DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Spare a thought for Pfaff Motorsports. Or two.
On the one hand, the Toronto-based team that competes in the Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is happy to be going into the opening race of the 2026 season running the same car at the Rolex 24 At Daytona for the second year in succession – the No. 9 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2.
Pfaff has been learning the tendencies and intricacies of a new racing car every year since 2023, when it defended its ’22 GTD PRO championship achieved with Porsche with the updated ‘992’ iteration of the 911 GT3 R. Pfaff switched to McLaren the following year, as it turned out for a single season, before partnering with Lamborghini and getting to grips with the Huracán in 2025.
That familiarity should make things easier, right? But while preparing the Huracán for the 64th running of the Rolex 24 set for Jan. 21-25, Pfaff Motorsports General Manager Steve Bortolotti and his crew will also be spearheading homologation and final development of Lamborghini’s new worldwide GT-class contender – the 2026 Temerario GT3.
The team has received the first car and will field it on track at the IMSA Sanctioned Test at Daytona International Speedway, Nov. 15-17. Lamborghini and Pfaff intend to give the new car its worldwide racing debut in March at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway.
Given what will likely be an aggressive winter test program for the Temerario, Bortolotti has his hands full.
“I say it every year, but Daytona is right around the corner,” Bortolotti said. “There’s not much of a break. By the time we get to the Roar Before the 24 (Jan. 16-18), with the fact that we have all the testing we’ll be doing with the new car in November, it’s going to be a busy run through the holidays. We’ll be going through the Sanction Test in November and then begin testing at Sebring with the Temerario.
“Having the new car in November is obviously great, but we still have to prep the Huracán for Daytona,” he continued. “We’re running the full season GTD PRO championship and switching cars after the first race won’t be easy. But we’re here for the long term with Lamborghini. They’re a great partner, and we have to start somewhere. We’ll start with the Temerario at Sebring and see what we’ve got.”
Bortolotti has been pleased with the relationship with Lamborghini and believes the company’s development of the new car is on pace. The Temerario GT3 is the first GT racing car to be developed fully in-house by Automobili Lamborghini; the prior Huracán GT3, along with its production version, shared a platform with the Audi R8.
While advancing Lamborghini’s traditional angular styling themes, the Temerario exchanges the Huracán’s sonorous V-10 engine for a hybrid-assisted turbocharged V-8. The engine in the Temerario GT3 that’s running in IMSA will be a 4-liter non-hybrid turbo V-8.
“I think I sometimes speak to Erik (Skirmants, Senior Manager of Motorsport for Automobili Lamborghini America) more than my wife!” Bortolotti laughed. “We have daily touchpoints making sure we’re making progress working backwards from deadlines, and the communication is great. I couldn’t be happier to be working with them. They do a good job of keeping us in the loop with what’s going on and we’ll continue working on a lot of stuff with them, especially with the new car.”
Bortolotti saw glimpses of promise in Pfaff’s first season with Lamborghini in 2025, a campaign that was highlighted by the class Motul Pole Award at the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen and a third-place finish for Andrea Caldarelli and Marco Mapelli at the Chevrolet Detroit Sports Car Classic. Sandy Mitchell filled in for Mapelli as Caldarelli’s co-driver at Watkins Glen.
While the 2026 full-season and IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup drivers are yet to be announced, Caldarelli and Mapelli are due to test the car this week at Daytona, with James Hinchcliffe set as the team’s fourth driver at the Rolex 24.
Caldarelli and Pfaff finished ninth in the GTD PRO Drivers and Team Championships, while Lamborghini was the sixth-ranked manufacturer.
“It was a tough year for sure for us with the Huracán,” Bortolotti said. “I don’t think we lacked performance; I think we’ve seen we’re capable of running at the front. We had some issues we need to address as we head to the future and make sure we can put a championship caliber program together.
“Running toward the back in points is not where I want to be, it’s not where Lamborghini wants to be, and it’s not where Chris Pfaff nor our partners expect us to be,” he added. “We’ve got to be more consistent. Our biggest issue right now is our lack of consistency, so we’ll work in the offseason to adjust those needs.”
