Chevy Racing–CAMARO Z/28.R AT COTA: Hoping to Maintain Championship Control

CAMARO Z/28.R AT COTA: Hoping to Maintain Championship Control
Chevrolet leads Grand Sport Manufacturer, Team and Driver championships

· Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R has five victories this season

· Davis, Liddell enter COTA round leading GS driver championship

· Chevrolet chasing first CTSCC GS manufacturer championship

DETROIT (Sept. 15, 2014) – With five victories in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge this season, Chevrolet hopes to strengthen its hold on the series’ Grand Sport (GS) championships heading to Circuit of The Americas. With two races remaining in the 2014 season, Chevrolet leads the GS manufacturer championship while Team Chevy drivers and partner teams are now in front in their respective points standings on the strength of the Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R.

The 11th round of the Continental Tire championship takes place at 12:20 p.m. CT on Friday at the palatial Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas. Last year’s race was the first for the series at the venue, which saw one Camaro in the top-10. Four Camaro Z/28.Rs are on the entry list this week.

There’s every reason to expect greatly improved results this time around at COTA. Three different Camaro Z/28.R entries have won races this year amounting to five victories in total and nine consecutive races with at least one podium finish. The victories have come on differing types of tracks – a good sign considering the nature of 3.4-mile, 20-turn layout at Circuit of The Americas. The 3.4-mile, 20-turn layout mixes a number of fairly lengthy straights.

“The layout at Circuit of The Americas provides one of the toughest tests we will see all year,” said Lisa Talarico, Chevrolet Program Manager for the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge. “It mixes three fairly decent straights with a combination of high-speed sweeping turns and low- to medium-speed corners. The ideal setup likely will be more on the side of downforce and handling instead of outright speed. The championship picture looks good for everyone associated with the Z/28.R program. Keeping the momentum from the last few months will be important as we look ahead not just to COTA put the finale at Road Atlanta as well.”

Through 10 races, Stevenson Motorsports’ No. 6 Camaro of Andrew Davis and Robin Liddell leads the charge from the Camaro camp. The pair leads the GS driver’s championship by two points on the strength of three victories and back-to-back runner-up finishes in the two most recent rounds at Road America and VIR. The No. 6 Stevenson Camaro also heads the GS team standings.

Andy Lally and Matt Bell in Stevenson Motorsports’ No. 9 Camaro Z/28.R have one victory to their credit, as does CKS Autosport’s pairing of Eric Curran and Lawson Aschenbach in their No. 01 Camaro Z/28.R. Bob Michaelian rejoins Ashley McCalmont in the No. 00 CKS Camaro Z/28.R.

The performance of the Camaro Z/28.R has been impressive in qualifying as well. Curran, Davis, Bell – all in consecutive races – and Jordan Taylor each have taken pole positions in a Camaro this year.

Developed alongside its production counterpart, the Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R incorporates the same performance elements that make the 2014 Camaro Z/28 the most track-capable Camaro ever. To enhance grip, for example, the Z/28.R’s body shares the same downforce-generating aero package as the production model including: the front splitter, rear spoiler with wickerbill, and hood extractor vent, among other items.

The Z/28.R is also powered by the same LS7 7.0L V-8 engine as the production Z/28 and employs the unique, helical-gear limited-slip rear differential found on the production model. It is standard in the Z/28, helping the driver put down more power to the pavement when exiting corners.

Live race coverage from Circuit of The Americas is set for 1:20 p.m. ET Friday at IMSA.com. FOX Sports 1 will air the race at noon ET on Sunday, Sept. 28.