Rolex 24 Hour 21: Duval and JDC-Miller looking strong

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emailBy Richard S. James | January 30, 2022 11:07 AM ET

Loic Duval is back in the No. 5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac and proving very quick this morning, taking the lead from Pipo Derani in the No. 31 Action Express Racing Cadillac then holding the lead through the next round of pit stops. He then began to eke out a gap on Derani, extending it marginally as the stint wore on. The two Acuras were battling for third as the hour wound down, a bit off Derani, but they have consistently been pitting later than the leading Cadillacs; that could come into play in the final minutes.

After his final stint in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura, Alexander Rossi noted that their car, now piloted by Filipe Albuquerque, does better with cooler temperatures, but believes the team has set themselves up to be in contention at the end.

“I think our car ultimately is better the colder the track temp is. I think we get a net gain maybe more than the others. But with that said, I think we try and be very meticulous with how we treat the car, and make sure you’ve got all your components and as much of the floor left as possible for the last two hours,” he said. “So you kind of just try and stay in touch for 22 hours and then for two hours, you use the car up and use everything that it’s got left.”

Keating can cheer for his teammates in the No. 5 Cadillac to keep the lead and give him the DPi victory, but his chances of taking LMP2 as well are looking slim as the No. 81 DragonSpeed USA ORECA in the hands of Pato O’Ward continues to show its strength. Keating’s teammate Nicholas Lapierre is a minute back in third, with Ferdinand Habsburg-Lothringen in the No. 8 Tower Motorsports ORECA splitting first and third almost evenly.

Porsche looks in good shape to take both GTD classes, with GTD Pro remaining a battle between the No. 2 KCMG 911 GT3R and the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports entry, with Dennis Olsen (No. 2) and Matt Campbell (No. 9) doing battle. The No. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche is still looking strong with Zacharie Robichon back at the wheel.

Leaders after 21 hours:
DPi: Loic Duval, No. 5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac
LMP2: Pato O’Ward, No. 81 Dragonspeed USA ORECA
LMP3: Felipe Fraga, No. 74 Riley Motorsport Ligier
GTD Pro: Dennis Olsen, No. 2 KCMG Porsche 911 GT3R
GTD: Zacharie Robichon, No. 16 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3R

News and notes:
• The No. 70 Inception Racing McLaren that had been in contention for the GTD win had to replace a right-front brake caliper and is now three laps down.

“This is heartbreaking,” said driver Jordan Pepper. As we were setting up for the final hours, Frederic [Schandorff] reported low brake pressure.”