Ross Chastain got the unique opportunity to be on-site at the ‘Roar Before the 24’ test sessions in Daytona over the weekend. He made a surprise appearance at the venue and toured Action Express Racing’s Whelen Cadillac set-up.
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Chastain, who was a guest of General Motors and Action Express Racing, made some interesting observations. He admitted that while he had seen the IMSA events from up close, getting to the pit box and watching the conversations first-hand was a different experience altogether.
The Trackhouse Racing driver then pointed out how quickly the team and the racers are in terms of operations: A driver had been ready ahead of time after a red flag came out for a stalled car. Chastain said that he could take some cues from the speed with which they worked.
“It was interesting to see the depth of the team and ask Connor [Zilisch], probably, some silly questions. But it’s just some stuff that I never learned,” elaborated Chastain.
“It was just cool to learn about. We could be in this very pit stall for the Daytona 500 next month, and it doesn’t compare at all to this, which is good in our respective series,” he added.
Zilisch, who will join Chastain in the Trackhouse Racing garage this season, drove on the track before the Rolex 24. The 19-year-old was also part of the official test session.
Zilisch also made his GTP debut in a one-off drive with the Action Express Racing Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R. He relished the opportunity to teach his teammate the ropes of sports car racing.
“It was cool to show Ross kind of where I came from, and he loves racing and just wants to see the different disciplines and see how teams do things differently from what we do at Trackhouse Racing,” said Zilisch.
Of course, Chastain has seen this kind of setup already, and Zilisch is aware of that. But he underlined that things are a bit different in the IMSA and with Cadillac.
The entire exchange left behind one question: Will Chastain become the next Cup Series star to be a part of the Rolex 24? He told RACER magazine that he is interested in participating if the right opportunity comes through in the future.
Fans of the Melon Man will be happy to hear that from Chastain. But, for now, his attention remains on tackling the new Cup Series championship format and earning his maiden title.
