Hour 16: Fog Slows Action; Angelelli Paces Five Cars on Lead LapWhile there is no call for rain in Sundays forecast (sunny and 74 degrees expected), Mother Nature threw a curve at Rolex 24 competitors at 6:55 a.m. ET when heavy fog rolled in and enveloped Daytona International Speedway, bringing out an extended caution.Max Angelelli led five cars on the lead lap in the No. 10 Velocity Worldwide Corvette DP, followed by Ryan Dalziel in the No. 2 Starworks with Alex Popow Ford/Riley, Richard Westbrook in the No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Corvette DP, Mike Rockenfeller in the No. 9 Action Express Corvette DP, and Scott Pruett in the No. 01 TELMEX/Target BMW/Riley.Defending Rolex Series GT champ Nick Longhi led in the No. 69 AIM Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458, followed by Olivier Beretta in the No. 63 Scuderia Corsa Michelotto Audi R8 and Markus Winkelhock in the No. 13 Run Bum Racing Audi R8.Shane Lewis continues to lead GX driving the No. 16 Napleton Racing Porsche Cayman, with Seth Thomas in Bullet Racings No. 22 Cayman remaining four laps back.Hour 15: Montoya Retains Lead, McMurray Brushes WallJamie McMurray brushed the wall while speeding exiting pit road following a green flag pit stop, costing the No. 02 Target/TELMEX BMW/Riley seven laps. McMurray was running second behind teammate Juan Pablo Montoya when both cars pitted. At the end of 15 hours, Montoya held an 11-second lead over Ryan Dalziel in the No. 2 Starworks with Alex Popow Ford/Riley, with Max Angelelli only .031 seconds behind in the No. 10 VelocityWorldWide Corvette DP.Defending Rolex 24 GT winner Andy Lally regained the class lead in the No. 44 Magnus Racing Porcshe GT3, closely pressured by Nick Longhi in the No. 69 AIM Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458 and Matt Plumb in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Audi R8. Ironically, Longhi and Plumb co-drive for Rum Bum in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, finishing second Friday at Daytona.In GX, Shane Lewis is now driving the No. 16 Napleton Racing Porsche Cayman , leading Seth Thomas in Bullet Racings No. 22 Cayman by four laps.
Hour 14: Ganassi Teammates McMurray, Montoya 1-2NASCAR Sprint Cup Series rivals Jamie McMurray and Juan Pablo Montoya were running 1-2 at the end of 14 hours in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, with the No. 02 Target/TELMEX BMW/Riley leading the sister No. 01 TELMEX/Target entry by .504 seconds. The Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates duo were chased by a trio of Corvettes, with five DPs on the lead lap. Oliver Gavin ran third in the No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Corvette DP, followed by Burt Frisselle in the No. 9 Action Express entry and Ryan Hunter-Reay in the No. 10 VelocityWorldWide Corvette.Seven cars were running on the lead lap in GT, led by Mark Wilkins in the No. 69 AIM Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458. Dion von Moltke was six seconds back in the No. 24 Alex Job Racing Audi R8, followed by Matt Plumb in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Audi R8.Napleton Racing continues to lead in GX,but Nelson Canaches lead in the No. 16 Porsche Cayman has been cut from seven to two laps by Seth Thomas in Bullet Racings No. 22 Cayman.
Hour 13: Hunter-Reay, Biela Take LeadsRyan Hunter-Reay took over the overall lead at the 13-hour mark of the Rolex 24 At Daytona in the No. 10 Velocity WorldWide Corvette DP, closely challenged by the No. 02 Target/TELMEX BMW Riley of Jamie McMurray. Six cars were running on the lead lap. Frank Biela is out front in GT in the No. 13 Rum Bum Racing Audi R8, followed by Mark Wilkins in the No. 60 AIM Autosport Team FXDD Ferrari 458.The lone incident of the hour saw Rubens Barrichello coast to a stop after losing the engine in the No. 21 Dener Motorsports Porsche GT3. That resulted in the cars retirement after the team struggled with engine problems throughout the event.Napleton Racing continues to lead in GX, with Nelson Canache now at the wheel of the No. 16 Porsche Cayman. Seth Thomas is second in Bullet Racings No. 22 Cayman, seven laps back.
Hour 12: Dario Franchitti Maintains Steady Lead At Rolex 24 At DaytonaDario Franchitti led at the halfway point of the 51st Rolex 24 at Daytona on Sunday morning as Chip Ganassi Racing continued its steady run. Franchitti in the No. 02 Target/TELMEX BMW/Riley led Ryan Hunter-Reay and Velocity Worldwides Corvette DP by 32.952 seconds. The top seven cars were within 92 seconds and on the lead lap in the first race of the Rolex Sports Car Series 2013 season. Allan McNish was chasing Hunter-Reay in third place with Starworks No. 2 BMW/Riley. The Starworks entry was the only car to have significant time out front in the first 12 hours. GT continued to be anyones guess, as well. The top five cars were within 74 seconds with Alessandro Pier Guidi leading in the No. 63 Scuderia Corse Michelotto Ferrari 458. The pole-sitting No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche GT3 ran second with Nicolas Armindo driving. He had an eight-second gap over Edoardo Mortara in Alex Job Racings No. 24 Audi R8 GRAND-AM. Napleton Racings advantage in GX grew to seven laps with Jim Norman at the wheel of the No. 16 Porsche Cayman. James Clay was second in Bullet Racings No. 22 Porsche, which moved past Eric Foss and BGB Motorsports No. 38 Cayman; it lost time having to replace a rear axle.
