviously wrong and sent the car back on track -- two laps down and forced to try to play catch-up.
It's the second consecutive runner-up effort in the Grand Am Series sportscar season-opener for the Ganassi team, which won three straight from 2006-2008. Including the 52-second differential on Sunday, the team has lost the last two Rolex 24-hour races by less than a minute.
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