The taste of defeat in the Rolex 24 is becoming too familiar for Jack Aitken.
In the 64th edition of IMSA’s twice-around-the-clock crown jewel at Daytona, the 30-year-old driver spent the final hour trying to run down Porsche Penske Motorsport’s Felipe Nasr for the overall win. Despite his best efforts, which included a desperate inside move that put his No. 31 Whelen Cadillac on the frontstretch apron with 21 minutes to go, he was left finishing 1.569 seconds behind in the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac.
“I had a couple of moments where I stuck my nose in there but it was always from a bit further back and a bit of just trying to make something happen,” Aitken said. “I never got a super great run on him into Turn 1; it was always creeping up to his corner.
“I was trying to find an opening here or there and it was a fine line between opening it, making a gap open up and just causing a bit of an accident. I tried as best I could to get alongside but couldn't get level, couldn't make the move stick. I tried but couldn't do it.”
The rollercoaster nature of things that hit the team started before the race began.
On Thursday, Aitken put the Cadillac V-Series.R on pole in qualifying, but it was stripped after a technical infraction after officials found the rear skid block had been ground down too much.
A drive to the front from the back of the GTP starting grid was in play on pace until co-driver Connor Zilisch, making his class debut, received a stop-and-hold 60-second penalty for running the red light at pit exit.
And time to fight back became tougher courtesy of an overnight fog that provided an event record caution of six hours, 33 minutes and 53 seconds. Still, the combination of Aitken, Earl Bamber, Frederik Vesti and Zilisch continued to press on.
“We had a really tough 24 hours,” Aitken said. “I would say it was not straightforward at all and quite a few setbacks. The guys all around from the team in the pit box to my teammates here did a fantastic job to get us back into a race winning position at the end of the race.
"Having said that, the Porsches were very strong all race. It was impressive. We came up to them and tried to challenge as best as we could. I got close a few times but just didn't quite have enough to get the move done. I think both Felipe and I were struggling with tires and the heat.
“It was a bit of back and forth all the way, but just unfortunately fell a bit short which is really, really heartbreaking. But we put a great run together and I'm proud of that.”
Aitken’s body language during the post-race press conference displayed the mix of emotions. Even with the pain of the outcome, though, there was no doubt about maximizing the hand they were dealt.
“I felt like I gave it everything, just like pretty much any time we're getting in these cars,” Aitken said. “I think it's just human.”
The additional sting comes also from finishing runner-up in the endurance classic again, with his previous being in 2024. While both defeats came at the hands of familiar foes in Nasr, Penske and Porsche, this one was different as Aitken was the closer, versus two years ago when he was left helplessly watching from the pits when then-teammate Tom Blomqvist came up short.
“This is the second time I've been second at this race,” Aitken said. “We all would have been over the moon to overcome such a tough race and formidable opponents, so it's just a bit bitter at the moment.
“As a team we did everything that we could have. I'm not really looking back at anything with regret."
Aitken did have one thought in reflection that raised a moment of laughter, but it was admittedly brief.
“When I just got out of the car I was thinking that maybe I should have just hit him, but that obviously passed and faded,” he said.
“It was a good fair race. Yeah, it's just bitter right now because it's fresh but I think we can be really proud, and I'm proud as well.”
