Photo: Chris duMond/IMSA
Action Express Racing is unlikely to field two of Cadillac’s new LMDh cars in January’s Rolex 24 at Daytona according to team manager Gary Nelson.
The defending IMSA DPi championship-winning team, which has campaigned the No. 48 Ally-sponsored Cadillac DPi-V.R for Jimmie Johnson in the Michelin Endurance Cup since 2021, is set to focus on its season-long entry for the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season-opener at a minimum.
It means that seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson is unlikely to be part of AXR’s effort at Daytona.
When asked the chances of the team fielding two cars at the Rolex 24, Nelson expressed concern relating to the current supply chain delays that has faced much of the industry.
“Something could change,” Nelson told Sportscar365. “I know there’s talk. But with the delivery issues of a lot of things, it would take a lot of effort to get the 48 to Daytona. In my crystal ball, I don’t see it.”
Nelson said he “doesn’t know” whether the team could have a second car in time for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.
Cars are still expected to be in high demand in the first quarter of the year, with CGR scheduled to debut its FIA World Endurance Championship Cadillac during the ‘Super Sebring’ event.
“Sometimes you worry that things are late and there’s supply chain issues and all of a sudden it all opens up and everything’s good,” Nelson said.
“At the moment, given the supply chain of all the items it takes to run two cars, things would have to be different.”
Nelson said he “doesn’t see” Johnson being part of the team’s No. 31 car lineup for Daytona, although didn’t completely rule it out, citing NASCAR star Chase Elliott’s participation as a fourth driver in the Whelen-sponsored entry at Daytona in 2021.
“Our core driving group would be two full-time drivers and one endurance driver,” Nelson said. “The only opportunity for a fourth guy is Daytona-only.”
Even with only a single car, at least one driver change is expected, with Toyota’s FIA World Endurance Championship drivers appearing unlikely to be loaned out to Action Express, which elevates to a factory Cadillac team next year.
Mike Conway is currently the No. 31 car’s third driver for the Endurance Cup, while fellow Toyota Hypercar pilots Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez have been part of the No. 48 Cadillac lineup.
“We have a great relationship with the folks at Toyota,” Nelson told Sportscar365. “We are moving to be a Cadillac factory team so a little bit of that has to be sorted out yet.
“I’m going under the assumption that there may be a lot of work to do to keep that program the way we have it.
“We love those guys — Mike and Kamui and even Jose Maria drove. They’re just great guys. Toyota was so great to work with us. It would be nice to figure out a way to work it out but we haven’t figured it out yet.”
Nelson said they’re already “pretty far along” with driver discussions for the 2023 season.
“It’s hard for me to answer those questions until we have more time,” he said. “We’re pretty excited about it. We’ll see how it goes.”
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