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Rolex 24 BoP is out. BMW given more boost and less weight from the Roar. Little more wing angle for the Corvettes and Ford, which will slow down the top speed a little.
Caddy's as expected get more restrictive restrictors.
CORVETTE RACING AT DAYTONA: 20th Season, Title Defense Begin Now
Press Release:
CORVETTE RACING AT DAYTONA: 20th Season, Title Defense Begin Now
GTLM championship squad aiming for another Rolex 24 victory
Corvette Racing going for fourth Rolex 24 triumph
All six Corvette C7.R drivers with victories at Daytona
Team coming off solid showing after Roar weekend
Chevrolet most successful manufacturer at World Center of Racing
Fans can learn more about Chevy lineup at Corvette Racing Display, Chevrolet Injector, Chevrolet Experience Center
DETROIT (Jan. 19, 2018) – It’s time for Corvette Racing’s return to the biggest stage in North American sports car racing as it kicks off its 20th season of competition. The Rolex 24 At Daytona marks the first event of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and is a race that Corvette Racing will try to win for the third time in four years.
In a new season, Corvette Racing will attempt to add another chapter to its history-making record book. No modern sports car program can boast the longevity of Corvette Racing – the same team with the manufacturer (Chevrolet) and model of car (Corvette). It is a partnership that has resulted in 106 race victories around the world, 12 Manufacturer and Team championships in IMSA, and 11 Driver titles.
The two most recent came in 2016 and 2017 when Corvette Racing swept the IMSA GT Le Mans (GTLM) championships. The drive for a three-peat begins with the same collection of driver pairings for the Rolex 24 as the past two years. Defending GTLM champs Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen team up again with Mike Rockenfeller in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R. In the No. 4 Corvette, full-season teammates Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner will drive with Marcel Fässler in hopes of replicating their 2016 Daytona class victory and Driver championships for Gavin and Milner. The Corvette Racing program made its competition debut at Daytona in 1999 with a two-car effort. In 2001, one of the team’s Corvette C5-Rs won the race overall. The team returned to the Rolex 24 in 2014 and scored back-to-back victories in 2015 and 2016. This will mark Corvette Racing’s eighth Rolex 24. In the previous seven attempts, the team has totaled 8,730 racing laps and nearly 30,000 racing miles – more than the circumference of the Earth at the equator.
Of course, the team has racked up more miles at Daytona than just in the Rolex 24 itself. It completed more than 1,400 trouble-free miles earlier this month during the three-day Roar Before the 24. Gavin set the second-fastest GTLM lap of the weekend to give Corvette Racing a favorable pitlane and garage assignment. Since the 2014 Rolex 24 – the first race under the ALMS/GRAND-AM merger – no manufacturer or team has won more often in the WeatherTech Championship than Chevrolet and Corvette Racing. Team Chevy has 35 victories with 15 coming in GTLM with Corvette Racing. The Rolex 24 served as the first event for the Corvette Racing program in 1999, and one of the team’s Corvette C5-Rs finished third in class. Two years later, Corvette Racing won the race overall. Fast forward to the current era, and the program added class victories in both 2015 and 2016. The latter was the thrilling 1-2 finish that saw the No. 4 Corvette beat its sister entry by just 0.034 seconds. That is just one of more than 40 victories for Chevrolet across all motorsports events at Daytona, making it the most successful manufacturer at the World Center of Racing.
The 56th Rolex 24 At Daytona is the start of the 2018 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season and begins at 2:40 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 27. It will air on live on FOX from 2-5 p.m. ET on Saturday with additional coverage across FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports 2, FOX Sports Go and IMSA.com. Live audio coverage of practice, qualifying and the race from IMSA Radio is available on IMSA.com.
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “There are challenges every year. This year, the traffic will be different with a lot more prototypes than we have seen in the past. Staying out of trouble for the first 20 or 22 hours is even more important than it usually is. If we can manage to do that, stay in contact with the leaders and have good pace, we will have a really good shot at a win. Traffic will get crazy, especially with the number of rookies at this race – many who are experienced in other races but they are still rookies here. Let’s repeat what we have done the last three years here: no mistakes and no contact. If that’s enough, we would gladly take the win. If not, we will know that we have done the best we can.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “The challenge this year is the amount of drivers. There are a lot from series like Formula One and IndyCar; you name it and they all are here. But not all of them have endurance racing experience. It takes a lot of respect for each other out there to make it through without getting involved in incidents that end up costing you a trip back to the garage or even worse. It will be a tough year in that regard. Having now done three days of practice with this field, there is a feel of people not being as patient as they need to be. That can prove costly in the race.”
MIKE ROCKENFELLER, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “It always has been very difficult to be successful in this race. It gets more and more difficult because the competition is getting better and better. There are manufacturers here with new cars, and we all are aiming for the best. This is a big field with a number of new teams and new cars. And it’s all great. If you look at the field and the level of drivers in this race, it’s amazing. It always has been but this year feels more special. On our side, our Corvette is well-known in terms of reliability. We are trying to maximize every part of it and be on the limit in every area. We have to because last year we didn’t win the race when we didn’t have enough speed on the straights at the end. We are hoping for the best and trying hard. But it will be a difficult race like it always is at Daytona.”
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “When you look at the grid, there are a number of teams and drivers who are new to this. Some are a very experienced rookies, but there are others who aren’t so much. Having some of those teams and drivers who don’t have experience in multi-class racing is a big deal. The grid is always full and traffic is always a big thing here. Yes, the banking is wide and there is usually room to maneuver. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be any contact. There will always be incidents here. Yes you want to stay in touch with the leaders in your class, but you have to keep your car clean. With the level of talent in the Prototype category but the lack of experience of some of the really fast guys, it’s going to be pretty intense. Those first 12 hours will be wild… even until the sun comes up Sunday morning. You’ll have to have eyes everywhere.”
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “The number of new teams and new cars to this race, and drivers who are new to endurance racing and being out there are night… all of these things are going to be a huge part in being successful at Daytona this year. We at Corvette Racing have been in this position many times before at Daytona and longer events. More than ever, we are going to have a super-competitive fight in GTLM. That will take the majority of our focus. But we’ll be crossing our fingers not to get caught up in someone else’s accident. Being aware of all the new content and taking some extra caution around them at times could be beneficial. At the same time, you don’t to want to do anything that gets you out of position with the leaders so there is going to be a very important balancing act in this year’s race.”
MARCEL FÄSSLER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “In the end, the race itself is always the biggest challenge. Definitely having a number of unexperienced drivers in the other classes is something you have to pay attention to. For example, on restarts we know we have a bigger advantage with our Michelin tires in that they heat up much easier and faster than the prototypes. That can easily lead into mistakes, so that is an example of needing to concentrate fully during each of the 24 hours. Most importantly is having a car that is in one piece for the last two or three hours when the race is decided. This is always the key point. It’s easier to say than to do! But it’s how we have and continue to approach this race.”
DOUG FEHAN, CORVETTE RACING PROGRAM MANAGER: “We had a very smooth and largely trouble-free run at the Roar earlier this month. Now we will try to put it all into practice once again for the Rolex 24 At Daytona. It’s hard to put into words how far Corvette Racing has come since our first race here in 1999. The at-track team makeup is different, the cars are different and the stature of the event has grown tremendously. What hasn’t changed is our desire and expectation to succeed in this race. It takes a lot of skill, strategy and good fortune. By and large, no one has done that better or longer than Corvette Racing. We plan to use that to our advantage in hopes of a fourth Daytona victory.”
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CORVETTE RACING AT DAYTONA: GTLM Pole Position for Magnussen, No. 3 Corvette
Press Release:
CORVETTE RACING AT DAYTONA: GTLM Pole Position for Magnussen, No. 3 Corvette
Defending series champions off to strong start; Gavin encouraged with potential in No. 4 Corvette
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 25, 2018) – Twenty years after its competition debut at Daytona International Speedway, Corvette Racing will start Saturday’s Rolex 24 At Daytona from pole position in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) class. Jan Magnussen set the fastest time in qualifying Thursday in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R for the opening round of the 2018 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
Magnussen set a class-record lap of 1:42.779 (124.688 mph) in the Corvette he will share with Antonio Garcia and Mike Rockenfeller. It is the first pole position for Magnussen at Daytona and comes as he and Garcia begin defense of their GTLM Championship from 2017.
Oliver Gavin in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R qualified sixth at 1:43.453 (123.876 mph) after providing a nice tow for Magnussen in the first half of Thursday’s qualifying. He is teaming with Tommy Milner and Marcel Fässler; the trio teamed to win the Rolex 24 in 2016.
Corvette Racing’s first event was the 1999 Rolex 24, and the team will go for its fourth Daytona class victory – and third in four years - Saturday and Sunday.
It’s time for Corvette Racing’s return to the biggest stage in North American sports car racing as it kicks off its 20th season of competition. The Rolex 24 At Daytona marks the first event of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and is a race that Corvette Racing will try to win for the third time in four years.
Since the 2014 Rolex 24 – the first race under the ALMS/GRAND-AM merger – no manufacturer or team has won more often in the WeatherTech Championship than Chevrolet and Corvette Racing. Team Chevy has 35 victories with 15 coming in GTLM with Corvette Racing.
The Rolex 24 served as the first event for the Corvette Racing program in 1999, and one of the team’s Corvette C5-Rs finished third in class. Two years later, Corvette Racing won the race overall. Fast forward to the current era, and the program added class victories in both 2015 and 2016. The latter was the thrilling 1-2 finish that saw the No. 4 Corvette beat its sister entry by just 0.034 seconds.
That is just one of more than 40 victories for Chevrolet across all motorsports events at Daytona, making it the most successful manufacturer at the World Center of Racing.
The 56th Rolex 24 At Daytona is the start of the 2018 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season and begins at 2:40 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 27. It will air on live on FOX from 2-5 p.m. ET on Saturday with additional coverage across FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports 2, FOX Sports Go and IMSA.com. Live audio coverage of practice, qualifying and the race from IMSA Radio is available on IMSA.com.
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – GTLM POLE WINNER: “To be honest, I’m a little bit surprised that we found that kind of speed for qualifying, but it was a good lap paired with a massive tow from my teammate. Fantastic lap with fantastic help from Olly (Gavin). It helped me a lot. Being that close up front that for sure mattered. But the race is a different matter. This feels super great right now, but it comes down to that this really doesn’t matter at all. But it is to show everybody that the car is fast and we are on to something that worked.
"I am super pleased. I have to say I am a little bit surprised with the result. Nobody on the team thought we were going to be able to go for pole, but the lap came together fantastically. On top of that, I had a super big tow from Olly, and he didn't mess with me. It came together and it’s a lot faster than we have been here at any time before. It is a good feeling for the team to have pole position. Today it means a lot, but after that it doesn't mean anything. It is a long race, but it does pump the team up and give us a good feeling for the race. Usually when you have a fast car in qualifying, it translates to a fast car in the race. We will be racing in a lot of different conditions so it is a matter of figuring out the race pace and staying out of trouble so you are there for the end when possibility weather is going to roll in.
"It is special because it is pole position and it is special because it coincides with the 20th year. Being on pole is a fantastic feeling. But this is a long, long race. Starting up front can matter. These races have been won and lost by a very, very short margin so where you start does play into the end result in the way that you can do strategies and plan your race. It is a long race and anything can happen. But we have a perfect starting point and we will try to use it to our advantage."
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – QUALIFIED SIXTH IN GTLM: “We’ve done well today. To get Jan up there on pole is fantastic for the team, but we know this race is all about those last couple of hours on Sunday afternoon. Where you start isn’t completely irrelevant, but it has such a small influence in the outcome of the race. We didn’t really plan to tow one another around, but that’s the way it worked out. Jan really hit the sweet spot with the Michelin tire and got a really good tow from me. So it’s great for the team to have a Corvette on pole. For us on the 4 Corvette, we were missing a little bit on the infield but we know what we need to do. Once I got back up on Jan and he started to repay the favor, the tires were gone and so it was a bit of a scramble. I hustled it around to squeaked out a little better lap time. Starting sixth is fine. We’ve been thinking all week about what we need for the race. And I think we’ve steadily been zeroing in on that setup. We’re close… just a couple of tweaks.”
Corvette racing rolex 24 press conference transcript
Press Release:
IMSA WEATHERTECH SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP
ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA
CORVETTE RACING PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
JANUARY 26, 2018
JIM CAMPBELL, CHEVROLET U.S. VICE PRESIDENT, PERFORMANCE VEHICLES AND MOTORSPORTS; DOUG FEHAN, CORVETTE RACING PROGRAM MANAGER; AND CORVETTE RACING DRIVERS OLIVER GAVIN AND JAN MAGNUSSEN, met with members of the media today at Daytona International Speedway to discuss the 20th season of competition for Corvette Racing. FULL TRANSCRIPT:
JIM, WELCOME BACK TO DAYTONA. I KNOW THIS PLACE IS VERY SPECIAL FOR YOU. THIS ONE MUST BE EVEN MORE SPECIAL.
JIM CAMPBELL: “It’s great to be with everybody. Daytona is special because this is where it started for this program in January of 1999. It was a special beginning of an amazing journey that is now going into its 20th year. We couldn’t have been prouder of the teamwork that has been demonstrated year after year and race by race by this program. We are extremely proud that this is the 199th event for Corvette Racing, and we have 106 victories including three wins here in seven times with Corvette. Obviously 2001 was uniquely special with Ron Fellows, Johnny O’Connell, Chris Kniefel and Franck Freon because they not only won the class but won overall. There has been a lot of success with this program with 12 Manufacturer Championships and 11 Driver Championships. What I’m really proud of are the back-to-back championships – Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen last year, and Tommy Milner the year before. So we begin the journey here again.
“Tech transfer… what we have learned on the racetrack has helped us for sure build better Corvettes and better Corvette powertrains for the showroom and street. Learning through this series has helped us tremendously. The Corvette customers and owners are the reason we do this program. We couldn’t do it without their passion and support.”
IT’S YOUR 20TH SEASON BUT ALSO YOUR 15TH WITH MICHELIN. HOW KEY HAS THAT BEEN FROM A RACING AND AUTOMOTIVE STANDPOINT?
JIM CAMPBELL: “Our relationship with Michelin is very special not only on the OEM side but also on the racing side. We made a switch in racing first. When we went to Michelin, and we saw terrific results and a partnership on the track, which is a combination of the tire technology and also the preparation of the cars and strategy. Then we put Michelins on our highest performance Corvette models – models like the Z06 and ZR1 in the sixth generation. Now in the seventh generation, which we are deep into now, all of our Corvettes have Michelin tires. The engineer on our race program – Lee Willard from Michelin – is the same engineer who works with Tadge Juechter, our chief engineer on the production Corvette. We take the learnings right from the track. It’s not just a saying. It’s what we do. We drive that technology to make the road car better. Michelin is part of that equation for us.”
FOR OLIVER, WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST CONCERN GOING INTO THE WEEKEND? AND DO YOU DRIVE A CORVETTE ON YOUR PERSONAL TIME?
“My biggest concern I suppose is the traffic here. During the night is quite a challenge. Certainly there are a lot of prototype cars. There is a high level of rookies in the race. Some of them are very young and are coming into sports car racing for the first time. So you have to predict how they are going to behave and react to that on the circuit. This race has a habit of seeing things happen at night, but in the last two hours everyone seems to get back together and you have this mad dash to the line. You want to keep your car in one piece and your driver somewhat fresh for the last two hours.
“And yes! I do drive a Corvette Z06 at home. It’s a huge amount of fun and I really enjoy it!”
DOUG, THIS TEAM HAS HAD SO MUCH SUCCESS HERE. DO YOU LOOK AT THAT SUCCESS WHEN YOU PUT THE STRATEGY TOGETHER, OR DO YOU NEED TO START ALMOST FROM SCRATCH EVERY YEAR?
DOUG FEHAN: “If anyone has a strategy for a 24-hour race, I’d like to meet them and find out what that is. It has evolved into a 24-hour sprint race. The green flag drops, you hammer it as hard as you can and you follow three simple things: keep it on the track, don’t break anything and don’t run into anybody. If you can do those three things for 24 hours and you have a darn good chance of being up front. The equipment today across the board is so reliable and at such a performance level that you don’t take it easy for the first six hours, take it easy and then see where you are. If you aren’t prepared to run on the lead lap for every lap, you aren’t prepared to win. That’s the way you have to approach this race.”
JAN, YOU’RE STARTING ON POLE TOMORROW IN GTLM. WHAT IS YOUR MINDSET FOR THE START?
JAN MAGNUSSEN: “The way the racing has been here at Daytona the last couple of years has been pretty much sprint racing between pit stops. Doug is right… you can’t go out and damage the car and put yourself in a bad position early on. At the same time, you have to be in the fight and you have to push the other guys to try and see what they have for the end of the race while at the same time keep your car in one piece to hand it off to the next guy perfectly every time. It is the last two hours that are important, but there is a lot of work that goes on before that when we have a chance to do small setup changes to the car to make sure everything is right for the end of the race. The track changes a lot over 24 hours, so we have to work with the car and Michelin to make sure we have the best and fastest car possible. I’m as careful as I can be to hand the car over to the next guy, but we’re racing. Everyone is pushing hard. You’ll have 8-10 cars running nose to tail throughout. It’s a race from the beginning.”
THE DRIVERS JUST CAME FROM THE CORVETTE CORRAL AND HUNG OUT WITH THE CORVETTE OWNERS THAT ARE HERE. WHAT KIND OF EXCITEMENT DO THEY GENERATE FOR YOU?
JIM CAMPBELL: “The Corvette customers and owners – whether they are here or following around the world – are the reason we do this program. We want to learn on the racetrack to make the production car for the road even better in every respect. I think we’ve done that. The passion and loyalty to Corvette and Chevrolet… we see it increase every year. It’s been a fantastic journey for the last 20 years.
“There are some Corvette customers in the Corral this weekend who were here with Doug and I in 1999 when we were here. They parked their Corvettes on the backstretch. We rented the two suites that used to be back there, and they stayed up with us all night in support of us. Many of them are still here, and there are a lot of new ones who joined us along the way.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN: “It’s a great feeling every time we go and visit the Corvette Corral and see all the cars that they drive to support us. There’s always a lot of new faces, but there also are a bunch of people who come year after year, and race after race. It’s the same people you meet at each track. I’ve been with the team for the 15th season, and we are all very friendly with each other. They are so happy to be there, to ask about the race and how our families are doing. It’s a very nice feeling. There are a lot of jobs for drivers on the weekend. Most of it is stressful and you don’t want to do it! You want to concentration on what you are supposed to be doing. But the Corral is a very nice place to go to see people who are there rooting for you, that are there for you, winning with you and losing with you.”
OLIVER GAVIN: “All the fans in the Corvette Corral are very passionate. They’re always asking us about stuff on the racecar but also on things like the new Corvette ZR1 that just came out. That was a pretty exciting car that I managed to do a little bit of work on with Tadge and the team at Michelin. That car has now come out so there are questions about that phenomenal piece. That absolutely sums out how the Corvette Racing program has worked with the road car guys in developing and bringing that technology from the track to the road – whether you’re looking at aero pieces or tires technologies. Those are the things they want to ask us about and talk about. You feel like it’s part of a passionate family. It’s fantastic.”
DOUG FEHAN: “We have to think about something here when we talk about Corvette Corral. In our last full year of production, we built and sold 40,689 Corvettes. For all intents and purposes, our advertising and marketing is here at the racetrack and at the Corvette Corral. When a marketing department talks about knowing their customer, they can tell you that he or she is 54 years old, has an average income of some number, two kids in college and one pet. At Corvette and Corvette Racing, we know our customers as Jim and Charley and their dog, Herbie… all of which at some point in time we have autographed or autographed something for them! The Corvette Corral gives us a very unique glance into our customer. It gives us the ability to drive that passion in them to continue to buy our product. We are here for one reason: to sell cars. That’s the bottom line. We just happen to use one of the most exciting environments in the world to do so. It’s been very effective for us at Corvette Racing. The Corvette Corral is far more than just glad-handing. It’s our marketing tool. We bring in those customers in and we make them feel part of our family. We have achieved that, and those sales numbers are a testament to that. The Corvette Corral is an invaluable tool for us to sell vehicles.”
JIM, GIVEN THAT THE DAYTONA 500 IS COMING UP IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS, WHAT IS YOUR GOAL FOR THE NEW CAMARO (ZL1 IN THE MONSTER ENERGY SERIES)?
“We are definitely looking forward to bringing the Camaro ZL1 to the racetrack. If you look the Gen Six car, which was the Chevrolet SS, that vehicle on the road had a fuel-injected V8, rear-wheel drive and manual transmission for the showroom. The race car was a fuel-injected V8, rear-wheel drive and manual transmission for the track. It was the most authentic entry in NASCAR from track to showroom. We wanted to keep that principle intact as we went forward, and Camaro was the right place for us to do it. The ZL1 is a very special moniker within Chevrolet. In the first generation, it was the highest horsepower Camaro we offered. We brought the ZL1 moniker back in the fifth generation as the most powerful and most capable Camaro. And we did it again in 2017 with the sixth-generation of the Camaro with the ZL1 and ZL1 1LE, which we actually introduced here at Daytona. That connection point is very important. And by the way, we race Camaro in the Xfinity Series, we race it in the Pirelli World Challenge GTS category, and we race it in the NHRA Stock, Super Stock Sportsman classes and up through Funny Car. This is another logical extension for us with racing the Camaro in the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series.
Press Release:
IMSA WEATHERTECH SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP
ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA
CORVETTE RACING DRIVER QUOTES – HALFWAY
JANUARY 26, 2018
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 28, 2018) – The first half of the Rolex 24 At Daytona is in the books with Corvette Racing squarely in podium contention following the first 12 hours of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season. Both Chevrolet Corvette C7.Rs were keeping pressure on the lead pair in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) category as late Saturday moved into early Sunday.
Mike Rockenfeller was just off the lead GTLM lap in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R that he shares with class pole-winner Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia. Each of the three drivers cycled through twice in the opening 12 hours with both Magnussen and Garcia triple-stinting in the darkness.
Marcel Fässler in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R ran fourth following a double-stint by Oliver Gavin and a triple from Tommy Milner. Those were Fässler’s first laps after a tense initial run in rainy conditions with slick tires.
Both Corvettes had a lap in-hand over the fifth-place entry.
The next Corvette Racing update from the Rolex 24 will come shortly after the 18-hour mark.
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: (Were drivers behaving more than before? “No, not really. I guess it depends on what driver rotation they are doing. It is quite random driving out there. You have to be careful and do your best to stay on the lead lap. With only two yellows and all that traffic, there was no point in risking any damage to keep it on the lead lap. I struggled on the first stint and tried to stay with the leaders. There aren’t any cautions to get our lap back. The Ford guys stayed out when we did to keep us from doing that. There are still 13 hours to go. For sure at some point we will get it back. I am confident in that. We need to keep the car safe and see what we all have in the end.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “That was a tough triple for me. It was wet, then it was dry and we went on slick tires on kind of drying conditions. It wasn’t too bad but not great either. I’m not finding the speed like I think I should, so I don’t know what exactly is going on. But we are there. We haven’t hit anything or destroyed anything. We are still in there with a good shot. We need to see how the track develops. The way it is going right now is a little bit weird and I’m not sure it suits our car so much.”
ARE OTHER DRIVERS BEHAVING MORE THAN AT THE START? “No, not really. We are still getting dive-bombed late in places where it shouldn’t happen. Not a lot of incidents out there yet but not a lot of respect, either.”
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “It was a pretty lonely couple of stints, really. I think I saw one Porsche and one BMW from our class. Apart from that, I was battling with prototype and GTD traffic. I don’t know what it is… the drivers who are less experienced need to go and get a good night’s sleep. They had to be out there around about my time. There was some real choice driving out there. But everything is still on the car and everything is still straight. We just keep looking after it and doing all we can do have everything right for when the sun comes up and we can get to those last couple hours. We are closer on pace but I’m not sure we are going to have enough outright speed. We will see how the track develops and how we get on come morning.
“I am absolutely astounded that we haven’t had more cautions or retirements or any big incidents. With some of the driving, you just think it’s going to happen. But it hasn’t yet.”
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE: “Traffic ebbs and flows a little bit as the race goes on. You can tell guys at some times are really on it and sometimes they aren’t. I feel like we are just feeling the car out and figure out what we have, where we are strong compared to the other guys and where we’re not. I was talking to Rich Brekus at Cadillac this morning, and he said, ‘You drivers always say it’s a 24-hour race and we have to be there in the end.’ He wasn’t sure how much we listen to our own advice! So I’m going to keep repeating myself just to drum it into my head and hopefully it’ll stick that way.”
MARCEL FÄSSLER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R: “My HANS was hurting but my arm is not so much hurting now (after the first stint). It was very slippery out there, I have to say. For sure it was a brave move to stay out but I think we needed to try. It didn’t rain long, so it was the right call to try this. The big thing was not to take so many risks, so I’m pretty happy. The car is still in one piece. We are still in the game, and that is what is important.”
I have a absolute opinion that the balance of power sucks...really felt that way for a long time...wait...wasn't it in the past that some cars or manufactures or engine/chassis were dominant...then this idea of penalizing the guy for building a better mouse trap and giving some advantage to the guy for building a not as good mouse trap...now that makes a lot of sense...if you build not as good mouse trap...own it and build a better one...there are some folks out there that already are saying ... The ford gt was given that advantage in the balance of power...question....are there some folks in imsa's technical division for regulating the bop that couldn't see that or just missed the mark completely...really
Do you remember C5R in GTS category? It's what happens when BoP doesn't happen; one manufacturer becomes dominant, others give up and change venues. So, you end up with a winning design that has no one to play with.
BoP is, honestly, a necessary evil to get people to compete.
I have a absolute opinion that the balance of power sucks...really felt that way for a long time...wait...wasn't it in the past that some cars or manufactures or engine/chassis were dominant...then this idea of penalizing the guy for building a better mouse trap and giving some advantage to the guy for building a not as good mouse trap...now that makes a lot of sense...if you build not as good mouse trap...own it and build a better one...there are some folks out there that already are saying ... The ford gt was given that advantage in the balance of power...question....are there some folks in imsa's technical division for regulating the bop that couldn't see that or just missed the mark completely...really I AM NOT A SORE LOSER...I AM JUST A PASSIONATE RACE FAN THAT LOVES TO SEE A RACE THAT BRINGS OUT THE BEST IN RACE TEAMS AND TECHNOLOGY...The idea of not having as many yellows in the 24 hours of Daytona should be a perfect example why the bop sucked...no one was even close to catching those guys...no one but there own team
The Ford GT was designed for low drag via low height at high speeds for two tracks -Daytona and LeMans. The BoP can really only address so much. They do not seem to be nearly as good on "technical tracks" like Sebring. The C7R's did quite well today with 3rd and 4th. They will get almost as many points as Ford and kick their a$$ in a month at Sebring.
The interesting part of the race to me was the Cadillac DPi engine issues. Two observations : 1) since when does a small block Chevy V-8 in a Dallara chassis become a Cadillac ? It's the closest thing to an ME C8.R as anything on that track today. 2) what other engine in that race could run the pace those Action Express cars ran to win 1-2 overall, with overheated engines for HALF the race, (probably due to undersized radiators) ? These Chevy small block direct-injected V-8's are no doubt, the toughest, most reliable engines in sports car racing !
IIRC, the track is 3.5 miles.
If that is correct, mathematics says the race was 2,828 miles long.
Originally Posted by dcbingaman
The interesting part of the race to me was the Cadillac DPi engine issues. Two observations : 1) since when does a small block Chevy V-8 in a Dallara chassis become a Cadillac ? It's the closest thing to an ME C8.R as anything on that track today. 2) what other engine in that race could run the pace those Action Express cars ran to win 1-2 overall, with overheated engines for HALF the race, (probably due to undersized radiators) ? These Chevy small block direct-injected V-8's are no doubt, the toughest, most reliable engines in sports car racing !
Rather than thinking of the 6.2L used by Action Express as "Cadillac," I like to think of them as "GM" engines.
