The
24 Hours of Daytona, currently known as the
Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour
sports car endurance race held annually at
Daytona International Speedwayin
Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on a 3.56-mile (5.73 km)
combined road course, utilizing portions of the
NASCAR tri-oval and an infield road course. Since its inception, it has been held the last weekend of January or first weekend of February, part of
Speedweeks, and it is the first major automobile race of the year in the United States. It is also the first race of the season for the
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
The race has had several names over the years. Since 1991, the
Rolex Watch Co. is the title sponsor of the race under a
naming rights arrangement, replacing
Sunbank (now
SunTrust) which in turn replaced
Pepsi in 1984. Winning drivers of all classes receive a steel
Rolex Daytona watch.
In 2006, the race moved one week earlier into January to prevent a clash with the
Super Bowl, which had in turn moved one week later into February a few years earlier.
The race has been known historically as a leg of the informal
Triple Crown of endurance racing, although it suffers from an increasing isolation from international Sports Car racing regulations.
Category:Sports
Subcategory:Motor Sports
Subcategory Detail:Road Racing
Keywords:Beach, D1701IMSARolex, DISUpdates, Daytona, Daytona, Florida, International, Speedway
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