Dumas Braced for Unique Dakar-Rolex 24 Double

Romain Dumas says he is braced for a “big challenge” in next weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona, having arrived in Florida directly from competing in the Dakar Rally.

The French driver is making his return to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship blue riband for the first time since 2019 as part of the lineup for the No. 5 Proton Competition Porsche 963 alongside Neel Jani, Gianmaria Bruni and Alessio Picariello.

Dumas arrived in Daytona on Saturday evening following the conclusion of the two-week Dakar, which he contested with his own RD Limited team at the wheel of a Toyota Hilux entered under the Rebellion Racing banner.

He ended up classified 14th overall, losing two hours “stuck in the desert” after a suspension failure early in the rally, then losing further ground with a fuel pump problem.

While Dumas is no stranger to both the Dakar and Rolex 24, notably finishing on the overall podium with CORE autosport in 2018, this year marks the first time he has attempted to contest both events in the same year.

Despite arriving in time for the final day of the Roar Before the 24, performing his seat fit in the paddock on Sunday morning, the 46-year-old clarified he won’t get behind the wheel the Porsche 963 until next week’s official practice sessions.

“The funny thing about the Dakar is that you take it one stage at a time. You never know what can happen,” ex-Porsche LMP1 racer Dumas told Sportscar365. “That’s why I booked the plane really last-minute.

“I was thinking that if I DNFed, I would come for the (start of the) Roar, but of course the target was to finish the race, and I did that.

“It’s a big challenge, because I never drove the Porsche 963. There are a lot of question marks, but I know many people in the team, [engineer] Jeromy [Moore], who was with me in the 919 program, Neel and Gimmi I’ve known for a long time. 

“I’m very happy to be here and drive the third generation of Porsche prototype.”

Dumas said he has no concerns with his lack of seat time in the run-up to the race, pointing out that his absence from the opening two days of the Roar has allowed fellow 963 novice Picariello more time to get up to speed.

“Sometimes it’s a good point to be the underdog,” he continued. “There’s no pressure, no stress from the factory. We just have to do our job. 

“Even arriving a bit later is positive, as it was also the first time for Picariello in the car, so he had the chance to drive the car more. I have done this race many times and I have recent experience in the top class (with Glickenhaus in the FIA World Endurance Championship).

“Even if you are missing a bit of time with the car at the start, you will (get better) during the race. I cannot say I feel ready, it’s a big challenge, but we’ll take it step-by-step.”