Lexus RC F GT3: The Road to Daytona (Video)
Lexus Team 3GT Racing Finishes Preparations on RC F GT3 Ahead of ’24 Hours of Daytona’
It feels like forever since Lexus introduced the world to its new racer, the RC F GT3. But the culmination of hard work and lots of testing finally comes to a head this weekend at the 24 Hours of Daytona. Lexus has been documenting the preparations for the race in it’s three-part video series “The Road to Daytona.” And now they’ve released the final installment of that series.
Daytona kicks off the 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season, and also marks Lexus’ return to North American sports car racing. Despite facing daunting odds for the RC F GT3’s debut race in the series, Lexus is no stranger to Daytona, having won three straight 24 hour races here in the past (2006-2008).
The 3GT Racing crew has huge shoes to fill, obviously. The brand new team consists of four drivers — Scott Pruett, Sage Karam, Jack Hawksworth and Robert Alon. Pruett spent six seasons with Lexus in the Grand-Am Rolex SportsCar Series, racking up 22 wins and 2 championships along the way. He also notched two of Lexus’ three wins at Daytona (2007 and 2008).
Karam, Alon and Hawksworth are all former open-wheel racers. Hawksworth and Karam competed in the IndyCar series from 2014-2016. Alon racked up three PC wins and a second place points finish last season. It’s a diverse, experienced, and successful group of drivers poised to make this a successful homecoming for Lexus.
Overall, the combination of 3GT Racing and Lexus seems like a match made in heaven. But as they say, the proof is in the pudding. Endurance racing has a way of crushing dreams, but it also has a way of christening heroes. We’ll soon find out which of those relates to the RC F GT3.
Check out Lexus’ first two segments in its “The Road to Daytona” video series, below.
