24 Hours of Le Mans - 2025

[teamzr1]

TF Sport and members of the Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R program are eager to take all the lessons and all the experience from their past 18 months together and turn it into a victory in the world’s biggest sports car race.

Two Corvettes from TF Sport are part of the LMGT3 grid for this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans starting with Sunday’s Test Day and the fourth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship. The pair of entries are part of a three-car Corvette contingent among the 24 cars in the class for this year’s event, which kicks off with Sunday’s annual Le Mans Test Day and includes fellow Corvette team AWA.

The TF Sport squad is going for a third class win at Le Mans the Corvette Racing program can make it 10 victories since 2001.
The team’s trio of Daniel Juncadella, Jonny Edgar and Ben Keating lead the WEC’s LMGT3 Drivers Championship standings on the strength of a victory at Qatar in their No. 33 Corvette Z06 GT3.R. Across the garage, the No. 81 Corvette lineup of Charlie Eastwood, Rui Andrade and Tom Van Rompuy are hoping to join their teammates as race winners for TF Sport in the trio’s second year together at Le Mans.

Each of the six drivers have different previous experiences at Le Mans. Eastwood and Keating are both past-winners of the race with Keating twice a winner, including in 2023 in a Corvette C8.R. Andrade is a past runner-up, Van Rompuy has two previous starts, Juncadella debuted last year and Edgar is a Le Mans rookie.

Two three-hour sessions are on the schedule for Sunday’s Test Day, which is the first time since last year’s final lap that cars will have the chance to run on the full 8.47-mile Le Mans circuit – a mix of permanent racetrack and public roads. The Test Day is valuable with only a three-hour Free Practice on Wednesday ahead of the first round of qualifying later in the day.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET / 4 p.m. CET on Saturday, June 14. MotorTrend will air the full race live in the U.S., with full live streaming of all on-track sessions – including qualifying and Hyperpole – will be available through the MAX app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans also will provide live streaming audio coverage of all sessions as well.

TF SPORT PRE-EVENT QUOTES
DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Le Mans is such an incredible place. The track itself is one that on paper you don’t think is a challenge because there are a lot of long straights and there aren’t that many corners for such a long track. You’d think it is fairly easy but it’s incredible the aura that the place has. There is something you can feel and it’s impressive. I was grateful to experience that for the first time last year.

“It’s a big thing that we have had pretty flawless races so far. The team has really taken a step forward in the right direction. It’s no secret that the driver lineup is incredibly good. Both Ben and Jonny are really, really good. Having Tyler (Neff, race engineer) with us this year brought us some fresh ideas and experience with the Corvette. The Z06 GT3.R is in its second year and we have a season of experience with it in the bag so that helps a lot in terms of reliability and many other things. It’s a great year to be part of this lineup and this team.
We’re having very clean races and that also pays off with consistency for scoring results and points.”

JONNY EDGAR, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

I am looking forward to competing in my first 24 Hours of Le Mans. It’s a race I have watched for a long time and have always been interested to compete in so it is amazing I have finally got the opportunity to do so. If we can carry on the great work everyone has done this season then I am confident we will have a good result as we have managed to execute all three races very well so far this season. The whole team has done an amazing job.

“I cannot wait to drive the track for the first time, I am sure it will be very enjoyable in the Corvette Z06 GT3.R. It is very exciting to be racing alongside Ben and Dani at this race. Ben has had lots of success here with both Corvette and TF Sport so I am sure he will have lots of helpful advice for me, and Dani raced here last year with the Corvette so he will also be able to help me a lot as well.”

BEN KEATING, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“So far this season, the team has performed FLAWLESSLY! It has been very impressive and it is why we have seen the results. It’s no surprise given my past history with both TF Sport and the Corvette. There’s no reason to think we can’t keep the same incredible team performance for Le Mans.

“My first memory of Le Mans was in 2014 when I went as a spectator not knowing anything about it. I slept on the floor of the hospitality tent. I walked many miles. I felt like a little kid where everything was a new experience. To me what makes Le Mans special is that excitement and energy surrounding the event everything from the public scrutineering to the parade to the race itself.
This is a result of the history and mostly because of the fans. Le Mans is not a race. Le Mans is an event.”

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“We haven’t had the performance or results on our side, but the thing I’m really hopeful about is that as a crew, as a team and as a Corvette program, we’re executing some excellent races.
When you get to Le Mans, it’s what I actually love so much about it – even over other 24-hour events it’s not like Daytona where you have so many cautions, and you can get back into the race and back onto the lead lap. In Le Mans, if you make a mistake in the first hour, then you have to be very fast to make that back up.

With the energy side of things, we’ll probably have 27 or 27 pit stops. Our guys have gotten super-quick at tire changes and the strategy has been very good in the last few events. When you add that up across 26 stops versus just four stops, it can make a big difference in the pitlane.

“On top of that, both Rui and Tom – especially Rui as he is doing a geo-program in ELMS and then straight into a WEC race are driving incredibly well, love the car and are able to extract speed out of it.
So from our side when you look at the lineup, we’re pretty strong in that regard. No, we didn’t have a great race there last year but as a team and a car, we’ve made massive strides in a lot of areas so hopefully that will play into our favor.”

RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m very excited to be back at Le Mans as always. For us, it’s definitely the biggest race of the year and the one everyone wants to win. Last year was difficult, but we’ve made steps forward as a team, and I know my teammates and I are ready for the challenge ahead.

“I personally definitely feel stronger this year, which is a good confidence boost going into Le Mans. It’s a very long race and all three drivers need to be at their very best in order for the team to perform well. So hopefully I can keep my personal momentum going so we can fight for the win.”

 

[teamzr1]

Corvette, Ford Biggest Winners in LMGT3 BoP

In the BoP for the LMGT3 class, the biggest winners appear to be the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R and the Ford Mustang GT3, both of which have been handed power increases and weight decreases compared to last year’s race.

While all seven of the cars in the class that raced last year will run with a lower minimum weight this time around, the Corvette and the Mustang are only two of three to have also been given an increase in power below 200 km/h.


The Corvette and Mustang are now both at P1 meaning one percent below their theoretical maximum power compared to P4 and P5 respectively last year.
However, the Corvette has a negative Power Gain value of 4.6 percent, versus minus two percent last year, while the Mustang is at zero.

At the same time, the Corvette now weighs in at 1333 kg, down 14 kg from last year’s race, while the Mustang tips the scales at 1318 kg, down 9 kg.
Only the Porsche 911 GT3 R, at 1315 kg, is lighter than the Mustang, but last year’s winning LMGT3 car has been given a reduction in base power to P4 from P3.

The only other car to have both gained power and lost weight is the Lexus RC F GT3, but its weight decrease is just a single kilogram, to 1354 kg, and while its power goes up two percent to P2, this is tempered by a minus 3.7 percent Power Gain.
Heaviest of all is the new-for-2025 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo at 1360 kg.

 

[Clarky]

Love the update, I'll be trackside from Thursday!!

 

[teamzr1]

AWA Racing’s Orey Fidani said a win in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans would create the “perfect season” in his mind after the team won the Rolex 24 at Daytona in the GTD class in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in January.

Alongside full-season WestherTech Championship GTD co-driver Matt Bell, Michelin Endurance Cup driver Lars Kern, and Marvin Kirchhöfer, who joined AWA in Daytona, Fidani won the 24-hour Florida enduro with the Canadian-based team.
The team received an auto-invite to join the Le Mans grid this year after Fidani received IMSA’s Bob Akin Award for Bronze-rated drivers in 2024.

Next week’s twice-around-the-clock classic will be the team, Fidani and Kern’s Le Mans debuts.
When asked what an LMGT3 class victory in the team’s one-off No. 13 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R would mean for he and the team, Fidani told Sportscar365: “In combination with the Daytona win this year, that would be, for me, a pretty perfect season regarding everything else left go. That would be pretty awesome.”

He added: “It’s our first time here, so we’re just working hard and trying to aim for a good result, but most importantly, just having fun.
“To tell you the honest truth, I approach everything the same. I don’t overthink it, I just get in and go.
“I’m excited for a little bit of everything right now. I’m just soaking in everything that’s going on around me. I think to get out on track and start going is going to get me pretty excited.”

As the first Canadian team to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in recent memory, AWA has wrapped its LMGT3 challenger in a special Canadian-inspired red livery, featuring red and white coloring with large maple leaves on the Corvette’s roof and hood.
“It’s super important,” Fidani said. “That [livery] was really, really big for us. I think as a Canadian team and a fellow Canadian, we want to leave our mark here.

“I am super happy to be able to fly a big Canadian flag out here and let the world see the car. I’m super happy about it.”
Bell: AWA Will Do “Everything They Can” For A Le Mans Win
Bell said he and AWA will do “everything they can” to achieve a positive Le Mans result in what is the team’s first overseas race outing.
Unlike his two teammates, the British driver will be making his third 24 Hours of Le Mans start next week after contesting the 2022 and 2024 editions of the race in the LMP2 class.

“Everybody comes racing to win, don’t they?” Bell told Sportscar365. “It’s the cliché everybody says, but we are here.
“It’s going to be a lot to learn. First time for most of the guys on the team. It’s my third Le Mans, so I’m trying to steer everybody in the right direction.
“There’s a good mix of experience and new people here, and we’re here to win. We’re not here to make up the numbers. We’ll do everything we can to achieve that goal.”

Despite this being the team’s and two of its drivers’ first time at the race, Bell said he remains “cautiously optimistic” about AWA’s chances of success next weekend.
“This is the team’s first trip on foreign soil,” he said. “We are at the pinnacle of our sport and the biggest race in the world.
“We started with the biggest win on home soil with Daytona. We learned a lot from that race. Le Mans is a very different kettle of fish, but we’re coming here cautiously optimistic that we should be competitive.

“I’m passing on as much experience as I can possibly can to both Orey and Lars.
“We’ve come in early, and we were prepared for this for a long time. We crossed the checkered flag in Road Atlanta [last year] and the planning started then.

“I made sure that we came and did a bit of a ‘reccy’ last year, and I got them to do the Road to Le Mans race themselves, so they’ve got a bit of experience on the track too with the Kessel Racing guys. I’ll be imparting as much knowledge as I can to try and help everybody on the team.”

 

[teamzr1]

With 62 total cars running the 24 hours of Le Mans
The three Corvettes running were all the way in the back for first practice session

 

[teamzr1]

Second Practice completed
All three Corvettes again were at the back of the pack of 60 other cars

 

[teamzr1]

The 3 Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs at the 24 Hours of Le Mans all declared themselves satisfied Sunday after six hours of running during the annual Test Day, setting the stage for the first official practice days later this week.

TF Sport and AWA completed both two-hour sessions with only small items to work through in the second year at Le Mans for the Corvette GT3.
Charlie Eastwood was the fastest Corvette driver on the day in TF Sport’s No. 81 Corvette that he drives with Rui Andrade and Tom Van Rompuy. Overall pace and ultimate laptime weren’t the goals for the trio of Corvettes, however.
In-race procedures and systems checks were more important going into Wednesday’s three-hour Free Practice 1, which leads into the first qualifying session.

The TF Sport squad is going for its third class win at Le Mans, AWA is making its race debut, and the Corvette Racing program is attempting to score its 10th class victory in the race since 2001.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET / 4 p.m. CET on Saturday, June 14. MotorTrend will air the full race live in the U.S., with full live-streaming coverage of all on-track sessions including qualifying and Hyperpole will be available through the MAX app in the U.S., and the FIA WEC app internationally. Radio Le Mans will also provide live-streaming audio coverage of all sessions as well.

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R DRIVER TEST DAY QUOTES

DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“We ticked off a lot of boxes. It’s very cool to be back at this place. It’s very special, and I still am kind of a rookie even though it’s my second year. Furthermore, it was good to have everything back on track, and our Corvette is pretty much in the right window. I’m confident we can get the best out of what we have right now, so let’s see.”

JONNY EDGAR, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“My first laps were actually in the safety-car procedure. The team wanted to put me in then, since it’s a different procedure here. That as useful to understand how it works. And also it was quite good to see the track then, driving over some curbs slowly to get a bit of an idea before pushing.
I just took it slow, building up to the pace in a few corners. It’s a fun track and I enjoyed driving it.
By the last four or five laps, I felt like I was starting to get close to the limit in a lot of areas. So I really enjoyed that, and the car feels good.

“I think the in cornering speed, the LMP2 is probably faster than the Hypercars or very similar.
So it’s more that they take long to pass on the straight. I think the track is so much longer that you probably see less traffic per lap, or you get blocked in the corners less here than you would on a normal track. So it’s not too difficult to manage.”

BEN KEATING, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“To get through a Le Mans Test Day without any extended time in the garage or on the back of a flatbed is a good Test Day. The team again has done an amazing job. I’d like to be middle of the pack, and I wish we were. There is a lot of energy, emotion and money that go into being here.
It’s my hope that everyone can be competitive.”

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Very much like a lot of events this year, internally, our Test Day went very well.
The pace from both Rui and Tom has been super-strong compared to the other Corvettes and the delta to myself. The car feels excellent.
We arrived with how we finished at the race last year, and it came out feeling great.
The gap is too big, though, to the front guys that no setup change can bridge that gap.”

RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I felt a lot more confident coming into today, knowing what to expect from the car on this track. We started Test Day with not a lot of information that we needed, so we could start pushing right from the get-go.
The Corvette felt good, and I felt confident right away. Obviously on the Test Day the track is a bit dirty, but from my experience in the past the track now seems really quick and times are already competitive.

So I’m happy to have gotten back on track. Six hours looks like a lot of time on a schedule, but once you get into the program it goes away pretty quick. I’m happy to get some testing done on both cars, and we can now compare data from both cars to analyze where we can find time for qualifying and the race.
Most importantly, both cars ran faultlessly again and there were no issues from anyone, which is always a good sign.”

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Again this year there is a bit of familiarization to get into the rhythm of the track, let’s say. But straight out the car felt quite good in some parts of the track. For the moment, it looks like on the straights we lack a bit. But on the rest of the track the car feels great, and I think we are in a good position. But hopefully we can find or make another step on overall speed.

(On being at Le Mans with carry-over people and equipment from 2024) “I think that’s a pretty big thing. Because you come here, you know the track, you know the team, you know your teammates.
Nothing is actually brand new. So the confidence is there from Lap One or Lap Two.
That helps mentally, too, in order to be in a really good place with a bunch of people who you know and are super-motivated, as well.
So, I think that’s for sure a plus to do a second year with the full same team.”

MATT BELL, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“We’ve planned for this day for a long time.
These guys know IMSA inside and out, but we’re still learning a lot of running at Le Mans and in WEC. I think we’re the only GTD team in IMSA to have no penalties so far this season, and we aim to get to that level of smoothness by the time we get to the race. Everyone is learning the very different regulations here, and it’s always harder to do it when it’s a hot session.

It’s a huge learning day on that front, and the guys are getting on top of it really well. In racing there are a million different scenarios that can crop up; you can’t talk about a million otherwise it would take you 10 months to have the conversation!
The learning side of things today has been good. We’ve been focusing on all the processes of things.
We’ve been collecting laps and not done a lot of setup work.

But we’ll do a big debrief with the TF and Corvette guys to come up with some improvements as we go into Wednesday.
It’s a matter of collecting mileage and trying to work out the errors.”

OREY FIDANI, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Today was all about the comfort level and getting my bearings in the first couple of laps, just pushing deeper and deeper in the corners to figure it all out. I’d say the car was pretty decent to start with. There are always a few things to work on to make it a little better, and I know we will get there. I’m just happy to be here and super excited.

Those first laps, driving my own car around here unlike last year… The team is on-point, and it does feel like they’ve been here before. We’ll keep getting laps in, get this car dialed in 100 percent for the race and keep pushing and digging.”

LARS KERN, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m just super happy that everything went smooth. It feels like the team has been here forever. Everything works really, really smooth and easy. And for us, it’s just about dialing things in. I’m not too stressed about pace or anything.
It’s just about getting comfortable. So, yeah, we wanted to just ease in and soak up every second. The car feels great.

“Physically, it’s not the first laps we’ve done here, but it’s the first laps we’ve done with the Corvette. And it feels good.
Also, knowing that the car already became like a fan-favorite this week is really cool. Let’s hope things keep performing well and see where we are in the next sessions this week.”

 

[teamzr1]

With the racing world’s attention this week turning to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R program has another opportunity to add to its list of successes in global motorsport.

In its second year of competition, the Corvette Z06 GT3.R already has raced to victory six times and recorded at least one podium finish in each of the six different championships in which customer teams are competing.

“Our program goal in 2025 was to continue the development and fine-tuning of the Corvette in order to provide our teams with a fast and reliable car that would enable them to compete for race wins and championships,” said Mark Stielow, Director, GM Motorsports Competition Programs.
“It’s gratifying for us all to see so far that we are hitting that metric across all our full-time series on different continents.”

There are currently 17 Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs that have been sold since the program’s launch, and 13 of them are running full-time around the world.

The state of play from Corvette entering Le Mans reveals:

• Race wins in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship, FIA World Endurance Championship, GT World Challenge America and GT World Challenge Asia
• Victories at key events such as the Rolex 24 At Daytona (AWA) and, 1812KM of Qatar (TF Sport)
• Leading in multiple championships including TF Sport (FIA WEC in LMGT3) and Johor Motorsports Racing (GT World Challenge Asia overall GT3 Drivers Championship and in Pro-Am), as well as Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports currently second in IMSA’s GTD PRO class
• Multiple wins for DXDT Racing in GT World Challenge America and JMR in GT World Challenge Asia
• A successful debut for Steller Motorsport in GT World Challenge Europe with a runner-up class finish to open the season at Paul Ricard the first race there for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R
• The first career GT3-level podium finish for Chouest Povoledo Racing’s Ross Chouest in his third event with the Corvette in GT America

“It’s exciting for all of us at Corvette Racing Chevrolet, Pratt Miller, GM Motorsports to see the amount of success from our teams so far this season,” said Jessica Dane, Corvette Racing Program Manager.

“We are in constant communication with our customers to see what we can provide and do to make their experience with their Corvette better and more successful. That constant, two-way dialogue is something that is personal and intentional, and we believe it is what sets apart from our other competitors. Our teams aren’t just customers.
We continually strive to do things that make them feel like part of the Corvette Racing family.”

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET / 4 p.m. CET on Saturday, June 14. MotorTrend will air the full race live in the U.S., with full live-streaming coverage of all on-track sessions including qualifying and Hyperpole will be available through the MAX app in the U.S., and the FIA WEC app internationally.
Radio Le Mans will also provide live-streaming audio coverage of all sessions as well.

 

[teamzr1]

***Corvette Racing has so-far sold 17 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs since the program’s launch last year, with 13 of them running full-time around the world.

***Corvette Racing program manager Jess Dane said:
“It’s exciting for all of us at Corvette Racing Chevrolet, Pratt Miller, GM Motorsports to see the amount of success from our teams so far this season. We are in constant communication with our customers to see what we can provide and do to make their experience with their Corvette better and more successful.”

***AWA Racing’s inaugural Le Mans outing is being supported by fellow LMGT3 competitor TF Sport, which runs a pair of Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs full-time in the WEC. The U.K.-based team has supplied AWA with equipment, so as to make the team’s trip to the WeatherTech Championship round at Watkins Glen in one week’s time possible.

***TF Sport has also lent AWA the advisory services of Sophie Bull, the team’s No. 1 Mechanic to help the Canadian outfit adjust to the nuances of racing at the Circuit de la Sarthe and under WEC rules for the first time.

 

[teamzr1]

Andrew Wojteczko's racing team enters its first 24 Hours of Le Mans being viewed through a similar lens to when they showed up at the Rolex 24 At Daytona only five months ago.
Perhaps, individually, not considered as proven as some of their peers, but as a collective, more than capable of turning in something special.

Just like they did in Daytona this year when they won the GTD class. Or last year, when AWA's ever-present Bronze driver Orey Fidani won the IMSA Bob Akin Award as the top true amateur GTD driver for the full season. And two years before that, when they won LMP3.

As Wojteczko himself puts it: There's no question, it was a really difficult beginning with the way the car rolled out a year ago at Daytona.
So to come back and win it this year was a huge accomplishment, and I think, a great validation for all the people involved in the program.
"I think Daytona was a great showing of just how hard everyone's been working to get there, within AWA, PME and GM."

It's the pinnacle of a journey that began less than eight years ago when Wojteczko broke away from managing Anthony Mantella's Pirelli World Challenge team to set up Andrew Wojteczko Autosport, or AWA, as it's usually known, for the 2018 season.

Within a year, the upstart team that began with a single Ford Mustang GT4 had graduated to the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge paddock, eventually finding a groove with a McLaren 570S GT4. By 2022, AWA had moved up to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in LMP3.
And not long after winning LMP3 at Daytona with their Duqueine D08, AWA became one of Chevrolet and Corvette Racing's first batch of customers for the new Corvette Z06 GT3.R, the automaker's first earnest attempt to support privateer GT racing.

If you want to stretch the tale out even further, almost 20 years ago Andrew was working for his father's company, Auto Analyzer Services Inc., repairing automotive electronics during the day while wrenching and engineering a Lexus IS 300 touring car in the evenings, which he raced, and won in, in the late 2000s across the United States and Canada.

And now, Wojteczko is here as the owner and namesake of one of Le Mans' more intriguing LMGT3 class dark horses.
Not one with the pedigree of WEC's established GT powerhouses like WRT, Manthey, and AF Corse, but an entry that shouldn't be dismissed as a factor come Saturday and Sunday.

As it's been for almost every IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup race since AWA stepped up to the big time in 2022, the line-up features Fidani, it features Nürburgring 24 Hour race veteran Lars Kern, and it features England's Matthew Bell, who's enjoying an outstanding 2025 season driving not only for AWA, but also for fellow Corvette Racing customer DXDT Racing in GT World Challenge America.

Wojteczko is proud of the fellowship of his three drivers, saying, "I think it's quite unique in the paddock.
There's huge loyalty amongst the group. Orey's made commitments to both Matt and Lars to do this together. That's been awesome."

Bell has driven this race before, while Fidani and Kern are Le Mans rookies, but not newcomers to the Circuit de la Sarthe.
As it became apparent that Fidani had a chance to win the Akin Award, a one-off Road to Le Mans entry was executed last year to familiarize both drivers with the track in the event that Fidani won the prize.

"That was our objective for last year," Wojteczko recalls. "And then we knew that the experience last year at Le Mans, even in the support series, would be a huge help coming into Le Mans this year. So we took a chance on it, got out there, and got some experience."

That foresight was rewarded. Fidani retired from the season-opening race at Daytona but was consistent for the rest of the year, as he overhauled the presumptive favorite Iribe, last year's Le Mans pole sitter, to take the Akin Award and a 'golden ticket' to Le Mans.

"I'm really grateful that Orey has given us the opportunity to bring everybody that helped him achieve the Akin win. He wanted to come and experience this as a team. So we're really grateful for that," Wojteczko said.

Fidani has a real opportunity to make history if he and AWA were somehow to win on debut, and join Ron Fellows as the only other Canadian driver to win any major class at Le Mans in its history.
You'll recall that countryman Paul Dalla Lana came oh-so-close to winning GTE Am many times, in particular 2015, when he went off course with an hour to go and lost the win.

Fidani, Bell, Kern, and AWA simply hope to be in that position. But they'll have help getting there. Not only will 25 AWA Team members be at Le Mans, but AWA will also receive assistance from TF Sport, Corvette's full-time WEC client which has also had a major breakthrough after winning the 2025 Qatar 1812KM just a month after AWA won Daytona.

AWA's Daytona win also created an unforeseen problem, but a good problem to have: The Corvette Z06 GT3.R that won Daytona has now been retired. What would have been AWA's Le Mans car is now in service as their primary IMSA car, and chassis 022 was built and commissioned for Le Mans, with no supply headaches stemming from Hiroshi Koizumi's testing crash at Spa earlier this year.

It puts AWA in a decent position to contend for Corvette's 10th GT class win at Le Mans in the modern era, which would be the first for the Z06 GT3.R and the first for a privateer team.

“I’m just soaking it in,” Fidani said to RACER during scrutineering. “I got a little bit of a taste last year, but I wasn’t really involved, more from the outside. And I mean, it’s just… it’s just like nowhere else, this place is absolutely amazing, and my head is on a swivel.
“It’s been a fun ride to this point but a lot of work. I mean, non-stop work. I think we’re very well sorte, and we’ll have a good effort to aim at trying hard to take a win or a podium here.

“It’s a long shot, but we’re ready. I think. And hopefully we get to come back next year too, because it looks like back home, we have a good shot at taking the Akin again. But for now, I am just going to soak it all in and have a good time.”

 

[teamzr1]

Daniel Juncadella says it “doesn’t look great” to see the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R at the bottom of the top speed charts after the 24 Hours of Le Mans test day, noting that TF Sport is “trying to find answers” to address its lack of straight line speed.

The three Corvettes entered in this year’s edition of the French endurance classic, including the additional AWA-entered No. 13 car, brought up the rear in the speed traps across the two sessions of Sunday’s traditional test day.

The No. 33 car, which Juncadella shares with Ben Keating and Jonny Edgar, was clocked at 284.7 km/h (176.9 mph), which was the lowest of all cars recorded in the LMGT3 class.
The No. 81 sister car reached 285.4 km/h (177.3 mph), with the guesting AWA Corvette the fastest of the three at 286.2 km/h (177.8 mph).

However, all three cars lacked behind the rest of the category, with the class-leading No. 21 Vista AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 recorded at 297.2 km/h (184.7 mph).
Speaking to Sportscar365, Juncadella was puzzled about the Corvette’s lack of speed in a straight line compared to its rivals, noting that TF Sport is “trying to find answers” for the deficit.

“It seems like we are slow at the end of the straight,” Juncadella said.
“We are also a bit behind in terms of lap time, maybe not as much as it looks on paper because we focused on race pace.
“But it’s also the raceability. We are the bottom on top speeds. If you look at the average of all the laps, all three Corvettes were at the bottom, which is not great for a track like this.

“It doesn’t look great when you are the bottom in that sense. We are also limited on what we can do, because we are already running the minimum rear wing angle.
“It’s difficult. We are trying to find answers for why we are so slow. I don’t want to blame the Balance of Performance, because there are professionals doing their job. I don’t understand the reason why we are so far off.

“As drivers, there is not much we can do, so I try just to focus on myself and maximize what we have.
“I have two great teammates and a great team behind me. If this is what we have for the race, then so be it. We will have to find a way to maximize that.”

Eastwood, who spearheads the lineup for the sister No. 81 Corvette, said TF has to “trust the system” when it comes to the balancing of cars in the LMGT3 cars, also pointing out that the various cars produce their lap time in different ways.
“Ford is not so good in the corners so they have to be faster in the straight, same with the Lexus,” he said.

“So at some point it has to balance out because we can’t go the same speed or better, much better around the corners and the same top end, it doesn’t, we’ll end up just being significantly quicker.
“They have so much data now, more than we have on everyone else, obviously.
“You just need to hope that all of their analysis, they’ve got it right. Whether they have, or not, will remain to be seen.”

Eastwood went on to note that, should the situation remain unchanged, it will place an even greater focus on a strong race execution to maximize Corvette’s chances of a strong result.
“We haven’t had great results this year, but the execution of the race, and from my side, the performance of both Tom [van Rompuy] and Rui [Andrade] since last year has increased significantly,” he said.

“So actually as a three, bear in mind they still have to do 12 hours of the race, and regardless of this, and the Bronze lap times can swing by five seconds a lap for six hours.
“That’s where we have to be confident that clearly TF are excellent at this race.
They’ve shown that and as a package, as a three, we’re really strong.

“So that will always play in our favor, even the ultimate lap time maybe isn’t there.
“Ultimately, control the controllable. Make sure we stay out of trouble. But actually staying out of trouble will wipe out half the field, but seeing the top five or six, it is absolutely flat out.

“Maximizing pit entries, pit exits, outlaps. It is so competitive in the front of this field now that you have to be on your A-game in every element.”

 

[teamzr1]

All 3 Corvettes lacking speed did poorly in practice

LMGT3 Practice

• The #78 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus entry continues its impressive 2025 form as Jack Hawksworth, a late replacement for the injured Ben Barnicoat, stops the clocks at 3m57.248s
• The British driver’s time heads the #54 Vista AF Corse Ferrari 296 LMGT3 challenger by a mere 0.047s. Davide Rigon posts the best time in the car he will share with Francesco Castellacci and Thomas Flohr this weekend
• Le Mans debutant, the #10 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin makes very encouraging start to place third, as Valentin Hasse Clot stops the clocks at 3m57.344s on his final lap of the session
• That time is just 0.1s ahead of the invitational Ziggo Sport Ferrari car, as Edward Cheever channels his famous father Eddie who raced for Jaguar in the 1980s
• The top six in LMGT3 is completed by the Spa-winning #21 Vista AF Corse Ferrari of François Heriau, Simon Mann and Alessio Rovera, and the #92 Manthey 1st Phorm Porsche of Richard Lietz, Ryan Hardwick and Riccardo Pera
• Incidents in the FP1 session include a spin for the #150 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari at the Dunlop Chicane and the #63 Iron Lynx Mercedes of Stephen Grove, which crashes on the entry to the Dunlop Chicane and brings out the first of the two red flags. The second is flown to retrieve debris

 

[teamzr1]

None of the three Z06 GT3.Rs have any top end speed and showed again in qualify
Only one of them got into the top 5 and the other 2 were way down the LMGT3 class

Alex Lynn claimed the fastest Hypercar qualifying time in qualifying during the crucial knock-out round to tomorrows two-phased Hyperpole sessions.

The #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA driver set the ultimate fastest lap of Le Mans 2025 so far on a best of 3:22.847s to outpace the #15 BMW M Team WRT of Dries Vanthoor.

The 24-car LMGT3 witnessed Ahmad Al Harthy take the best time of 3:56.875s in the #46 Team WRT BMW that he shares with Valentino Rossi and Kelvin van der Linde as the Top 12 for the Hyperpole 1 session on Thursday evening are decided.

In the 17-car LMP2 category, it was the #199 AO by TF Sport Oreca-Gibson that topped the times as Louis Deletraz lapped in 3:35.472s. The Swiss ace and the American entered team are gunning for a second consecutive pole position at Le Mans this year.

The LMGT3 and LMP2 session was red flagged twice after first Andrew Gilbert stopped his Iron Lynx Mercedes at the Dunlop Chicane, and then Custodio Toledo parked his Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari late in the session.

 

[teamzr1]

The 24 Hours of Le Mans gets underway on Saturday morning for us here in the United States, with the action starting at 10:00 AM EST.

For this weekend’s Summer Classic, Chevy will be simulcasting the in-car feed from the No. 33 Corvette Z06 GT3R to its YouTube channel. The 33 Z06 GT3R will be driven by Daniel Juncadella, Jonny Edgar and Ben Keating who are currently leading the Driver’s Championship standings in the World Endurance Championship’s LMGT3 class

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[Nassau65]

Quite a few friends left today for the race. They love it.

 

[teamzr1]

In the run for the Hyperpole only 1 Corvette made in the class, other 2 Corvettes still not running at the top of field

The top eight in the class consisted of eight different manufacturers, with the No. 27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo of Ian James second, followed by the No. 92 Manthey Porsche 911 GT3 R in the hands of Ryan Hardwick.

Arnold Robin and Tom van Rompuy picked up fourth and fifth for Akkodis ASP Team and TF Sport respectively, ahead of the No. 88 Proton Competition Ford Mustang GT3 driven by Stefano Gattuso.

The top eight was rounded out by the No. 193 Ziggo Sport Tempesta Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 and No. 59 United Autosports McLaren 720S GT3 Evo.

Iron Lynx, despite a troubled session in which the No. 60 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Andrew Gilbert ground to a halt at the Dunlop Chicane, had a car in the top twelve courtesy of Martin Berry’s No. 61 machine.
The sister No. 63 car did not take part, having sustained damage in a crash during Free Practice 1 earlier on Wednesday.

Amongst the notable cars to not make Hyperpole included the No. 33 TF Sport Corvette, the No. 57 Kessel Racing Ferrari, No. 31 The Bend Team WRT BMW and No. 87 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus.

 

[teamzr1]

Tom Van Rompuy put TF Sport’s No. 81 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R into Thursday’s Hyperpole session ahead of this weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Van Rompuy set the fifth-fastest LMGT3 time in the Corvette that he drives with Rui Andrade and Corvette factory driver Charlie Eastwood. His lap of 3:57.890 (128.251 mph) put him into the top-12 in class by a full second as the quickest dozen LMGT3 cars advanced to the Hyperpole 1, where the eight best time move on the final Hyperpole round and grid positions for Saturday’s start.

Teammate Ben Keating, in the No. 33 Corvette Z06 GT3.R, qualified 17th and missed out by four-tenths of a second. A late red-flag stoppage the second of the session with about six minutes remaining thwarted Keating’s charge into the top-12, as did class competitors that significantly held up the Corvette at the end of the Le Mans circuit’s lengthy straightaways.

AWA’s Orey Fidani and the No. 13 Corvette Z06 GT3.R continued their progression in the team’s first Le Mans. Fidani qualified 21st in class but was seven seconds faster in qualifying than he was after Sunday’s Test Day.

Hyperpole for LMGT3 cars is scheduled for 8 p.m. local time Thursday. The TF Sport squad is going for its third class win at Le Mans, AWA is making its race debut, and the Corvette Racing program is attempting to score its 10th class victory in the race since 2001.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET / 4 p.m. CET on Saturday, June 14. MotorTrend will air the full race live in the U.S., with full live-streaming coverage of all on-track sessions – including qualifying and Hyperpole will be available through the MAX app in the U.S., and the FIA WEC app internationally. Radio Le Mans also will provide live-streaming audio coverage of all sessions as well.

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R POST-QUALIFYING QUOTES

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R – FIFTH IN LMGT3 QUALIFYING:

“I’m really happy with the run I did in qualifying. Compared to my previous best time from this year, it’s quite a chunk less, so I’m really happy. We also had good preparation with the team, and I looked at a lot of data with Charlie ahead of time.
So yes, there is a lot to be happy about in putting the Corvette in Hyperpole. Now it’s up to the big boys to get us further up the order!”

BEN KEATING, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Without the red flag… who knows? I’m sure there were other people on a flyer as well. Congrats to Tom on finishing P5. What irritates me more than anything else is that the 21 Ferrari and one of the Fords were just able to drive right around me on the straightaway and then park it in the corner. I felt like I was doing some excellent laps there.

My Hyperpole lap in ’23 was five seconds quicker than all of this. So I know how to drive this track. But I can’t do it if somebody drives around me and parks it in the corner. Unfortunately, I think that’s what I’m going to be looking at this weekend for 24 hours, which just really angers me. This was my best lap for the weekend. I had a better lap going at the end before the red flag.
Who knows what could have been? I think we will still be in the midst of the race, which is all you can hope for. I just don’t like starting P17.”

OREY FIDANI, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m having fun out here! We push and keep our heads down to get faster and faster. I would say we had a little bit of trouble in the last free practice session. The car was wandering all over the place. Either we had jammed nut come loose in the toe link or one of the tires was pretty badly corded on the edge. So that earlier session was a little bit of a throwaway.

But still, my gain from Sunday until now was four seconds, then here another three seconds. We just need to keep going and keep driving.”

 

[teamzr1]

Note :

Cadillac becomes the first American manufacturer to secure pole for the French endurance classic since 1967, when Bruce McLaren secured top spot at the wheel of a Ford GT40 Mk IV.
Lynn meanwhile becomes the first British poleman at Le Mans since Johnny Herbert in 2004.

 

[teamzr1]

TF Sport’s Charlie Eastwood and Rui Andrade teamed to qualify TF Sport’s No. 81 Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R on the third row of a stacked LMGT3 field for this weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

In Thursday’s two-phase Hyperpole session, Eastwood advanced the TF Corvette out of the 12-car field with the second-fastest time of Hyperpole 1 – 3:54.646 (129.929 mph) followed by Andrade’s career-best GT lap at Le Mans in the eight-car Hyperpole 2, a 3:55.740 (129.307 mph) on his final lap to stay on the third row.

It cements the No. 81 Corvette among the lead cars at the start of Saturday’s race, which features a massive field of 24 GT3 cars representing nine manufacturers. Eastwood and Andrade got the chance in Hyperpole after teammate Tom Van Rompuy advanced from Wednesday’s initial qualifying session in fifth place.

With Thursday’s results, all three Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs know their starting positions.
AWA’s No. 13 Corvette of Matt Bell, Orey Fidani and Lars Kern will roll off 20th in class for the team’s Le Mans debut after winning the IMSA Bob Akin Award in the 2024 season. TF Sport’s No. 33 Corvette – driven by LMGT3 championship leaders Daniel Juncadella, Jonny Adam and Ben Keating – will start 23rd in class.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET / 4 p.m. CET on Saturday, June 14. MotorTrend will air the full race live in the U.S., with full live-streaming coverage available through the MAX app in the U.S., and the FIA WEC app internationally. Radio Le Mans also will provide live-streaming audio coverage of all sessions as well.

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R HYPERPOLE DRIVER QUOTES

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R – STARTING SIXTH IN LMGT3:

“Clearly, the top couple of cars are superfast, but we haven’t been the sixth-fastest cars since we’ve been here all week. So again, I think all three of us did a perfect job Tom yesterday to get us in and continue on and then Rui had a really good last lap there. In the mix for sure.
We’re not the fastest, but definitely not the slowest. We can definitely fight from there.

The Corvette and the team have been super-faultless. We’ve been tuning the car more and more to a wonderful place.
As we have in the last couple of races, we have executed really well up to now.
We just need to make sure we continue to execute this weekend as well.”

RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R – STARTING SIXTH IN LMGT3:

I’m really happy with how things went. Obviously, Charlie’s lap was incredible in H1. So that was our main objective for that session, to get to Hyperpole 2.
The starting position doesn’t determine your race, but it’s always nice to start up ahead, avoiding a little bit of the mess at the start.
It’s a long race, and you want to have a nice, easy start to just flow into it.

“For me, the lap felt pretty good at the end there. I missed the peak a little bit in the beginning, but in the last lap it felt excellent.
I’m happy with it.
Furthermore, I think that was the most I could have done. The third row is not so bad. I think the whole team has done a really good job so far. There are no issues with the car and everything’s running fine. So I’m happy with it. Now it’s time to relax a bit and then enjoy the race.”

 

[teamzr1]

Watch the race live from inside the #33 Corvette, as race has started

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