cor123
Well-known member
<o
></o>
></o><o> </o>
> </o>></o>Garcia, Magnussen dominate street race; Gavin, Milner take third-place GTLM finish<o
></o><o
> </o>LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 12, 2014) – Corvette Racing won its first race with the new Chevrolet Corvette C7.R on Saturday at Long Beach as Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen dominated in their No. 3 Corvette to take the GT Le Mans class of the Patrón Sports Car Showcase. The duo led all but one lap and took the checkered flag by 5.408 seconds in the third round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.<o
></o><o
> </o>Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner placed third in class in their No. 4 Corvette C7.R. It was the fourth time Corvette Racing placed both of its entries on the podium at Long Beach since 2007. <o
></o><o
> </o>"Congratulations to Jan Magnussen, Antonio Garcia and the No. 3 Corvette C7.R team on scoring the win today here at Long Beach," said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. "It was the first win for the Corvette C7.R and a great day. It started with a great qualifying run by Jan to put the Chevrolet Corvette C7.R on the pole, which was a huge advantage in a short, 100-minute sprint race. Antonio did a great job getting a nice lead; the Corvette Racing team had a great pit stop and Jan took it home for the win. It was also great to see Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner put the No. 4 Corvette C7.R also on the podium. Just a tremendous effort for Corvette Racing.”<o
></o><o
> </o>Saturday’s victory was the fifth at Long Beach for Corvette Racing. Magnussen qualified on pole position Friday, and Garcia led the entirety of his 41-minute stint – the result of a great start that allowed him to put two slower prototypes between himself and the rest of the class. His lead grew as much as seven seconds before handing off to Magnussen.<o
></o><o
> </o>The Dane’s biggest advantage was 12 seconds during his stint as he won at Long Beach for the second time; Garcia won his first Long Beach race.<o
></o><o
> </o>The No. 4 Corvette gained one position from its fourth-place starting spot. Gavin and the two competing cars in front of him were balked by the slow prototype that Garcia managed to get around on the opening lap. Gavin also fought high tire pressures but still had the fastest race lap in class for most of his stint.<o
></o><o
> </o>After the driver change to Milner, the young American whittled down the gap to second place from three seconds to a half-second halfway through his stint. He ended the race just 0.273 seconds shy of the runner-up spot. Milner also set the fastest GTLM race lap at 1:18.954 (89.733 mph).<o
></o><o
> </o>The next round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship takes place at Laguna Seca from May 3-4.<o
></o><o
> </o>ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R<o
></o>“It’s been a really good race for us. We couldn’t expect more. We saw yesterday that we were very fast. I think 50 percent of the race was done by Jan yesterday in qualifying. Today he stayed away from the walls but yesterday he was really, really close to them! That pole position made a big difference. I knew that the race was all about Turn 1 and the first three laps. I was probably a bit on the high side of being aggressive on the opening laps because I knew the prototypes were struggling to warm their tires. I made it through at Turn 1, and that was mainly it for the race. That risk made the rest of the race a little more relaxing. Taking the first victory for the Corvette C7.R is very big for us. We have been battling really hard from the beginning. All the Corvette Racing and Chevrolet guys have worked really hard throughout the offseason and into this year. A big thanks to them.”<o
></o><o
> </o>JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R<o
></o>“It was an important victory for the team and the guys who have worked so hard to get the Chevrolet Corvette C7.R ready for the season. The whole time we have had a fast car but didn’t make the most of it. We had some reliability issues at Daytona and Sebring, so it’s really nice that we can have a weekend like this with pole position and a win by leading from start to finish. I couldn’t be happier for Antonio and myself, and for all the guys on the team. They really deserve it. A big thanks to Antonio. He did all the hard work and got a huge lead. That last hour for me was like a holiday for me! I just drove around making sure I didn’t make any mistakes and stay off the wall.”<o
></o><o
> </o>OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R<o
></o>“It was a great result for Corvette Racing today. To get both cars on the podium and to get the first win for the Chevrolet Corvette C7.R is fantastic. It was a little frustrating for myself getting caught up behind one of the prototypes and battling with the BMWs. I was also struggling with high tire pressures for some reason. We just missed that all weekend. I don’t know why but maybe we need to look at the systems we have. We kept the car in the race. Tommy got in and did a sterling job and got us right up behind the BMW but I think it was a bit too much to do to get by that car. It seemed that where we were quick, they weren’t so good but then they were fast in some key spots. Tommy did all he could and drove extremely well. But the main thing for both cars is that we got fantastic results for points and the first win for the Corvette C7.R. It’s a fantastic day for Corvette Racing.”<o
></o><o
> </o>TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R<o
></o>“It was a great day for Corvette Racing. You could really see how strategy plays a part in tire wear and things like that. Great job to Antonio and Jan. They had a great race and got ahead of that one LMP car and could cruise. Our class has always been super-competitive, and it’s fun to see it all play out with pit stops and strategy. It was a great day of racing here at Long Beach.”<o
></o><o
> </o>DOUG FEHAN, CORVETTE RACING PROGRAM MANAGER<o
></o>“What a fantastic race for Chevrolet and Corvette Racing today at Long Beach! The team's strategy played out perfectly, and Antonio and Jan had mistake-free stints. Having Tommy Milner and Oliver Gavin join them on the podium makes this a very rewarding day for the Chevrolet Corvette C7.R program. Rest assured, we will work to capitalize on this momentum in our continued push for the first championship in the new TUDOR series.”<o
></o>******************************************************************************************************
CORVETTE DPs AT LONG BEACH: First Visit Results in Two Podiums<o
></o>Wayne Taylor Racing places second, Action Express third to lead Corvette DP field<o
></o><o
> </o>LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 12, 2014) – Corvette Daytona Prototypes took two of the three podium steps Saturday in the Patrón Sports Car Showcase, the third round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. Wayne Taylor Racing’s Jordan Taylor and Ricky Taylor placed second in the 100-minute race at the Long Beach street circuit, the first visit to the venue for the Corvette DPs.<o
></o><o
> </o>Action Express Racing’s Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi placed third in the No. 5 Corvette Daytona Prototype. Saturday’s result gives Corvette DP teams two of the top three spots in the TUDOR Championship’s Prototype standings for drivers and teams.<o
></o><o
> </o>"It was great to see the Konica Minolta-sponsored Wayne Taylor Racing team with Jordan and Ricky Taylor finish second,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet’s U.S. Vice President, Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. “They had a great run all day. In addition, the Action Express No. 5 Corvette DP with Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi had a great start to the race, and finished strong on the podium which gives them some additional room in the driver point standings."<o
></o><o
> </o>Fittipaldi and Barbosa maintained their lead in the driver standings, as did Action Express in the team championship. The Taylors are third in the driving championship with Wayne Taylor Racing third in the team category.<o
></o><o
> </o>"Even though we didn't win, I am quite happy for the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP team for their second-place finish with Ricky and Jordan Taylor doing the driving,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet’s Program Manager for Daytona Prototypes. “We also are pleased for the No. 5 Action Express Corvette DP on their third-place finish that keeps Christian Fittipaldi and Joao Barbosa in the driver championship lead. I do think there is a little bit of work needed by the sanctioning body to get parody between a turbo engine and naturally aspirated engine. But we are looking forward to the next round at Laguna Seca."<o
></o><o
> </o>The next round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship takes place May 2-4 from Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.<o
></o><o
> </o>JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP<o
></o>“The only chance we had was in traffic. We knew the No. 60 and the No. 01 had a great straight-line speed and we knew we wouldn’t to be able to pass him if we were in a situation of just car versus car; but if we had traffic in the right spot, we probably had a chance. I kept getting in the wrong spot. So, I was happy to get second. It’s good points for the championship.”<o
></o><o
> </o>RICKY TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP<o
></o>"It was a good day. Qualifying was a little disappointing. I think we probably moved up the most positions. Jordan did a great job in his stint. It was a great result for Konica Minolta on our car for the first time. It is a start of a great relationship. First of the Corvette DPs. It was a good day. I think we are third in points, this early-on, so we're really close. We have a lot of races to make it up."<o
></o><o
> </o>CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP<o
></o>“Well, it was definitely a good afternoon. I can’t complain. Obviously we wanted to try our very best to try and win the race, but unfortunately it didn’t happen. Our competitors were really strong and they put together a great race. And we have to capitalize on what we did and get out of here and move on to the next one. We’ll still leading the championship and let’s see what happens in Laguna. Thanks to Action Express and Chevy power.”<o
></o><o
> </o>JOAO BARBOSA, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP<o
></o>"That was a really tough race. Track position was everything here. Unfortunately my tires took a little bit long to come in, and I lost the lead but there was nothing I could do. I tried to make sure it was a safe race. But it was a good race. We will just look forward to the next one. Our Corvette DP was running really well. But we had nothing for the Ford in straight-line speed. They were super fast but it was good racing."<o
></o><o
></o>
