Corvette Racing at Daytona: New Year, New Challenge

 First weekend for team, Chevrolet and Corvette C8.R in GTD PRO category

DETROIT (Jan. 18, 2022) – Corvette Racing starts a new year in a new classification this week with the annual Roar Before the 24 – a three-day test at Daytona International Speedway ahead of next weekend’s Rolex 24 At Daytona.For the first time since 2014, Corvette Racing will participate in a new category of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship: GT Daytona PRO (GTD PRO). It serves as a successor to GT Le Mans (GTLM), a classification in which Corvette Racing won more races and championships than any other program since 2014. The next goal is to replicate that same success in a full season of GTD PRO competition, which will feature 13 entries at Daytona.The team’s Chevrolet Corvette C8.Rs for the Roar and Rolex will look similar to the GTLM trim. A revised wing profile will mean a slightly different level of downforce at the rear of the Corvette. The C8.R will run on customer Michelin tires, per GTD regulations.Under the skin, the GTD-PRO Corvette will retain the same 5.5-liter, flat-plane V8 with a slightly decreased power output over the GTLM rules package. An anti-lock braking system (ABS), tested by Corvette Racing at Belle Isle’s race in June, also will be featured on the IMSA C8.R along with other driver aids that are mandated by the class regulations.

Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg won last year’s Rolex 24 in GTLM to lead a 1-2 finish for Corvette Racing. The trio in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R is back for a chance at two in a row. Full-season teammates Garcia and Taylor won the last two GTLM Driver championships and seek to use Daytona as a springboard to another full-season championship run.