Corvette Racing’s Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTD. (IMSA photo)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – What does it mean for racers to compete at a legendary venue? Everything including three takeaways from Canada:
Exactly the right time
The very title – the Chevrolet Grand Prix – indicates the importance of Corvette Racing’s annual visit to the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. The Corvette Corral alone is worth the price of admission as collectors have traveled from across North America to showcase their versions of the storied sports car.
That partly explains why Jordan Taylor and Antonio Garcia’s attempt to send the No. 3 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTD to victory in the GT Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) on Sunday came at the right time and place .
The win ended a 13-race streak in which Corvette did not win a race in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. That’s a rare slowdown for Corvette Racing, which has won five of the last seven championships in its class and last month won the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Prior to Sunday’s win, Corvette had 11 wins at the CTMP, but she hadn’t won there since 2014. As they say, timing is everything.
“I think we have another win there ahead of us,” Taylor said before the race. “It’s been a while. … It’s a big weekend for Corvette and Chevrolet every year. When we drive north of the border, there are real sports car fans.”
The wonder of the venue
It’s fast, difficult, unexpected and unrelenting. CTMP is unforgiving and drivers cannot forget its challenges.
The 2,459-mile, 10-turn course, hidden in the woods northeast of Toronto, is both loved and feared by participants. With blind corners and deceptively fast sections of track, CTMP can send you down the victory lane – or throw you off course.
Just ask Renger van der Zande, who in Cadillac Racing’s #01 Cadillac V-Series.R went into lockup late in Sunday’s race, albeit with some help from another Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) car. Before that, he addressed the challenges associated with the track.
“At home I tell people how bizarre it is – how fast you drive, how much risk you take, how confusing the corners are and at the same time it’s very fast,” said the Dutch driver. “It’s one of those circuits that’s more interesting than you think from a technical point of view.”
Straight ahead, no chaser
This time, Paul Miller Racing didn’t need superhuman performance to command attention. Just an old-fashioned, uncomplicated win that got recognition.
Madison Snow took the lead in the GT Daytona (GTD) early in the race and then watched as co-driver Bryan Sellers brought the No. 1 PMR-BMW M4 GT3 ahead of the field for the team’s third win of the season.
Two weeks ago, attention came from a different source. Snow, Sellers and Corey Lewis rallied after two laps down and secured an unlikely second place. This form of attention grabbing was far better than the other.
“The podium (at CTMP) was a bit difficult for us to achieve,” Snow said. “It’s great to be able to land here on the top step.”
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