Motorsport: Daytona grid locked with Kiwis

Scott Dixon is starting second in the 24-hour event. Photo / AP

This weekend's Daytona 24 Hours endurance race is jam packed with many of the best drivers in international motorsport. It's impressive, then, that several of the frontrunners are New Zealanders.

For the second year in a row, there are four Kiwi drivers on the grid. Scott Dixon, Earl Bamber, Brendon Hartley and Shane Van Gisbergen are all returning to kick off their respective seasons in sunny Florida, just like they did last year.

This time, though, they'll be hoping for slightly better results. While Van Gisbergen finished a solid 26th, the other three failed to make it to the finish (although Dixon, to be fair, did end up classified 15th on the road.) With cars running non-stop for 24 hours, breakdowns are common, something Hartley, in particular, knows all too well.

"This will be my third time there and I'm yet to finish the race," he says. "Maybe this time."

Last year, an engine issue was the culprit, forcing his Starworks Motorsport prototype out of the race around the nine-hour mark as it ran near the front of the field. Hartley's driving the same car this year, with the knowledge that if he does make it to the finish a strong result should be on the cards. For he's in good company; alongside him is ex-Formula One driver Rubens Barrichello and IndyCar star Ryan Hunter-Reay.

"I mean, yeah, I think it's an exciting line-up," he says. "It's pretty cool to be lined up with Rubens, who has several race wins, and Hunter-Reay, who's won the Indy 500."

"We're quietly confident although, unfortunately, we're not the only strong line-up in the field."

Like most endurance races the field is split up into different categories. Van Gisbergen and Bamber are both racing Porsches, Van Gisbergen competing in the GT Daytona class and Bamber in the GT Le Mans class. Dixon and Hartley are going head to head in the Prototype category; with their eyes on an outright win, it's a fight they'll both be relishing.

For Hartley, who is coming off a strong year in the FIA World Endurance Championship, going up against one of his heroes is something to savour. "With Scott [Dixon], it's very cool," he says. "As a kid, I looked up to him big time and always followed his racing, so it's really exciting to line up against him."

Last year, initially at least, the two were close on track, with Hartley qualifying third and Dixon sixth.

All the Kiwi drivers at Daytona had impressive individual campaigns in 2014. This is especially true of Bamber who, although he tends to fly quietly under the radar, has had an exceptionally strong two years in the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia championship. After winning his second consecutive Carrera Cup championship he's been picked up by Porsche North America, who he'll be driving for in this year's US-based United Sportscar Championship.

His second Daytona 24 Hour race also happens to be just his second endurance race ever. It's something that takes a lot of getting used to but Bamber is looking forward to it with excitement.

"One of the ultimate challenges [in motorsport] is to go twice around the clock and see if you can make it first across the line," he says.

"Although it's quite hot down in Florida at this time of year at night it's still very cold, so you have two extreme temperatures. You can have rain, you can have fog, so you have to be prepared for all things."

The peculiarities of driving sporadically over a 24 hour period also take a bit of getting used to.

"It's an odd feeling when you hand the car over and go to sleep when you know your car's still going," he says. "It's surreal. It's amazing that an hour after waking up you're back in the car and going 300 miles an hour."

Last year was one of the strongest years for New Zealand motorsport in recent memory. Hopefully, among palm trees and under clear blue skies, this year's Daytona 24 Hours will usher in another.