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Daytona 24H: Tatiana Calderon makes encouraging Mustang debut despite race-ending technical issue

Writer's picture: RACERSRACERS

“It was a frustrating end to a very promising first race with the Ford Mustang GT3" - Despite facing persistent clutch issues that led to an early retirement, Tatiana Calderon and the Gradient Racing team gained valuable experience with the Ford Mustang GT3 at the Rolex Daytona 24 Hours.


Tatiana Calderon, Gradient Racing Ford Mustang GT3 GT3, IMSA, Rolex 24 Hours Daytona 2025
Photo credits: Gradient Racing

Tatiana Calderon returned to the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona for the third time in her career - this time for her first ever race aboard the Ford Mustang GT3, with Gradient Racing operating the car for the first time.


The team, which included Joey Hand, Till Bechtolsheimer and Harry Tincknell alongside Calderon, showcased plenty of promise and good speed throughout the weekend, and held the fastest lap in the GTD class for good part of the race - but their run was marred by recurring clutch issues that eventually proved terminal into the 15th hour of racing.


Calderon, who returns to Gradient Racing after making her IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup debut with the team in 2024 aboard the Acura NSX GT3 Evo22, used every session to learn the new platform, starting from the ROAR Before the 24 collective test on the week leading up to the race, when the Texas-based team also focused on collecting experience and data of the new machine.


The first official practice immediately showed good potential for the strong lineup ahead of qualifying.


Till Bechtolsheimer drove the #66 Mustang during the 15-minute qualifying session. He climbed into the top 10 after his first representative run but ultimately settled in 18th place in the GTD class. Following a penalty for a competitor, he was promoted to 17th. Consistency in the 24-hour marathon however would be the key factor for success in the 63rd running of the 24 Hours of Daytona.


Tatiana Calderon, Gradient Racing Ford Mustang GT3 GT3, IMSA, Rolex 24 Hours Daytona 2025
Photo credits: Gradient Racing

The 2025 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona got underway with 61 cars competing across four classes in one of the biggest and most prestigious racing events of the year.

A spin for the #2 United Autosport LMP2 Oreca at Turn 1 caused some mayhem among the GTD classes, but everyone avoided contact and made it cleanly through the opening moments.


Bechtolsheimer retained P17 in the #66 Gradient Racing Mustang after the first lap but dropped to P18 on the next. He quickly fought back, running consistently and holding fifth among the bronze entries. Despite pressure from Eastwood in the DXDT Corvette, Bechtolsheimer maintained his position.


The first round of pit stops came at the one-hour mark, with Bechtolsheimer pitting from P16. However, an issue arose for Gradient Racing as Bechtolsheimer had to pit again shortly after due to a refueling problem, which caused the car to fall a lap down after just 31 laps.


Despite the early setback, the Gradient Racing Mustang maintained strong pace, determined to recover. Bechtolsheimer overtook Montecalvo’s Lexus, which had also suffered an unscheduled pit stop, on lap 46, moving into P21.

Bechtolsheimer pitted again on lap 59 for the second scheduled stop at the two-hour mark, with Joey Hand taking over the #66 Mustang.


Hand wasted no time in making progress, dipping under the 1:49 mark and continuing the strong run for the Mustang. He overtook Custodio Toledo to regain P22.


The first caution of the race occurred with 21 hours and 50 minutes remaining when the #11 TDS Racing LMP2 Oreca found the barriers at Turn 3, triggering the first neutralization. When the pit lane opened, all GTD cars pitted to refuel. Back under green with 21 hours and 25 minutes to go, Hand picked up another position, passing the #57 Winward Mercedes, which had hit trouble.


He then chased down Filgueiras in the Lone Star Racing Mercedes, overtaking the #80 car a few laps later to secure P20. Hand continued to climb, passing the #50 AF Corse Ferrari after three hours of racing. He brought the Gradient Mustang into the pits on lap 102, concluding a strong stint. Harry Tincknell was next behind the wheel.


Tatiana Calderon, Gradient Racing Ford Mustang GT3 GT3, IMSA, Rolex 24 Hours Daytona 2025
Photo credits: Gradient Racing

Tincknell immediately made an impact, setting the new overall fastest lap in the GTD class with a time of 1:48.061. He continued to improve sector times and lowered the benchmark to 1:47.619, becoming the first GTD car to break the 1:48 barrier. His lap time would stand as the fastest for much of the daylight portion of the race.


Tincknell kept pushing, delivering quick laps to close the gap to the pack. At the end of the fourth hour, the second caution of the race came after the Tower Motorsports LMP2 car spun, followed by an issue for the #93 Acura Meyer Shank Racing GTP, driven by Alex Palou, which had to be towed back to the pits.


Running in P20, Tincknell pitted during a caution at lap 130 as the sun set over Daytona. The team gained a few positions during stops, climbing to P17 ahead of the #45 Lamborghini and the #21 AF Corse Ferrari.


After the restart, Tincknell put in a great recovery drive, catching and overtaking several cars to move into P16. He extended his stint during the sixth round of pit stops, running as high as third in the GTD class. He pitted on lap 163, handing the car back to Bechtolsheimer.


A third full-course yellow was triggered when the #44 Magnus Racing Aston Martin of Andy Lally came to a halt at Turn 2 with a fluid leak. While most of the GTD field pitted, Bechtolsheimer stayed out, moving up to P6.


Upon the restart, Bechtolsheimer held his own in the leading pack of 14 cars within 10 seconds of the class lead. However, he eventually dropped to P16 as cars that stayed out earlier had to make stops.


During the next caution, caused by the #007 Aston Martin losing a wheel, Bechtolsheimer handed the car to Tatiana Calderon for her first driving shift of the race.


Chaos erupted during the restart, with several cars involved in a multi-car incident that immediately brought out another caution. The #48 Paul Miller Racing BMW, #40 WTR Cadillac, #77 Inception Racing Ferrari, #73 Pratt Miller Oreca, #2 United Autosport Oreca, and #9 Pfaff Motorsport Lamborghini were all caught up.


Following the restart, Calderon climbed to P13, gaining places on Franco and Doyle, and then passed Scardina to move into the top 10. She displayed solid pace, overtaking Adelson’s #120 Wright Motorsports Porsche for ninth before falling behind again after a few laps.


Tatiana Calderon, Gradient Racing Ford Mustang GT3 GT3, IMSA, Rolex 24 Hours Daytona 2025
Photo credits: Jake Galstad/LAT

It was a good run for the Colombian star, with solid lap times and well-executed passes. Tatiana then cleared the #120 Wright Motorsports Porsche of Adelson for ninth place; however, Adelson reclaimed the position a couple of laps later. Nevertheless, Calderon’s pace was worthy of the top-ten.


Soon after, issues began to arise for the Gradient Ford as Calderon was forced to pit due to a worsening clutch problem. After a long stop, Calderon handed the car over to Joey Hand, but the team rejoined the race four laps behind.


Hand managed to pass Gaillard’s Porsche, with both drivers posting almost identical lap times. A failure for the #31 Cadillac GTP hypercar driven by Frederick Vesti sent the car into the wall, triggering the next full course yellow with 13 hours and 40 minutes remaining. This prompted a collective pit stop when the pit lane opened.


Once back under green, Hand closed in on the Winward Mercedes, running five seconds ahead before his pit stop. Tatiana Calderon then returned to the wheel of the #66 Mustang.

Calderon’s lap times were convincing and consistent, but the clutch issue persisted.


Troubles for the Conquest Racing Ferrari and the Cetilar Racing Ferrari allowed Calderon to gain two positions, moving her into 18th as the race reached its midpoint. The Colombian pitted and remained behind the wheel, though the team would now need some luck with cautions to recover the three laps they had lost.


Calderon safely retained 16th place, managing to stay out of pressure from Kyle Kirkwood. However, she later lost the position to the Iron Dames Porsche, dropping to 18th. Tatiana completed a 71-lap double stint with 10 hours and 35 minutes remaining, handing the car over to Till Bechtolsheimer.


Bechtolsheimer capitalized on an issue for the Inception Ferrari, climbing to 17th place. Gradient Racing brought in Harry Tincknell at the following stop, still with three laps to recover. Tincknell ran consistently, but the worsening clutch issues forced the team to bring the car behind the wall with 9 hours and 20 minutes remaining.


With 9 hours left on the clock, the #66 Gradient Racing entry was officially retired, prematurely ending Tatiana Calderon’s third 24 Hours of Daytona.


“It was a frustrating end to a very promising first race with the Ford Mustang GT3", Tatiana commented. "Unfortunately we had to retire the car as we were struggling after sundown with the clutch every time we were stopping in the box, to the point that it started slipping out of the corners and it was too hard to stay on track", she explained.


Tatiana Calderon, Gradient Racing Ford Mustang GT3 GT3, IMSA, Rolex 24 Hours Daytona 2025
Photo credits: Brandon Badraoui/LAT

"It’s a shame for all the guys and girls that worked really hard for the last two weeks to give us a competitive car. That’s the hard part about racing. I had some difficult stints, as the first time I jumped in the car was 9pm and I had to learn the car and deal with the first signs of problems with the car, but I think it was valuable track time for me to get the experience of driving the Mustang in the different conditions."


Despite the disappointing result, with the #66 car going a lap down within the first hour, the entire team performed admirably. Calderon adapted quickly to the new car, gaining valuable experience that will be important for the remainder of the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup, which she will contest alongside Joey Hand and Till Bechtolsheimer.


The new Ford Mustang GT3, now in its second season of IMSA competition, demonstrated potential, as evidenced by its victory in the GTDPro class. This is an encouraging sign for the Gradient Racing crew heading into future races.


"Those second stints on the tires were very challenging and I think will help us understand what we need to improve for Sebring", she concluded. "I want to thank the team and my teammates. It's been a pleasure being part of this team.”


Calderon will return to the wheel for the second round of the championship, the 12 Hours of Sebring, on March 15.



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