Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta battled against the heat and their rivals to win a tough GT1 class at Portland, recording Corvette Racing's 50th victory.

The pair finished 54.8 seconds ahead of the 007 Aston Martin DBR9 of Tomas Enge and Darren Turner with Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell third in the No. 3 Corvette C6.R.

"It's fantastic to be part of Corvette's 50th victory," said Oliver. "The car was fantastic and the Michelin tyres stood up extremely well under very hot conditions. We just managed everything as best we could and slowly eked out a lead. It was a hard fought battle in very difficult circumstances."

Corvette Racing's milestone 50th win came as Chevrolet is celebrating Corvette's 50th anniversary in international road racing. Corvette Racing's record includes 44 victories in the American Le Mans Series, five wins in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and a victory in the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Olivier Beretta drove the first and third stints in the two-hour, 45-minute race. He had to contend with a malfunctioning air conditioner in the hottest part of the day.

"I was trying very hard to keep the lead, and the Aston Martin was putting a lot of pressure on us," Olivier confirmed. "This was an amazing race, and this team is unbelievable. Corvette Racing never gives up."

Olivier qualified on the GT1 pole, and took the lead at the green flag. At 31 minutes into the race, the No. 009 Aston Martin made an unscheduled pit stop and subsequently received a stop-and-go penalty for a pit infraction. The No.4 Corvette then came under pressure from the No. 007 Aston Martin. A full-course caution at the 50-minute mark signaled a round of pit stops and driver changes. Quick work by the Corvette crew put the C6.Rs first and second when the green flag was shown 1:05 into the race. The No. 007 Aston Martin regained second place as the final pit stops took place with 30 minutes remaining.

'The Ollies' solidified their hold on the GT1 championship with 106 points, 12 ahead of their Aston Martin rivals. Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell are third in the championship race with 90 points.

Portland Grand Prix Race Results

1. Rinaldo Capello, Allan McNish, Audi R10 TDI Power, 142 laps.
2. Emanuele Pirro, Frank Biela, Audi R10 TDI Power, 142.
3. Guy Smith, Chris Dyson, Lola B06/10 AER, 140.
4. Butch Leitzinger, James Weaver, Lola B06/10 AER, 138.
5. Liz Halliday, Clint Field, Jon Field, Lola B05/40 AER, 135.
6. Duncan Dayton, Andy Wallace, Lola EX257 AER, 134.
7. Olivier Beretta, Oliver Gavin, Corvette C6.R, 133.
8. Chris McMurry, Bryan Willman, Lola EX257 AER, 133.
9. Tomas Enge, Darren Turner, Andrea Piccini, Aston Martin DBR9, 133.
10. Ron Fellows, Johnny O`Connell, Corvette C6.R, 132.
11. Pedro Lamy, Stephane Sarrazin, Aston Martin DBR9, 131.
12. Sascha Maassen, Lucas Luhr, Porsche RS Spyder, 128.
13. Jaime Melo, Mika Salo, Ferrari 430 GT Berlinetta, 128.
14. Jorg Bergmeister, Patrick Long, Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 128.
15. Bill Auberlen, Joey Hand, BMW E46 M3, 128.
16. Wolf Henzler, Johannes van Overbeek, Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 127.
17. Seth Neiman, Darren Law, Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 126.
18. Tom Milner, Gunnar Jeannette, Panoz Esperante GTLM, 126.
19. Robin Liddell, Mike Rockenfeller, Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 126.
20. Justin Marks, Bryan Sellers, Martin Jensen, BMW E46 M3, 126.
21. Scott Maxwell, David Brabham, Panoz Esperante GTLM, 125.
22. Romain Dumas, Timo Bernhard, Porsche RS Spyder, 116.