Corvette Racing and the Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R teams are set to close the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar season with the annual 10-hour Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta in a highly anticipated finale.

Three of the first-year Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs will race in the series for a final time in 2024 the No. 3 and No. 4 from Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports in GTD PRO along with the No. 13 GTD entry from AWA, each sporting talented lineups for the day-to-night race around the 2.54-mile, 12-turn Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta circuit:

• Antonio Garcia, Alexander Sims and Daniel Juncadella in the No. 3 Corvette
• Tommy Milner, Nicky Catsburg and Earl Bamber in the No. 4 Z06 GT3.R
• Orey Fidani, Matt Bell and Lars Kern in the AWA Corvette

There is plenty at stake at this year’s Petit Le Mans. For starters, Corvette Racing entries haven’t tasted victory in the event since 2010, the longest drought at any venue in the program’s 26-year history.
Of the nine Corvette drivers in this year’s race, only Sims (2018 GTLM), Bell (2014 GTD) and Juncadella (2023 GTD PRO) have won Petit Le Mans. Among those that haven’t been Corvette Racing veteran stalwarts Garcia and Milner.

Nevertheless, hopes and confidence is high going into this year’s running. A victory in GTD PRO would go a long way toward securing the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Manufacturers championship, which Chevrolet leads by two points going into Road Atlanta.

The Pratt Miller Corvettes have displayed strong performance at each of the four previous endurance rounds this season, Daytona, Sebring, Watkins Glen and Indianapolis. For Petit Le Mans, points will be awarded at the four-, eight- and 10-hour marks.

One of the biggest prizes at the end of Petit Le Mans may await AWA. Going into Saturday, full-season driver Fidani leads the standings for the Bob Akin Award, which goes to the highest-finishing, Bronze-rated driver at the end of each race and at the end of the season.
Fidani, Bell and Kern scored maximum points in the last round at Indianapolis, and the No. 13 Corvette did the same in the race before that at VIR.
Should AWA retain its hold on the lead position following Petit Le Mans, Fidani and AWA will earn an automatic invitation to the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans in the LMGT3 class.

DXDT RACING ADDS TO CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R LINEUP IN 2025 IMSA GTD

Fresh off ending its GT World Challenge America season with 10 victories and second place in Pro points, DXDT Racing will enter a Corvette Z06 GT3.R for the full 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in the GTD class.

It adds a fourth Corvette GT3 to the grid, with Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports (GTD PRO) and AWA (GTD) already confirmed.
“We are thrilled to see multiple Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs in IMSA’s GTD class for 2025,” said Mark Stielow, Director, Chevrolet Motorsports Competition Engineering. “DXDT Racing proved itself this year in GT World Challenge with double-digit victories across the Pro and Pro-Am classes in the first year with our Corvette GT3. We’re proud to support David Askew and DXDT
Racing as they continue pursuing their goals in becoming a well-established and successful team across multiple series in sports car racing.”

Petit Le Mans is scheduled for 12:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, October 12. The first three hours will air live on NBC starting at noon, followed by USA’s coverage from 6-10:30 p.m. Live-streaming starts at noon ET on Peacock inside the United States and IMSA.com outside the U.S. IMSA Radio will air all on-track sessions beginning with Thursday’s opening practice at IMSA.com with the race call also on XM 206 and SiriusXM Online 996.

CORVETTE RACING BY PRATT MILLER MOTORSPORTS PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“This is going to be really crazy with the traffic but good for the show! I’m looking forward to it. I think we are coming into it in strong shape. It’s nice to have Dani back so Alex and I can have a little bit of a rest in the race! Let’s see how it comes out. I’ve been racing a Corvette at Road Atlanta since 2009 and haven’t won this one yet. It’s time to make it up and fix that!”

ALEXANDER SIMS, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“With the number of GTP cars and the pace differences they have on the straights and not so much in the corners – plus the P2s it’s going to be interesting among the different classes or cars, but the GTD PRO field is stacked in itself. It’s going to be super-hard from a driver point of view.

There’s always mayhem. It’s the last race of the year and everyone is out to try to win championships or get the best positions they can. The racing is always pretty hard and fraught, but I love it. It’s an awesome place and wonderful fun with the undulation and nice, long back straight for some overtaking opportunities.”

DANIEL JUNCADELLA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It’s pretty crazy that I have not been back in IMSA since Sebring. It’s good because I feel like I am way more prepared ahead of Petit Le Mans with my experience in WEC with Corvette. It goes without saying that I want to defend my title there from last year, and it was an amazing experience. Being back in the car with Antonio, who is such a successful Spanish driver in the U.S., but hasn’t won Petit Le Mans, I hope I can be part of that success that he deserves after so many years racing there.

That’s the goal and dream for that weekend. It should be an exciting weekend because of the race, the track, the atmosphere, everything that involves Petit Le Mans has always been exciting to me. So I’m really excited to get back and race again with the Pratt Miller guys in our Corvette.”

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It’s exciting to go to Petit Le Mans. We had a strong car in the IMSA race at Indianapolis. Road Atlanta is a track that I really enjoy and a place where the Corvette has gone well. We just don’t seem to have Lady Luck on our side there. I’d say we haven’t had a lot of luck this season in IMSA, so maybe we’re saving all of that for this race. We’ll have to work for it, that’s for sure.

We’ve seen that all year long and know what it’s like in this championship. I haven’t won there, Antonio hasn’t won there, and Corvette Racing hasn’t won there in 2010. I can promise you without having to be asked the question that every man and woman at Corvette Racing is eager to have a good result there. We’ll put our absolute best effort forward to make that happen.”

NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Petit Le Mans is a race that everyone looks forward to, but also a race that not many of us in the team haven’t won before. So everyone badly wants to win but unfortunately for us so does the rest of the field. This race is similar to Sebring where things at the end of the race get slightly crazy. Hopefully things will be a little bit calmer than they have been.

We need to focus on executing everything, not making mistakes and not getting any damage early on in the race. It’s always a bit crazy in terms of traffic, so I think we need to focus on being there for the end. It’s nice to have Earl as he is a very experienced driver and someone who fits in very well with our team. Hopefully we can finally get that well-earned win in the No. 4 Corvette this year! To do it at Petit Le Mans would be unbelievable.”

EARL BAMBER, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I can’t wait. I did some simulator work a few weeks ago for the Corvette guys. It was really good to be back with the Corvette Racing guys back at the shop. I love the Z06 GT3.R and am looking forward to rounding out the year in it.
The car has been quick. We had the pace and potential to podium earlier this year. It’s certainly quick. I hope we can achieve something cool at Petit Le Mans.”

AWA RACING PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

MATT BELL, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I love the Petit Le Mans event. It really is one of the hardest sports car races in the world. It’s a super intense race with one of the most packed fields of the season, but I always relish that challenge.
Furthermore, it’s what makes it such an amazing event. We are coming here after an extremely competitive performance in the Battle On The Bricks, and our focus remains firmly centered on securing the Bob Akin Award and booking some plane tickets to France next year!”

OREY FIDANI, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“We’re ready to give one final push this year. Petit Le Mans is such a great race, the track is fast and technical, and it really puts you to the test as a driver. We know we can do well here, we finished on the podium in last year’s event, and we had a successful couple of days of testing here recently.
The car feels good, and I think we’re all extremely motivated and hungry for another great result to finish off the year and accomplish the goal we set for ourselves at the beginning of the season.”

LARS KERN, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Petit Le Mans is one of the best IMSA events of the year, and obviously we want to end the season on a high. We had a great test at Road Atlanta, and we feel well-prepared for what will be a pretty busy 10-hour race.
Our Corvette showed great reliability and performance at Indianapolis, so I’m confident for what’s up next. The team started the year being new to the Corvette itself and to the GTD class as a whole.

You can only imagine how difficult and intense this route has been, but we’ve built such an amazing, talented group within AWA.
It’s an absolute pleasure being a part of this team and I have great confidence for 2025. Here’s to hoping we can cut out the ‘Petit’ for one of the 2025 races.”

MOTUL PETIT LE MANS RACE INFO

October 9-12, 2024
Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta
DURATION: 10 Hours

Circuit Length: 2.54 miles
Corners: 12

Entry by Class:
GTP (11)
LMP2 (10)
GTD Pro (13)
GTD (20)

Tune-in Details:

Qualifying: Friday, October 13, 2023

(GTP) 4:15 PM to 4:30 PM EDT
(GTD/GTD Pro) 3:25 PM to 3:40 PM EDT
(LMP2) 3:50 PM to 4:05 PM EDT

Qualifying Online Coverage for everyone:
IMSA.com (includes live images, in-car cameras and announcers)

http://imsatv.imsa.com/

IMSA mobile app
Peacock Streaming

Television Broadcast: Saturday, October 12, 2024

NBC TV: 12:00 PM-03:00 PM EDT
USA TV: 06:00 PM-10:30 PM EDT

Online Streaming Broadcast:

US:
Peacock: 12:00 PM-10:30 PM EDT

INTERNATIONAL: IMSA mobile app 12:05 PM-10:10 PM EDT
And http://imsatv.imsa.com/
REV-CANADA: 12:00 PM TO 10:10 PM EDT

Radio:
1) Streaming on IMSA TV & Radio Le Mans:
http://imsatv.imsa.com/
http://radiolemans.0157.org/nplayer.php
2) XM unknown-not posted
5) XM Online 992

LIVE TIMING:
http://scoring.imsa.com/

Live Timing for mobile device:
http://scoring.imsa.com/mobile.html


PIT NOTES:
Twitter
http://twitter.com/ @CorvetteRacing, @PrattMillerMS, @AWARacing, IMSA, @IMSAlive, @RoadAtlanta

Results for second practice
Corvettes placed fourth and tenth places

Jordan Taylor set the pace for Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti for the second Motul Petit Le Mans practice session at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

Taylor steered the No. 40 Acura ARX-06 to a best lap of 1:11.081 during the 90-minute session on Thursday afternoon, outpacing the No. 31 Action Express Racing Cadillac V-Series.R of Jack Aitken by 0.078 seconds.

Prior to late-session improvements from both Aitken and the No. 6 Porsche 963 of Nick Tandy, Taylor led an Acura 1-2 after overhauling a previous best effort from the No. 10 WTRAndretti Acura of Filipe Albuquerque.

Instead, Albuquerque’s 1:11.469 left him fourth, ahead of the No. 24 BMW M Hybrid V8 of Philipp Eng and Sebastien Bourdais’ No. 01 Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac.

Mikkel Jensen led LMP2 in the No. 11 TDS Racing Oreca 07 Gibson by posting 1:13.373 leading the Connor Zilisch-driven No. 18 Era Motorsport machine by just 0.001 seconds.

Daniel Serra’s 1:18.722 put the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari 296 GT3 on top in GTD Pro, 0.015 seconds ahead of Jack Hawksworth’s No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3.

Ross Gunn and Antonio Garcia slotted into third and fourth for Heart of Racing Team and Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports, respectively.

The four leading GTD Pro runners sat ahead of the GTD-leading No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Lexus of Parker Thompson in the overall running order, with the Canadian’s 1:18.916 lap 0.057 seconds than the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Philip Ellis.

The session was interrupted by a single red flag with 42 minutes to go, triggered when the No. 18 Era Motorsport Oreca lost its left rear wheel approaching Turn 10.

Ryan Dalziel was able to return the car to the pits without assistance.

Notably, both Penske Porsche 963s had near-identical trips through the gravel at the same corner, with both Dane Cameron and Tandy locking up on corner entry and running wide before continuing.

Practice for the WeatherTech Championship wraps up with the night session at 7:30 p.m. EDT.

Third Practice Completed

Both Corvettes finish in 3rd and 7th places out of 13 cars in GTD Pro class but

A red flag was shown about 30 minutes into the session after a Turn 2 collision between Daniel Juncadella’s No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R and the No. 78 Forte Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 of Loris Spinelli sent both cars spinning down the hill and off-track.

Juncadella, who was on a timed lap, made contact with the side of a slower-moving Forte Lamborghini, which was exiting the pits on cold tires, resulting in damage to the right rear of the Corvette.

Qualify completed and how they will start the race

GTD Pro points leader Laurin Heinrich claimed pole in the No. 77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R in a new track qualifying record.

Heinrich’s 1:17.891 lap time was 0.052 seconds quicker than the No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Tommy Milner.

It marked Heinrich’s first career WeatherTech Championship pole.

CORVETTE RACING AT ROAD ATLANTA: Z06 GT3.Rs on 1st, 2nd Rows

Milner drives No. 4 Corvette to second on grid, Garcia qualifies repaired No. 3 in fourth

Corvette Racing factory drivers Tommy Milner and Antonio Garcia will start on the first and rows of the GTD PRO class for the 10-hour Petit Le Mans in their Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs after Friday’s qualifying session at Michelin Raceway Road Atlan

Milner qualified second in Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports’ No. 4 Corvette with a lap of 1:17.933 (117.331 mph) and will start directly ahead of teammate Antonio Garcia in the No. 3 Z06 GT3.R. It sets the team up well to go for its ninth Petit Le Mans victory and first since 2010.

Milner just missed claiming the fourth pole of the season and second straight for the No. 4 Corvette, with just 0.052 seconds separating him and pole-winner Laurin Heinrich. The top five GTD PRO cars were within 0.225 seconds, including Garcia with a lap of 1:18.085 (117.102 mph).

For the No. 3 side of the GTD PRO garage, making qualifying was a race in itself.
The car suffered right-rear chassis damage in a crash during Thursday’s night practice, and mechanics worked into early Friday morning to patch and weld the damaged portion back together.
As a backup, GM and Pratt Miller dispatched a transporter from Detroit late Thursday to bring in the program test car in the event that components from the existing No. 3 needed to be moved over to make the race.

As it turned out, the overnight/early-morning fix did the trick, and the team plans to proceed as normal into the race.

AWA’s No. 13 Corvette elected not to take part in qualifying and preserve the car and its allotment of Michelin tires for the race in hopes of giving the team the best possible chance of claiming the season-long Bob Akin Award.

Orey Fidani will enter Petit Le Mans with the lead in the Akin Award standings. As long as the AWA Corvette finishes seventh or better among GTD entries featuring a Bronze-rated driver, Fidani will take the season award and also an automatic invitation into next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Petit Le Mans is scheduled for 12:10 p.m. ET on Saturday. The first three hours will air live on NBC starting at noon, followed by USA’s coverage from 6-10:30 p.m. Live-streaming starts at noon ET on Peacock inside the United States and IMSA.com outside the U.S. IMSA Radio will stream the audio call at IMSA.com, XM 206 and SiriusXM Online 996.


CORVETTE RACING BY PRATT MILLER MOTORSPORTS POST-QUALIFYING DRIVER QUOTES

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R – QUALIFIED SECOND IN GTD PRO:

“I’m absolutely happy to be P2 and to start the race on the front row is fantastic.
The car was excellent, and I’m really happy with it. From that side, it worked out well for us. In reality, the qualifying sessions right now in IMSA are a disaster, especially in GT. They have been all year long. I’m glad that I was able to have a chance to go for a lap without too much issue. I know that’s not the same for a lot of the guys behind me, that’s for sure.

You have some guys who are out there for four laps not even trying to run qualifying laps and getting in the way. You’ve got people that are stopping on the racetrack and causing stack-ups. This is one of the top if not the top sports car championships in the world and I feel we should be better than that. All that frustration aside, I’ve been on the wrong end of these qualifying sessions, so I know it feels.
But I’m really happy with our Corvette Z06 GT3.R.
My teammates are fast. This race is going to be about staying out of trouble, and we’ll do the best we can.”

(Team effort to repair the No. 3 Corvette) “I don’t want to say it’s typical Corvette Racing, but we do get spoiled. And we were spoiled again by this team. It’s not my car specifically but for team morale to have the problem they had last night with both crews helping out, guys coming from Michigan driving a spare car down just in case, guys staying up until 2 this morning to make sure the car was good to go for today it’s absolutely amazing.

I’m sure Antonio would have liked to have shown a little more pace, and I’m sure he did have more pace in him. It’s a great reward for the whole team to have both Corvettes at the sharp end of the field to start this last race of the year on a good note.”


ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R – QUALIFIED FOURTH IN GTD PRO:

“It was a mess. We have a lot of GT cars out there and a mix of pro drivers and the Bronze guys.
I don’t think it’s good for them either, trying to find a gap between us. It was messy.

But overall, I’m glad that I was able to qualify. I can be a little more or less frustrated. But it was nice that the whole team put together the effort and this strategy to get that car out for qualifying. First row or second row, we definitely are not last. I’m really happy about that. We got a chance to double-check a couple of items that we tried in Practice Two (Thursday afternoon).
We gambled on my last feeling of the car in that session, which may have compromised me a little bit of how the car behaves now. But we have the 4 car data to compare with us now, so we’ll look at what they did during night practice and combine it with what they have now against us. Regardless, it’s a strong, strong situation where we are second and fourth. Everything is so close, and now we have 10 hours ahead.”

(The team effort) “I’m really happy with the crew and the whole organization. I didn’t expect to be out there for qualifying, to be honest. Once you are out there, you forget that you aren’t doing an installation lap or anything like that. You have to trust your guys.
I never once worried or thought about the car not being perfect because I know this team and crew. It was really great, and I’m very thankful for them.

The No. 2 United Autosports Oreca, which started from pole and led the opening hour with Ben Keating at the wheel, was eliminated from contention in an incident also involving Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports and MDK by High Class Racing.

The incident resulted in the No. 2 Oreca and the No. 4 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R driven by Tommy Milner going off at Turn 6.

Race control handed out no penalties for the collision, deeming it “inconclusive” after review.

This leaves with about 4 hours of the 10 hours completed, the #3 Corvette Z06 in 4th place

#4 Corvette Z06 crashed out with another car within the first hour of the race.
Did get back in but ended like 50 laps down :-(

#3 Corvette Z06 ended the race in 5th place

20-minute video on recap of the race


C8 Z06 was crashed out at around 3 mins 30 seconds of this video