Damp, traffic-filled time trials ahead of 10-hour enduro to close the C8.R era
BRASELTON, Ga. (October 13, 2023) – Corvette Racing will start second in the GT Daytona (GTD) PRO class after qualifying for Saturday’s 10-hour Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
Antonio Garcia qualified the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R on Friday with a time of 1:24.009 (108.728 mph) in the entry he will share with Jordan Taylor and Tommy Milner. It was the last qualifying run in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for the C8.R, which will give way to the new Corvette Z06 GT3.R in 2024.
Garcia was sixth-fastest among all GT drivers Friday in a damp but drying 15-minute qualifying session. A persistent light rain eased just before the start of the session with the Corvette going out on rain tires – like the rest of the GTD PRO field. A combined 25 GTD cars were on track at the same time for the qualifying session, making it challenging to find space and a clear track.
Saturday’s weather should be much improved, which could swing a little bit of momentum toward Corvette as Garcia was quickest in class during Thursday afternoon’s dry practice session.
There would no better way to end the season and the life of the C8.R by winning Petit Le Mans for the first time since 2010. A victory at 2.54-mile, 12-turn Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta would mean a first victory in Petit Le Mans for both Garcia and Milner, plus give Taylor a victory in his final event with Corvette Racing before returning to prototype competition next year.
Corvette Racing also can win the class title in the Michelin Endurance Cup – a four-race championship made up of the WeatherTech Championship’s long-distance rounds: the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen and Petit Le Mans. Garcia and Taylor, Chevrolet and the No. 3 C8.R squad sit second in the Drivers, Manufacturers and Teams standings, respectively, with three points to lead. Points are awarded at the four-, eight- and 10-hour marks of Petit Le Mans.
The 10-hour Petit Le Mans from Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta is scheduled for 11:40 a.m. ET on Saturday, October 14. The race will air live on USA beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET and with the full race stream beginning at 11:35 a.m. on Peacock inside the United States and IMSA.com outside the U.S. IMSA Radio will air the race at IMSA.com with the race call also on XM 207 and SiriusXM Online 992.
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R:
“Not a good session. It was pretty bad not knowing where I was. We went out thinking we would have a shot but right away I saw that the track was very dry. I was out on the track with everyone coming, so I played nice and let everybody by to the point where I launched myself in second gear coming to start/finish instead of accelerating out Turn 12 because I was still kind of moving out of the way. My first lap was a 24.6 but I caught traffic and would have probably been an easy 1:23. It was just a point of where everyone was, trying to play nice and getting out of the way of everyone. By the time I could push again, the grip in the tires was not back to what I had on the very first lap.”
2023 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – GTD PRO
(After 10 of 11 events)
Driver Standings
1. Ben Barnicoat/Jack Hawksworth – 3,495
2. Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 3,307
3. Daniel Juncadella/Jules Gounon – 3,268
4. Klaus Bachler/Patrick Pilet – 3,230
5. Alex Riberas/Ross Gunn – 3,122
Team Standings
1. No. 14 Vasser Sullivan – 3,495
2. No. 3 Corvette Racing – 3,307
3. No. 79 WeatherTech Racing – 3,268
4. No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports – 3,320
5. No. 23 Heart of Racing Team – 3,122
Manufacturer Standings
1. Lexus – 3,495
2. Chevrolet – 3,307
3. Mercedes-AMG – 3,268
4. Porsche – 3,230
5. Aston Martin – 3,133
Source:
Corvette Racing at Chevrolet
Related:
Corvette Racing at Petit Le Mans: Win…and Nothing Else
Corvette Racing at Indianapolis: Difficult Brickyard Return
Corvette Racing at Fuji: Third-Place Run for No. 33 C8.R UPDATE: Second Place after Post-Race Penalty
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 PRO class after qualifying for Saturday’s 10-hour Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.){kind=link}
Terrible race for Lexus and Corvette. Both out early.
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