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Its secret spreadsheet must be very interesting.
Whatever the case, BoP seems to work.
Victories are spread around the field pretty well.
Last year the BoP was excellent and I thought IMSA finally had gotten it pretty perfect. Then for this year, Porsche has been given a series of breaks, even after winning poles and races. Porsche clearly has an advantage on the field at the moment, which is why I made my comment on seeing what data IMSA is using that all the rest of us think/see that and they don't. I'm good not adjusting a winning team, just because they won. But watching the Porsche make some passes on the Ford that made it look easy, its just off at the monent
Last year the BoP was excellent and I thought IMSA finally had gotten it pretty perfect. Then for this year, Porsche has been given a series of breaks, even after winning poles and races. Porsche clearly has an advantage on the field at the moment, which is why I made my comment on seeing what data IMSA is using that all the rest of us think/see that and they don't. I'm good not adjusting a winning team, just because they won. But watching the Porsche make some passes on the Ford that made it look easy, its just off at the monent
I won't disagree.
It's a tough call...there are so many variables.
However, I'll bet dollars to donuts by the end of the year the BoP will even things out.
CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: Dress Rehearsal for 20th Appearance
Press Release:
Pair of Corvettes set for eight hours of running at famed Circuit de la Sarthe
CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: Dress Rehearsal for 20th Appearance
Pair of Corvettes set for eight hours of running at famed Circuit de la Sarthe
• Corvette Racing seeks ninth class victory in competitive GTE Pro category
• Road America, Chevrolet simulator sessions part of intense preparation
• Six Corvette Racing drivers with 19 combined Le Mans victories
DETROIT (May 28, 2019) – Corvette Racing is back across the Atlantic once again for a landmark appearance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – its 20th consecutive appearance at the historic French endurance race.
Sunday’s annual Le Mans Test Day serves as a final dress rehearsal for the twice-around-the-clock race on June 15-16. It is the only time that Corvette Racing – and the rest of the 62-car field – can turn laps around the 8.48-mile Circuit de la Sarthe, a mixture of permanent race track and public roads.
This is a landmark year at Le Mans for Corvette Racing. No team is on record as having made more than 20 consecutive appearances, and the program has won eight times in 19 tries. What’s more, Corvette Racing’s Le Mans record also includes eight runner-up class finishes and nearly 100,00 racing miles completed.
That’s in addition to tens of thousands more miles in Le Mans testing and practice over the years on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. In fact, the preparation for a ninth victory has been a year-long process starting shortly after last year’s Le Mans with Corvette Racing’s pair of Chevrolet Corvette C7.Rs. The most recent testing took place at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin over two days earlier this month plus sessions at the Chevrolet Simulator near Charlotte, North Carolina.
Corvette Racing’s lineup is a carbon-copy of last year’s Le Mans roster and this season’s endurance group. Antonio Garcia, Jan Magnussen and Mike Rockenfeller will drive the No. 63 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R. The trio finished third in class at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring earlier this year in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In addition, Garcia and Magnussen are coming off a runner-up finish in their last race at Mid-Ohio.
In the No. 64 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette, the trio of Oliver Gavin, Tommy Milner and Marcel Fässler will team together at Le Mans for the third year in a row. Gavin and Milner have a third-place class finish to their credit at Long Beach in April.
Le Mans is the final race in the FIA World Endurance Championship Super Season. There is a total of 17 entries from five manufacturers in the GTE Pro category.
Each of the six Corvette Racing drivers own exemplary records at Le Mans:
• Antonio Garcia: Three victories in 13 appearances– 2008, 2009 and 2011; runner-up in 2014; third place in 2017
• Jan Magnussen: Four victories in 20 appearances– 2004-06, 2009; runner-up in 2003, 2007, 2008 and 2014; third place in 2017
• Mike Rockenfeller: Two victories in nine appearances– 2005 and 2010; third place in 2012
• Oliver Gavin: Five victories in 18 appearances – 2002, 2004-06, 2015; runner-up in 2003; third place in 2001 and 2008
• Tommy Milner: Two victories in 10 appearances– 2011 and 2015
• Marcel Fässler:Three victories in 13 appearances– 2011-12 and 2014
The 24 Hours of Le Mans will air live on the MotorTrend Network with coverage of the Test Day, practice/qualifying and the race on Radio Le Mans.
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “Year after year we have gone to Road America to test, so you can see how the C7.R has developed from the last year. You’ll know if you’ve made any improvements. Knowledge of the Michelin WEC tire is a big thing, and we learned a lot at Sebring in the FIA WEC race. Knowing that, we were able to focus a lot on that. Le Mans is always difficult to predict. Sometimes it can be hot with no rain at all and other years it’s cold and wet all race. We need to be prepared for everything. The good thing for Corvette Racing is we have the same car from past years and we have learned a lot each Le Mans. It’ll be another tight fight in GTE Pro.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “The way we are performing in the IMSA championship builds confidence for when we get to Le Mans. Everyone will arrive with high expectations. Everything needs to work that particular weekend. We’ve shown in IMSA that even when we are in a little bit of trouble, we can come together and get the best out of any situation. That’s what we need to do for Le Mans. From the beginning, everyone needs to be at 100 percent otherwise it’s too hard to win unless you are at your best.”
MIKE ROCKENFELLER, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “The Chevrolet simulator is a great tool from Corvette Racing to help prepare for Le Mans. It was nice. I drove a few laps in Elkhart Lake but it wasn’t easy because of the weather conditions. But I was able to go to the simulator to drive Road America for a little while, which was good to feel how realistic and close it is. Then we switched to Le Mans, which was the main target. Nowadays, simulators are so well-developed that you can really use it properly as a driver to prepare for racetracks or an event. The Chevrolet one, honestly, is a very good one. It is very close to reality, so we are able to truly prepare the Corvette for Le Mans.”
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “This season has been a season of what-ifs for Tommy and I on the No. 4 Corvette. There have been a number of races this year we’ve had the right strategy, the right car setup, we’ve been working well as a team… it seems like we’ve been able to unlock more speed from the car. That’s all encouraging and good. We seem to have a better understanding of this Michelin tire, and we can take that knowledge into Le Mans and try to use it wisely in our test weekend and preparations for the race.”
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “Having raced the C7.R at Le Mans for six years now, we’ve had the chance to improve it year on year. The last couple of years have given us a chance to more fine-tune things. With some of the work we’ve done this year, we’ll have the best Corvette we’ve ever had at Le Mans. In some ways, Le Mans is a bit routine but we are all eager to get there and see how we stack up against our competition. There is work to do; we haven’t been the fastest car there the last few years but that’s not for lack of trying. Everyone at Corvette Racing has done made an extra effort to improve our car in every way possible. So I’m eager to get to the Test Day and see how these changes perform. From my perspective we’re in a good place.”
MARCEL FÄSSLER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “It was good to be back in the Corvette at Road America. The only downside is that the weather was mostly against us. It wasn’t really fully raining nor was it dry; we had some mixed conditions which made it difficult to do a proper test. But I did get some running on the rain tires and on the second day with slick tires. This was still a good test though. At Le Mans, you can have these situations where there is rain coming down and then it starts to dry out. So the better you know the car in those conditions, the easier it is to adapt yourself in the race. So in that sense it was a successful test.”
Corvette Racing at Le Mans (Wins in bold)
2000
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Chris Kneifel/Justin Bell – 4th in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins/Franck Freon – 3rd in GTS
2001
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Scott Pruett – 1st in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins/Franck Freon – 2nd in GTS
2002
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Oliver Gavin – 1st in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins/Franck Freon – 2nd in GTS
2003
No. 53 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Franck Freon – 3rd in GTS
No. 50 Corvette C5-R: Oliver Gavin/Kelly Collins/Andy Pilgrim – 2nd in GTS
2004
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Max Papis – 2nd in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen – 1st in GTS
2005
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Max Papis – 2nd in GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen – 1st in GT1
2006
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Max Papis – 7th in GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen - 1st in GT1
2007
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Jan Magnussen – 2nd in GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Max Papis – 14th in GT1
2008
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Jan Magnussen – 2nd in GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Max Papis – 3rd in GT1
2009
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Johnny O'Connell/Antonio Garcia – 1st in GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Marcel Fässler – 4th in GT1
2010
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Johnny O'Connell/Antonio Garcia – 12th in GT2 (DNF)
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Emmanuel Collard – 10th in GT2 (DNF)
2011
No. 73 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Tommy Milner/Antonio Garcia – 1st in GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen/Richard Westbrook – 14th in GTE Pro (DNF)
2012
No. 73 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 5th in GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Richard Westbrook - 6th in GTE Pro
2013
No. 73 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 4th in GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Richard Westbrook – 7th in GTE Pro
2014
No. 73 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 2nd in GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Richard Westbrook – 4th in GTE Pro
2015
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Ryan Briscoe – DNS (Qualifying crash)
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Jordan Taylor – 1st in GTE Pro
2016
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Ricky Taylor – 7th in GTE Pro
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Jordan Taylor – 10th in GTE Pro (DNF)
2017
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 3rd in GTE Pro
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Marcel Fässler – 8th in GTLM
2018
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Mike Rockenfeller – 4th in GTE Pro
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Marcel Fässler – 15th in GTE Pro (DNF)
Le Mans test day BoP is out. Always subject to change before the race, but compared to last year's race:
Ford 12KG heavier, but more boost
BMW 9KG heavier, less boost
Porsche 2KG heavier
Corvette 7KG lighter
Aston 7KG lighter
Ferrari 7KG lighter, more boost.
St. Jude Donor '08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16-'17
NCM Member '09
I haven't been watching the WEC this year, but it seems as if both the AM's and the Ferrari's were pretty hot last LeMans...did they get an adjustment to slow them up this season?
I haven't been watching the WEC this year, but it seems as if both the AM's and the Ferrari's were pretty hot last LeMans...did they get an adjustment to slow them up this season?
Le Mans is a total different BoP in the WEC (as is Daytona for IMSA) due to high speed, low downforce configuration.
The BoP adjustments for test day are "manual" and are listed as differences from last year's race. The rest of the WEC's season BoP is done by computer actually.
As a major fan of the history of Corvettes at LeMans, I have a quiz for you all. What is the most consecutive years that a specific Corvette raced at LeMans? I am referring to a car with the same chassis number VIN running in consecutive years.
Ford is going with retro liveries for their final hurrah in GTE-Pro Le Mans. Even the Red White an Blue one is the one from before last season (as they changed the colors to match production colors in 2018).
Corvette did change.... they went the the " Le Mans 20 Years" text on the flags...
Every time I see a side picture I'm reminded how stubborn the ACO is. The IMSA leader light system is 1000 times better than the antiquated 3 lights. But the next time ACO admits that IMSA had a good idea will be the first....
CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: Leaving Test Day Satisfied
Press Release:
Rockenfeller sets GTE Pro pace, Milner right behind in pair of Corvette C7.Rs
CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: Leaving Test Day Satisfied
Rockenfeller sets GTE Pro pace, Milner right behind in pair of Corvette C7.Rs
LE MANS, France (June 2, 2019) – Ahead of its 20th consecutive appearance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Corvette Racing clicked off eight hours of running on the race's annual Test Day with its pair of Chevrolet Corvette C7.Rs. Corvette Racing drivers were first and third in the 17-car GTE Pro category in the only running the Le Mans field will have before official practice and qualifying commence in 10 days.
Mike Rockenfeller was the quickest driver for Corvette Racing during the test session at 3:54.001 (130.240 mph) in the No. 63 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C7.R that he will drive with Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen. Perhaps no driver benefitted more from Sunday as Rockenfeller, who missed last year’s Test Day due to a previous commitment.
Teammate Tommy Milner was third-fastest with a lap of 3:54.036 (130.239 mph) in the No. 64 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette that he shares with Oliver Gavin and Marcel Fässler.
Rockenfeller led a group of 12 GTE Pro cars within one second of each other, an astounding fact around an 8.4-mile circuit. Le Mans is a mix of permanent race track and public roads, and the Corvette Racing teams spent the entire eight hours tuning and setting up the two Corvette C7.Rs for handling and a solid race package – not necessarily ultimate outright pace.
The pair of Corvettes combined to complete 166 laps and covered more than 1,400 miles. The only issue was a minor mechanical one on the No. 64 Corvette C7.R that cost it a minimal amount of time in the garage. Other than that, the Test Day was fairly routine.
This is a landmark year at Le Mans for Corvette Racing. No team is on record as having made more than 20 consecutive appearances, and the program has won eight times in 19 tries. What’s more, Corvette Racing’s Le Mans record also includes eight runner-up class finishes and nearly 100,000 racing miles completed.
Le Mans is the final race in the FIA World Endurance Championship Super Season. There is a total of 17 entries from five manufacturers in the GTE Pro category.
Each of the six Corvette Racing drivers own exemplary records at Le Mans:
• Antonio Garcia: Three victories in 13 appearances– 2008, 2009 and 2011; runner-up in 2014; third place in 2017
• Jan Magnussen: Four victories in 20 appearances– 2004-06, 2009; runner-up in 2003, 2007, 2008 and 2014; third place in 2017
• Mike Rockenfeller: Two victories in nine appearances– 2005 and 2010; third place in 2012
• Oliver Gavin: Five victories in 18 appearances – 2002, 2004-06, 2015; runner-up in 2003; third place in 2001 and 2008
• Tommy Milner: Two victories in 10 appearances– 2011 and 2015
• Marcel Fässler:Three victories in 13 appearances– 2011-12 and 2014
The 24 Hours of Le Mans will air live on the MotorTrend Network with coverage of practice, qualifying and the race on Radio Le Mans.
MIKE ROCKENFELLER, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – FASTEST IN GTE PRO: “It’s always good to be quick but as everyone knows, today doesn’t count. It counts on the Sunday when the flag drops and the race is over. Today was really good for me to get used back to the Corvette. Today I was able to get in a lot of laps and went through a lot of tires to get confidence, which helps. For me personally, I’m very happy. In the afternoon, the track conditions were where they should be so we were able to collect a lot of data. We are very happy with that.
“The Corvette C7.R is the exact same car from last year. In the end, we tried to establish a base setup. We did a little bit of tuning but not much - normal stuff like camber and dampers. Then we really tried to learn about the compounds we have available from Michelin. We tried to learn in which temperature window to use which tire. I was in that program, so that was quite nice!
“The GTE Pro class is really the place where there will be fights among the manufacturers just like years before. We’re all looking forward to that. It’s super hard, and you have to fight for every tenth of a second. There is no margin for error.”
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – THIRD-FASTEST IN GTE PRO: “Overall, today was good for us. Like everyone here, you have a laundry list of items to go through… things that the engineers come up with that may work. This is our one opportunity to go through some of those options. We certainly found some good things in the Corvette. All of us drivers are generally happy with the car; there are always areas to improve. In the end, we’ve had a pretty smooth Test Day and we were able to check off a few boxes. Obviously we’re quick on the time chart now, but we’ve been in this position in years past when everything seemed to change come raceweek. We’ll focus on ourselves, figure out what’s good for us and see where we stand on raceweek.”
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “Things were good today. This is one of the few years where weather respected the test, and the conditions were very consistent. Our running time was good; we were close to 100 laps. That means we have a lot of data to analyze. We definitely ran through all our program we had planned and then some. That’s always a good feeling. So I’m happy. We need to gather everything, see what we have, where we can improve and then put everything together for the race. Yes we were fastest today but I don’t think that means anything. I don’t know what the other teams are doing, so we need to wait until raceweek to see where everything is exactly. This is a good starting point. We all hope the package we bring to the race will be enough.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “It isn’t at all important to be quick on the Test Day. We are here testing and going through our program, including knowing the WEC Michelin tires a little better. For us on the 63 Corvette, getting to know the tires at the WEC race at Sebring was a little bit of an advantage. But this is only our second time so we still have a lot to learn. So far so good. I think everyone is pretty happy. We didn’t have any issues on our Corvette throughout the day, which is good. We shouldn’t because this is such a well-proven car.”
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “It was a pretty good day for us. We got quite a lot covered with Michelin and our WEC tire. We worked through our program well, I think. There was a small issue in the middle of the day where we lost some time. But once we got on top of that, we fell back into our program. There were a number of slow zones and yellow flags that impede the process you are trying to go through. But we did get a lot done. You could throw a blanket over everyone in our class. No one is out of this race and everyone will be in with a chance at winning. We have to be smart and see what the race week brings.”
MARCEL FÄSSLER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: "It was quite good to be back in the car. I immediately felt good and was good on pace. The Chevy simulator tests we had recently helped a lot in being quick straight away. But today was all about finding a good rhythm and testing different things for the race, try to find the limits, work on the Corvette to tune it in to the circumstances and collect data for next week. All in all I felt pretty good in the car. We can be happy with the work we did today."
Facts and figures ahead of program's 20th straight Le Mans appearance
CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: By the Numbers
DETROIT (June 6, 2019) – This year’s running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is a
landmark one for Corvette Racing. It is the 20th consecutive appearance for
the program at the famed race dating back to 2000 – the longest current
streak for a single entrant. With eight class victories in 19 starts,
Corvette Racing is one of the most successful teams in the history of Le
Mans. Below is a handful of notes and statistics ahead of this year’s race…
• 1: As in one team, one manufacturer and one model of car for 20 years at
Le Mans: Corvette Racing, Chevrolet and the Chevrolet Corvette.
• 3: Generations of Corvette Racing entries since 2000 – Corvette C5-R
(2000-04), Corvette C6.R (2005-13) and Corvette C7.R (2014-current).
• 3: Number of wins for the Corvette C5-R – 2001, 2002, 2004.
• 4: Number of wins for the Corvette C6.R – 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011.
• 8: As in Chevrolet’s small-block V8. More than 100 million units have been
sold worldwide and is the most successful engine in American motorsports.
• 8: Class victories for Corvette Racing at Le Mans – all since 2001.
• 9: Number of drivers who have won races at Le Mans for Corvette Racing –
Olivier Beretta, Ron Fellows, Antonio Garcia, Oliver Gavin, Jan Magnussen,
Tommy Milner, Johnny O’Connell, Scott Pruett and Jordan Taylor.
• 12: Manufacturer Championships for Chevrolet and Corvette Racing since
2001.
• 16: Number of GT Le Mans wins in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar
Championship for Corvette Racing since the start of 2014. That’s tied for
the most among manufacturers and entrants in GTLM.
• 19: Number of victories for Corvette Racing’s lineup at Le Mans.
Oliver Gavin: 5 Jan Magnussen: 4 Antonio
Garcia: 3
Marcel Fässler: 3 Tommy Milner: 2 Mike
Rockenfeller: 2
• 21: Number of drivers to compete for Corvette Racing at Le Mans. Oliver
Gavin leads with 17 Le Mans starts for the program while Jan Magnussen has
15.
• 21: Tracks at which Corvette Racing has won races – Baltimore, COTA,
Canadian Tire Motorsport Park/Mosport, Daytona, Detroit, Houston, Laguna
Seca, Le Mans, Lime Rock, Long Beach, Miami, Mid-Ohio, Portland, Road
America, Road Atlanta, Sebring, Sonoma, St. Petersburg, Texas, Trois
Rivieres and Utah.
• 107: Victories worldwide for Corvette Racing – 99 in North America and
eight at Le Mans.
• 218: Event starts by Corvette Racing since 1999.
• 95,221.25: Number of racing miles completed by Corvette Racing in its 19
previous trips to Le Mans. That represents 11,299 laps… or nearly four full
trips around the Earth at its equator. The two Corvettes need to complete
4,778.75 miles to reach the 100,000-mile mark at Le Mans.
• 104,671: Approximate pounds of freight sent by Corvette Racing to Le Mans
by air and by sea!
• 289,913.28: Total number of racing miles completed by Corvette Racing
since its inception. To put that in perspective Apollo 13 – the longest
manned spaceflight in history – covered “just” 248,655 miles.
Corvette Racing at Le Mans (Wins in bold)
2000
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Chris Kneifel/Justin Bell – 4th in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins/Franck Freon – 3rd in GTS
2001
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Scott Pruett – 1st in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins/Franck Freon – 2nd in GTS
2002
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Oliver Gavin – 1st in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins/Franck Freon – 2nd in GTS
2003
No. 53 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Franck Freon – 3rd in GTS
No. 50 Corvette C5-R: Oliver Gavin/Kelly Collins/Andy Pilgrim – 2nd in GTS
2004
No. 63 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Max Papis – 2nd in GTS
No. 64 Corvette C5-R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen – 1st in
GTS
2005
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Max Papis – 2nd in GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen – 1st in
GT1
2006
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Max Papis – 7th in GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen - 1st in
GT1
2007
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Jan Magnussen – 2nd in
GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Max Papis – 14th in GT1
2008
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell/Jan Magnussen – 2nd in
GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Max Papis – 3rd in GT1
2009
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Johnny O'Connell/Antonio Garcia – 1st in
GT1
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Marcel Fässler – 4th in
GT1
2010
No. 63 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Johnny O'Connell/Antonio Garcia – 12th
in GT2 (DNF)
No. 64 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin/Emmanuel Collard – 10th
in GT2 (DNF)
2011
No. 73 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Tommy Milner/Antonio Garcia – 1st in
GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen/Richard Westbrook – 14th in
GTE Pro (DNF)
2012
No. 73 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 5th in
GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Richard Westbrook - 6th in
GTE Pro
2013
No. 73 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 4th in
GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Richard Westbrook – 7th in
GTE Pro
2014
No. 73 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 2nd in
GTE Pro
No. 74 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Richard Westbrook – 4th in
GTE Pro
2015
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Ryan Briscoe – DNS
(Qualifying crash)
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Jordan Taylor – 1st in GTE
Pro
2016
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Ricky Taylor – 7th in GTE
Pro
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Jordan Taylor – 10th in GTE
Pro (DNF)
2017
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 3rd in
GTE Pro
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Marcel Fässler – 8th in GTLM
2018
No. 63 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia/Mike Rockenfeller – 4th
in GTE Pro
No. 64 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner/Marcel Fässler – 15th in GTE
Pro (DNF)
CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: 20th Start in Hopes of Ninth Victory
Press Release:
Corvette program has set standard at 24 Hours for last two decades
CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: 20th Start in Hopes of Ninth Victory
Corvette program has set standard at 24 Hours for last two decades
• Corvette Racing seeks ninth class victory in competitive GTE Pro category
• Rockenfeller, No. 63 Corvette C7.R quickest in class on Test Day
• Six Corvette Racing drivers with 19 combined Le Mans victories
DETROIT (June 10, 2019) – For the 20th straight year, Corvette Racing is set
to take on the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Following a successful run on the Le
Mans Test Day last weekend, endurance racing’s premier GT sports car team
has put finishing touches on its preparations for a ninth class victory.
Corvette Racing has been a constant at Le Mans the past two decades. It has
generated a global following with its successes at Le Mans, fan-friendly
approach and roaring V8-powered Corvette race cars. This year’s Le Mans is
the sixth for the Chevrolet Corvette C7.R, which has recorded a victory and
two other podium finishes in that time.
There’s still plenty of life in the Corvette C7.R, has evidenced by its
showing on the June 2 Test Day. Mike Rockenfeller was the fastest GTE Pro
driver with the No. 63 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R that he
shares with full-season teammates Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen. In the
No. 64 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette, Tommy Milner set the Test Day’s
third-quickest time in class; he is driving with Marcel Fässler and
full-season teammate Oliver Gavin.
As has been standard practice, Corvette Racing did not concern itself with
outright speed and pace on the Test Day. Instead, the team worked toward
race setup by concentrating on items like tire compounds and pressure,
suspension components and other areas that will insure the two Corvettes
will be in the best possible position come Saturday and Sunday.
It’s a formula that has worked for 20 years. Since debuting at Le Mans in
2000, Corvette Racing has scored eight class victories and accumulated
nearly 100,000 racing miles at the 24 Hours. Very rarely has the Corvette
been quickest over a single lap, a testament to the team’s commitment to the
long game at Le Mans.
Corvette Racing also will try to carry over its momentum from the IMSA
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s early-season run to Le Mans. Garcia and
Magnussen, winners of the last two GT Le Mans (GTLM) titles, have reeled off
three straight podium finishes and sit second in points after four races… a
similar to start to their 2018 campaign.
And the GTLM champions before Garcia and Magnussen went back-to-back in
2017-18? That would be Milner and Gavin, who won the Rolex 24 At Daytona in
2016 with Fässler. The Gavin/Milner duo have showed front-running pace at
every IMSA race this season but have been snake bit with bad luck, although
they did finish third in class at Long Beach.
Le Mans is the final race in the FIA World Endurance Championship Super
Season. There is a total of 17 entries from five manufacturers in the GTE
Pro category.
The achievements by the collection of six Corvette Racing drivers can’t be
matched by any other entrant at Le Mans. The group has combined for 19
victories – an exemplary record at Le Mans:
• Antonio Garcia: Three victories in 13 appearances– 2008, 2009 and 2011;
runner-up in 2014; third place in 2017
• Jan Magnussen: Four victories in 20 appearances– 2004-06, 2009; runner-up
in 2003, 2007, 2008 and 2014; third place in 2017
• Mike Rockenfeller: Two victories in nine appearances– 2005 and 2010; third
place in 2012
• Oliver Gavin: Five victories in 18 appearances – 2002, 2004-06, 2015;
runner-up in 2003; third place in 2001 and 2008
• Tommy Milner: Two victories in 10 appearances– 2011 and 2015
• Marcel Fässler:Three victories in 13 appearances– 2011-12 and 2014;
runner-up in 2010; third place in 2015
The 24 Hours of Le Mans will air live on the MotorTrend Network with
coverage of practice, qualifying and the race on Radio Le Mans.
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “We’ve not
had a win in our Corvette since 2017. It’s been too long. We want to win for
sure in IMSA but I’d be more than OK if it happens at Le Mans! It’s also
been so long since I’ve won there. We have been close a couple times in the
last three or four years. I really want to win it again. Preparation is
always a good thing, and doing both the WEC and IMSA races at Sebring was a
good step. There were some revelations of how we can execute at Le Mans
instead of having to remember everything from a year ago. Everyone is
well-prepared. Let’s see if that’s enough. Le Mans is unique. Once you win
there, you want to do it again. The feeling of going across the line or when
you are on the podium is so intense… it’s one of the best feelings you can
ever have. All you want to do is get back up there.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “Everyone at
Corvette Racing has a lot of experience at Le Mans. But it’s not routine
going there. Yes there are things we do year in and year out in terms of how
we prepare ourselves and how you plan out the race. The race, the car and
the track are always at least a little bit from year to year. The last
couple of years we have been very competitive, and I believe that will be
the case again this year. We will concentrate on our own plan and trying to
execute that the best we can. As we’ve always done at Corvette Racing, we
try to stick to our own plan… not worry so much about what everyone else is
doing but have faith that our plan is good enough to win. And usually when
our plan comes together, we end up coming out on top.”
MIKE ROCKENFELLER, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “Le Mans
is so historical and such an old race with so many big racing moments and
heroes. That it isn’t a permanent track is unique. Those are just a few
things that make Le Mans special. It is hard to describe. When I first
started racing in a professional level, I went to Le Mans when I was 18 to
watch the race. I walked the track at night, saw the speed of the cars,
glowing brake discs, sparks flying off the cars as the drivers pushed their
cars to the limit all the time. That was an impression that I would never
forget. From that point on, Le Mans meant so much to me. It still does as I’m
back again with Corvette. We all are 100 percent focused on winning. That’s
the greatest feeling… to be on the podium with all those people below. I’ve
never had that feeling anywhere else in the world.”
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “Le Mans is a
unique beast; sometimes Le Mans it’s a beast that’s kind and is on your
side, and other times it is absolutely horrible and it’s completely against
you. You feel like you’re fighting against it the entire time you’re there.
But that’s a reason why it’s such an amazing race. You try to get some
influence over the race and shape it. If you can’t do that, then you’re a
little bit in the passenger’s seat and waiting for someone to make a
mistake. Every year you go there, it’s still quite unknown how you’re going
to go because things are so tight in our class. We had a good Test Day and
learned a lot. You can take all of those positives together and come up with
what we know, what we’ve got and what we all know collectively as drivers
and crew how things are going to go. Ultimately, you don’t find out if you’re
really in the race with a chance until Saturday afternoon or Saturday
evening.”
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “For the
whole of the program, Le Mans is No. 1 on our lists of goals to achieve each
year. From Corvette Racing’s side, this is a little bit of a one-off race
and unique for us. There is added emphasis on Le Mans. That comes from the
race itself – what Le Mans means, its history and its prestige. We get close
to that in the U.S. with Sebring, Daytona and Petit Le Mans. Those are
massive events that we all want to win. Not to take anything away from those
events and successes, but Le Mans has something a little more. That name has
a familiarity to it even to people who don’t follow racing. That all
translates to everyone’s best effort. Everything is just done that one
little notch higher or more intense. That comes with the territory of being
at this race. Being at Le Mans each year gives you goosebumps every time.”
MARCEL FÄSSLER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R:
“Preparation for Le Mans has been good. We tested at Road America and course
on the Le Mans Test Day. We also went to Charlotte for some work in the
Chevrolet simulator. This was a good chance to adapt ourselves again to the
Le Mans track. It was important to jump right into that to get up to speed
and stay on pace. Corvette Racing has so much experience in preparing a car
that needs to be up to battling for a victory at Le Mans because the
manufacturer competition will be very tough. I’m really looking forward to
this. I have three wins at Le Mans but never in GTE Pro, and this is
something I’d like to achieve with Oliver, Tommy and the Corvette Racing
team.”
05-25-2019, 03:05 PM
