GT America in Texas this 18th-19th

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Milner, Udell set for DXDT Corvette Pro-class debut in Z06 GT3.R

The next phase of Corvette Racing’s expansion into GT World Challenge America and SRO Motorsports competition starts this weekend as DXDT Racing ventures into the series’ Pro class with a second Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R.

The Milner/Udell Corvette is the eighth different Z06 GT3.R that will race around the world this year. Its debut comes two weeks after DXDT’s first race with the Corvette brand at Sebring. Adding the No. 63 entry will allow DXDT to double-up on its preparation and work throughout the weekend to make both Corvettes contenders in their respective classes.

While Milner making his SRO debut and Udell a past World Challenge America Am champion will team together for the first time, Sellers and Smithson will arrive at COTA with positive momentum from their Corvette debut in Sebring.

The potential of the duo in the Z06 GT3.R was evident in the second of two races, where Sellers started and Smithson ran down the lead pack in the race’s second half before a late-race spin.

A return to Circuit of the Americas has been a few years coming for the Corvette brand.
The factory Corvette Racing team previously competed there in both the FIA WEC and IMSA with two class victories in the latter.

DXDT Racing and the Corvette GT3 program will continue in GT World Challenge America this weekend at COTA. Race One is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. CT on Saturday, with Race Two at 2:15 p.m. CT on Sunday.

DXDT RACING PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“In many ways, there is a lot of new for me in racing for DXDT Racing. It’s a new series for me and a new team. Obviously there are a lot of familiarities also with the Corvette, the engineering support from Corvette Racing and also my sister Erin (Gahagan) as team manager a pretty fundamental part of the team! I’m excited to do some more racing.
The last couple of years for me has by no means been a bad program. There was just less racing. Even though I was testing a lot and driving a lot, I missed the race weekend atmosphere and things like that. I figured why not double up on some of it now. But I’m excited about a new challenge and looking forward to racing with the Z06 GT3.R a bit more. There’s still a lot to learn on the team side, the crew side and the driver side. More racing for these cars is better.”

ALEC UDELL, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

I’m excited to be starting the campaign with DXDT and the Corvette Z06 GT3.R at COTA this week. Coming off a good test, I’m feeling gelled with the team and each time out there’s more knowledge gained with the car. We're looking to carry the momentum from Tommy, bringing the car to its first podium last week!"

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PROGRAM MANAGER:

“The addition of a Pro-class Corvette Z06 GT3.R in GT World Challenge America is a key part of our first year as a customer program.
This is an exciting opportunity for DXDT Racing to showcase its capabilities as a top-level team and also for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R as a contender for overall wins in GT World Challenge America."

 

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The grid in Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS is set for further growth this weekend at Circuit of The America, with 16 cars entered for the fifth and sixth rounds of the season.

The entry list features several key debuts and returning entries to the GT3-based championship, including the addition of a second DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R for Alec Udell and Corvette factory driver Tommy Milner, which will compete in the expanded five-car Pro class.

RS1, which made a winning return to the series last time out at Sebring International Raceway, will again be on the grid with its No. 85 Porsche 911 GT3 R for Trent Hindman and Jake Pedersen, who takes over co-driving duties for the balance of the season.

They join the existing full-season Pro entries from ST Racing, Racers Edge Motorsports and the points-leading Wright Motorsports Porsche pairing of Elliott Skeer and Adam Adelson.

The Pro-Am class will see the return of the Ferrari 296 GT3 to the Fanatec GT America grid, thanks to an entry from AF Corse for drivers Custodio Toledo and Riccardo Agostini.

CrowdStrike by Riley’s Colin Braun and George Kurtz hold a narrow two-point lead in the Pro-Am ranks over ST Racing’s Samantha Tan and Neil Verhagen, with others on the Mercedes-AMG and BMW teams’ tails.

COTA will mark the second race for DXDT’s Pro-Am Corvette entry of Bryan Sellers and Scott Smithson, while sister squad Regulator Racing will be seeking another podium finish following a standout drive from Mercedes-AMG factory driver Philip Ellis at Sebring.

Flying Lizard Motorsports, GMG Racing and Chouest Povoledo Racing are also all represented in the class, with MMG again listed to take part with its Porsche featuring Alex Tagliani.

Additionally, Austin-based Esses Racing will be making its second Fanatec GT America start of the season with its Mercedes-AMG, as the sole Am class entrant with drivers Will Hardeman and Alan Metni.

Track action kicks off on Friday with a pair of practice sessions, followed by qualifying and Race 1 on Saturday and Race 2 on Sunday afternoon.
Both 90-minute races will be streamed live on SRO’s GT World YouTube page and also on Twitch.

 

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Tommy Milner believes his addition into DXDT Racing’s driver lineup for the remainder of the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS season will help “eliminate question marks” as the team gets up to speed with the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R.

The Corvette Racing factory driver will team up with Alec Udell in DXDT’s second Corvette beginning with this weekend’s round at Circuit of the Americas, as a Pro class entry.
For Milner, who served as the car’s lead development driver and still holds the most mileage in the brand’s first-ever GT3 machine, the opportunity to work with the David Askew-owned operation came as a logical choice.

“It’s been an easy process so far,” he told Sportscar365. “I think the goal from David’s point of view was that he’s very excited about this opportunity to work with Corvette Racing and Pratt Miller and wants it to be as successful as possible.
“They’ve got some engineering support from Pratt Miller, having me drive one of the cars, just eliminates some of those question marks you can always have with a new car for a new team.

“The first test we had at Sebring was really good. There were no issues with the car.
All of the guys had time to get up to speed and get comfortable with the car.
“It looked like [at Sebring] that realistically a podium was on the table.
“I know Scott [Smithson] was excited about driving the car. It was the fastest he had gone at Sebring in testing there with any car he had raced there before.
“He had a lot of confidence, in ways, about driving the car.
“From my point of view, I want to have results, but part of it too is also helping them navigate this first year with the car so that in the future they won’t need as much help.”

Milner, whose only previous World Challenge experience came in a V12-powered Aston Martin Vantage in 2008, said he’s looking forward to adding more racing to his plate this year, alongside his full-season IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship commitments with Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports.
“When I did WEC and then last year I had done the [IMSA] endurance races, even with the WEC schedule, I felt like it wasn’t enough racing for me. The racing, I felt, was missing,” he said.

“I wouldn’t say I was pushing super hard for more racing but when the opportunity came up… my sister is the team manager at DXDT, so early on once we made the connections, and it looked like they were going to get cars, then that was one of the things she asked me early on was, ‘Would you want to drive?’
“I was like, ‘Absolutely, 100 percent. More racing, I’m in.’

“I’m excited about that, and I’m excited to do more racing and to go racing in SRO. It is a sprint format, it’s basically 45 minutes in the car.
“It’s been a long time since I did a sprint format kind of thing.”

 

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Practice for Friday

Tommy Milner said his laps from Friday’s afternoon session put the No. 63 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R in a better window, having set the session’s ninth-quickest time, in what has so far been steady progress for the customer Corvette squad.

Milner said: “It doesn’t feel like we’re starting from scratch in some ways. With the team’s testing and their previous race experience,
Ben [Mueller] our engineer is one of our Pratt Miller guys, so it feels like a normal race weekend and what I’m used to.
It’s about managing and finding a little better balance and learning the car a little bit.

Not a bad first day. In the second session, I think we were a little closer.”

 

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Riccardo Agostini and Neil Verhagen have scored pole positions for this weekend’s pair of Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS races at Circuit of the Americas.

Agostini, in his Fanatec GT America debut, reeled off a best time of 2:03.432 in the No. 88 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 to edge out the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Philip Ellis by 0.031 seconds.

Alec Udell put the No. 63 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R on Pro class pole with the third-quickest time overall,
followed by the No. 28 ST Racing BMW M4 GT3 of Bill Auberlen in fourth and Luca Mars, who completed the top-five in the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 Evo22.
Q2 saw Verhagen take his No. 38 ST Racing BMW to a quick lap of 2:03.137 to edge out fellow BMW factory driver Robby Foley, in the No. 29 Turner Motorsport entry, by 0.224 seconds.

Colin Braun will start third in Race 2 in his No. 04 CrowdStrike by Riley Mercedes-AMG, followed by Pro class pole-sitter Elliott Skeer in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R.

Trent Hindman completed the top-five in the Pro-Am class No. 85 RS1 Porsche.

Race 1 gets underway at 3:25 p.m. CDT,
with Race 2 on Sunday at 2:15 p.m., both of which will be streamed live on SRO’s GT World YouTube channel and on Twitch.

 

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Tommy Milner and Alec Udell claimed victory in Saturday’s opening Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS, giving the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R its first win in global competition.

Milner took the No. 63 DXDT Corvette to a 3.706-second win over the Pro-Am class-winning No. 38 ST Racing BVMW M4 GT3 of Neil Verhagen and Samantha Tan in the 90-minute contest that ran caution-free.

Having started third overall on the grid and on the Pro class pole, Udell briefly lost the class lead to the No. 28 ST BMW of Bill Auberlen until Auberlen sustained diffuser damage that affected the car’s handling.
It came after contact between Luca Mars and Philip Ellis at the start that resulted in Ellis’ No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo receiving a drive-through penalty for incident responsibility.

While pole-sitter Riccardo Agostini stretched out into a significant lead, a slow pit stops for the No. 88 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 saw co-driver Custodio Toledo emerge with just a six-second advantage.
Milner got around the Bronze-rated Brazilian driver with 35 minutes to go and had clear sailing to the finish, despite BMW factory driver Verhagen holding steady in second.

The win for the Corvette came in only its third outing in Fanatec GT America competition, following its series debut last time out at Sebring International Raceway.
The Pratt Miller-built GT3 car made its global competition debut in January’s Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Trent Hindman drove the No. 85 RS1 Porsche 911 GT3 R to a third place overall finish and second in Pro-Am alongside Jake Pedersen.
The No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche of Elliott Skeer came home second in Pro and fourth overall, despite having the rear floor of the Type-992 Porsche coming loose and ending up on the track.

Colin Braun got around Toledo with less than six minutes to go to complete the Pro-Am class podium for he and CrowdStrike by Riley co-driver George Kurtz, which finished fifth overall.
Toledo faded to eighth overall and sixth in class at the checkered flag, having also gotten passed by the No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW of Robby Foley and Bryan Sellers’ No. 08 DXDT Corvette.

Varun Choksey, who nursed the broken diffuser, was ninth overall at the finish, while a late-race spin for Aaron Povoledo dashed hopes of a top-ten finish for the No. 50 Chouest Povoledo Racing Mercedes-AMG.

The No. 32 GMG Racing Porsche of Tom Sargent instead came through to take the position.

Race 2 gets underway Sunday at 2:15 p.m. CDT with live coverage on SRO’s GT World YouTube channel and on Twitch.

 

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DXDT Racing scored the first race victory for the Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R as Corvette factory driver Tommy Milner and Alec Udell won the first 90-minute race of GT World Challenge America’s event at Circuit of the Americas on Saturday.

The No. 63 Pro-class Corvette won by 3.706 seconds in its World Challenge America debut race. DXDT Racing fielded its No. 08 Z06 GT3.R for Bryan Sellers and Scott Smithson for the first time in the Pro Am class two weeks ago at Sebring.

Udell qualified on the Pro pole position Saturday and had to avoid a spinning car ahead of him at the first corner of the race start and fell back to fifth overall. He steadily worked his way back through the field and made the Corvette’s mandatory pit stop just past the 40-minute mark. Milner re-emerged and set the Z06 GT3.R’s fastest race lap on his way to the finish.

Sellers and Smithson finished fifth in the Pro-Am class, their best result in three races so far with the No. 08 Corvette.
Sunday’s GT World Challenge finale is set for 2:15 p.m. CT with live coverage on the YouTube GT World channel.

DXDT RACING DRIVER RACE-WINNING QUOTES

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It’s big for Chevrolet, for Corvette Racing and for Pratt Miller to get this first win for the Z06 GT3.R.
As a customer car, you have to show that the car is quick and it’s capable. We’ve been close and shown that we’re fast.
But until you get that first win, it’s different.
This is a big milestone for the program. That monkey is off our back, and we don’t have to think about it anymore!

Now we can just continue ahead with this program.” On winning with DXDT Racing: “I’m super happy for my sister (Erin Gahagan, team manager). For David Askew. It’s a big day for this team. They put a lot of time and effort in making the team better. They’ve had great races, and they’re doing all the right things.
But it’s hard to enjoy that until you see the successes. So I’m really happy for them.”

ALEC UDELL, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I had hoped (success) would come this soon. Whenever you’re starting a new program, there are all kinds of unknowns. It’s the first time Tommy and I have driven together. It’s the first time I’ve raced with the team.
Everything has gelled very nicely, which speaks to the caliber of the team, the caliber of the Corvette, and us being able to bring it all together is super satisfying. Especially for me at home. It’s a great feeling. It takes a little bit of pressure off. Now we can continue to focus forward and make improvements where we can.”

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PROGRAM MANAGER:

“Congratulations to Alec, Tommy, David Askew and everyone at DXDT Racing on securing the first race victory for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R.
Today’s result in GT World Challenge America is the result of tremendous collaboration between DXDT, Corvette Racing support and our GM Powertrain team, even since before the team debuted with the Z06 GT3.R at Sebring.”

 

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Tommy Milner and Alec Udell swept the Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS weekend with Race 2 victory at Circuit of the Americas.
Udell drove his No. 63 DXDT Racing Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R to a 4.633-second win over the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R of Adam Adelson in the 90-minute contest.

It came after the duo delivered the Z06 GT3.R its first win in global competition on Saturday.
While having started sixth overall, Milner made good progress in the early stages prior to the mid-race pit stops, which saw the majority of the Am-rated drivers get aboard.

Udell took over the Pro class lead with a pass around Adelson with 25 minutes to for second overall, before the Texan passed the No. 38 ST Racing BMW M4 GT4 of Samantha Tan for the overall lead just six minutes later.

Tan’s co-driver Neil Verhagen started from the overall pole but was passed by the No. 29 Turner Motorsport BMW of Robby Foley on the opening lap.
Foley and Verhagen ran in unison for much of the opening stanza.

Tan came home third overall, but was still enough for the Pro-Am class win after also taking top class honors on Saturday.
Justin Rothberg, who emerged as the overall leader following the round of pit stops, faded to fourth overall but managed to hold off a hard-charging George Kurtz in the No. 04 CrowdStrike by Riley Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo.

The Turner and CrowdStrike by Riley entries completed the Pro-Am class podium.

A three-second post-race penalty for track limits violations relegated the No. 93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 of Luca Mars and Zach Veach to a fourth place finish in Pro, behind the No. 28 ST BMW of Bill Auberlen and Varun Choksey.

The No. 85 RS1 Porsche, No. 50 Chouest Povoledo Racing Mercedes-AMG and No. 88 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 completed the top-ten, meanwhile.
A miscalculation in the maximum drive time for Philip Ellis took the No. 91 Regulator Racing Mercedes-AMG out of contention,
while the No. 08 DXDT Corvette of Bryan Sellers suffered a right-front puncture on the opening lap of the race, which ran caution-free.

 

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Milner, Udell take second straight win to cap Pro-class debut with Corvette Z06 GT3.R

DXDT Racing went two-for-two on the weekend with the No. 63 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R as Tommy Milner and Alec Udell won their second race in as many days in GT World Challenge America on Sunday at Circuit of the Americas.

Corvette factory driver Milner drove the opening half of the race, and Udell marched through the field of Pro and Pro Am entries to win by 4.633 seconds. It went along with a Pro-class debut victory Saturday – the first for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R.

In addition to the first two victories for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R, it’s the first double-win weekend for DXDT in GT World Challenge competition.

Milner began the race sixth following Saturday’s all-Pro driver qualifying session.
The goal was to keep pace with the Pro Am cars ahead that eventually switched to their Bronze-rated driver for the second half of the 90-minute sprint.

Rather than lose time riding behind two Porsche's in front of him, DXDT Racing elected to call in Milner for the No. 63’s required pit stop.
The switch-over to Udell was perfect, and he emerged less than three seconds behind the Pro-class leader with 40 minutes to go.

Less than 15 minutes later, Udell made the move to first in Pro, and two laps later he took the overall lead of the race and cruised the rest of the way.

The No. 08 DXDT Racing Corvette of Bryan Sellers and Scott Smithson finished 11th in the Pro Am class after Sellers suffered a flat tire on the race’s opening lap. Once back on track, Sellers matched the lap times of the leaders and handed over to Smithson with 40 minutes left but the Corvette still one lap down.
DXDT Racing’s next event with the Corvette Z06 GT3.R in GT World Challenge America is July 19-21 at Virginia International Raceway.

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“The biggest thing about being part of this program is helping this team with these new Corvettes for a little bit. They’ve done a great job so far with it and helping put the final touch on things just a little bit. Championships are one thing, but for me and Alec it’s just about helping this team to continue to grow, learn these cars and hopefully win some more races along the way.”

ALEC UDELL, NO. 63 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“This weekend was a statement to the platform and all the engineers who have put in a lot of hard work getting this car to where it’s at. From the team side and the joint venture between Corvette Racing, Pratt Miller and DXDT Racing, it’s been awesome. For me to be able to jump in as well, plug myself in and be a seamless part of the program, it’s great for the customer racing teams that are looking at the Corvette as an option.

It’s a very proven platform at this point, so to be a part of that process is really cool. To have the people to learn from like Bryan and Tommy with DXDT and all our people, it’s been more than I could ask for. I’m looking forward to where we can go from here.”

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PROGRAM MANAGER:

"Congratulations to David Askew, Erin Gahagan and everyone at DXDT Racing on a fantastic debut weekend with two victories in the Pro class with the No. 63 Corvette Z06 GT3.R. We are very proud of DXDT Racing’s achievements during its first weekend with two Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs.
Saturday's race victory the first for our new Corvette, was special, but the team's approach and performance throughout the weekend is what stands out most. It is a pleasure for us to support and watch the team’s successes.”

 

[teamzr1]

Watch the whole 2 1/2 hour of race 2 at COTA where the Z06 GT3.R won both races over the weekend

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