LONG BEACH, Calif. (Sept. 25, 2021) – Corvette Racing’s Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy won their second straight race in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on Saturday – a GT Le Mans (GTLM) victory in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach with the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R.

Milner passed No. 3 Corvette Racing teammate Jordan Taylor near the 50-minute mark, and Tandy drove a traffic-filled final stint as the Corvette Racing program won for the eighth time at the southern California street event. It’s the second street circuit win of the year for the Milner/Tandy duo, which also won a non-points race in June at Detroit’s Belle Isle circuit.

Milner won for the fourth time his career at Long Beach while Tandy took his second victory there.
Tandy took a 0.75-second victory over Antonio Garcia, Taylor’s teammate in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C8.R. The runner-up result did move Garcia and Taylor closer to their second straight GTLM Drivers Championship and a repeat Manufacturers crowd for Chevrolet.

As is typically the case at Long Beach, traffic played a huge role throughout the 100-minute sprint. Taylor began on pole position with Milner never more than two seconds behind. The ebb and flow of being passed by faster prototypes but passing slower GT Daytona (GTD) cars caused the gap between the two C8.Rs to fluctuate throughout.

The winning move came at the race’s halfway point as Taylor was balked by a GTD car, which allowed Milner to find some extra momentum and get alongside his teammate just before the short backstretch. The two Corvettes ran in that order before Taylor made the No. 3 Corvette’s only stop of the race with 41 minutes to go. Milner came in a lap later for the switch-over to Tandy, who rejoined the race in the lead and clear of Garcia by about two seconds.

As was the case in the first part of the race, traffic made Tandy’s lead grow and shrink over the course of a lap. But neither Corvette driver put a foot wrong for the final stint.

Corvette Racing’s next event is the Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway on Oct. 8-9.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – SECOND IN GTLM: «Obviously you always want to win. The pit cycle didn’t go our way and we lost track position right before the stop. From that point on, we didn’t have the advantage of over-cutting so we had to pit early. The car was really good. Even if I had a two- or three-second deficit initially, I was able to catch back up again to Nick. As we saw, it’s almost impossible to pass unless you hit traffic the right way. That’s the main thing. I stayed where I was and wait for a mistake and a little traffic. On a street circuit, you can’t risk it like if we were fighting another manufacturer. You want to win but you always know that is your teammate, too. It was fun to go flat-out around this track, and I could tell Nick was trying hard, too.» 

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – SECOND IN GTLM: «It wasn’t a bad race and to finish second. It definitely was tricky with traffic. Some guys did not want to lift or let anyone go, which was frustrating but it’s part of the race. Everyone has to deal with it. So another good day for Corvette Racing with a 1-2 finish. For us in the 3 car, I think we’re pretty close to the championship. It opens things up to take more risks the next races, which will be fun.»

MONTEREY, Calif. (Sept. 12, 2021) – Corvette Racing’s Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy took a hard-earned victory in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s GT Le Mans (GTLM) category Sunday with their second win of the season in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R.

The duo scored a one-lap victory – their first full-points win of the year – at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca for Corvette Racing’s first triumph there since 2014. It came as the program marked 23 consecutive years of racing on the Monterey Peninsula.

GTLM Drivers Championship leaders Antonio García and Jordan Taylor placed second in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette as the pair of mid-engine C8.Rs combined to lead every lap Sunday.

Milner and Tandy won a non-points race earlier this year at Detroit, and the No. 4 Corvette also won a 100-minute qualifying race ahead of the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January. Sunday was a break-through for the pairing in scoring maximum race points.

Milner started second in class and drove the first 58 minutes of the two-hour, 40-minute race before handing over to Tandy, who drove a double-stint to the end. He finished a lap clear of the sister Corvette as each car in the category made two stops due to a two-hour, 26-minute, green-flag run to the finish.

Taylor led for the entirety of his stint to open things in the No. 3 Corvette, which was the first of the C8.Rs to stop at the 51-minute mark. He handed off to García, equipped with a full tank of fuel and fresh Michelin tires. Milner followed suit a couple of laps later, and Tandy set off in hot pursuit of the No. 3 C8.R.

He and Garcia engaged in a spirited battle with the two exchanging fastest GTLM race laps multiple times. Tandy, who set a GTLM track record at 1:21.827 (98.461 mph), got alongside his teammate at one point and inherited the lead for good when García made his final stop with 49 minutes left.

The No. 4 Corvette came in a lap later and came out just ahead of García, despite a trip through the gravel along Laguna Seca’s winding pitlane exit. Undeterred, Tandy slowly but steadily built a gap over García to the end of the race.

Corvette Racing returns to action at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Saturday, Sept. 25.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – SECOND IN GTLM: «It was good for a 1-2 finish for Corvette and that we could cover the Porsche on any possible strategy. Having such a clean race with just one yellow made things a tiny bit easier. Today it went our way. Another Corvette 1-2 even if it was another super-tight battle with our teammates. Those are always fun to have. As I’ve said many times, there is no worse adversary than your teammates because they have the same tools. Whatever advantage you have they have it too, and whatever weakness you have they have the same. This time the win went to Tommy and Nick. They were just a tiny bit better than us, but I’m happy we showed well and had a nice, clean race between the two Corvettes. I gave everything I had, for sure. I didn’t have anything else.»

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – SECOND IN GTLM: “It’s a little disappointing not to get the win. At the same time it was a good day for Corvette Racing with another 1-2 finish. It was nice for the 4 car guys to get the monkey off their backs. We had a good Corvette. From the pole, leading most of the race and with the pit stop cycle and strategy, we just missed it a little bit. In these races, you can’t make any little mistakes. Once the yellow came out at the beginning, it kind of put everyone on a three-stop strategy. There were some options for a three-stop but you needed it to be green the whole race for that to work. Once the yellow came out at the beginning, everyone was locked in to the same strategy. But it wasn’t a bad day for the championship, so we can look forward to Long Beach and focus on that one.”

LE MANS, France (Aug. 22, 2021) – The mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette C8.R finished on the class podium in its 24 Hours of Le Mans debut Sunday with the trio of Antonio García, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg placing second in the No. 63 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C8.R.

The debut of the mid-engine racing Corvette came a year later than originally planned due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. But the wait proved worth it with Corvette Racing showing its usual competitive spirit during its 21st race at Le Mans since 2000.

«Today’s second-place result in GTE Pro for the No. 63 Corvette C8.R and drivers Antonio García, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg is a significant achievement as we debuted the mid-engine Corvette C8.R at Le Mans,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S Vice President, Performance and Motorsports. “To be on the podium at Le Mans with the C8.R is very gratifying. It’s a testament to the hard work and determination of our Corvette production and racing teams.

«The support of Corvette owners and fans from around the world has been incredible,” Campbell added. “This race result is dedicated to our customers and supporters.”

While the No. 63 Corvette ran in contention for the entire race, the No. 64 C8.R of Tommy Milner, Nick Tandy and Alexander Sims seemingly ran into nothing but bad luck. It began on the roll-off from the grid when Milner was hit from behind by the eventual class-winning Ferrari at the beginning of the formation lap.

The contact broke part of the diffuser, but the No. 64 Corvette ran well early and even led in a wet start with Milner going to the fore. He and Tandy cycled through and kept the No. 64 C8.R in contention before the diffuser finally broke in the fifth hour shortly after Sims’ first stint.

It was the first of three visits to the garage for the No. 64 team, which also had to repair part of the gearbox, clutch and the alternator. Milner, Tandy and Sims – who set a GTE Pro record race lap of 3:47.501 – finished sixth in class.

On the No. 63 Corvette side of the garage, all three drivers drove double stints to open the race. Each of the trio led for a time as well as the race began to evolve into primarily a battle between Corvette and Ferrari, although five cars remained on the lead lap in GTE Pro at the halfway point.

Things began evolve into a two-car race into the final six hours between the No. 63 C8.R and No. 51 Ferrari. The Corvette team kept it close and was able to triple-stint its Michelin tires in the late going but couldn’t make up the necessary ground.

The No. 63 Corvette did, however, complete the entire 24 hours without a change of brakes.

Corvette Racing returns to action in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on Sept. 10-12 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED SECOND IN GTE PRO: «I don’t know if I prefer to be two seconds, 10 seconds, 40 seconds or three laps back. I think it hurts the same! We’ve been in that 30-second range between the two cars pretty much for 24 hours. I must say it does hurt a little bit. When you come so close, it’s difficult. But when you do your best, you run almost a perfect race and someone else does it a little better than you, you have to congratulate them. There is nothing we could do. I think we ran a perfect race regardless of our position. We finished second but very close for sure. They just did it 40 seconds better than us. I’m very happy for the team, the 63 crew, Jordan and Nicky – all six drivers had really, really good drives and helped develop this Corvette and for sure all the engineers. So even if the 64 had so much trouble, getting up to this point we have all been working together to get the most out of the C8.R. For sure, two of our cars up front would have put even more pressure on the 51. We were both alone so it was a one-on-one fight between Corvette and Ferrari. We were close. When you are up on the podium, you always want a tiny bit more. I would have liked to have given Corvette the first Le Mans win in the C8.R. Now we need to wait until next year and work harder.»

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R  – FINISHED SECOND IN GTE PRO: «That’s my fourth podium here. It’s hard to complain with a podium at Le Mans. But when you come this close, it’s difficult to take. The Corvette Racing guys did an amazing job. We didn’t have any issues with our car. We executed really well strategy-wise and in the pitlane and on the track, there were no mistakes. For our first run at Le Mans with the C8.R, we should be pretty proud of that to come home second against some cars that have run here the past few years. We learned a lot as a team and can come back stronger next year.»

NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED SECOND IN GTE PRO: «It’s super nice. This is my third time at Le Mans, and the first two times we finished nowhere. To be in the fight right to the last lap was very cool. It went well. The C8.R was very good. I had some good stints and nothing really bad happened. I will go home with some positive feelings. P2 kind of feels like a loss, but on the way home I’ll be like, ‘We finished P2 at Le Mans. That’s not bad!’ We had a cool fight with the Ferrari, and I think we did well.»

No. 64 Corvette heads team’s Test Day pace; No. 63 recovers after electrical issue.

LE MANS, France (Aug. 15, 2021) – At long last, Corvette Racing sent the mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette C8.R for its first laps around the Circuit de la Sarthe during nine hours of testing Sunday ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Tommy Milner led the Corvette Racing effort in the No. 64 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C8.R on Sunday with a lap of 3:53.440 (130.550 mph) in a highly competitive GTE Pro field. Less than a half-second separated the top seven cars, which bodes well for a thrilling race in less than a week’s time.

Milner shared the No. 64 Corvette on Sunday with Nick Tandy; the duo will welcome back Alexander Sims into the fold following a prior racing commitment earlier in the day.

The No. 63 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C8.R had an up-and-down day that included an engine change following an electrical issue that stranded Antonio Garcia on-course in the third hour of the morning session. Four hours later and after hard and thorough work, the No. 63 re-emerged from the garage to continue its test program. 

Nicky Catsburg, driving with Garcia and Jordan Taylor, was the quickest driver in the 63 entry at 3:54.281 (130.115 mph). The trio are back together after winning the Rolex 24 At Daytona earlier this season.

Corvette Racing will return to the track Wednesday for two free practice sessions and qualifying. 

The 24 Hours of Le Mans on Aug. 21-22 with the green flag set for 4 p.m. CET and 10 a.m. ET. MotorTrend TV will air the race live with the MotorTrend App adding coverage of official practices and qualifying on Aug. 18 and 19. Live audio coverage will be available from Radio Le Mans starting with Sunday’s Test Day.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “I would have liked to do some more laps for sure since it’s the first year with the C8.R in Le Mans. But mostly out of the box it felt pretty decent, pretty good. We know which way to go; the things we worked on in the simulator seem to be working, which is a good thing. We’ll now try to get as much data as possible from both cars and work our way forward toward this week.”

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “We didn’t do as many laps as we wanted to get in today, but the guys did a good job to give us as many laps as possible. It’s the first day of the new car at Le Mans, so every lap is important to get our data and to understand where we’ll be next week. Each driver got some laps – in traffic and in clean air – which is important for the race. We probably have a lot of things we want to tick off the list still come free practice, but I think it’s good to get this under our belt, get a couple of days off and look at all the data and understand where we are.”

NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “Not an easy day with the issue in the morning session which took a long time to repair, but the guys worked super hard and luckily we managed to get out near the end of the afternoon session. We got some laps in, the car felt pretty good. The sister car was running all day so we’ll be able to get some valuable information from them and we can learn from that. In summary, we survived the Test Day feeling pretty good, so we’re all good for the race.”

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (Aug. 8, 2021) – Corvette Racing finished second and third in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) category of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on Sunday at Road America as the program now heads across the Atlantic Ocean for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

GTLM championship leaders Antonio García and Jordan Taylor finished second in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R, just ahead of Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy in the No. 4 mid-engine Corvette. Shortly after the race, all focus turned to Le Mans with the team traveling over in the coming days with the Test Day set for Aug. 15.

Sunday’s race marked Corvette Racing’s 20th event at Road America, and early on the two C8.Rs were in control. Taylor and Tandy ran 1-2 during the opening minutes. An early-race call to take fuel and tires just 22 minutes in gave the No. 4 Corvette the advantage during the opening hour. Running second, Tandy took fuel and fresh Michelin tires just ahead of a full-course caution period. 

Once the GT pits opened for stops, the No. 3 Corvette side switched to García along with a full fuel fill and fresh tires. Meanwhile, Tandy remained in the No. 4 C8.R and took just enough fuel to top off the tank to move from third to first ahead of the restart at the 40-minute mark.

Tandy continued his good work in traffic on the restart to move five seconds ahead of Garcia before a second full-course caution 20 minutes later. Tandy and Garcia both stayed in with the No. 4 C8.R retaining an advantage.

García stopped the No. 3 Corvette for more fuel and tires with 75 minutes left with the No. 4 coming in less than 15 minutes later for a driver change to Milner. Disaster struck, though, as the car’s wheels spun while on the airjacks. Race officials assessed the No. 4 C8.R a drive-through penalty for the infraction.

Meanwhile, García set out to pressure Matt Campbell in the No. 79 entry late but the pace and gap was too much to overcome.

Corvette Racing next makes its return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which runs Aug. 21-22.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED SECOND IN GTLM: “Not bad. It was all about gambling. Before the first yellow, we had decided to split strategies to put pressure on the Porsche and they decided to follow us. I think we probably took a gamble on some tires and it didn’t pay off on that first stint I did. We lost some track position and had to change strategies from that point on to make up one stop. The information I got on my stint probably helped us close the gap. We had to get pushing but they (the No. 79) made it to the end. So we did all we could do – keep the pressure up and pray for a little less fuel in their tanks. They did right and won the race. I’m happy with it considering how the race went. It’s a shame the 4 car had that drive-through (penalty). I think they would have put the Porsche under a lot more pressure and would have to push. Maybe that would have put us more in contention. You never know in these races.” 

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED SECOND IN GTLM: “It’s not a win, but looking overall with how the day went I think we can be happy. We went a little bit off strategy tire-wise and it didn’t pay off. But we were a little off-strategy with the 79 there at the end. Had there been a yellow at the right time, things could have gone our way. We can’t be too upset with a second-place after winning three in a row.”

No. 3 Corvette wins over No. 4 C8.R in weather-shortened, GT-only race.

LAKEVILLE, Conn. (July 17, 2021) – Corvette Racing’s Jordan Taylor and Antonio García won a weather-shortened Northeast Grand Prix at Lime Rock Park on Saturday, their third straight victory in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

Taylor and García had the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R ahead when the race was stopped with 70 minutes left due to lightning in the immediate area of the track. Race officials called the race with 25 minutes left in the two-hour, 40-minute GT-only contest.

The mid-engine Corvette C8.R won its Lime Rock debut, and Corvette Racing won at the circuit for the sixth time. It also marked the first overall Lime Rock victory for Corvette Racing.

Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy placed second in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C8.R, their second straight runner-up finish. Saturday’s results increased the lead for García and Taylor in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) Drivers Championship and Chevrolet’s advantage in the Manufacturers standings.

Taylor began from pole position and Milner third following a precautionary engine change overnight. Milner moved the No. 4 up to second behind Taylor at the start, and the two Corvettes ran 1-2 throughout the race. Both cars made their first stops a lap apart just past the 30-minute mark for fuel and tires. By that point, both Taylor and Milner were mired in slower GTD traffic and on a three-stop strategy.

Milner, who suffered damage in his second stint after contact from a slower car, was the first Corvette driver to make his second stop and handed off to Tandy with 80 minutes remaining. Taylor did the same a lap later with a swap to Garcia as both Corvettes took fuel and fresh Michelin tires.

Five minutes later, race officials called for a full-course caution to monitor the approaching weather and stopped the race a lap later.

Corvette Racing’s next event is the IMSA SportsCar Weekend on Aug. 6-8 from Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. Same-day coverage on NBCSN starts at 8 p.m. ET with live streaming coverage on TrackPass and NBC Sports Gold at 2:35 p.m. ET. Live audio coverage from IMSA Radio will be available on IMSA.com.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – RACE-WINNER: «For sure, Jordan did an amazing job. He drove the first two stints and it was the plan for me to be in for the other two. We knew this could happen. In a way, I’m happy that he drove so well and managed to keep the 4 car at a distance the whole time and control it so I could have a really quick driver change. That helped us extend our lead. But you never know. It would have tight; I don’t know if it would have been raining or not at the end so it would have been hard to keep the lead. I’m really pleased for another Corvette 1-2. Looking at how Jordan and Tommy (Milner) drove, it seemed like very hard work with tire degradation, especially. I will definitely take it. It’s my first win at Lime Rock so I’m happy with this.»

HAVE YOU HAD A RACE TO END LIKE THIS? «No, I don’t think so. But it is what it is. We had a ton of fans out here today and safety comes first. This time we were lucky in that we were leading when the red flag came. For sure, you need to be up there in that position to benefit from the conditions.»

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – RACE-WINNER: «It was odd. We kind of knew what was going to happen going into it. We knew it was going to be a race of tire degradation and strategy, whether it be a two-stop or three-stop race just looking at the history of the race. Twenty laps in, we knew it was going to be a three-stop race doing 45-lap stints. It was about fuel mileage, saving tires and getting through traffic cleanly. Thankfully we executed well and the driver change went well. We knew the weather was imminent at some point and that it could be red-flagged, so we knew track position was going to be important. Thankfully we were out front when that came.»

HAVE YOU HAD A RACE TO END LIKE THIS? «The 2019 Rolex 24, we won when it was red-flagged for too much rain. It was a similar feeling sitting in the pitlane with an hour to go and maybe no more pit stops. You’re waiting to see if it’s going to go green again, so it’s kind of very stressful with the unknown. Today looking at the radar, a couple of miles north of the track there were a crazy amount of lightning strikes so I think it was going to come this way no matter what. It wasn’t as rainy as Daytona that year, but today was a similar feeling.»

TOMMY SAID HE HAD A LACK OF REAR GRIP EARLY. WHAT WAS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO CARS IN THE OPENING? «I don’t know if it was a big advantage. If it was anything, I think it was getting fortunate in traffic. You could gain or lose a second-and-a-half depending on where you got traffic. Some laps I could see myself gaining in traffic and on another lap I’d lose two seconds and he’d be right there again. I think the ebb and flow of that would show the gaps. I don’t know if the lap-time delta was going to be that big on a clear track. We were saving tires right from the get-go. The tire degradation was a lot bigger than I expected. To do a two-stop race was going to be almost impossible. Even doing a three-stopper with 45-lap stints… once you got to 35 laps there was a steep drop-off. Maybe they suffered a little bit more than we did with that. We started with a setup knowing the car was going in that direction and using tools like the traction control and everything we had in the car to save tires early on and hopefully benefit later in the stint.»

No. 3 Corvette takes GTLM victory over teammates Milner, Tandy in No. 4 C8.R

WATKINS GLEN, NY (June 27, 2021) – Antonio García and Jordan Taylor won for Corvette Racing in the IMSA WeatherTech 240 on Friday, their second GT Le Mans (GTLM) victory in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R at Watkins Glen International in five days.

Garcia got the jump on Corvette Racing teammate Tommy Milner – sharing the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette with Nick Tandy– on a traffic-filled restart with 28 minutes remaining in a storm-interrupted race. 

Taylor led from pole position before Tandy moved ahead in the No. 4 Corvette about 15 minutes into the race. The gap between the teammates constantly ebbed and flowed with traffic – from slower GTD and LMP3 cars and the quicker DPi and LMP2 runners.

Taylor was the first Corvette driver to hit pitlane at 51 minutes running. He came in from second place in class and handed over to Garcia, who left with a full tank of fuel and fresh Michelin tires. Tandy carried on for another two laps before stopping just before the pits closed for the race’s full-course caution period.

Milner got in the 4 Corvette and returned to the lead behind the safety car. Heavy rain started to pelt parts of the circuit with the field under yellow. Two laps later, race officials halted the race due to a lightning strike in the immediate area of Watkins Glen.
The field began rolling again with 50 minutes to go behind the safety car. Another full-course caution period with 36 minutes left forced another reset before the race went green the rest of the way.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – GTLM RACE-WINNER: «We can’t complain, for sure. The main thing is the C8.R is really, really strong and kind of easy to drive in those conditions. Somehow that red flag was kind of a relief. It was going to be a nightmare out there between Turn Six and Turn Eight. Luckily there was a red flag, which made things still interesting because we had to stay on slicks. I knew that was the main thing but I had to take chances there. I knew it was wet, but I had to be a little more aggressive than Tommy. He got caught out in the last corner with some of the P cars, so I had to take advantage. The grip was very, very good. I opened the gap and then just maintained because you never know… there might have been another yellow and I had to have good tires for the end. I’m very happy with the No. 3 C8.R, but obviously Team Chevy and Corvette Racing are doing a great job. I’m looking forward to the next race and especially Le Mans which is coming soon.»It was very challenging for sure. We pitted just before the red flag, and so did the 4 car. That would have been a key part of the race without the red because it would have been interesting to know how Tommy would have dealt with the damp track on cold tires. Those one or two laps of green before the red let me switch on the tires a little bit, at least. Even if we had to wait for a half-hour, somehow I heated up the tires pretty quickly before the start. Tommy was the one who had to take the risks. The first restart after yellow, I knew I could switch on the tire a little bit better than him. So on the second one I was all-out and he got caught up on the last corner with some P cars. I just took advantage. After that, you had to close your eyes. From the Carousel onward, you had to believe the grip would be there. I knew the first two laps would be the main thing in the race. I could pull out those two seconds and kept the gap from that point. From that point, Tommy was the one who had to take the risks to close in. I didn’t want to push so hard because you never know if you’ll go yellow again and I’d need good tires. It was a good battle with our teammates, which is difficult because they have the same car and same tools as you. I’m very happy for Corvette to go 1-2. We’re looking forward to the next few races, and Le Mans is coming closer. We’re looking forward to that too.»

THE PASS FOR THE LEAD.«It was green for us but I made the pass basically coming out of the last corner. We weren’t side-by-side into Turn One. I knew after the Bus Stop that it would be a little wet so I took a little more risk than Tommy did to open the gap and hold it. I was lucky that I could keep the car on the track. It can go either way. You can pull out a second or put it in the wall. I was glad for the first option.»

WERE THERE OTHER DIFFICULT MOMENTS AFTER THAT?«Oh yeah, but there were for Tommy as well. We were both flat out. The car was really good in those conditions. We realized that all last year with all the wet races we had. The C8.R looks very strong in all conditions.»

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – GTLM RACE-WINNER: «I was struggling with tire temp in the beginning. But once I got in a rhythm, the car kind of came to life for the second half of my stint. Once we handed it over to Antonio, the weather hit and we had a red flag. We were happy to see it go green again. Obviously we had a great spot on TV today to get some great racing in. Antonio made a great restart and was able to get by the No. 4 car and then kind of maintain it from there. So another great day for Corvette Racing going one-two and another great day for us in the No. 3 car.»It was a good race all the way through. We had a good battle with the 4 car all day. I ran second most of my stint and then the way the pit cycle worked, it was going to be interesting to see how it fell through with fuel strategy and tire warm-up. Once it went red, we knew we had some practice time and qualifying in intermittent conditions, so we had some good confidence in what the car would be like once it went back green. Antonio got by the 4 car on the restart and maintained that gap through the end. It’s another great day for Corvette Racing with a 1-2 finish and for us in the 3 Corvette to go back-to-back with the Six Hours last weekend.»

HOW MUCH FUN IS IT RACING AGAINST YOUR TEAMMATES?«I’d say it’s fun, but it’s stressful at the same time. There are no team orders of who will win the race. They let us race on track, but obviously any contact will be frowned upon. We had a head-to-head battle at Daytona and the last couple of weekends has been head-to-head. The guys in the 4 car are professionals and two of the best in GT racing. Like Antonio said, it’s great to have that rivalry but it’s difficult when you’ve got such great drivers in both cars. You’re competing against the best in the same equipment. We’ve come out on top the last two races but just as easily those guys could have won as well.»

No. 3 Corvette takes season’s second victory; Milner, Tandy charge derailed late in race

WATKINS GLEN, NY (June 27, 2021) – Corvette Racing returned to Victory Circle at Watkins Glen International on Sunday with a GT Le Mans (GTLM) victory for Antonio García and Jordan Taylor in the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen. They drove the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette to a steamy and hard-fought triumph for the team’s first win at Watkins Glen International since 2014.

Pole-winner García won for the second time in the Six Hours while Taylor claimed his first victory in the event. The duo increased their lead in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s GTLM standings as they look to repeat their 2020 title.

The fight in the category looked like it would come down to a battle of the mid-engine Corvettes. Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy led a majority of the race in their No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette C8.R with Milner taking the lead on the opening lap. The two Corvettes swapped the lead eight times throughout the six hours and were first and second on a restart with a little less than 40 minutes to go.

Tandy, who held the lead through two pit stop cycles thanks to excellent pit work and car performance, held point when the race went back green but reported a mechanical issue that severely handicapped the No. 4 Corvette. He just missed out a podium finish for he and Milner.

That left Garcia to hold off John Edwards in the No. 24 GTLM entry over the last five laps. The two had to battle through class leaders in other categories, and Garcia held on for a 0.845-second winning margin. 

Taylor drove a marathon two-hour, 30-minute stint in the middle of the race and swapped the lead with both Tandy and Milner during his time in the No. 3 Corvette. That left Garcia to drive his own tense, nail-biting triple stint to the finish.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – GTLM RACE-WINNER: IT LOOKED LIKE A BATTLE BETWEEN TEAMMATES BUT THEN IT GOT DIFFERENT TOWARD THE END.«It was another great battle with our teammates and the BMWs. They were all very strong. The start was a little confusing with all the debris in Turn One. I played it a little bit careful, and Tommy went around me. From that point on, it was a flat-out fight with our teammates and the BMWs. There was no time to rest. At times we were behind and at another times we were ahead. With about 2:30 left, the two BMWs went on a different strategy so we had to cover them. We split ours with the 4 because we had to do it. That put us ahead of them at the time but they got ahead when the last pit stop came. We had the pace and knew it was going to be not only a lot of fast laps but also to manage tire wear and tire temperature. Stints here were very hard on the tires. The 4 car lost some pace at the end. I don’t know if they had some trouble. It would have been nice to get a Corvette 1-2 but in GTLM you cannot miss a thing. As soon as you start losing time, other cars are on you. Even at the end, it felt like I had a comfortable margin over John (Edwards) of about three or four seconds. Then all the classes got together with about two laps to go – DPis, GTDs, LMP2s, LMP3s and us. Fortunately there were no crashes and no yellows, and I managed to stay ahead and bring home a victory. I’m happy for Corvette and Team Chevy.»

IN THE TRAFFIC… DID YOU HAVE ANY CLOSE CALLS?«Oh yes, many.  Not for myself but people trying to get by me in very, very dangerous places. I had a three-wide I think with the 48 with Kobayashi or whoever was driving going into the grass on my right. I was just praying that any car wouldn’t hit me. That was the thing there… to stay calm but be aggressive because the No. 24 was there right behind me. Initially I played it a little bit safe but when I saw him coming, I knew I had to go. That is the classic thing. We saw this at Sebring already. With all these classes, and the way we do these restarts with all the LMP3s going ahead of us, it creates some difficult situations on the track. But when you have that many classes on the track, that is the way it is. You need to live with that and play it smarter than the rest. It’s not only about being fast but being smart enough to clear everybody.»

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – GTLM RACE-WINNER:YOU ARE THE POINTS LEADER AND THIS IS THE FIRST WIN AT THE GLEN FOR YOU HOW DOES THIS FEEL?“It is awesome. You nailed it I think. I think this is one of the only tracks I haven’t won here on the IMSA calendar. Lime Rock might be another one. I don’t think I’ve won there. Only a couple of poles maybe. Watkins Glen has always been a big one, the Six Hours especially. I finished second back in 2011 with Autohaus where we probably could have won the championship with that win.“It’s been a long time coming, but it is great to be back here with Corvette Racing. The first time here with the C8.R and with testing, to come out here and win the race, and have a possible one-two… it was just an unfortunate event there for the No. 4 there at the end, but I can’t be prouder of the whole team.”

A LONG HOT RACE, BUT LEADING BOTH CHAMPIONSHIPS MUST MAKE ONLY FOUR DAYS OFF A LITTLE SWEETER?“That does definitely make nicer. It’s good to have a couple of days to rest on it as the guys go through the data to see where we can improve for next week. It’s going to be another fight next week, and we will try and maximize the points again. 

WAS IT DIFFICULT TO GET INTO A RHYTHM?“It was definitely an odd race, especially with the LMP3 cars cycling to the front of the GT packs every time and we have to drive through that. You saw at the end  with a couple laps to go how we caught a big GT pack mixed in with some LMP3s. You mix in the Prototypes and the other cars coming though, it was mayhem. It was crazy but at the same time that is part of IMSA. That is what makes this series great and what makes sports car racing amazing. Thankfully Antonio kept a cool head and brought it home.”

THERE WAS PROBLEM WITH THE REAR OF THE NO. 4 AT THE END? DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT WAS AND WERE YOU WORRIED ABOUT YOUR CAR?‘We only heard what you said. I don’t think any of the guys said anything about seeing anything in the data. The guys will go through the data. We have a couple of days to have a look at it. This car is still relatively new so it is good testing for us to get these endurance races under our belts before we head overseas to Le Mans.”

WINNING THE SIX HOURS FOR THE FIRST TIME.«It was huge. I grew up watching my dad race. He always talked about his favorite tracks, and Watkins Glen was always at the top of the list. I could be wrong, but I think this is the one he didn’t win as a driver. Ricky (Taylor) won for him as a team owner, and that’s the first time he won here. I finished second in 2011 in GRAND-AM with Tommy (Milner) as my teammate. So it’s been high on the list every year. It seemed like something always went wrong. But this was a perfect weekend. Antonio got pole. It’s our first time here with the C8.R – no testing just time in the simulator. It was very impressive that we rolled off the truck as strong as we did. We made very minor tweaks, so big kudos to the team for the preparation coming in here.»

DETROIT (June 12, 2021) – Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy won an all-Chevrolet Corvette C8.R battle in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) category of the Detroit Sports Car Challenge on Saturday at Belle Isle Park.

The duo in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R beat their Corvette Racing teammates Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor by 0.226 seconds in a non-points GTLM round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The two Corvettes made their lone pit stops of the race three laps apart, with Taylor pitting first after 42 minutes. Tandy then stopped with a 55-second lead, and the gap shrank back to a little more than a second with 25 minutes to go with Garcia trying to run down Milner to the end before and after a late-race caution period.

Despite no points being available in GTLM, having Corvette Racing back on Belle Isle was of huge benefit on multiple fronts. For one, the Belle Isle appearance provided an opportunity for the hundreds of Chevrolet production team members who contributed in some way to the C8.R – and the road-going Corvette Stingray – to see Corvette Racing in-person. The reveal of the C8.R nearly 18 months ago was culmination of almost six years of work between all facets of engineers and designers from the Corvette production side and Corvette Racing.

Second, it was Corvette Racing’s first IMSA event since March. With a busy stretch coming up in the IMSA championship over the next six weeks – plus the 24 Hours of Le Mans in mid-August – Belle Isle offered up a nice refresher on operations and procedures for the four drivers plus the crews and engineers.

Saturday’s race also was the first street race for the Corvette C8.R, and the team also collected valuable data ahead of the Long Beach street circuit in September.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – SECOND IN GTLM: «Every time you race, you find things. It’s great to now have laps on the C8.R around a street circuit. It’s good to do a race for the first time here because there is a lot of data to be collected. We raced hard and tried to get the most out of the Corvette while racing against each other. We proved that we were running fairly quick. I think I left my right-side mirror somewhere on the track! It was cool. It’s always to race around a street circuit. Maybe we were missing some competition like we are used to, but it was great to be here in Detroit with all the people who work on and appreciate the Corvette. This has been a highlight weekend for everyone.»

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – SECOND IN GTLM: «It was a good experience. We had some new crew members over the wall for pit stops. We tried some new things on the car to help with reliability. There may to have been points but we learned a lot to take to Long Beach for another street course and of course Le Mans, which is the big one we are preparing for. So yes, a very good day for Corvette Racing.»

García, Gavin put up hard fight in final race for British Corvette legend

STAVELOT, Belgium (May 1, 2021) – Corvette Racing’s Antonio García and Oliver Gavin finished fourth in GTE Pro at the Six Hours of Spa on Saturday with their No. 63 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R – the opening round of the FIA World Endurance Championship.

The first appearance at Spa by Corvette Racing was significant for two reasons: it marked the first race outside the United States for the mid-engine racing Corvette, and it also marked Gavin’s final start with the team after 20 years. 

The main target for the Spa event was to gain knowledge and experience with the C8.R in the FIA WEC ahead of August’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. Corvette Racing will send two of the mid-engine racers back to Le Mans after missing last year’s event due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

García qualified fifth but the race pace of the Corvette was encouraging in a fight among three manufacturers. He drove the first two stints on the same set of Michelin tires – a different strategy than the other GTE Pro entries – in an effort to be in better shape to fight at the end.

Gavin drove the middle two stints of the race, including the race’s first full-course caution. It marked the 204th appearance in a Corvette Racing entry for the veteran, who ended his career with 51 victories – including five at Le Mans – and five IMSA championships. Gavin moved up to fourth in class during his stint as one of the Porsches suffered a punctured tire.

García re-entered with a little more than two hours to go. He set the Corvette’s fastest race lap in his next-to-last stint – a 2:14.622 (116.383 mph) that ranked third among all GTE Pro drivers in the push for a podium finish.

ANTONIO GARCÍA, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED FOURTH IN GTE PRO: “This definitely was valuable for me and for the team. We learned a lot. As it happened a couple of years ago at Sebring when we ran a WEC race, it’s good to run in this championship to make everyone aware of the regulations and how to perform in this series. It’s way different than IMSA. It’s always good to have a good shakedown and learn everything that counts. So this was a very valuable experience.”

(Driving with Oliver Gavin) “I really wanted us to finish on the podium. That was my main push the whole race was to be up there with him, even if we knew getting on the top step was almost impossible. But being up there would have been super-nice. I gave all I had to do it. It wasn’t enough for sure, but it was good to share a Corvette with him for once. I would have liked to have to get a better result. But as a team, we can take the good things from this race and the information on the car ahead toward Le Mans.”

OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 63 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED FOURTH IN GTE PRO: «My last race for Corvette Racing and in the C8.R, and it’s been quite a journey. I’m so proud to have won these overalls to represent such an amazing team in Corvette Racing and Team Chevy. To be able to compete here for the final time in the WEC has been very special; Spa-Francorchamps is an exceptional track. The emotion of it has overwhelmed me somewhat, but I’m so proud to have competed for this team for 20 years. I’m proud of that success with so many special people, not only on the race team side but on the road car side. I couldn’t be prouder of what we have all achieved together. Thank you also to all the Corvette fans out there. You’re unbelievable and so passionate… an amazing group that really spurs us on. I can’t thank you enough.

«It’s been quite a day. I kind of went through all this when I was at Sebring in November for my final race in IMSA. It has brought a lot of those emotions back. Those last few laps, I was thinking about everything that is happened, all the of the 20 years I’ve spent with this team and what we’ve been able to achieve… I’m so proud of what we’ve been able to do with four generations of Corvette and all the races we’ve won. To be able to finish here at Spa in the WEC is very special. You can really feel the character and charisma of the track and the race. Those are the things I fell in love with when I went to Le Mans for the first time. I feel very, very fortunate.»