Late heartbreak denies Kevin Magnussen BMW podium debut in Daytona 24 Hours
Car damage in latter stages took #24 B﷽MW out of podium fight
Kevin♎ Magnussen was denied a podium on his BMW debut at the 2025 Daytona 24 Hours🌸 when the #24 car suffered damage late on in a nail-biting conclusion to the enduro.
The Team RLL-run M Hybrid V8 LMDh ca🉐r was put on pole for the Daytona 24 by Dries Vanthoor in qualifying, with the #24 machine regularly in the fight for the marque’s first victory at the eಌvent since 1976.
But a loose nosecone on the car was exacerbated by conta🐽ct in the final hour of competition after Van🦩thoor made slight contact with the rear of the #6 Porsche Penske Motorsport entrant, driven by Matt Campbell at the time, following a green flag restart.
The damagꦬe was enough to drop the #24 car off the podium battle, with Vanthoor, Magnussen, Phillip Eng and Raffaelౠe Marciello ending up fourth.
“I for sure am verꩵy gutted with this result,” Vanthoor said.
“We showed a great pace and that the car is capable of doing it. Obviously f꧟inishing in P4 in ﷽a 24-hour race is not the end of the world, but at the end of the day it is very sad to fight for 22 hours and not come home with a podium, which we for sure deserved.
“I feel sorry for the guys, who have be🦩en working very hard and also 🍬to my team-mates.
“I would have loved to gift them with something, but mos🥃t important is that we showed that we were strong and able to fight.
“We will make sure 🤡to come back and we will win this race.”
Magnussen had put on a strong push😼 at the 20-hour mark of the race to help put the #24 BMW into the battle for victory with the factory Porsches.
The 63rd edition of the Daytona 24 Hours was ultimately won by the #7 Porsche Penske Motorsport entry of ex-F1 driver Felipe Nasr, Nick Tandy and Laurens V🎃anthoor.
The car fended off a late charge f♊rom the Meyer Shank Racing #60 Acura, which powered൩ ahead of the #6 PPM car to finish second.
Despite the disappointing result, BMW proved to be Porsche’s clos🐽est challenger throughout the Daytona 24.
Magnussen will be back in action in the M Hybrid V8 at the en🐼d of February for the opening round of the World Endurance Championship in Qatar, as he joins WRT’s line-up.
