MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Two-time NTT IndyCar Series champion and 2018 Indianapolis 500 winner Will Power has withdrawn from the Rolex 24 at Daytona so that he can tend to his ailing wife, Liz.
Liz Power had surgery on Tuesday at a North Carolina hospital to treat an ongoing health issue.
“Liz has had a couple of complications after surgery this week and has a long recovery ahead of her,” Power said. “Obviously her health is my priority and unfortunately that means I have had to put Daytona on hold. I have to thank Kenny (Habul) for the opportunity and his total understanding of our situation and the support he has shown.
“I will be cheering them on from North Carolina and hopefully we get another opportunity to do something together in the future.”
Power was set to make his Daytona debut with fellow American-based Australian Kenny Habul in the SunEnergy1 Racing Team’s Mercedes-AMG GT3 on January 28-29. Due to his withdrawal, Power will be replaced by regular SunEnergy1 driver Luca Stolz, who will join Habul and fellow German ace Fabian Schiller and Zimbabwean Axcil Jeffries in the GT Daytona (GTD) class.
“In these situations, it really goes without saying, that family comes first,” Habul said. “The first priority is Liz and her health, and we wish her the fastest recovery possible. Given our history racing against each other in Formula Ford in Australia all those years ago, it was going to be cool to drive with Will at Daytona, but I am sure there will be plenty of opportunities for us to team-up in the future.
“We welcome Luca (Stolz) to our Daytona line-up, who is no stranger to the SunEnergy1 team.”
Stolz teamed with Habul and Jules Gounon to win last year’s Bathurst 12-hour.
SunEnergy1 became the 61st and final entry for the 24-hour sports car endurance race last week, which also doubles as the IMSA SportsCar Championship season opener. With Power out, Habul will be having his sixth start in the American endurance classic — the solar energy entrepreneur notched his best result of second in the GTD class in 2021.
The Roar Before the 24 test will take place at Daytona International Speedway on January 20-22.
Following that, the 24 Hours of Daytona will take place at the same venue from January 28-29.