No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R in thick of GTLM fight; No. 4 Corvette supporting team effort
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 29, 2017) – The 55th Rolex 24 At Daytona has reached and passed the halfway point with Corvette Racing in the thick of the GT Le Mans battle as the race stretched into Sunday morning. Antonio Garcia in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R ran seventh in GT Le Mans (GTLM) but was within striking distance of the team’s third straight victory at the twice-around-the-clock endurance classic.
Cold, rainy conditions persisted in the second quarter of the race. It made the racing surface extremely slippery with a number of cars spinning and being sent off-track. Although the No. 3 Corvette was a lap down to the GTLM leader, the start of the event’s second half looked to be no less treacherous.
One of the biggest problems for a majority of the field was trying to find proper pressures and getting heat into the tires. Garcia, Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia drove impressively to move the No. 3 Corvette to as high as second place.
The No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C7.R, the class-winner in 2016, recovered to eighth in class at halfway after contact with another GTLM competitor that resulted in a loss of power and a broken right-rear lower control arm. Gavin, Milner and Fässler all cycled through in the cold and wet conditions to help support the team’s strategy for the No. 3 Corvette.
The Rolex 24 was the site of Corvette Racing’s debut on Jan. 31, 1999. Since that first race, the team has competed in more than 170 events around the globe with 102 victories worldwide – including five wins in 2016 that led to a sweep of IMSA GTLM Manufacturer’s, Driver’s and Team championships for a total of 11 Manufacturer titles for Chevrolet.
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R
“The first two stints were quite OK. The track was super slippery but it was OK. I was kind of keeping pace with two or three cars that were faster but we could keep up. The last stint we missed a little bit on tire pressures. It was so incredibly difficult, and I was doing everything I could not to crash. Unfortunately the last stint was just about survival and nothing else. But hopefully everything will be good for now.”
MIKE ROCKENFELLER, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R:
“When I jumped in the car, it started to drizzle. We were on slicks. The car was in between gears when I jumped in. It didn’t show it on the dash. I was trying to leave and it didn’t leave. We lost some time there in the beginning. Then I just tried to find a rhythm. The rain increased but I thought we could stay out on slicks. But unfortunately, it was more rain constantly. Before we lost a lap, we decided to go with rain tires. I tried to push, but also to stay out of trouble. It is not easy because it is not really wet, but it isn’t dry. We are expecting more rain to come; it’s not to coming yet. So it is a challenge like we all know, but it is the same for everyone. The car is so far really good. I think we are lacking a little bit of pace, but the team is doing an awesome job to keep us close to the front. I hope we can stay trouble free-that is the key. We will see tomorrow. It is still very difficult conditions; super cold and slippery.”
MARCEL FÄSSLER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R:
“It was all of a sudden when I first lost my rearview camera and just at that moment I radioed to the team when the car completely shut down. I couldn’t reboot the system and tried many times to cycle the power. The first stint was really pretty good before one of the Fords tried to do something that was really unexpected and I think a little optimistic on his side. He hit me pretty hard on the back, and part of the suspension broke at the right-rear. That’s why we lost so much time and many laps. It’s very disappointing.”
Source:
CorvetteRacing.com
Related:
Corvette Racing to Race with Spare Chassis for the No.4 C7.R at the Rolex 24
Corvette Racing at Daytona: Focus Turns to Run for Fourth Rolex 24 Win
Corvette Racing at Daytona: How to Improve on Last Year’s Classic Finish?
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