Pedro Lamy and the Aston Martin crew know they have a big challenge ahead. One Aston Martin Vantage versus two BMWs, two Corvettes, two Porsches, two Ferraris and two SRT Vipers.

Stefan Mucke was given the qualifying duties in the five driver line-up which includes Lamy, Mucke, Darren Turner, Richie Stanaway and Paul Dalla Lana. He qualified 6th fastest with a fastest lap of 1:45.439.

Dalla Lana will be one of the busiest men in the race – driving both the Aston Marin in GT LM and the Turner Motorsport BMW in GT D.

Aston Martin had a strong year in the FIA WEC last season, finishing second in both the LMGT Pro and LMGT Am championship chases but Lamy knows his British squad faces a challenging battle ahead as the Le Mans-spec Aston Martin makes it debut at Daytona International Speedway.

“It will be tough. During practice it was difficult to get a lap because of the traffic and it was hard to see what everyone else is capable of,” Lamy said.

“The race could be a surprise but we are still trying to improve the car right up to the race. We are looking forward to it. We’ll see if we can keep on track until the end.

“If we don’t have major problems we can finish well.”