Pair of Chevrolet Corvettes to roll off side-by-side at VIR
ALTON, Va. (Aug. 26, 2017) – With the race for the GT Le Mans championships heating up, Corvette Racing’s pair of Chevrolet Corvette C7.Rs will start side-by-side Sunday for the Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway. It’s the ninth race of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with two more remaining in a close title fight.
Tommy Milner qualified fifth Saturday in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R, just ahead of teammate Jan Magnussen in the No. 3 Corvette. Corvette Racing will go for its second straight VIR victory and third since 2012 when the GT-only race starts at 1:35 p.m. ET on Sunday live on FOX Sports 1.
Magnussen and teammate Antonio Garcia lead the GTLM Driver’s Championship while Chevrolet is one point out of the lead in the Manufacturer’s standings.
Both Corvettes were more than a half-second quicker than Magnussen’s pole-winning time from a year ago. Milner set a lap of 1:40.758 (116.834 mph) on Saturday in the No. 4 Corvette that he shares with Oliver Gavin. The pairing won the 2012 GT race at VIR in the team’s first trip to the venue.
Magnussen was right behind Milner at 1:40.802 (116.783 mph) as he and Garcia look for back-to-back VIR victories. In 2016, they led 84 of 90 laps, and Magnussen also led a 1-2 qualifying effort for the team with a then-record lap of 1:41.557 (115.8 mph).
Corvette Racing has won three times in 2017. Garcia and Magnussen won at Sebring and Circuit of The Americas while Gavin and Milner claimed victory at Long Beach.
The Michelin GT Challenge at VIR is set for 1:35 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 27. FOX Sports 1 will air the race live starting at 1:30 p.m. ET with live audio coverage from IMSA Radio and a Corvette Racing In-Car feed available on IMSA.com.
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – FIFTH IN GTLM:
“Ultimately in looking at the lap times, it was a good qualifying session for us. The Ford looks quick, Ferrari as expected was quick; we were a little surprised at the pace of the BMWs. But our Corvettes are good. We’ve done a good job with car setup and making the right changes. There’s still some work to do as we aren’t totally happy with things yet. It’s nice to see our lap times and being in the mix during the weekend. I think we look good for the race. VIR always has good racing, and hopefully tomorrow will bring more of the same.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – SIXTH IN GTLM:
“All in all, we’re not happy with the final result. We need to find a bit more in order to find with some of our quicker competitors. The run was pretty good. Even though we didn’t get the pole like we wanted… man, this is a fun lap when you are on new tires and low fuel! We have to have a good race and try to be faultless, quick and smart. That will get us as many points as we possibly can.”
Source:
CorvetteRacing.com
Related:
Corvette Racing at VIR: In Search of a Repeat on GT-Only Weekend
Corvette Racing Gains Additional Power with Favorable BoP Change Ahead of VIR
Corvette Racing at Road America: No. 3 Corvette Retains Points Lead
-
