It was the most beautiful performance of his life. Job van Uitert (26) from Dongen won the Rolex 24 at Daytona, one of the most famous long -distance races in the world last weekend. “The last hour I no longer dared to look at the screen. That we finally succeeded, caused tears in my eyes. “
Job rode the world -famous 24 hours of Le Mans in France six times before. For the third time he was at the start in the American Daytona, this time at the invitation of a former teammate to join the team as an extra weapon for the long competition.
He did not have very high expectations in advance, because the preparation was not brilliant. “I think I have never started a big race so pessimistically. In the race the car was a bit better, but we were definitely not the fastest car. “
“Every round we were clearly slower than our competitors. In the night it was not too bad, but during the day in the sun the car was not competitive. Only with a 24 -hour race do you have to keep your car whole and stay on the track. Many cars fell out and our biggest competitors drove each other off the track. “
“The last minutes lasted incredibly long.”
After the crash of numbers 1 and 2, Tower Motorsports took over. “Then you saw all the hope appear. We no longer had to refuel, but we had to save fuel by, for example, releasing the gas before the bend. Our final driver Sébastien Bourdais did that super well. The last minutes lasted incredibly long. That we ran away with the win is incredible. “
“I slept the whole race for an hour at most.”
Afterwards, Job, who started karting as a child, was very happy and very tired. Not crazy after 118 rounds behind the wheel with speeds of up to more than 300 kilometers per hour. “There were several times when we could grab points and the first three times I was behind the wheel. So it was regularly boarding, getting out and boarding again. Personally, racing went satisfactorily. I rested by lying in bed in our camper. But I slept the entire race for an hour at most. “
His win in Daytona and the associated Rolex tastes like more. “Many riders would like to win this prize in such a big race. My goal is to ride in the Hypercar in the future, one class higher. This win will hopefully help with that. I also want to participate in Le Mans for the seventh time, where we will also try to win that race. ”
Racing and training almost daily combines the Dongenaar with his work in the family business that supplies transport systems. “My agenda was full, but everything is shifted for a race. And since I am here, I visit a number of American customers. The work always continues. “
Also read: Driving in a world famous car race feels Job as 4 half marathons.