It's been a long and winding road to competitiveness for the Deltawing program since Don Panoz took it over in the last season of the American Le Mans Series. It struggled to find pace for much of its first three years and it's faced consistent mechanical issues since it debuted at Sebring. 2016 was supposed to be the season that all changed, and from the first few laps in today's Rolex 24 at Daytona, it seemed that things finally had.

The car had led the weekend's only dry practice session, and starting driver Katherine Legge immediately took advantage of that speed. She led on three separate stints, and even after she was replaced in the car by Andy Meyrick it seemed inevitable that the car would return to the lead in an hour or two. Don Panoz reaffirmed in an interview that the gearbox that had led to so many retirements over the past three years was finally reliable and well-cooled. The car was a contender, and it hadn't seen a single mechanical issue through four hours (something that is no small feat, unimpressive as it may sound).

Then, the #8 Prototype Challenge Oreca FLM09 of Starworks Motorsports stalled in the racing line in turn 1. It would sit there for nearly a minute and a half without IMSA calling a yellow, just past the lighting that would make it easy to see but not so far into the corner that drivers would be fully decelerated before having a chance to avoid it. It was the worst possible place in the infield for a car to stay stalled, so it was little surprise when IMSA's choice not to call a full course caution led to a car hitting it. Unfortunately, that car would be the fan-favorite #0 Deltawing coupe.

The Deltawing was towed back to the garage with moderate front-end damage, and it is questionable to return. The damage to the #8 was more significant, but it hasn't been retired yet either.

For more on the 2016 Rolex 24 at Daytona, follow our live blog.

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