The Heart of Racing team has added a GTD PRO entry for next month’s Rolex 24 At Daytona. Already committed to entering GTD for the full season alongside its Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR GTP entry, the delayed debut of the Valkyrie until Sebring opened the door for a GTD PRO entry for the season opener.
Driving the No. 007 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo in GTD PRO will be team regulars Ross Gunn, Roman De Angelis, Alex Riberas – already confirmed as one of the Valkyrie Hypercar drivers for WEC – and Marco Sorensen. Most recently Gunn, De Angelis and Riberas finished the 2024 season with a third-place finish at Motul Petit Le Mans in their debut race together. Sorensen will make his third consecutive Daytona start with Heart of Racing, the Dane having been a part of the 2023 Rolex 24-winning No. 27 team.
“I love kick-starting the year off at Daytona,” said Gunn. “It’s one of the classics that is important to drivers, teams, and manufacturers competing in sports car racing. Our target is to try for the victory –we have a really great team and great car. I’m really happy to be teaming up with Alex and Roman, who did an excellent job at Petit Le Mans. Then adding Marco is just a cherry on top. I’m really looking forward to starting the season, it’s going to be a big challenge with lots of great teams and drivers out there, but we are pretty confident and will give it our best shot.”
Although the team has not declared its full-season drivers for the No. 27 GTD entry, if it keeps the same drivers for the season, the team will welcome back Zacharie Robichon and Tom Gamble, with team newcomers Mattia Drudi and Casper Stevenson set to build on their extensive experience in GT3 machinery with their IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship debut. Robichon rejoins after competing in the team’s No. 27 Aston Martin Vantage in 2024. Gamble will make his first start with the team since Petit Le Mans in 2022, where he was teamed up with Gunn and Riberas, earning a fourth-place finish.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1406]
“This race has been on my bucket list for a long time, and I’m excited to finally check it off,” said Drudi. “Having my dad [Luca Drudi] as a past winner makes this opportunity even more special. The team has delivered strong performances over the past few years and our Aston Martin Vantage GT3 has proven to be increasingly competitive. I can’t wait to get behind the wheel and experience the iconic Daytona circuit!”
Absent from the driver line-up is team principal Ian James, who is not in the seat for the Rolex 24 for the first time in several years.
“We have two really strong line-ups this year for Daytona,” said James. “Though it is a little bittersweet for me, it will be the first Rolex 24 I will not be driving in since we started the team in 2020. I think these young guys will do a great job and hopefully we can come out after 24 hours with a podium finish.”
The teams make their on-track debut for the Roar Before the 24 test weekend on Jan. 17-19, preceding the Rolex 24 on Jan. 23-26.