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Twenty-five years of Corvette Racing history comes to an end when the checkered flag falls on this weekend’s Petit Le Mans, the season finale of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
Having competed as an entity through several categories of GT racing and across several series, the sun will set on the program as Corvette transitions to customer racing with the advent of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R next season.
For those who built the program that produced 127 victories worldwide, nine wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and 14 drivers and manufacturers titles, the record is one of remarkable achievement that laid the groundwork for what is to come.
“In my time with Corvette Racing, I watched the team evolve immensely,” said Oliver Gavin, who drove for Corvette Racing from 2002-20. “It really has been incredible to watch. The racing landscape is changing constantly with new teams and new manufacturers, but the constant has always been Corvette Racing. It’s such a strength of this program to have been flexible and smart enough to apply themselves in the best way to come away consistently with championships and race victories over the years. I’m immensely proud to be part of it all.”
Gavin, the winningest driver in Corvette history, is one of 24 different drivers to have won in a Corvette, including Johnny O’Connell, Jan Magnussen, Ron Fellows, Olivier Beretta, Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor, Tommy Milner, Nicky Catsburg, Ben Keating, Kelly Collins and Max Papis.
Corvette lore is written in achievements such as the overall victory in the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2001 or the 2017 victory at Sebring against some of the best GTLM competition ever assembled, or the first-and-second battle to the finish at Daytona in 2016.
“I’m proud of Corvette Racing’s achievements in the last 25 years,” declared Jim Campbell, Chevrolet’s U.S. vice president for Performance and Motorsports.
I was fortunate to be part of the team that launched the program at Daytona in January 1999. In addition to its on-track accomplishments, I’m proud of the relationship that Corvette Racing has established with our production teams from design, engineering and propulsion to improve Corvettes for the showroom.
“Corvette owners and fans have supported Corvette Racing from the beginning. I recall hundreds of owners driving their Corvettes to Daytona for the 1999 Rolex 24 to support our launch. We appreciate their passion, knowledge and support at more than 280 races since.”
Corvette Racing has as much fan engagement as any team or manufacturer in the paddock, with Corvette Corrals at IMSA races bringing in more than a thousand owners throughout the season. The cars in those corrals range from impeccably restored C1 Corvettes to modified C5s to brand-new C8s, and the last three generations of the car have benefitted greatly from the racing program.
“It’s difficult to imagine what the Corvette brand would look like without the Corvette Racing program,” said Corvette executive chief engineer Tadge Juechter.
“For 25 years, we have been working toward total integration of the race and street-car teams.
Endurance racing provides us with a treasure trove of information in any number of areas aerodynamics, engine performance and chassis, to name a few.
“That kind of real-world data is highly valuable to production engineers and designers, and we have made great use of those lessons from the racetrack. It really improves our products, and resonates with our fan base and Corvette owners.”
Those lessons will likely continue, as longtime partner Pratt Miller is building the Z06 GT3.R, and will run two cars in GTD PRO as Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports.
It will be one of several Corvette racing teams worldwide, including AWA in IMSA GTD, TF Sport in WEC and DXDT in GT World Challenge America.
Aside from Pratt Miller’s involvement, further continuity comes from the GTD PRO driver lineup of Garcia, Catsburg, Tommy Milner and Alexander Sims. Garcia will close out Corvette Racing’s current iteration on Saturday with Milner and Jordan Taylor, who moves back to his father’s team to drive one of the Acura ARX-06 GTP cars next season.
“It has meant a lot to my career with all I’ve achieved with Corvette Racing,” said Garcia.
There couldn’t be a better place to be. I’ve managed to win five championships, but the team has managed to win so many more. This is the best team in the sport at the end of the day, and I’m grateful I’ve been able to carry on.
“I’m super happy with Corvette Racing, and they seem to be super happy with me. It’s been a perfect combination for the last 15 or 16 years that I’ve been racing.”
Having competed as an entity through several categories of GT racing and across several series, the sun will set on the program as Corvette transitions to customer racing with the advent of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R next season.
For those who built the program that produced 127 victories worldwide, nine wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and 14 drivers and manufacturers titles, the record is one of remarkable achievement that laid the groundwork for what is to come.
“In my time with Corvette Racing, I watched the team evolve immensely,” said Oliver Gavin, who drove for Corvette Racing from 2002-20. “It really has been incredible to watch. The racing landscape is changing constantly with new teams and new manufacturers, but the constant has always been Corvette Racing. It’s such a strength of this program to have been flexible and smart enough to apply themselves in the best way to come away consistently with championships and race victories over the years. I’m immensely proud to be part of it all.”
Gavin, the winningest driver in Corvette history, is one of 24 different drivers to have won in a Corvette, including Johnny O’Connell, Jan Magnussen, Ron Fellows, Olivier Beretta, Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor, Tommy Milner, Nicky Catsburg, Ben Keating, Kelly Collins and Max Papis.
Corvette lore is written in achievements such as the overall victory in the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2001 or the 2017 victory at Sebring against some of the best GTLM competition ever assembled, or the first-and-second battle to the finish at Daytona in 2016.
“I’m proud of Corvette Racing’s achievements in the last 25 years,” declared Jim Campbell, Chevrolet’s U.S. vice president for Performance and Motorsports.
I was fortunate to be part of the team that launched the program at Daytona in January 1999. In addition to its on-track accomplishments, I’m proud of the relationship that Corvette Racing has established with our production teams from design, engineering and propulsion to improve Corvettes for the showroom.
“Corvette owners and fans have supported Corvette Racing from the beginning. I recall hundreds of owners driving their Corvettes to Daytona for the 1999 Rolex 24 to support our launch. We appreciate their passion, knowledge and support at more than 280 races since.”
Corvette Racing has as much fan engagement as any team or manufacturer in the paddock, with Corvette Corrals at IMSA races bringing in more than a thousand owners throughout the season. The cars in those corrals range from impeccably restored C1 Corvettes to modified C5s to brand-new C8s, and the last three generations of the car have benefitted greatly from the racing program.
“It’s difficult to imagine what the Corvette brand would look like without the Corvette Racing program,” said Corvette executive chief engineer Tadge Juechter.
“For 25 years, we have been working toward total integration of the race and street-car teams.
Endurance racing provides us with a treasure trove of information in any number of areas aerodynamics, engine performance and chassis, to name a few.
“That kind of real-world data is highly valuable to production engineers and designers, and we have made great use of those lessons from the racetrack. It really improves our products, and resonates with our fan base and Corvette owners.”
Those lessons will likely continue, as longtime partner Pratt Miller is building the Z06 GT3.R, and will run two cars in GTD PRO as Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports.
It will be one of several Corvette racing teams worldwide, including AWA in IMSA GTD, TF Sport in WEC and DXDT in GT World Challenge America.
Aside from Pratt Miller’s involvement, further continuity comes from the GTD PRO driver lineup of Garcia, Catsburg, Tommy Milner and Alexander Sims. Garcia will close out Corvette Racing’s current iteration on Saturday with Milner and Jordan Taylor, who moves back to his father’s team to drive one of the Acura ARX-06 GTP cars next season.
“It has meant a lot to my career with all I’ve achieved with Corvette Racing,” said Garcia.
There couldn’t be a better place to be. I’ve managed to win five championships, but the team has managed to win so many more. This is the best team in the sport at the end of the day, and I’m grateful I’ve been able to carry on.
“I’m super happy with Corvette Racing, and they seem to be super happy with me. It’s been a perfect combination for the last 15 or 16 years that I’ve been racing.”