Getting ready for the 2017 Rolex 24-Hours at Daytona

The unofficial start of the new racing season gets going today down in Florida — The Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona. This classic endurance race kicks off at 3pm Eastern here in the States and will feature an unprecedented 23 hours of broadcast coverage, with every last second also available for streaming via IMSA.com. The Weathertech series has been very much revamped for 2017 with a completely redesigned top prototype class, including the debut participation of GM’s Cadillac marque. One of the Caddys already took pole for Action Express in the hands of veteran Joao Barbosa and another is entered by longtime American endurance team Wayne Taylor Racing. The later car will feature not only the Taylor brothers, Ricky & Jordan, and their mentor, Max “the Axe” Angelelli, but also recently retired 4-time Nascar champion Jeff Gordon in then cockpit at some point. There’ll be plenty of other domestic and  international all-stars from the racing world and Ford is already looking to add to the magic of their stunning 2016 Le Mans win with an impressive pole in their beautiful GT car. Whether you tune in for an hour or pull an all-nighter for all the action, you owe it to yourself to catch at least some of the action of this American enduro classic. And with rain predicted for the wee hours down at Daytona, some of the best action in the race could well come between dusk and dawn so be sure to get that DVR programmed if you must doze off.

Complete TV schedule for the 2017 24 Hours at Daytona:

Jan. 28-29

Rolex 24 at Daytona

Saturday, Jan. 28

Fox TV, 2 p.m.-5 p.m.

FS1, 5 p.m.-10 p.m.

FS2, 11 p.m.-midnight

Sunday, Jan. 29

FS2, midnight-12:30 p.m.

FS1, 12:30 p.m.-3 p.m.