1/2/1971

Record updated

Daytona 24 Hours won by Pedro Rodriguez and Jackie Oliver in a Porsche 917K.

Daytona Beach, Florida, USA. The Daytona 24 Hours finished with the John Wyer team of Pedro Rodriguez and Jackie Oliver winning in a Porsche 917K. The Roger Penske entered Ferrari 512M of Mark Donohue and David Hobbs started from pole and led the early stages before electrical trouble and an accident slowed them. At 18 hours, the Rodriguez/Oliver entry held a 43 lap lead when the gearbox seized. It was repaired in 92 minutes, but the NART Ferrari 512S of Tony Adamowicz and Ronnie Bucknum had taken the lead. Rodriguez soon ran them down and regained the lead, going on to win by a lap over the Adamowicz/Bucknum car. Donohue and Hobbs wound up 3rd with the Chevrolet Corvette of Tony DeLorenzo, Don Yenko and John Mahler finishing 4th overall and winning the GT class. The winners completed 688 laps (2,622.5 miles), averaging 109.2 mph.