Terrific Turnout For Final C8.R Race At Petit Le Mans

IMSA racing is alive and well at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

While the official attendance numbers have yet to be released, we wouldn’t be surprised if this was one of the biggest turnouts in Petit’s 26-year history.

The Turn 10 amphitheater area was packed to the gills. In fact, Road Atlanta shut down infield parking two hours after the start of the race.

The weather was definitely on their side, with abundant blue sky and air temps hovering in the neighborhood of 65 to 76 degrees throughout the race. Track temps stayed between 75 to 114 degrees Fahrenheit.

A large field of 52 cars took part in the event split across five classes: Ten cars were entered in the GTP class, eight in LMP2, seven grouped in LMP3, eight in Corvette’s GTD Pro class, and 19 in GTD.

You could’ve skipped high school algebra class and still figured out that too many race cars were fighting for position on a 12-turn, 2.540-mile road course.

Now, toss in the fact that it was the season’s final race, with several classes still up for grabs. So, you guessed it, yellow caution flags were waving frantically all day.

And for those looking for racing action, we recommend our series: From the Paddock: The Roar of Corvette & Vintage Racing.

A Caution-Paloosa

There were 13 full-course cautions for the IMSA season finale at Road Atlanta. The cautions were so plentiful some of the GTP teams didn’t make green flag pit stops during the first seven hours of the race.

Let’s do some rough comparisons to add some perspective to that number.

There were eight cautions when IndyCar held their 2023 season finale at Laguna Seca. This year, NASCAR ran Watkins Glen, and there was just one caution flag, the lowest number in the modern history of the race that dates back to 1986.

Granted, the comparisons are not apples to apples, but you get the point.

Even if you look at last year’s Petit Le Mans, there were ten cautions for 65 laps. Why is the trend going in the wrong direction?

Is it overcrowding on the track, too many gentleman racers, bad luck, or a combination of all three? While luck will always be a part of racing, the number of cars and gentleman racers is a loose lug nut they can tighten.

Not to put too fine a point on it, last year, Jordan Taylor’s C8.R got caught up in a track-clearing accident on this same course. The large number of cars and those unfamiliar with side-by-side racing were highlighted as culprits then.

Andy Lally’s Aston Martin Vantage GT3 was knocked out of competition this year. Also, championship contender Nick Tandy’s Porsche 963 was blindsided and sent into a gravel trap—same culprits.

25 Years of Corvette Racing

When things went south, the C8.R was leading their GTD Pro class at the halfway mark of Petit Le Mans. Corvette Racing suffered the first failure of the flat crank engine in the four seasons of the C8.R era.

Still, there is much to celebrate as Corvette Racing bids adieu to factory-supported racing after 25 glorious years. Who can forget the overall victory in the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2001?

Many recall the 2017 victory at Sebring against some of the best GTLM competitors ever assembled. Corvette racing has produced 127 victories worldwide, nine wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and 14 drivers and manufacturers titles.

In 2024, Corvette will not have a fully factory-funded race program. A pool of Corvette drivers will race with customer teams as they transition to the Corvette Z06 GT3.R next season.

About eight Corvette Racing machines will compete in IMSA next year. Probably four representing full-time GTD Pro and four in GTD class entries. Rumors are that G.M. will be taking up two entries in the new LMGT3 division.

Sources say Pratt-Miller will continue to produce Corvette race cars next year.

Lucky Or Good?

Here is a question people have wrestled with for generations, “Is it better to be lucky or good?” In the case of Hillary Dukas, she can be both.

On the good side of the ledger, Hillary is the successful, long-time NCM Ambassador for Classic Glass Corvette Club of Marietta, Ga. On Saturday morning, she proved she was lucky as well.

As part of the events at the Corvette Corral this year, Michelin Tire gave an informative presentation to a packed house of devoted fans. At the conclusion, a single red ticket was drawn slowly from a container.

As luck would have it, the ticket was Hillary’s. You’d be wrong if you thought her prize would be a Michelin ball cap or some other piece of tchotchke memorabilia.

Her winning ticket entitled her to receive one set of four Michelin passenger or light truck tires up to $2,000. So yes, you can be both lucky and good.

Congratulations, Hillary!

Ron Fellows In The House

The Corvette Corral tent was the center of activities for fans on Friday and Saturday. Throughout the two days, G.M. engineers, factory drivers, and vendor representatives shed light on their specialty.

In the eyes of many, though, one presentation stood head and shoulders above the others: Ron Fellows. You can’t talk about Corvette Racing without mentioning Ron Fellows and his long list of contributions.

His 27 wins, three ALMS championships, two wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and his unprecedented four consecutive “Most Popular Driver” awards from ALMS fans testify to his enduring success.

Fittingly, G.M. paid tribute to Ron by creating the “Ron Fellows ALMS GT1 Champion Corvette Z06” in 2007. Today, he’s known for the Ron Fellows Performance Driving School at the Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch.

Insider Tips

The annual Motul Petit Le Mans is the largest international sporting event in Georgia, with over 150,000 fans attending annually. Given what we just witnessed on October 14th, we don’t doubt it.

But don’t be overwhelmed by the number of people. You can use insider tips to get the most out of the Petit Le Man’s experience.

First, get a two-day ticket, not just a Saturday race-day ticket. On Friday, there is some track action to take in, but more importantly, G.M. has its hospitality tent up and running at 8:00 a.m.

You’ll find this hospitality tent becomes your oasis for the weekend. Big screen T.V.s inside continually broadcast real-time track action; complimentary breakfast and lunch keep you fueled up.

Factory driver autograph sessions and insightful technical presentations go on both days. Plus, there is a wealth of event information disseminated, live auctions, and so much more.

All of this is yours if you’ve purchased the highly sought-after Corvette Corral ticket. These limited tickets sell out quickly, so buying them months in advance is best.

The last tip is to get there early, especially on race day. Plan to be there at eight or, at the latest, 8:30 a.m. or risk sitting in traffic for an hour or more.

If you plan accordingly, the 10-hour, 1000-mile IMSA season finale becomes a must-attend yearly event for race fans and especially Corvette enthusiasts.