Porsche encounters setbacks at Daytona

Porsche revealed that it encountered several setbacks in its campaign at Daytona.

According to the Stuttgart-based automotive brand, the two Porsche 963 fielded by the Porsche Penske Motorsport factory squad at the 24-hour endurance race faced technical defects while the new Porsche 911 GT3 R, which competed in the GTD category, had almost no chance of winning after suffering unfavorable Balance of Performance classification.

“We’re disappointed, no question about it,” said Porsche Motorsport Vice President Thomas Laudenbach.

“After just over five hours, the No. 7 car was thrown out of contention for victory due to an issue with the high-voltage system. Later, our No. 6 suffered damage to the powertrain. We experienced several problems but at the same time, we were able to learn a great deal. The good thing is, we know where we now stand and what we need to work on. We’ll now prepare systematically for the next race at Sebring in March,” he added.

Porsche recalled that the new hybrid prototype impressed with a strong performance at its debut in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. And because of the setbacks, despite extensive repairs, the two driver crews in the GTP racing cars still fell short of a podium finish.

Some of the issues the GTP racing cars faced were the failure of its high-voltage battery, damage to its cooling system, and a gearbox problem. Driver Nick Tandy also spun at one point, which Porsche believes cost the team three laps.

As for the Porsche 911 GT3 R, the carmaker believed that the customer teams fielding the new GT3 vehicles from Weissach were so severely handicapped in terms of engine performance because of the so-called Balance of Performance. 

Porsche explained that in the GT classes, in which different manufacturers compete with a variety of vehicle concepts, the playing field is leveled out via a so-called Balance of Performance system.

According to Porsche, “the governing body of the IMSA series did not succeed in achieving this at the season opener in Daytona.”

“Our starting position was difficult due to the classification of our Porsche 911 GT3 R,” commented Laudenbach.

“Regardless, all teams fought their hardest — and that deserves the highest respect. Pfaff Motorsports finished fifth in the GTD-Pro class, just one lap behind — hats off! That’s the best morale in sports. Even if we can’t be right at the front at times, we still don’t give up; instead, we fight to the end, take home the points and continue at the next race.”

Photos from Porsche

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