Diuguid: Newgarden, McLaughlin in Frame for Rolex 24 Seats

Photo: Rick Dole/IMSA

Team Penske NTT IndyCar Series stars Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin’s participation in this weekend’s IMSA-sanctioned test at Daytona International Speedway is the “first step” towards their possible inclusion in Porsche Penske Motorsport’s lineup for the Rolex 24 at Daytona according to Penske Racing President Jonathan Diuguid.

The two-time and defending IMSA GTP championship-winning squad, which has yet to announce the driver lineups for its two-car factory Porsche 963 operation in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, will have Porsche Penske regulars Felipe Nasr and Julien Andlauer, along with recently crowned title winner Matt Campbell, also in the testing lineup this weekend.

While Diuguid previously revealed to Sportscar365 that McLaughlin, who got his first laps in the 963 in a test at Sebring International Raceway in February, could be in the frame for a Rolex 24 seat next year, he’s now clarified that both of the team’s open-wheel stars are possibilities.

“We haven’t made any decisions,” said Diuguid. “It’s definitely the first step in that direction.

“Josef obviously had good success in the car in the Daytona 24 Hours [in 2024] but this is the first step in the direction but we haven’t made any decisions for Scott and Josef.”

When asked if they would likely be fourth drivers in each of the GTP entries, Diguid said “that would probably be the approach.”

Newgarden, who made his Rolex 24 debut alongside McLaughlin in a Tower Motorsports-run Oreca 07 Gibson LMP2 entry in 2023, ran Motul Petit Le Mans with Porsche Penske later that year, prior to being part of the team’s overall winning lineup at Daytona in 2024.

McLaughlin, meanwhile, has yet to get a race outing with the factory Porsche GTP squad.

Diuguid said it’s still “unclear” whether the team will go for three or four-driver lineups for January’s season-opener.

Unlike the LMP2 and GTD classes, which have four-driver mandates per car, IMSA allows GTP and GTD Pro entries to run either with three or four driver squads.

“We’ve done it both ways and we’ve won with it both ways,” said Diuguid. “[Four] has become the default in the Daytona 24 Hours, for a variety of reasons.

“The car count is really high so it’s mentally taxing. Physical-wise, there’s really no issues but that’s probably the biggest feedback we’ve had from the drivers. With such a high car count and consistent traffic, it’s a lot more mentally taxing than Le Mans.”

Porsche Penske Lineups Coming into Focus

While set to be announced at Porsche’s ‘Night of Champions’ at the end of the month, Diuguid said the drivers present for this weekend’s test at Daytona “could or couldn’t be” an indication of its driver lineup for the 2026 season.

He admitted the FIA GT World Cup, which also takes place this weekend, had an impact on its testing roster, with both Laurens Vanthoor and Laurin Heinrich, who made his Porsche Penske debut in last weekend’s FIA World Endurance Championship season-ending 8 Hours of Bahrain, in Macau.

“Mathieu [Jaminet] is departing the program but after that, all the driver announcements are going to come at or around the Night of Champions like normal,” said Diuguid.

Sportscar365 understands that Vanthoor and Kevin Estre are likely to continue their long-standing driving partnership next year, with Andlauer and Nasr the most logical co-drivers to appear in the sister the No. 7 Porsche, per their existing contracts that are believed to be specifically tied to Porsche Penske.

Both Matt Campbell, who has been linked to a possible switch to Ford in 2027, and Heinrich could be the team’s third drivers for the long-distance endurance races.

It’s believed that Nick Tandy and Michael Christensen, who completed Porsche Penske’s eight-driver roster from this year, are likely to be reassigned to GT3 drivers with the German manufacturer.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John