DragonSpeed Confirms Rolex 24 LMP2 Program

Photo: John Dagys

DragonSpeed has confirmed that it will contest January’s Rolex 24 at Daytona with an Oreca 07 Gibson LMP2 car, with Nico Lapierre, Ben Hanley and Henrik Hedman confirmed as drivers for the team’s return to IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship competition.

As revealed by Sportscar365 in August, the Elton Julian-owned team had been evaluating a return to the twice-around-the-clock Florida endurance classic, after competing in the race in 2017.

The news was confirmed Saturday morning via a video on the team’s Twitter account.

Its Rolex 24 program will compliment the team’s ongoing two-car FIA World Endurance Championship effort, which will be present at Sebring in March for the 1,000-mile race on the eve of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.

Lapierre, Hanley and Hedman will be joined at Daytona by a fourth, to-be-announced driver, which will be either Silver or Bronze-rated, per the new-for-2019 LMP2 category’s Pro-Am-enforced rules.

Several other European-based teams are expected to take part in the race, with Panis-Barthez Competition, Inter Europol Competition and Team RLR all understood to be in various stages of finalizing LMP2 efforts. 

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