Corvette Racing at Watkins Glen: Road to Redemption

Garcia, Taylor hope to rebound from Le Mans with Six Hours repeat

DETROIT (June 22, 2022) – While their run at the 24 Hours of Le Mans ended with disappointment, Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor and the rest of Corvette Racing’s squad in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship are back stateside for another shot at a long-distance race victory.

The Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen is the first race in the U.S. since May 1 for Corvette Racing and the rest for the field of competitors in the new GT Daytona (GTD) PRO category. Through five races, Garcia and Taylor stand second in Drivers points as does Chevrolet in the Manufacturers standings on the strength of a class victory at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.

The No. 3 Corvette also arrives at The Glen leading GTD PRO in the Michelin Endurance Cup – a championship made up of the WeatherTech Championship’s four long-distance races. Given recent success at The Glen, there’s a better than average chance that advantage remains going into the weekend.

Corvette Racing has three victories at Watkins Glen since 2014 – including two last year. Garcia and Taylor won in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) category in last year’s Sahlen’s Six Hours as well as the WeatherTech 240 sprint a race a week later.

Garcia is one of nine drivers to win more than once in the Sahlen’s Six Hours and has five podium finishes in his last five races at The Glen, while Taylor won for the first time in the event a year ago.

Chevrolet has a strong history of success in the race with 18 victories – second among active manufacturers.

The GTD PRO Corvette differs in several ways from the C8.R that ran at Watkins Glen in 2021. Chief among the differences are additional weight, restricted power and customer Michelin tires that are mandated for all GTD entries as opposed to Michelins specifically designed for the C8.R in GTLM trim.

Chevrolet Motorsports Display On-Site at The Glen

In addition to the many series and events on the racetrack at Watkins Glen, fans will have plenty to see and experience from Chevrolet. The Chevrolet Motorsports Display will be full of Chevy vehicles that spectators can learn more about throughout the weekend.

The Chevrolet Motorsports Display opens at 8 a.m. Friday through Sunday and is located in the Fan Midway at Watkins Glen International. Numerous Chevrolet vehicles and other highlights include:

• The 2023 Corvette Z06 convertible
• Additional Chevrolet products such as Blazer RS, Silverado ZR2, Camaro 2SS 1LE and Colorado ZR2
• A Corvette Racing C8.R showcar and LT6.R engine
• An opportunity to receive a 2022 Team Chevy t-shirt

Fans should also be on the lookout for an additional Corvette on the racetrack. A Corvette Stingray will serve as Official Pace Car for the two-hour Tioga Downs Casino race for the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge starting at 3:45 p.m. ET on Saturday.

The Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen is scheduled for 10:40 a.m. ET on Sunday, June 26. The race will stream live on Peacock with USA’s live television coverage beginning at 2 p.m. ETIMSA Radio will air all on-track sessions beginning at IMSA.com along with XM 207 and SiriusXM Online 992.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R:

“I really, really like this race. I enjoy the track a lot. I believe it was my very first race in America in GRAND-AM. We’ve generally been strong there. Being a six-hour race, there always is something going on. It might be a super-hot race, there may be rain storms… you never know what’s a race at Watkins Glen is going to be like. That’s why experience is a good thing to have there. I think I’ve run in every different condition there so I’m looking forward to going back in this new class and see how this spec of the C8.R fits in there.”

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R:

“Winning last year’s race was a big deal. It was always on my dad’s bucket list of races to win as a driver. I think it was the only endurance race that he hadn’t won. He won Daytona, Sebring, Petit Le Mans and Le Mans, so the one he always talked about was the Six Hours. The same was happening for me. I had gone all these years without winning it. I finished second a couple of times, I think, and it was always something little. To finally have everything click and work out was pretty special. It really kicked off our season last year with a good run of success.”

“Watkins Glen was always a cool race for me from obviously watching sports car racing but also being a fan of motorsport. It was one of the few natural-terrain road courses that Formula One used in America. Seeing old footage of Formula One cars around there and still having the classic blue guardrails to pay homage to the history is pretty special. To win at those types of tracks is really nice.”

2022 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – GTD PRO
(After four of 11 Events)

Driver Standings
1. Mathieu Jaminet/Matt Campbell – 1,345
2. Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 1,295
3. Ben Barnicoat/Jack Hawksworth – 1,265
4. Cooper MacNeil – 1,112
5. Alex Riberas/Ross Gunn – 1,106

Team Standings
1. No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports – 1,345
2. No. 3 Corvette Racing – 1,295
3. No. 14 VasserSullivan – 1,265
4. No. 79 WeatherTech Racing – 1,112
5. No. 23 Heart of Racing Team – 1,106

Manufacturer Standings
1. Porsche – 1,345
2. Chevrolet – 1,305
3. Lexus – 1,295
4. Mercedes-AMG – 1,220
5. BMW – 1,180

Source:
CorvetteRacing.com

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