It has been around 3 weeks since the Roar Before the 24 test day in early January. Daytona race week has finally arrived. The LMP2 SKYACTIV-D, after its initial shakedown on test day, has returned to the track sporting a few improvements to the engine and driveline.

Speaking for the team, Sylvain Tremblay said, “Since this is the debut race of our new prototype car, our primary focus is on reliability. Our improvements have focused on things like increasing engine bay cooling and the ease of servicing the car rather than extracting maximum power. The car features a lot of torque, and we need to use it to our advantage, but the most important thing is to keep the car turning laps.”

During practice on the 23rd, the SKYACTIV-D showed none of the troubles it had exhibited on test day, lapping the track without issue. While wheel time is important for the regular drivers, this time the focus was on getting the new drivers some seat time in the car. Hinchcliffe and Vautier are both IndyCar drivers, and driving a closed cockpit diesel LMP2 car is a completely different experience from their normal racing. During the 1-hour practice session in the morning, and in the 30-minute session in the afternoon all drivers were able to get a turn behind the wheel. The car qualified during a 15-minute session that started at 4:50pm. While it qualified the slowest of all the prototypes, it is notable that it successfully made the grid without incident during its first-ever qualifying session.

Mazda USA Motorsports Director John Doonan said, “After 3 weeks of uninterrupted hard work, we have made it back to the track. It is a relief that we were able to run here today without any major problems. Now we are going to install the race engine and get ready for tomorrow's practice session. The team is moving in the right direction.”