Filipe Albuquerque led at the six-hour mark of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, with the Action Express Racing DPi V.R. heading up an assertive 1-2-3 for the American manufacturer.
Albuquerque, sharing the car with João Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi, inherited the top spot moments before the hour mark when erstwhile leader Jordan Taylor came in for wet tyres.
With rain starting to fall at Daytona International Speedway, both Albuquerque and Mike Conway in the sister Action Express Cadillac DPi V.R. took on wets during a sixth-hour caution.
Taylor decided to remain on slicks in the hope of gaining a track position advantage, but soon returned to pit road when the rain intensified.
As a result, the Action Express pair held a 1 minute 20s lead over Taylor as the race passed one-quarter distance.
Rolex 24 at Daytona: order after six hours
The opening six hours of the 55th Rolex 24 were marked by Cadillac dominance, as the other Prototype marques struggled to keep pace.
Rebellion Racing provided the strongest challenge early on with World Endurance Champion Neel Jani driving, but a throttle issue forced the LMP2-spec ORECA 07 to lose 11 laps in the garage.
The highest placed non-Cadillac entry at the turn of the hour was the #22 ESM Nissan-Onroak DPi driven by Bruno Senna, albeit one lap off the pace.
Action Express and Wayne Taylor Racing have been closely matched throughout the early running, with each of the three leading cars spending time at the front.
Dane Cameron (#31) took charge during the first hour by dispatching pole-sitter Barbosa at the chicane, before Daytona rookie Seb Morris consolidated the lead with a strong second stint.
However, a series of slow pit stops by the #31 crew allowed Angelelli to inherit first place during the fourth and fifth hours before Albuquerque rallied back, setting the fastest lap in the process.
Five full-course caution periods broke up the opening six hours, with just over one hour lost to stoppages.
The first caution came within the opening 10 minutes when Jerome Mul crashed the GTD-class Change Racing Lamborghini. The next came about during the second hour, when five-time Rolex 24 winner Scott Pruett lost control of his GTD-class Lexus and struck the barrier at turn one.
In GTLM, Patrick Pilet headed up the class in the #911 Porsche 911 RSR.
The pole-sitting #66 Ford GT led the majority of the opening six hours but Sebastien Bourdais dropped behind his French compatriot before the hour mark. Bourdais has since reclaimed the lead, with Pilet running second and Porsche team-mate Kevin Estre third.
Prototype Challenge has been led comfortably so far by the Performance Tech Motorsports ORECA throughout, while in GTD Shane van Gisbergen led at quarter distance for WeatherTech Racing and Mercedes-Benz.
