Pre-Season WeatherTech Championship Practice ‘Roars’ To A Close At Daytona - Speedway Digest

Luis Felipe “Pipo” Derani made a good first impression at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, running the fastest lap of the three-day Roar Before the Rolex 24 At Daytona test, the opening event on the 2016 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship schedule.

Derani turned a lap of 1:39.249 (129.130 mph) in the No. 2 Tequila Patrón ESM Ligier JS P2 co-driven by Scott Sharp, Ed Brown and Johannes van Overbeek. The 22-year-old Brazilian knocked the similar No. 60 Honda-powered Ligier JS P2 of Ozz Negri, John Pew and AJ Allmendinger from the top after the Michael Shank Racing with Curb/Agajanian trio led much of the three-day test.

“I really did not expect be here (atop the speed chart),” Derani said. “This is my first time at Daytona, and it’s a unique place with a lot of history. It’s a pleasure to be part of this event for the first time. This is my first time doing sports car racing in the U.S., and I’m having fun.”

Oliver Gavin was quickest in GT Le Mans (GTLM), turning a lap of 1:45.106 (121.934 mph) on Sunday morning, but it was Lucas Luhr that maintained the fastest time of the weekend with his 1:45.088 (121.955 mph) in the No. 100 BMW Team RLL BMW M6 GTLM during the Friday session. Leh Keen paced GT Daytona (GTD), 1:47.852 (118.830 mph) in the No. 22 Alex Job Racing WeatherTech Porsche 911 GT3 R, while Jack Hawksworth led Prototype Challenge (PC) with a lap of 1:42.118 (125.502 mph) in the final session aboard the No. 8 Starworks Motorsport ORECA FLM09.

In Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge practice, Danny Burkett ran the fastest lap of the weekend with a lap of 1:57.430 (109.137 mph) in the No. 33 CJ Wilson Racing Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport. Burkett and regular co-driver Marc Miller were joined by car owner C.J. Wilson in both Grand Sport (GS) sessions on Sunday. Eric Foss was fastest in Street Tuner (ST), running 2:05.688 in the No. 56 Murillo Racing Porsche Cayman.

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Adam Sinclair

NHRA, IHRA, Motocross and other forms of motorsports Staff writer
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.