DAYTONA BEACH — In this modern, disposable society (how many cell phones have you owned in the last five years?) it becomes easy to ignore real commitment or just keeping the pieces working in unison year after year.
The average length of a marriage in the United States is eight years. If you want to bring sports into the discussion, the average lifespan of an NFL career is 3.3 years.
It is the [...]
DAYTONA BEACH — In this modern, disposable society (how many cell phones have you owned in the last five years?) it becomes easy to ignore real commitment or just keeping the pieces working in unison year after year.
The average length of a marriage in the United States is eight years. If you want to bring sports into the discussion, the average lifespan of an NFL career is 3.3 years.
It is the same with sports-car racing. New teams pop up on a regular basis only to become a footnote in motorsports history one or two years later.
Then there is Corvette Racing.
Back in 1998 Chevrolet decided to start a factory-backed race team featuring the Corvette brand and race it anywhere it could around the world.
There was no end date set.
Corvette Racing made its debut in 1999 and has been going strong ever since using the motorsports program as a marketing tool to its legion of followers, plus testing technology that has made its way into the street-car versions of these racing brutes.
“We realized what a tremendous marketing platform racing is for Corvette,” said Mark Kent, General Motors director of racing. “We don’t advertise Corvette on the television. We have always used racing to advertise the Corvette.
“It’s been an extremely effective approach to do so. Every year we see the values of technology transfer; being able to demonstrate the race car on the track in front of potential customers.”
When the No. 3 and No. 4 Corvette C7.R machines hit the 3.56-mile road course at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday for practice and qualifying, it will signify the start of Corvette’s 20th year in sports car racing.
The cars, which are classified as a GT Le Mans, will be wheeled by Jan Magnussen, Antonio Garcia and Mike Rockenfeller (No. 3) and Oliver Gavin, Tommy Miner and Marcel Fassler (No. 4).
This will be Gavin’s 17th consecutive season as a factory driver for Team Corvette, which again, is unheard of in this form of racing.
“Corvette Racing has shown remarkable commitment to sports car racing over the last 20 years,” Gavin said. “In IMSA racing, we’ve had a huge amount of success.
“We won the GTLM class championship back to back (2016-17), we’ve won class in the Rolex 24 twice (2015-16) and we’ve had a huge success in the Le Mans 24 Hours. We have won eight times there.”
When Gavin first got the job, he thought it would be a two- or three-year deal then move on to the next opportunity.
Instead, Corvette Racing has flourished and become the standard bearer for the GTLM class. You have to beat Corvette to win the class crown each year.
“You can’t achieve that level of success without having an amazing team of people,” Gavin said. “I see this team as my second family because I’ve been with them so long.
“We’ve had many, many successes, but there have been difficult periods, but that shows the mettle of this team to always bounce back from bad results.”
Because Corvette has been in the sport for so long, it has a very thick playbook. Each year the team adds to its knowledge base, which makes those cars tough to beat.
“We have developed a team here that wins consistently,” Kent said. “You see a lot of people come in and out of the sport. They come in, can’t win and leave. They come in they win and leave.
“We have been here 20 years with the same team, which I find amazing. We have grown together, won together and we’ve seen the value of this program.”
FAST FACTS
What: 54th Rolex 24 At Daytona
Where: Daytona International Speedway
Course: 3.56-mile road course
Tickets: 4-day wristbands, $105; 2-day wristbands, $70; Thursday only, $10; Friday only, $25; Sunday only, $30; Saturday 6-hour admission (6 p.m.-midnight), $20 (for more detailed pricing, go to Speedway website)
Parking: Infield, sold out; free parking is available in a limited number in Lot 2 across from the Speedway at One Daytona, providing access to and from the Speedway before and after the race. Walking access to the infield will be available through the Turn 4 or Turn 1 tunnels.
TV: Saturday (Fox Sports 1, 2 p.m.-5 p.m.), Sunday (Fox Sports 1, 1 p.m.-3 p.m.)
Online: imsa.com, daytonainternationalspeedway.com
More info: Call the Speedway at 800-748-7467
Schedule
Thursday
9 a.m.: Stadium & UNOH Fanzone opens
9:20 a.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
10:40 a.m.: Ferrari Challenge practice
11:40 a.m.: IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge practice
12:05 p.m.: IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge ST qualifying
12:25 p.m.:IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge GS / TCR qualifying
1:40 p.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
3 p.m.: Ferrari Challenge qualifying
3:20 p.m.: Ferrari Challenge qualifying
3:55 p.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD qualifying
4:20 p.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTLM qualifying
4:45 p.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Prototype qualifying
5 p.m.: IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge practice
6:30 p.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
Friday
8:30 a.m.: Stadium & UNOH Fanzone opens
8:45 a.m.: Ferrari Challenge qualifying
9:05 a.m.: Ferrari Challenge qualifying
9:40 a.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
10 a.m.: IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship practice
11 a.m.: Ferrari Challenge race 1
1 p.m.: Start of BMW Endurance Challenge At Daytona (4 hours)
Saturday
6:30 a.m.: UNOH Fanzone opens
9 a.m.: Stadium open
9:30 a.m.: Ferrari Challenge race 2
1:05 p.m.: Crossover gates open
2:40 p.m.: Start of 56th Rolex 24 At Daytona
Sunday
2:40 p.m.: Finish of 56th Rolex 24 At Daytona