Corvette Racing made it a dozen victories in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on Saturday, 19th March, providing the first victory for the Corvette C8.R in America’s oldest sports car race.
Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg teamed for the historic win with the # 3 Corvette, in the second round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The Corvette trio combined to lead 247 laps for Corvette Racing’s first Sebring 12 Hours win since 2017 and its 12th since 2002.
It also marks the first win for the Corvette C8.R in its second race in the new GTD PRO-spec class. This result goes hand in hand with a runner-up finish in the GTE Pro event for Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy in Friday’s 1,000 Miles of Sebring. This race was a round of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
“Congratulations to Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor, Nicky Catsburg and everyone on the # 3 Corvette C8.R team,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. vice president, Performance and Motorsports. “Winning in class for the 12th time at the 12 Hours of Sebring is the result of great driving, race strategy and execution of pit stops. The Corvette C8.R’s 5.5-liter, flat-plane V-8 engine delivered the right combination of performance, reliability and efficiency throughout the race”.
“This win is even more special thanks to the support of so many Corvette owners and fans at the track and around the world,” Campbell added. “This has been a great weekend with a runner-up class finish in the World Endurance Championship on Friday and now this win in IMSA. I’m proud of everyone at Corvette Racing and our technical partners at Mobil 1 and Michelin.”
Corvette Racing’s Antonio Garcia took the lead early in the race, moving up from his third place starting position to take the lead in GTD PRO. After two hours, Garcia handed the C8.R over to Jordan Taylor for a good three hour stint. Nicky Catsburg then took over for another three hour driving effort enduring four full-course cautions. He battled with Matt Campbell for the class lead before he pulled ahead.
After another stint from Taylor, Garcia took the wheel to bring the C8.R home for the win. “I was the first guy surprised about our pace. We started seventh and slowly started to make our way through. I wasn’t expecting to be leading after the first stop. I thought our car was the best during the day and when it was as warm as possible”, said Garcia after the race.
Corvette Racing’s next event is the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on April 8-9 at the Long Beach (Calif.) street circuit.