“So here we are the day after the Rolex 24 at Daytona looking back on what must have been one of Grand-Am’s best events ever.  It’s a shame our new Corvette DP No. 90 car wasn’t able to figure a bit more in the mix at the front but we were pleased to bring a brand new car home in the top ten.  We had lots of comments over the week about how beautiful the car looked – it’s definitely raised the image of the DP cars significantly. 

On Daytona's famous banking

“The 50th running of the race was certainly the biggest Daytona event I’ve been to and both the series and track had pulled out all the stops to make it special.  It was great to see some real top level drivers from lots of different categories come together to take part – Juan-Pablo Montoya, Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon, AJ Allmendinger, Allan McNish to name just a few.  There was also a very big GT field with a lot of factory drivers in it, and inevitably the size of the field had an effect on how the race evolved.  It’s a credit to a lot of the GT drivers there wasn’t a big clash between one of the lead cars and a GT which would have re-shaped the race.

“It was clear right from the start that the Ford-engined cars would be fast, particularly the new Riley-bodied cars, and the first three finishers were always in contention for the win from the outset.  I was pleased to be able to lead at the six hour mark, which we achieved through good strategy and pit stops, and I had fun racing with Ryan Dalziel in the Starworks car and the winning MSR No. 60 car.

“Of course I enjoyed driving with Antonio, Richard and Jan again; there’s an easy, common understanding between the four of us and lots of banter goes backwards and forwards which is good fun and lightens the atmosphere at an otherwise tiring event.  Our driving styles are slightly different, but we all had a basic good read on the car and got the best out of it we could.  My only issue during the race was that, due to the difference in height across the line-up, I had to make quite a big compromise with my seating position and my left leg was giving me pain.

“My first time in the SDR car wasn’t until 8:45pm which was quite a challenge as it was dark and quite cold by that stage.  I was very tentative on the first lap out as it took so long for the tyres to heat up, particularly the fronts.  You have to weigh up the risk versus reward; you don’t want to lose time to your competitors but equally you don’t want to fly off the road and cost the team laps and laps getting a fix.  It’s a tightrope to walk.

“Around the midway mark I was down in the pits getting ready for my second time in the car and all of a sudden I saw some of our guys leaving the pit box and lots of worried faces.   It looked like we had a transmission problem as Richard had reported that he’d lost a certain amount of drive.  We had broken an axle but unfortunately the fix was a bit more complicated than they first thought and it cost us 14 laps.  Looking back, we finished 15 laps down to the winner so we could have really been in contention but for that.  The Rolex watch will have to wait for another year!”

Well, here we are ready for Race Day at the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the week has gone pretty well so far.  We’ve had the usual ups and down with the car, and a few little problems here and there, but it’s been generally trouble free.  The car is still very, very new and everyone is still trying to dial themselves into that but we’ve done a reasonable amount of testing here and have a reasonably comfortable set up.

Qualifying

Antonio did a great, solid job in qualifying and got us fifth on the grid.  At one point it looked as though we might be in the top three but the tyres seem to be hard to read and know when they were at their peak; if everything had gone just right, we might even have been challenging for the pole.  It’s great that all the Corvette DP cars are right there in the hunt – it seems there are 9 or 10 cars which have the pace to win the race.

Fog Factor and Tyre Wear

It’s going to be unbelievably hard and very difficult, particularly in the night if there’s fog or rain or changeable conditions.  It doesn’t look as though we’ll get rain but there’s a strong chance of fog in the early morning between, say, 5am and 9am so the chances are we’ll have some fog issue and we’ll be driving round under the safety car till it clears.  We’ll see what happens.  A few people are marginal on tyres and rear tyre wear seems to be a problem for a few people.  We will be wary of that and maybe double stint left side tyres but that might not be necessary if it’s foggy for a long time!

Traffic, traffic, traffic

Traffic will be a major issue and we’re expecting a lot of yellows.  The team that wins this race will be the one that has no contact at all and manages to have a clean run or has as little as possible and manages the yellows.  With 45 GT cars out there it does make it very tough and the fact that the speed of the DP and GT cars on the straight is very close.   It seems that in every series we race in at the moment it seems there’s little straight line speed difference between the classes and that’s something every series needs to address as it makes the racing that little bit harder and challenging, especially for less experienced drivers.  They might not have the best way of passing people and they take desperate measures and that’s when accidents and incidents happens.

A new alignment of drivers will pilot Corvette Racing’s new Compuware Corvette C6.R race cars when they make their competition debut at the season-opening 60th Anniversary Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. With additional testing following the announcement of the 2012 driver roster, the team has now finalized the lineups for the twin Corvettes.

Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia will be full-season drivers in the No. 3 Corvette C6.R, joined by Jordan Taylor as third driver in endurance events (Sebring, Le Mans, and Petit Le Mans). Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner will co-drive the No. 4 Corvette C6.R, with Richard Westbrook joining them as third driver in the three long-distance races.

“As part of our comprehensive review of Corvette Racing, we considered every element of the program, from the chassis and engine to the driver pairings,” said GM Racing Director Mark Kent. “Pre-season testing and data analysis suggested that a revised driver alignment could improve the team’s overall performance. Certainly physical size is a factor in minimizing the time required for driver changes during pit stops, but we also evaluated the drivers’ individual styles and their preferences on chassis setups. With these pairings, we can minimize compromises and maximize driver confidence.

“This new alignment also combines experienced and younger drivers,” Kent added. “We expect the veteran drivers to mentor the younger drivers, accelerating the process of learning and development.”

This new driver alignment sees Magnussen, 38, return to the No. 3 Corvette C6.R that he drove from March 2007 to August 2010. The Dane will co-drive with Garcia, 31, who moves from the third-driver role he began in 2009 to a full-season campaign in the American Le Mans Series and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The team’s newest member, Jordan Taylor, a 20-year-old from Apopka, Fla., joins Magnussen and Garcia as the third driver in the No. 3 Corvette C6.R.

Tommy Milner, 25, of Lake Mary, Fla., joined Corvette Racing in 2011 as a full-season driver in the No. 3 Corvette C6.R. Milner now moves to the No. 4 Corvette C6.R alongside Oliver Gavin, 39, a Corvette Racing driver since 2002. Richard Westbrook, 36, will mark his second year as third driver in the No. 4 Corvette C6.R.

Corvette Racing will introduce its new driver lineup at the Sebring Winter Test on February 8-9 in preparation for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on March 17.

Olly celebrating Corvette Racing's 2011 ALMS victory at Mosport

Corvette Racing will seek its ninth American Le Mans Series championship and its eighth victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2012. With a win in the GTE Pro class at Le Mans and runner-up finishes in the ALMS GT team and driver championships last year, America’s premier production sports car team has focused on improving all aspects of its performance as it prepares its Compuware Corvette C6.R race cars for the 2012 campaign.

Corvette Racing’s revised driver lineup delivers a powerful combination of youth and experience. Antonio Garcia joins Oliver Gavin, Jan Magnussen, and Tommy Milner as the four full-season drivers. Richard Westbrook will reprise his role as third driver in endurance events (Sebring, Le Mans, and Petit Le Mans), and Jordan Taylor will join Corvette Racing for the three long-distance races.

“The level of competition in the 2011 American Le Mans Series GT category was intense, and we expect it to be just as fierce in 2012,” said GM Racing Director Mark Kent. “Corvette Racing has been working hard over the winter to develop a complete package of cars, drivers, team, and technology that will be able to win in this extremely competitive environment.”

Jordan Taylor, a 20-year-old resident of Apopka, Fla., will become the 23rd driver to race in Corvette Racing colors. The son of championship-winning driver Wayne Taylor, this second-generation racer literally grew up at race tracks. After progressing quickly through karting and school series, he made his debut in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series in 2008. Taylor and his co-driver piloted the Autohaus Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro to a runner-up finish in the 2011 Rolex GT championship, just two points short of the title. He will continue to compete in the Rolex Series in 2012 with Autohaus Motorsports in addition to driving for Corvette Racing in endurance races.

“Corvette Racing is one of the most iconic names in motorsports, and joining this team is a huge opportunity for me,” said Taylor, a student at the University of Central Florida. “There are certainly going to be challenges as I learn the capabilities of the Corvette C6.R race cars, become familiar with the team, adapt to new tracks, and race with new competitors. It’s going to be amazing to race a Corvette at Sebring, Le Mans, and Road Atlanta, and I can’t wait to get started!”

GM has a longstanding association with the Taylor family, reaching back to the Chevrolet Intrepid GTP, Oldsmobile Aurora WSC, and Cadillac LMP programs. Wayne Taylor Racing currently campaigns a Corvette Daytona Prototype in the 2012 GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series.

“We have watched Jordan develop as a fine young driver over the years, and when he had an opportunity to test for Corvette Racing, his performance was very impressive,” said Kent. “He is totally dedicated to racing, gives great feedback, understands how to interpret data, and knows how to make changes to the car and his driving style to suit the conditions. He has tremendous potential and we see this opportunity as an investment in the team’s future.

“I also want to acknowledge the contributions of Olivier Beretta to Corvette Racing,” Kent continued. “Olivier was a valued member of the team, and he played a key role in our success in the ALMS and at Le Mans. Although we have parted company with Olivier, we’ll look forward to seeing him at the race track, and we wish him all the best in the future.”

Corvette Racing will participate in the Sebring Winter Test on February 8-9 in preparation for the season-opening 60th Anniversary Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on March 17. With two automatic invitations to qualify for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the team will return to the French circuit for the 80th running of the classic endurance race on June 16-17, 2012.

“Corvette Racing’s starts every season with the same objectives: to capture the ALMS GT championship and to win at Le Mans,” said Kent. “We’ve never worked harder to achieve these goals. The entire team is energized and excited, and the strength of the competition drives us to strive for continuous improvement.”

The Spirit of Daytona Racing Corvette Chevrolet DP at DIS

The four drivers, who are also all team mates within Corvette Racing’s American Le Mans Series programme, were buoyed by a positive Grand-Am Rolex Series test  in their new car and their pace and performance kept them within the top five in nearly all the sessions held over the three-day test.

Oliver commented:  “I’m pretty happy with how things have gone as we’ve shown ourselves to be competitive, we have a great driver line up, and the Spirit of Daytona team is getting to grips with a car which is still very new to them.  We’re heading into the race reasonably confident but, as always with 24 hour races, we know that while pace is important, success often comes down to how smart you are.”

The 39-year-old multiple GT1 endurance champion continued, “I think that being smart will be more important than ever this year because there’s such a big GT field and several DP cars which are very new to their teams.  With a car that’s a known quantity, teams can make very rapid bodywork changes in the pits, for example, if there’s an issue but with a new car no one is really sure how long these things will take.

“We’ve really got to be on top of what we’re doing on the track, the calls we make and how we deal with 45 GT cars which include a lot of very strong and professional teams.  As a DP driver, you’re going to come across big groups of GTs racing together and the speed differential between the top GTs and the DPs isn’t that great on the banking and on the straight.  You’re only looking at maybe 8 or 9 miles an hour difference, which isn’t that much, so you’ve really got to plan tactically on how to pass and get round them.  You will have to pick your spots carefully and take great care to protect your car and position.”

Oliver will be returning to Daytona at the end of January for the Rolex 24 Hours, practice for which begins on 26th January.  The race begins at 3:30pm (EST) on 28th January.

The new Spirit of Daytona Racing Corvette Daytona Prototype

Olly is to dovetail a new prototype programme into his already busy 2012 schedule.  With the American Le Mans Series remaining as his main focus for the forthcoming season, he has been confirmed as one of Spirit of Daytona Racing’s drivers for the endurance events within the 2012 Rolex Sports Car Series: the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the Sahlens Six Hours of the Glen at Watkins Glen and the Indianapolis 3 Hour race.

The British driver, who has been a stalwart of Corvette Racing’s multiple championship-winning American Le Mans Series programme for 11 years, will be driving the new Corvette-bodied Daytona Prototype in Grand-Am’s premier series alongside Antonio Garcia and Richard Westbrook, both of whom are endurance team mates with Olly in the ALMS.  Regular ALMS team mate Jan Magnussen will also be joining them for the Daytona 24.

Olly has considerable experience of both the DP and GT classes in the Grand-Am series accumulated over the past decade.  A multiple championship winner in the ALMS, and a proven race and points winner in Grand-Am, Oliver could not hide his eagerness at the new challenge awaiting him.

“I am really delighted to be part of Spirit of Daytona Racing, driving with Antonio and Richard in the new Corvette Daytona Prototype,” he commented. “I think this is an extremely exciting time to be in Grand Am and driving a Corvette in that series.

“The car looks fantastic and a real race car; I am itching to get on the track with it and see what it can do.  A huge amount of work has gone into putting this all together at Pratt & Miller and, having worked with them for the last 11 years, I know just what they are capable of.  This will undoubtedly be another fine machine from them and it should allow us to really challenge for victories.”

Olly will be attending the official three-day ‘Roar Before the Rolex 24’ test session at Daytona International Speedway this week and will then test his 2012 Corvette C6.R GT machine before returning to Daytona for the 24-hour race on 28/29 January.

In addition to his US racing commitments, the popular and speedy Briton is due to return to the Aussie V8 Supercar series during 2012.  He so impressed the GM and team bosses ‘down under’ with his performance and demeanour that he is much in demand for a return visit(s).

In what was a difficult and emotional weekend for the world of motorsport following the loss of Dan Wheldon, who was originally due to take part in the race, Corvette Racing driver Olly took his place amongst the 28 international drivers for this extra-special round of the V8 Supercars Championship.  Proving his top-line racing credentials beyond doubt, he turned out two strong and convincing performances in the 5-litre, V8-engined Holden Commodore to help his team-mate, V8 Supercar regular Greg Murphy, to sixth and fourth places in the two 300km races.

Olly's V8 Supercar this weekend

After encouraging performances in Friday’s practice sessions, where Olly was consistently in the top five, the duo had to start Saturday’s race from 18th place after rain turned qualifying into a lottery.  Olly started and got the car up to ninth during his run, and ‘Murph’ then continued the good work to place as high as third before his tyres began to fade. With other competitors on newer rubber, the Kiwi did extremely well to hang on to sixth place.

In Sunday’s second race, Murphy used every one of the 635 bhp at his disposal to secure seventh on the grid and Olly once again was tasked with starting the race.  He moved up to fourth before handing over to Greg, despite having a numb left leg for the final ten laps of his stint.  Murphy hung onto the position until the chequered flag, despite having to use the same front left tyre on the #11 Pepsi Max Commodore for 68 laps; the wheel nut had become too damaged to remove the wheel at the team’s second and final pit stop on lap 54.

With the duo not having put a foot wrong all weekend, Greg Murphy spoke warmly of his new team mate:  “I’m a little bit disappointed to be off the podium, but it was a great weekend. Olly did an absolutely superb job the entire event; he is such a class act. I really I don’t think there was much more we could do.”

Olly was also full of praise for both the team and his team mate.  “At the end of the second race there, I was just stunned how well Murph was driving; he just drove with such control.  He is a great guy to work with, we gelled really well and now I want to do more back here in Australia.

“I’m really, really pleased for everybody on the Pepsi Max car and the whole of Kelly Racing for what we all achieved this weekend.  It was a real pleasure to work with them and drive for the team, and I can’t thank them enough for the opportunity.  They opened up their team and embraced all of the international drivers and really made us feel at home.”

Mark Winterbottom and Richard Lyons won the final race of the Armor All Gold Coast 600 today ahead of Jamie Whincup and Sebastien Bourdais, with Lee Holdsworth and Simon Pagenaud in third place.  Bourdais was awarded the Dan Wheldon Memorial Trophy for the top international driver over both this weekend’s races.

For Dan

Olly will be driving with Murphy in the No. 11 Kelly Racing Pepsi Max Holden Commodore and is one of 28 international drivers who regularly compete in the world’s leading motorsport series. Each international driver is partnered with a regular in the V8 Supercar series for this 600km event.

Hmm, what next for the set up?

Having now met with the team, practised and got to know his co-driver a little, Olly is really looking forward to the weekend’s racing.  “Murph is a real hero here and is someone I can learn a huge amount from about racing these V8 Supercars.  I’ve been trying to wring every last bit of experience out of him and have been pounding him with questions, and it seems to have paid off as we had some good practice sessions today.

“Our pace has given me confidence going into the race, and it definitely helped to have done a simulator session before coming out here to learn the track layout.  We didn’t have too many problems in practice and I only lost out to those who had been here before and had a bit more experience with the car.  The plan is that I’ll be starting the race and I’ve had to do some practice starts as it’s probably ten years or so since I last did a standing start!  I think there are a few people who are a bit apprehensive about the start as I’m not the only one by any means who’s more used to rolling starts.

“I’m pleased I’ve got up to speed fairly quickly so we go into the race with the best chance of victory.  Murph has hit a good patch of form at the moment and I hope I can play the ideal supporting role in getting us a good result in both today and Sunday’s races.”

L-R: Priaulx, Lyons, Turner, Franchitti, Gavin, Westbrook

Olly, a leading active member of the British Racing Drivers Club, will – together with the other British drivers competing in Australia – be racing with a special visor strip on his helmet to honour fellow Briton Dan Wheldon who so tragically lost his life at Las Vegas last weekend.

Qualifying , a top 10 shootout and the first 300km race take place on Saturday, with a further qualifying session and the second 300km race being run on Sunday, 23rd October.

“It’s obviously tragic for everyone in motorsport, a very sad day.  Dan was massively passionate about motorsport and got a huge amount from racing in the USA – something I can relate to very much.

“I’ve known Dan since a very young age when we raced against each other at Kimbolton Kart Club.  We’d be parked up next to him and his dad, Clive, for many a weekend and we got to know all the family; his mum was a scorer at the club.  He comes from Emberton which is only about 5 miles from where I live and the family are well known.

“I feel desperately sorry for Susie and his two young sons.  You feel most for the people left behind.”

Olly is currently in Australia where he will be taking part in this weekend’s Armor Gold Coast 600 Aussie V8 Supercar race, an event that Wheldon was also due to participate in.  Oliver and fellow British Racing Driver Club members, including 3-times WTCC champion Andy Priaulx, Richard Westbrook and Marino Franchitti, will be honouring the memory of Dan at the race with black armbands and a message on their race helmets.

The result, at the season finale of the 2011 American Le Mans Series, secured second place in the GT Drivers Championship for Olly and Jan.  It has been a season of many highs and lows, and a string of strong points-scoring finishes, including a class win at Mosport in July, brought the Vice-Championship to the British driver and his Danish team mate.  However, a repeat of their 2010 Petit Le Mans victory was not to be today.

Road Atlanta’s prestige event lived up to all expectations in terms of action and excitement.  The 53-strong field took several hours to settle into a steady rhythm and four of the race’s ten full course caution periods took place in the first three hours due to incident after incident.  The No. 4 Corvette had a relatively trouble-free race, but was unable to lap at the same pace at the race-winning AF Corse Ferrari 458, the Flying Lizard Porsche and the BMWs.

A reflective Olly said afterwards:  “It was nice to get the result for the guys and we ended up second in the championship which was great.  It was a battle at the end there!  When we put the tires on for the last stint I thought ‘this is going to be great’ but then I got into a number of really tight spots with some very slow traffic and, as it got darker and darker, people got more cautious.   The softer tire we were on started picking up more of their rubber and the Georgia clay all round here, and it got very slippery and slick at times.

“You had to be super cautious getting on the power and carrying the speed into the corners.  Wolf was at one point catching me quickly but I managed to stretch it out a bit, then we got the caution and the little lead we needed.  Fourth place was, though, about all we could have really hoped for today.”

Thinking about the year as a whole, Oliver went on to say, “We had an awful lot of promise through the year and I think it’s fair to say we seemed to have raced a lot better than we qualified.  There were a number of races we could have won including Baltimore, Mid Ohio – if it hadn’t rained – and we could have stood a good chance at Road America if other things had gone our way.  This is a highly competitive championship and we just need to come back stronger and better.  I think things need to be looked at in terms of the way performance balancing is done here and within ACO Championships because, for us, it’s not right.”

Although the ALMS season has come to a close, Olly heads to Australia towards the end of October for the Gold Coast 600 invitational round of the Aussie V8 Supercars championship.