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C8.R Corvette Racing earned GTD Pro class honors at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring based on a polished drive from Antonio Garcia, Nicky Catsburg & Jordan Taylor.
Garcia took the checkered flag 4.4 seconds ahead of an encroaching Mirko Bortolotti in the second-placed TR3 Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo, earning the GM factory team’s first win competing against GT3-spec cars in IMSA’s new GTD Pro category.
The No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTD was strong throughout Saturday’s race and controlled the proceedings after Catsburg overtook Pfaff Motorsports Porsche driver Matt Campbell for the lead with four and a half hours remaining.
After that moment, when Catsburg challenged Campbell around the outside before completing the move at Turn 3, the strong running of the Corvette and the absence of late Full Course Yellow periods combined to ensure a clear win for the American team.
Bortolotti shared second with fellow Lamborghini factory drivers Maro Mapelli and Andrea Caldarelli, while Jules Gounon crossed the line third in the No. 97 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo that also featured Maro Engel and Cooper MacNeil.
The sole Corvette, which received a mid-event BoP break on Friday, started third in GTD Pro behind Ferrari squad Risi Competizione and the TR3 Lamborghini.
After an early dice between the trio, Garcia emerged from the first round of stops in the lead. Risi Competizione’s challenge quickly faded when the Texan squad encountered power steering issues, costing it several laps.
The Corvette held a slender advantage over a tightly-bunched field through to the halfway mark. A collection of Full Course Yellows kept the order close and enabled some other cars, including the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 and the Pfaff Porsche 911 GT3 R, to take turns at the front based on pit stop strategies.
Both Vasser Sullivan and Pfaff cycled to the lead during FCY pit cycles in hours seven and eight respectively, but on both occasions Corvette returned to the front on-track.
Catsburg made the moves on both occasions, the Dutchman first dispatching Lexus driver Jack Hawksworth down the Ullman Straight before dramatically getting past Campbell after Pfaff emerged from the final caution period in the lead.
Garcia came out from his final stop with 17 seconds in hand to Bortolotti, and Aaron Telitz a further 25 seconds back in the Lexus.
Bortolotti brought the gap down, but was unable to mount a challenge for the win. Telitz, meanwhile, stopped his Lexus for currently unknown reasons on the penultimate lap, allowing Gounon to burst through and complete the podium.
BMW Team M RLL was more competitive with its new M4 GT3 in the car’s second IMSA race after diffuser issues hampered its run during the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Both BMWs were competitive in the opening stages, but the No. 25 fell away in hour three when the power steering failed.
The No. 24 BMW driven by Philipp Eng, Marco Wittmann and Nick Yelloly enjoyed a more sustained presence at the sharp end and ran second to the winning Corvette for much of the second half, but a couple of unplanned stops late on consigned it to fourth.
Garcia took the checkered flag 4.4 seconds ahead of an encroaching Mirko Bortolotti in the second-placed TR3 Racing Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo, earning the GM factory team’s first win competing against GT3-spec cars in IMSA’s new GTD Pro category.
The No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTD was strong throughout Saturday’s race and controlled the proceedings after Catsburg overtook Pfaff Motorsports Porsche driver Matt Campbell for the lead with four and a half hours remaining.
After that moment, when Catsburg challenged Campbell around the outside before completing the move at Turn 3, the strong running of the Corvette and the absence of late Full Course Yellow periods combined to ensure a clear win for the American team.
Bortolotti shared second with fellow Lamborghini factory drivers Maro Mapelli and Andrea Caldarelli, while Jules Gounon crossed the line third in the No. 97 WeatherTech Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo that also featured Maro Engel and Cooper MacNeil.
The sole Corvette, which received a mid-event BoP break on Friday, started third in GTD Pro behind Ferrari squad Risi Competizione and the TR3 Lamborghini.
After an early dice between the trio, Garcia emerged from the first round of stops in the lead. Risi Competizione’s challenge quickly faded when the Texan squad encountered power steering issues, costing it several laps.
The Corvette held a slender advantage over a tightly-bunched field through to the halfway mark. A collection of Full Course Yellows kept the order close and enabled some other cars, including the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 and the Pfaff Porsche 911 GT3 R, to take turns at the front based on pit stop strategies.
Both Vasser Sullivan and Pfaff cycled to the lead during FCY pit cycles in hours seven and eight respectively, but on both occasions Corvette returned to the front on-track.
Catsburg made the moves on both occasions, the Dutchman first dispatching Lexus driver Jack Hawksworth down the Ullman Straight before dramatically getting past Campbell after Pfaff emerged from the final caution period in the lead.
Garcia came out from his final stop with 17 seconds in hand to Bortolotti, and Aaron Telitz a further 25 seconds back in the Lexus.
Bortolotti brought the gap down, but was unable to mount a challenge for the win. Telitz, meanwhile, stopped his Lexus for currently unknown reasons on the penultimate lap, allowing Gounon to burst through and complete the podium.
BMW Team M RLL was more competitive with its new M4 GT3 in the car’s second IMSA race after diffuser issues hampered its run during the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Both BMWs were competitive in the opening stages, but the No. 25 fell away in hour three when the power steering failed.
The No. 24 BMW driven by Philipp Eng, Marco Wittmann and Nick Yelloly enjoyed a more sustained presence at the sharp end and ran second to the winning Corvette for much of the second half, but a couple of unplanned stops late on consigned it to fourth.
