The 57th running of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring was a history-making event for Corvette Racing. For Johnny O'Connell, it was a record-setting eighth Sebring class victory. For Jan Magnussen, it was his milestone 100th career victory in the American Le Mans Series' landmark 100th race. For Antonio Garcia, it was his first win with Corvette Racing. And for Corvette Racing, it was a perfect performance that included an ALMS record for laps completed in the GT class at Sebring to jump start the 10th anniversary of America's premier production sports car racing team.
O'Connell, Magnussen and Garcia completed 349 laps in the No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R to take a one-lap victory in the GT1 class over Oliver Gavin, Olivier Beretta, and Marcel Fassler in the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R. The Corvettes finished sixth and seventh overall, and the winning car set a record for the most laps completed by a GT car in ALMS competition in America's most demanding endurance race. The No. 3 Corvette C6.R also won the inaugural Michelin Green X Challenge race-within-a-race with the best score in the GT classes based on performance, efficiency, and environmental impact. "In our final race in the GT1 class at Sebring, I think we raised the bar high by setting an all-time laps completed record and running a flawless race," said Corvette Racing program manager Doug Fehan. "Today was an example of what we've done since the inception of this program - continuous improvement. This gives us a solid foundation for going to the 24 Hours of Le Mans and completing our mission over there."
Gavin started on the GT1 pole with Magnussen in close pursuit. The first round of pit stops at 49 minutes into the race proved decisive. Magnussen pitted first, handing off to O'Connell. One lap later, Gavin pitted and was replaced by Beretta. The two cars emerged from their stops side-by-side, with O'Connell taking the lead for good in Turn 10. The No. 3 Corvette C6.R then held its advantage through 11 long hours of racing and 11 more pit stops.
"I had the advantage of a killer lap going out of the pits," said O'Connell, who extended his record as the all-time leader in Sebring victories with his eighth career win on the historic circuit. "Maybe our car was a little better in that stint. I came by as Olivier was coming out of the pits on cold tires, so he had knife for a gunfight on that first lap. Anytime you get close dicing like that it's a lot of fun, and Olivier was pushing me every bit of the way. "I don't know why this place has always been special for me, but a lot of it is that I've been here with good people," O'Connell continued. "When you have a race car prepared by Corvette Racing and the support of Chevrolet, this is how you want to start a year. To have won this so many times with Ron Fellows, and now to do it with Jan and Antonio, makes me very excited about the future. Not only did we win the race, we also won the Michelin Green X Challenge, so there is a lot for Chevrolet to be proud of today."
"Winning my 100th race in the 100th ALMS event is perfect," said Magnussen. "I'm so happy for Johnny, and to welcome Antonio to the team with a win couldn't be better. We had a nearly perfect race - we didn't make any mistakes and everything went according to plan. A victory here is the best possible preparation we could have for Le Mans."
Garcia completed a trio of endurance racing victories after wins in the 2008 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 2009 Rolex 24 at Daytona. The Spaniard notched his first ALMS victory in his debut with Corvette Racing. "Starting off with a win with my new team, I can't ask for anything more," Garcia said. "Everything went perfectly, the team did a magnificent job, and the pit stops were awesome. For me today was a learning race, and I think I achieved everything that I wanted."
The gap between the two Corvettes was never more than 30 seconds through the long day of racing.
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