The 2015 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship Rolex 24 At Daytona: Mega Gallery

The race is over, the stands empty, the fans looking forward to Sebring. The winners are celebrating, the rest of the field is commiserating, rallying, looking forward to Sebring. This is the time to look back at the Rolex 24, to enjoy what it was—and what it wasn’t—before moving on to the rest of the season.

Unlike last year’s race, which was marred by the horrific crash of Memo Gidley and Matteo Malucelli, this year’s race was free of any serious injury, and nearly free of any serious accidents at all.

In fact, if anything, the atmosphere of this year’s Rolex 24 was rather sedate. Endurance racing can often be a roller coaster of emotion, of effort, of sheer attention--for drivers, teams, and fans alike. But this year’s race was a ride in the kiddie park next to last year’s Six Flags.

Perhaps its because of the (much) smaller field. Perhaps it’s because of the impending switch to GT3 category racing in 2016 (in part a cause of the smaller field). Perhaps it’s just the muted feel of a race watched, and enjoyed, but which never really felt significant.

Whatever the cause, this year’s Rolex 24—for this fan at least—was somewhat underwhelming. Fortunately, there’s more to look forward to this season, and even more to hope for next year.