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CORVETTE RACING AT QATAR: A Positive Prologue
TF Sport Corvettes show strong form in testing ahead of WEC opener
LUSAIL, Qatar (Feb. 22, 2025) – TF Sport’s six drivers expressed satisfaction with the team’s pair of Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs following the FIA World Endurance Championship’s two-day Prologue test ahead of the Qatar 1812 Km and the opening round of this year’s season-long LM GT3 title race.
The two Corvettes collectively completed 602 laps for 2,028.74 miles across the four Prologue sessions at the 3.37-mile, 16-turn Lusail International Circuit, which plays host Friday to the WEC’s first race of the year for the second consecutive season.
TF Sport was well-represented at the top portion of the combined LM GT3 time sheets following four sessions across Friday and Saturday. Corvette newcomer Jonny Edgar led the Corvette charge with the fifth-fastest time among all 54 LM GT3 drivers - a 1:55.132 (105.428 mph) lap during Saturday’s final session in the No. 33 Corvette that he will share during this season with Ben Keating and factory driver Daniel Juncadella, who was a little more than a tenth of a second off his teammate’s time.
Fellow factory pilot Charlie Eastwood wasn’t far off Edgar’s pace with a 1:55.174 (105.210 mph) lap in the final session, as well. He finished the Prologue as the 11th-fastest LM GT3 driver in the No. 81 Z06 GT3.R that he will share for the second year in a row with Rui Andrade and Tom Van Rompuy, last year’s Qatar pole-sitter in class.
The 3.37-mile, 16-turn Losail International Circuit was the site of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R’s WEC debut a year ago. Armed with the lessons learned from the venue at year ago plus a win and runner-up finish to start 2025 at Daytona, TF Sport is hoping to continue the momentum from last year’s double-podium finish at the season finale in Bahrain and spring ahead to championship contention in a stacked 18-car LM GT3 field.
TF Sport and the rest of the FIA WEC field will open the season with the Qatar 1812 Km at 2 p.m. Arabian Standard Time / 6 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, February 28.
TF SPORT POST-PROLOGUE QUOTES
DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It’s a big difference from last year and a massive step forward. Not that we weren’t prepared last year; I think we were in a good place but unfortunately with not enough mileage in the car, the team was new… so we had to focus too much on solving little hiccups, which are expected in a brand new car. Now we are focusing 100 percent on the performance. This is the second year of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R in this championship. It’s great to see also in terms of team preparation and driver lineup… everything has taken a step forward and that’s very exciting to see.”
JONNY EDGAR, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I’ve been enjoying things so far. Everyone seems pretty happy with the car. It’s enjoyable working with TF Sport again. Most of the people I’ve already known but I’m also getting used to working with some of the new people. Ben and Dani I’ve gotten to know more over the last few days and it’s been nice working with them. They’re obviously both very quick. It’s mine and Ben’s first time here so it took us both a little bit to get used to the track but I feel we’re both very comfortable at the end, the car was nice to drive and the days went smoothly. We tried a few things but if we had to race as we were now, we would be in a pretty good position. Now we are just trying to find the last few things to see if we can make the car even better. But it’s nothing big or major. We’re overall pretty happy.”
BEN KEATING, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It was great to get back in the Corvette and with TF Sport. There are still some tweaks to come but I feel like I’ve made a tremendous amount of progress in two days of testing. TF Sport clearly knows what they’re doing. It feels more comfortable and at home. I love running with TF Sport. I love racing in the Corvette. It’s easy to drive, and I know I will continue to improve throughout the week. I’m still making improvements in the comfort level and ergonomics of the car in learning about it on this track. I’ve never been on this circuit so it’s been nice to have time to get up to speed during the Prologue.”
CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “There is close to no comparison to where we were a year ago. Everyone is in a much better place… with the continuity between us as drivers, we know what we need to do. Also the team is way more well-versed with the Corvette and with the steps forward with the Z06 GT3.R since this time last year, it’s hard to compare. Ultimately we seem to be in a pretty good spot at the minute. The lineups between the two cars is going to help a lot. If anything, we (on the No. 81) were stronger last year and now the No. 33, at least on paper, is on paper the strongest lineup on the grid. We have extra data use and more people doing faster laps times that will give us a really good idea of where we are in that regard. At the minute, it’s all clean sailing for us.”
RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I feel really good. We have the sense as drivers that the team and Corvette Racing really put a lot of effort into the car throughout the end of last year and in the winter. The improvements are clear in both performance and reliability. There is a lot less guessing and more confidence in the package. We know we are quick. Now it’s more about maximizing things and putting those together. I wish we were at the point last year where we are now! Everything is going much more smoothly, we have a lot more control on the torque sensor side and the cars are running faultlessly. No issues and no reason to stop. Things feel really, really good. Having the kinds of drivers that we have inside the team makes us all improve.”
TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “For myself and the team, we go into the season more confident because we have a year under our belt. We went to some tracks where I had never been before, and having the miles and progression on the Corvette makes us more confident and hungry to go for nice results this year. The entire team is a nice step up from last year. We will have two really competitive cars, which is good and keeps everyone on their toes. You can learn from each other and help each other. It’s nice.”
Ryan Smith
Judy Kouba Dominick
CORVETTE RACING AT QATAR: A Positive Prologue
TF Sport Corvettes show strong form in testing ahead of WEC opener
LUSAIL, Qatar (Feb. 22, 2025) – TF Sport’s six drivers expressed satisfaction with the team’s pair of Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs following the FIA World Endurance Championship’s two-day Prologue test ahead of the Qatar 1812 Km and the opening round of this year’s season-long LM GT3 title race.
The two Corvettes collectively completed 602 laps for 2,028.74 miles across the four Prologue sessions at the 3.37-mile, 16-turn Lusail International Circuit, which plays host Friday to the WEC’s first race of the year for the second consecutive season.
TF Sport was well-represented at the top portion of the combined LM GT3 time sheets following four sessions across Friday and Saturday. Corvette newcomer Jonny Edgar led the Corvette charge with the fifth-fastest time among all 54 LM GT3 drivers - a 1:55.132 (105.428 mph) lap during Saturday’s final session in the No. 33 Corvette that he will share during this season with Ben Keating and factory driver Daniel Juncadella, who was a little more than a tenth of a second off his teammate’s time.
Fellow factory pilot Charlie Eastwood wasn’t far off Edgar’s pace with a 1:55.174 (105.210 mph) lap in the final session, as well. He finished the Prologue as the 11th-fastest LM GT3 driver in the No. 81 Z06 GT3.R that he will share for the second year in a row with Rui Andrade and Tom Van Rompuy, last year’s Qatar pole-sitter in class.
The 3.37-mile, 16-turn Losail International Circuit was the site of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R’s WEC debut a year ago. Armed with the lessons learned from the venue at year ago plus a win and runner-up finish to start 2025 at Daytona, TF Sport is hoping to continue the momentum from last year’s double-podium finish at the season finale in Bahrain and spring ahead to championship contention in a stacked 18-car LM GT3 field.
TF Sport and the rest of the FIA WEC field will open the season with the Qatar 1812 Km at 2 p.m. Arabian Standard Time / 6 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, February 28.
TF SPORT POST-PROLOGUE QUOTES
DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It’s a big difference from last year and a massive step forward. Not that we weren’t prepared last year; I think we were in a good place but unfortunately with not enough mileage in the car, the team was new… so we had to focus too much on solving little hiccups, which are expected in a brand new car. Now we are focusing 100 percent on the performance. This is the second year of the Corvette Z06 GT3.R in this championship. It’s great to see also in terms of team preparation and driver lineup… everything has taken a step forward and that’s very exciting to see.”
JONNY EDGAR, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I’ve been enjoying things so far. Everyone seems pretty happy with the car. It’s enjoyable working with TF Sport again. Most of the people I’ve already known but I’m also getting used to working with some of the new people. Ben and Dani I’ve gotten to know more over the last few days and it’s been nice working with them. They’re obviously both very quick. It’s mine and Ben’s first time here so it took us both a little bit to get used to the track but I feel we’re both very comfortable at the end, the car was nice to drive and the days went smoothly. We tried a few things but if we had to race as we were now, we would be in a pretty good position. Now we are just trying to find the last few things to see if we can make the car even better. But it’s nothing big or major. We’re overall pretty happy.”
BEN KEATING, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It was great to get back in the Corvette and with TF Sport. There are still some tweaks to come but I feel like I’ve made a tremendous amount of progress in two days of testing. TF Sport clearly knows what they’re doing. It feels more comfortable and at home. I love running with TF Sport. I love racing in the Corvette. It’s easy to drive, and I know I will continue to improve throughout the week. I’m still making improvements in the comfort level and ergonomics of the car in learning about it on this track. I’ve never been on this circuit so it’s been nice to have time to get up to speed during the Prologue.”
CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “There is close to no comparison to where we were a year ago. Everyone is in a much better place… with the continuity between us as drivers, we know what we need to do. Also the team is way more well-versed with the Corvette and with the steps forward with the Z06 GT3.R since this time last year, it’s hard to compare. Ultimately we seem to be in a pretty good spot at the minute. The lineups between the two cars is going to help a lot. If anything, we (on the No. 81) were stronger last year and now the No. 33, at least on paper, is on paper the strongest lineup on the grid. We have extra data use and more people doing faster laps times that will give us a really good idea of where we are in that regard. At the minute, it’s all clean sailing for us.”
RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I feel really good. We have the sense as drivers that the team and Corvette Racing really put a lot of effort into the car throughout the end of last year and in the winter. The improvements are clear in both performance and reliability. There is a lot less guessing and more confidence in the package. We know we are quick. Now it’s more about maximizing things and putting those together. I wish we were at the point last year where we are now! Everything is going much more smoothly, we have a lot more control on the torque sensor side and the cars are running faultlessly. No issues and no reason to stop. Things feel really, really good. Having the kinds of drivers that we have inside the team makes us all improve.”
TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “For myself and the team, we go into the season more confident because we have a year under our belt. We went to some tracks where I had never been before, and having the miles and progression on the Corvette makes us more confident and hungry to go for nice results this year. The entire team is a nice step up from last year. We will have two really competitive cars, which is good and keeps everyone on their toes. You can learn from each other and help each other. It’s nice.”
Ryan Smith
Judy Kouba Dominick
