BADBOYVETTES.COM

Not already registered?
Register here.

[login] [register]

May 15 2012 08:15:38 PM EST

Chris Draper - Corvette Info Center

Our man, Chris Draper, was at Laguna this past weekend. The following is his story --

Laguna Seca never has lack of action. This year's race was no exception. Friday's qualifying saw a bit of a shock when Aston Martin showed their true hand and posted a 1:22.229 for pole position. Tommy Milner in the #4 Corvette took 2nd at 1:22.661, and Jan Magnussen posted a 1:22.919 on his 8th lap, 4 more then the #4 car.

Race day was a test of will power. Aston Martin in the opening laps showed they had the speed and started pulling away from the rest of the GT pack until the first full coarse caution really shook things up. AMR had a fuel fill issue that shook them from 1st to 5th. Our badboys capitalized and the #4 Corvette took the lead.

Throughout the 6hr battle, there were 5 or more GT cars absolutely nose to tale lap after lap. It could have been anyone's race, but mistakes were seen from all teams. The #4 Corvette saw a fuel fill issue that took them from their healthy lead down to 5th. The BMWs experimented with some different tire compounds early on and guessed wrong and after a full stint nearly cost both cars a lap. The #45 Porsche had the pace, but penalties cost them the race.

Ultimately, it came down to Corvette vs BMW once again. Milner and Gavin fought back with the Take No Prisoners attitude and got back into the lead and made it count. The #3 Corvette got passed by the #56 BMW after a caution restart, but Magnussen fought back hard and made the move of the race.

During Magnussen's maneuver, he flat spotted the tires. With about 8 minutes left the BMW was biting back inch by inch each lap. The injured Michelins held in just long enough and on the final corner of the final lap the BMW got a little too hard on the gas, fishtaled out of the corner, and the cheers for the Corvette Racing camp could nearly be heard over the sound of the thundering V8s crossing the finish in a 1-2 style victory. Click HERE to watch the podium presentation.

Click HERE to relive the last 20 minutes of the race.

Our badboys truly took no prisoners. They didn't even leave a crumb on the table, and took home some hardware for a new centerpiece.

These smiles should last at least until Le Mans next month where hopefully they car pull off a duplicate result.

Chris has posted all of his pics over at Corvette Info Center for Friday and Saturday, including some post race pics from the Corvette Racing garage.
Great work Chris.

Post Comments

View All Comments(2)

Last comment:
Great race and of course the move by Jan had to be the high lite of the race. T G field is just so competitive. I hope with two wins in three races does not draw the eye of the ACO on Corvette and have them come up with some off the wall restrictions
--- TR6speed from Floida on 05.16.12 at 9:42am

May 14 2012 04:58:10 PM EST

The 40th running of the Nurburgring 24hr is scheduled for May 17-20. The race will be streamed online via several different outlets.

Video stream can be found on the official website.

Radio stream can be found at Radio Le Mans.

Be sure to cheer on Tommy Milner, Jan Magnussen, and Richard Westbrook as they battle it out in a GT3 Corvette versus the likes of Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and more.

Post Comments

View All Comments(4)

Last comment:
@jackflash and the rest of Vette land...Lets rewind back to the late 80's for the solution to defy the "circus".... It's called the Corvette Challenge. Press Fastforward: Marketing promo: Fit some safety equipment, seal the engines, Get Pilot Sport Cup Tires. Ship Thecars to well known ALMS events.Let Badboys to their stuff. Post resulting Lap times
@ Mr. Tadge Juechter Line up you preproduction C7 for shipment
--- Zonker2 from Montreal on 05.16.12 at 11:51am

May 13 2012 10:36:15 AM EST

Hard fought 1 - 2.
3.45 seconds apart.
Corvette now first in the GT Class.
As it should be.
Congrats to Gavin for his 36th career ALMS victory.

Post Comments

View All Comments(12)

That last stop by the #4 was a great one. And you have to mention Jans pass for second. That was easily the move of the race. TakeNoPrisoners!

--- 85L98 from Chicago on 05.13.12 at 10:52am

A great result for Corvette Racing and that finally gets that Laguna Seca monkey of Corvette Racing's back. That was the never quit attitude of Corvette Racing. Two bad pit stops for the 4 car, but they keep their heads up and it sure showed. Make me proud to be part of Corvette Nation.

--- TR6speed from Florida on 05.13.12 at 1:59am

I loved every minute of this on espn3. Jans pass had to be the highlight of the race - spectacular!!

--- mikefeeser from unknown on 05.13.12 at 2:21pm

We seriously need a link for Mags pass....great stoof as Hindaugh would say!

--- Shifter from Tucson, AZ on 05.13.12 at 3:50pm

You guys have no idea how bad a hangover I have right now after celebrating CR's first and second place showings. lol

Anyway, congrats to the #4 pit screw for getting back on track after that disastrous pit. Great, great race. NOW we see the full potential of a fully realized, well-engineered GT2 Corvette. This is the team I know and love.

Keep rolling, team!

--- SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 05.13.12 at 8:18pm

Great job for Team Corvette, a clean, hard earned 1-2. That GT class is absolutely brutal this year, there were probably at least 7 or 8 cars that could have won the race. The best competition in racing I think, and it will only get better when Dodge SRT comes in later this season with 2 Vipers.

--- GS10tk from Syracuse, NY on 05.13.12 at 8:58pm

I'm still interested in just how the Vipers are going to be set-up. John and Jeremy had Scott Atherton during the race broadcast, and asked him quite pointedly just that...he said that the homologizing is overseen by the ACO, not ALMS, but I'm still scratching my noodle trying to figure out how the hell you can bring a V10 down to GT2 levels. I guess you could fill the interior with lead...

--- Shifter from Tucson, AZ on 05.13.12 at 9:39pm

@Shifter I guess viper may have to trade off body work and aero since they obviously have power on lock down. Even would they alow the viper to run a hemi V8?

--- 85L98 from Chicago on 05.13.12 at 11:44pm

amazing race and that pass for second was brilliant it was indeed a well earned placing i was cheering from the hill top for the last hour of the race well done!

--- Larronos from Persidio of monteray on 05.13.12 at 12:19pm

@Shifter & 85L98 that statement is correct as to the homologizing is overseen by the ACO, and the key word is "OVERSEEN" but IMSA/ALMS will have a final say so. Seem that when Corvette dropped down to GT2 from the GT1 ranks, they had a 6 liter with direct injection. They were allowed to run that for a short time before the other teams cried foul and IMSA/ALMS had them remove the direct injection and down size their engine. There are ways to cut the power down by reducing the air flow with a small restrictor, Also they can control the rev' in the computer as well as the fuel management system. As 85L98 stated, add weight and cut back on their aero package.
I watch the video from the NCM with Doug Fehan and Dan Binks, and a question came up about the Viper, and Doug stated that they would have to wait and see, and that SRT Viper does not even have a race ready car built yet. So if he is correct, I can only assume that what they have been showing is not a true race ready vehicle, but nothing more the an advertizing tool.

--- TR6speed from Florida on 05.14.12 at 8:01am

that race was awesome! Great ending for corvette. I was right on the turn 2 where the vettes past so many cars including the bmw to take second. Awesome driving by Mag. Great way to show the bmw who's boss. The 4 car ran amazing all day and actually set fastest GT lap. Great day to be a vette fan!

--- VetteFreak50 from Oregon on 05.14.12 at 8:07pm

In the video (see link in NCM Bash)Doug mentions how the ACO/IMSA admitted that they screwed CR last year so this year they leveled the playing field and then told the other teams that they better come ready to race. Well it looks like it has worked. Corvette wins the last 2 events and was right there at Sebring. The latest item that they corrected was the fueling issue of the duel tanks taking longer and that was addressed and it appears to have helped based on the pit stops (not counted the two that the 4 car had). Now on to Lemans.

--- TR6speed from Florida on 05.14.12 at 8:46pm

Last comment:
In the video (see link in NCM Bash)Doug mentions how the ACO/IMSA admitted that they screwed CR last year so this year they leveled the playing field and then told the other teams that they better come ready to race. Well it looks like it has worked. Corvette wins the last 2 events and was right there at Sebring. The latest item that they corrected was the fueling issue of the duel tanks taking longer and that was addressed and it appears to have helped based on the pit stops (not counted the two that the 4 car had). Now on to Lemans.
--- TR6speed from Florida on 05.14.12 at 8:46pm

May 11 2012 05:13:30 PM EST

A worthy Corvette opponent but the one & only regardless. And a bad boy through & through.

Post Comments

View All Comments(3)

Last comment:
The man trancended all makes, a true "car guy" in the purest sense of the word. A true American hero in motorsports, he will be missed, but his legacy and legend will live on. Any time you're in Las Vegas be sure to take the 20 minute ride out to the Speedway to visit the Shelby Museum, lots of history and some awesome cars there. RIP Mr. Shelby.
--- GS10tk from Syracuse, NY on 05.13.12 at 9:01pm

May 08 2012 06:22:28 PM EST

The National Corvette Museum Bash was held on April 26-28. During that time, godug and Dan Binks held a seminar for all the fans and owners telling stories and answering questions about the yellow badboys.

They cover everything from how the ACO/IMSA admittingly "screwed" Corvette Racing when they moved to GT2, their thoughts on the new Viper and its illegal 8.0L V10, how BMW was mysteriously quicker in the pits at Sebring, the emotions of Le Mans, and the story of our newest badboy, Jordan Taylor.

The video is about 1hr 30min long, so sit down, grab a cold one and some snacks, and enjoy the show.

Click HERE for the video, courtesy of Corvette Blogger.

Post Comments

View All Comments(4)

Last comment:
Absolutely beautiful! Even with the major pit eff-ups! Stellar work fellas!
--- Shifter from Currently on Cloud 9 on 05.12.12 at 10:55pm

May 08 2012 03:20:10 AM EST

ESPN

Laguna Seca has been a place of drama, surprises, ups, and downs.

For 2012 we see the race being moved back to May (11' was in September). This means it will be warmer then before. Tires played a key factory in the 2011 race which saw the Corvettes finishing 5th and 7th due to tire durability and degradation. What is the difference?

Tire Durability is the predictability of performance loss of the tires over a stint.

Tire Degradation is the severe abrupt unpredictable loss of tire performance due to overheating and over-stressing the tires.

For 2012 Michelin have supplied Corvette Racing with a larger and improved set of tires. We have seen the BMW's Dunlops progressively get better as the stint goes on. The Michelin's still fall off near the end, but are they improved enough? They will have 6hrs to find out.

Post Comments

View All Comments(3)

Last comment:
Today's race should be EPIC - ready to get the Laguna Seca party started and watch another WIN for Corvette Racing!
--- DarkKnightC6 from Aiken, SC on 05.12.12 at 1:36am

[archive]

[next]