DENVER, N.C. – Reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott will join Felipe Nasr, Pipo Derani and Mike Conway in the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Rolex 24 At Daytona Jan. 29-31.
Elliott will run the twice-around-the-clock classic for the first time. The 25-year old driver from Dawsonville, Ga., has proved his road racing prowess by winning five NASCAR Cup Series road course races for Hendrick Motorsports, including the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL during the 2020 NASCAR playoffs.
The addition of the Rolex 24 adds to an already busy off-season for Elliott, which has included the Snowball Derby earlier this month in addition to the Chili Bowl in Tulsa, Okla., in early January.
“The Rolex 24 is such a major event, and it’s a race that anybody across any type of motorsports really respects,” Elliott said. “I think everyone wants to win a watch before their career is over. It’s something different and a completely different element of racing that I haven’t really tried before. I’m trying to branch out and be more diverse as a driver and this is another part of that experience. I appreciate Action Express giving me this opportunity and I am looking forward to learning and running my first Rolex 24 next month.”
“Recently we were able to spend a day with Chase in the simulator, running the Dallara, Cadillac model on the Daytona road course,” said Gary Nelson, Action Express Racing team manager. “We were amazed at how quick Chase got up to speed, his feedback, and how easy he was to work with. We are very excited to work with him again next month in Daytona at the Roar and the Rolex 24.”