Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Corvette Racing retains same full-season lineup

Corvette Racing Laguna Seca 2016

Corvette Racing; Laguna Seca in Monterey, CA; April 29-May 1, 2016; C7.R #3 driven by Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia; C7.R #4 driven by Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner (Richard Prince/Chevrolet photo).

Richard Prince/Chevrolet

From the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” department, Corvette Racing has confirmed the same four full-season drivers for its pair of Corvette C7.Rs in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

GT Le Mans class champions Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner will be in the No. 4 Corvette with Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia continuing in the No. 3 Corvette.

This will mark the sixth consecutive year that the full-season lineup features the same four drivers. In their combined Corvette Racing history, they have combined to win 105 races and 10 Driver’s Championships in IMSA competition. Corvette Racing also has amassed class 11 Manufacturer and Team championships and an IMSA-record 102 race victories.

“Consistency is a key component in a successful endurance racing program,” said Mark Kent, Chevrolet Director of Motorsports Competition. “Retaining our core driver lineup for a sixth straight season gives us the best opportunity to repeat the phenomenal results from 2016.”

“It’s great to be coming back and joining Tommy again in the No. 4 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R,” Gavin said. “It was a great season for us with four victories, a number of podiums and of course sweeping the GTLM championships. The mindset and motivation is there for everyone on board. We want to start 2017 the way we ended 2016 – running at the front, leading races and challenging for victories. That has to be our goal. That’s what everyone’s aim is on our team.

“You have a little more spring in your step coming into a new season on the back of one like we had in 2016. You feel confident. I hope that’s the way it carries over into 2017.”

Milner added, “More than anything, I’m excited to start a new season again with Corvette Racing. Each year always presents new challenges, and fighting hard to conquer those challenges is what makes it easy to get excited for the season.

“Being with Corvette Racing for this many years and having the same core team, I find we hit the ground running from the first test to the first race, almost as an extension of the previous year. With the success we had last year, let’s hope that translates to a strong start for 2017.”

Third drivers for the Tequila Patron North American Endurance Cup races and Le Mans will be determined at a later date. This year, Audi factory drivers on loan Mike Rockenfeller and Marcel Fassler were in the U.S. races, with the Taylor brothers added for Le Mans.

Porsche recently announced Patrick Pilet and Dirk Werner for its No. 911 Porsche 911 RSR and Laurens Vanthoor and Kevin Estre for its No. 912, with Fred Makowiecki and Richard Lietz in the Nos. 911 and 912 cars as endurance race third drivers.

BMW Team RLL may have inadvertently revealed one of its lineups upon its “Art Car” release, as the names of Bill Auberlen, Alexander Sims, Augusto Farfus and Bruno Spengler were listed on the No. 19 BMW M6 GTLM.

Ford is expected to have a similar full-season lineup with its pair of Ford GTs run by Chip Ganassi Racing Teams. It leaves the second BMW and Ferrari’s GTLM entries via Risi Competizione and potentially Scuderia Corsa as yet to formally reveal their lineups for the class next year.

Follow @TonyDiZinno