C7.Rs trying to have 100th IMSA win this Saturday

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
It’s a big milestone, and one that Corvette Racing has been chasing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship since the 2018 BUBBA burger Sports Car Grand Prix at Long Beach Saturday 4/13/19 (USA)

That was the storied team’s most recent victory, coming courtesy of the No. 4 Corvette C7.R team and co-drivers Tommy Milner and Oliver Gavin.

And there may be no better place for the team to get that elusive 100th win than Long Beach, where Gavin and Milner have won each of the past two years in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) class.
In fact, the Corvette Racing team has won three of the past five BUBBA burger Sports Car Grands Prix – No. 3 C7.R teammates Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen also won there in 2014.

The team was in position for another potential victory in 2016 before a late-race dustup in the famed Long Beach hairpin gave the win to No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR co-drivers Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy. Overall, Corvette Racing has seven IMSA victories at Long Beach, far and away the most of any WeatherTech Championship team.

“Our success at Long Beach comes down to many things,” explains Gavin, who has a series-leading five victories on the 1.968-mile street circuit.
“Fundamentally, Tommy and I have been in the position to win each of the last four years
Yes, things have had to go our way in some cases.”
Indeed, there have been some wacky circumstances. The aforementioned 2016 incident was one.

The next year, the No. 3 team was on its way to the win only to get tangled up due to a last-lap incident in the hairpin, which opened the door for Milner and the No. 4 Corvette to take the checkered flag first.
“Three years ago, we were leading with two laps to go and got taken out at the last corner,” Gavin says.
“But the last two years, we’ve taken our chances and taken them well.
That’s what it’s all about driving around a street circuit – when to risk it, when not to, taking advantage of the mistakes of others and execution.”

On the point of 100 victories, astute fans of Corvette Racing will say, “Hang on a minute, Corvette Racing got its 100th win at Lime Rock in 2016.”
And it was the 100th win for the program overall when you count the team’s eight 24 Hours of Le Mans victories.
But a Long Beach win will give the team 100 in IMSA competition, encapsulating the WeatherTech Championship, American Le Mans Series and the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series.

“It would be great to get another win there, for sure – No. 100 in IMSA for Corvette Racing,” Milner said.
“To win three in a row at any track against this level of competition would be a great achievement.
It also would be a great way to get ourselves back into championship contention.”

Corvette Racing knows all about contending for a championship, having won each of the past three GTLM titles.
The No. 3 team won each of the past two years, while Gavin and Milner brought home the 2016 title for the No. 4 squad.

The No. 4 duo is currently eighth in the GTLM standings, 15 points behind the class-leading No. 911 pair of Pilet and Tandy with two of 11 races in the books.
So for them, Long Beach could be exactly what the doctor ordered.

“For me, my success at Long Beach has been a bit of a surprise in some ways,” Milner said. “I’ve never really thought street races were my strong suit.

The racing is always fun there, but I always felt more comfortable at other tracks.
But I’ve had some of the best outcomes at Long Beach – my first Corvette IMSA win in 2012 with Oliver,
and then we’ve been super strong the last four years with the Corvette C7.R.”
“Last year we had a good Corvette,” added Gavin.

“We were strong, and Tommy had a great stint at the end.
Sure, we got fortunate when two other cars had contact, but that’s one of the reasons we’ve won so many times at Long Beach.
We’ve managed to execute passes cleanly and we’ve been smart.

“All it takes is a little bit of contact or a brush with the wall and your day is done.
There are no second chances at Long Beach.”

The BUBBA burger Sports Car Grand Prix at Long Beach will be televised live on NBCSN beginning at 5 p.m. ET Saturday
IMSA Radio also will cover the action live on IMSA.com, RadioLeMans.com and SiriusXM Radio.

CORVETTE RACING AT LONG BEACH: Third Straight Win on Tap?
Gavin, Milner arrive in southern California as two-time, defending GTLM winners
  • Corvette Racing seeking eighth Long Beach victory since 2007
  • Garcia, Magnussen look to continue momentum from Sebring
  • Chevrolet winningest IMSA manufacturer at Long Beach

During the past 20-plus years, Corvette Racing has made its mark in long-distance endurance racing with multiple victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Rolex 24 At Daytona and the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.

But the program aims this weekend to add to its sparkling success rate at the shortest race on its yearly calendar with a return to the Bubba Burger Sports Car Grand Prix at Long Beach.
The pair of bright yellow Chevrolet Corvette C7.Rs will look for a third straight victory on the streets of Long Beach and eighth at the event since 2007.

More significantly, a triumph in Saturday’s 100-minute race would be Corvette Racing’s 100th in IMSA competition Coincidentally, No. 99 in North America came a year ago at Long Beach. It also gave Chevrolet its ninth Long Beach IMSA victory – the most among series manufacturers at the event.

Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner enter Long Beach as winners the last two years at the event in their No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R.
It was Gavin’s 50th victory with Corvette Racing, and he leads all IMSA drivers with five victories at the event.
Milner, who drove the closing stint the last two years, is a three-time winner at Long Beach – all with Gavin.

Two years ago, the Gavin/Milner duo were the benefactors when the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Corvette of Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen were blocked at the final corner of the final lap by a trio of stopped cars. Milner had no choice but to slip through an opening to secure another Chevrolet victory.
Last season Milner took the lead with about 20 minutes to go after a mechanical problem dropped Garcia from the lead just before a restart.

Magnussen and Garcia last won at Long Beach in 2014 for the first victory for the Corvette C7.R.
It was the first victory at Long Beach for Garcia and second for Magnussen, who leads all IMSA drivers with three pole positions at the circuit.

The Bubba Burger Sports Car Grand Prix from Long Beach begins at 2:05 p.m. PT on Saturday, April 13.
It will air on live on NBC Sports Network and the NBC Sports app starting at 5 p.m. Live audio coverage of practices, qualifying and the race from IMSA Radio is available on IMSA.com.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R:

"Long Beach is a fine circuit… except for the last corner!
That’s only half-serious as I’ve never had such bad luck at one spot before. We probably should have won the last two years. In 2017 the track became blocked at the final corner and I went from first to fourth.
Last year we had an electrical problem that took us out of the lead after a caution. It’s unfortunate but that is racing sometimes
. We can take confidence that Corvette Racing has shown strong at Long Beach for many years, especially with the C7.R
. Maybe this year will be the one Jan and I can have luck go our way."

JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R:

"Long Beach is a fantastic event and a fun track. It’s a great track to race on.
The race being as short as it is means there is a lot of action in not much time. The last two years, we’ve been where we needed to be but just little things got in the way. The No. 4 guys have won the last two years, so hopefully we can have a little bit of luck go our way at Long Beach to get some points back from a not-so-great Daytona and build on our result at Sebring."

OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R:

"Our success at Long Beach comes down to many things.
Fundamentally, Tommy and I have been in the position to win each of the last four years. Yes, things have had to go our way in some cases. Three years ago we were leading with two laps to go and got taken out at the last corner.
But the last two years we’ve taken our chances and take them well. That’s what it’s all about driving around a street circuit – when to risk it, when not to, take advantage of the mistakes of others and execution.
Last year we had a good Corvette. We were strong and Tommy had a great stint at the end. Sure, we got fortunate when two other cars had contact but that’s one of the reasons we’ve won so many times at Long Beach. We’ve managed to execute passes cleanly and we’ve been smart.
All it takes is a little bit of contact or a brush with the wall and your day is done. There are no second chances at Long Beach."

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R:

"For me, my success at Long Beach has been a bit of a surprise in some ways.
I’ve never really thought street races were my strong suit. The racing is always fun there, but I always felt more comfortable at other tracks.
But I’ve had some of the best outcomes at Long Beach – my first Corvette IMSA win in 2012 with Oliver, and then we’ve been super strong there the last four years with the Corvette C7.R.
There definitely is something about Long Beach that suits our driving styles. We just have good races; we put ourselves in good position, we have good pit stops and Olly does a great job in qualifying. We always seem to end up in the right places at the right time.
Certainly we’ve some luck go our way there, but we’ve also been on the other side of it.

It would be great to get another win there, for sure – No. 100 in IMSA for Corvette Racing."
C7Rs.jpg
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
C7.Rs will start tomorrows Long Beach Ca race in 3rd and 5th place
Being this is only a 100 minute race they will be balls to the walls the whole race

c7rlbq.jpg
 

kentvette

CCCUK Member
I noted that Corvettes had a bit of a break on the BoP front, which can't be bad.

We all expect Corvette to be winning all the time and, that clearly isn't always going to happen and would not be good for the sport in general. But, the team does seem to have lost it's mojo a little in the last year, with a few suprising errors from drivers and team. Maybe they need a win to restore the morale, but either way, lets hope for that 100th win later today! It's certainly been a long wait since the 99th!
 
N

Norm

Guest
With the advent of the C8 ME coming out in July, will there be C8.R's?
 

kentvette

CCCUK Member
With the advent of the C8 ME coming out in July, will there be C8.R's?

I spoke to Danny (Binks) about that two years ago! Even then, the guys at P&M were eagerly awaiting the chance to get at a C8! There have been a few "spy shots" of what claimed to be a C8R, with such things as a rear diffuser undertray etc.

The question will be what engine the race version uses. Currently the C7R has to run an outdated 5 ltr unit to comply with the restrictions put on it by the FIA/ACO allow it to run at Le Mans etc, which of course is echoed in its IMSA spec.....

I, of course, will be wearing a black arm band when I visit the team at my "home track" this June - the occasion of the last "real" Corvette to run at La Sarthe!
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
Race is starting
If you cannot see this now on Cable TV then use the live scoring at
IMSA Scoring

Be sure also to see how the Caddies are doing in DPi class and C7.Rs battle in GTLM class
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
What a race,
Started in first lap when 2 DPi cars crack into wall
Then very last lap something happens to a Ford GT who was in second place of GTLM,
maybe low on fuel and the #3 C7.R stuffs the Ford GT into the wall finishing race with both C7.Rs
end in 2nd and 3rd place.
Good day anytime Corvette stuffs a $450,000 Ford GT :)

C7RLB.jpg

Caddy won in DPI class and in fact now has won all races for IMSA this year
Those not knowing those Caddys used to be Corvette Prototype and GM yanked the Corvette logo and replaced
it with Caddy nameplate
 

teamzr1

Supporting vendor
Corvette Racing claimed two podium finishes Saturday at the Bubba Burger Sports Car Grand Prix of Long Beach, the first time since 2014 that the program scored a pair of top-three results on the streets of southern California.

Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen placed second in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) category of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with their No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R.
They were followed closely by Tommy Milner and Oliver Gavin in the No. 4 Corvette in third place.

As was the case for the last handful of years at Long Beach, Saturday’s race was a topsy-turvy affair up to the finish.
After finding misfortune while leading the last two years, Garcia and Magnussen finally had luck turn their way.
After Garcia began fifth, the No. 3 Corvette gained a spot during its lone pit stop under caution 40 minutes into the race.

Rejoining fourth, Magnussen immediately began hounding the third-place Porsche.
He made the move going into the first corner with 23 minutes left and set out to run down the second-place Ford.

Meanwhile, Gavin began third and set the fastest GTLM lap of the race before handing off to Milner.
Looking for a third straight Long Beach class victory with his teammate, Milner went from sixth to fourth with seven minutes remaining.
He continued his challenge as Magnussen caught the second-place car with two laps to go.
The No. 3 Corvette moved into second when the Ford ran out of fuel on the final lap, and the two cars made contact.
Magnussen was able to continue with Milner right behind to the finish.

Corvette Racing’s next event is the Acura Sports Car Challenge at Mid-Ohio on May 3-5.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – SECOND IN GTLM:

"Things happened for us but not against us like in previous years. So that’s a plus! We aren’t used to having trouble-free last laps here. I told Jan with my luck, I don’t know if I would have made it to the end! It was a tough position to switch our strategy here. Jan is a great qualifier here, so it was tough for me to discover qualifying after all these years of him doing it.
So I did my best. I think I had a car to qualify on the first row, but we know GTLM is super-competitive. In the race, I got stuck behind the 66 so all I could do was save fuel. It helped us jumped the 4 Corvette in the pits and we almost got the Porsches.
After that, Jan did a magnificent job with managing the tires and fuel. I’m happy keeping it this way! I know I’ll qualify better next year, so maybe we can do that and win the race."

JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – SECOND IN GTLM:

"The end was pretty crazy with the 66 running out of fuel ahead of me. I thought I was going to get stuck behind him, so I had to get on the throttle full to push him out of the way to get that last half-lap back to the checkered flag. Corvette Racing did a fantastic job setting the car up and thinking about what we needed at the end of the race.
I don’t know if we had the best car, but it was close. I’m super happy today. For sure we’d like to get a win soon.
We’ve caught up in the championship so it’s a good day."

OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R ‘ THRID IN GTLM:

"You can’t take your eyes off things at this race not for one second. It’s a crazy, action-packed event.
My stint was relatively straight-forward. I had a few bits and pieces I had to be careful of at the start.
We had an early caution, and I was mainly shadowing the two Porsches.
I kept thinking about where we were going to be when it came to that pit stop, if it was going to go green all the way. It didn’t so we all came in together

It looked like we were going to be good but got caught out slightly with everyone else on fuel, and everyone went a little shorter than we did. We were out running around in fifth, and Tommy did a fantastic job to get by one of the Porsches. Then it was just rolling those laps off.
That last lap again was crazy with how everything unfolded. At the end of the day, we’re happy with good points and a podium but we really would have loved a win."

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – THIRD IN GTLM:

"This race and this race track lead to racing like this. There’s a lot happening at every stage of the race with our race, prototypes racing their race you combine that for 100 minutes with everyone going from the word ‘go’, you’re going to have fireworks here and there.

In the end, it’s a pretty good result for Corvette Racing. We can’t be too unhappy with second and third. We had a good Corvette today. Track position is really big. The Ford being out front there holding us up a little bit didn’t help for sure, and we lost a spot or two on pit lane as well. It’s one of those things. This racing is about tenths of seconds and every little thing counts.
You have to have a really, really good race to get wins. That’s why when you win it feels so good.
Even so, a second and a third felt like a good result for us today. It felt like there was a little bit more for us today.
Certainly getting a win for us would have been a great challenge. We had a great car and it was a good drive for Olly at the start there.
We’re pumped to be on the podium again at Long Beach. It’s not a win, but we will take it!"
 

kentvette

CCCUK Member
We watched the live stream of the race. Long Beach is not my favourite, I think too tight for big sports cars. An eventful rce, but mainly due to the mistakes made by a number of teams - TWO cars with wheels falling off in as many laps!

It looked to us that the Corvettes were quicker than the Porsches, but the track just doesn't give many much overtaking opportunities.

One more event to get the 'Vettes up to speed before coming here for the "big one"!

However, I suspect that the it'll take a lot to beat the expected excitment of today's Paris-Roubaix race - The Hell of The North.
 
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