Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–CAMARO Z/28.R AT WATKINS GLEN: Third Straight Win for Davis, Liddell

CAMARO Z/28.R AT WATKINS GLEN: Third Straight Win for Davis, Liddell
Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R wins second straight at The Glen; four Camaros in GS top-nine

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (June 26, 2015) – Robin Liddell and Andrew Davis scored a repeat victory in their Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R at Watkins Glen International in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge on Saturday. Their Stevenson Motorsports No. 6 Camaro won for the third straight time as the Continental Tire 150 at The Glen finished under yellow due to track conditions.

Davis and Liddell extended their lead in the Grand Sport (GS) championship after four rounds. All four Camaro Z/28.Rs finished in the top-nine as the race saw a late red-flag period and a yellow for the final 11 minutes.

“Congratulations to Robin Liddell, Andrew Davis and the Stevenson Motorsports team for today’s victory at Watkins Glen,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet Program Manager for the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge. “It was no secret coming into today that the conditions would be treacherous throughout the afternoon, and the crew of the No. 6 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R was prepared with what proved to be race-winning strategy and execution. It’s great to see all of our Camaro Z/28.Rs among the top nine finishers today and bolster our lead in the GS Manufacturer’s championship.”

Matt Bell and Lawson Aschenbach placed fifth in Stevenson Motorsports’ No. 9 Camaro Z/28.R. Sasha Anis and Anthony Mantella were eighth in Mantella Autosport’s No. 8 Gulf Camaro Z/28.R, followed by the team’s No. 80 MBRP Camaro of Kyle Marcelli and Martin Barkey.

Davis’ words after Friday’s Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge qualifying rang true when he thought rain might be the equalizer. The two Stevenson Motorsports Camaro Z/28.Rs started fifth and sixth but showed good pace and balance in a steadily worsening rain.

Davis drove the first 70 minutes before handing off to Liddell, who rejoined in fifth. Once the final green-flag pit cycle finished, the No. 6 Camaro ran second but moved into first when the race-leading entry went off-track with 30 minutes remaining.

Bell had to pit early in the No. 9 Camaro to fix an ABS issue but still posted the fastest lap of the race once the team repaired the issue. He handed over to Aschenbach, who gained two positions in five laps before the red- and yellow-flag periods.

The next round of the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge is set for 1:25 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 11 from Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with live video and radio coverage on IMSA.com. Television coverage on FOX Sports 1 is scheduled for 10 a.m. ET on Sunday, July 5.

ROBIN LIDDELL, STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS NO. 9 CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – RACE WINNER: “It was really, to be honest. At any moment you can go flying off the track. The team and everyone gets pumped up and saying how well you are in the wet. But I don’t think anyone realizes how close we are to throwing it off every single corner. We had a couple of scary moments. The conditions were quite bad. No one wants to finish a race like this, even for us being lucky enough to win it. Ultimately, I do respect the decision of race control because the conditions were tricky and there was a lot of standing water around the track. We didn’t call for it to be stopped, but it was tough out there. In the end, it’s high-risk and there can be a lot of incidents. I’m very happy for the win. It’s great for our points – Stevenson Motorsports and Chevrolet. We’ll take it.”

ANDREW DAVIS, STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS NO. 6 CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – RACE WINNER: “The conditions were treacherous. At the very beginning it wasn’t as bad but it got worse and worse through my stint. At the end, it was at its worst and that’s why we had to go red flag. But I’m just thrilled for Chevrolet, for Stevenson Motorsports and our Camaro Z/28.R. The conditions obviously helped us a bunch today. We stayed clean and ran a good race. Robin did a phenomenal job and the guys in the pits as always. I’m thrilled for the team and thrilled for John and Susan Stevenson.”

MATT BELL, STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS NO. 9 CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – FINISHED FIFTH: “The problem at the beginning is that we had an ABS failure from the second warmup lap. That makes the car really difficult to deal with in the dry, so it added another level of stress. Our Camaro Z/28.R wasn’t slow; I didn’t lose anyone and made just one mistake. But we had to come in and fix the ABS. We dove in on the second caution, and the guys pulled the front-left off and screwed the sensor back in. We missed the pass-around and I had to start at the back of the ST field. At first, I was really tentative because the guys at the back looked like they were really struggling with the rain, so I couldn’t push them off line. But by the time you get to the ST field, you’re among the GS cars too and it was difficult. We had the power so you could pass on the straights, but passing in the corners was impossible. But the Camaro Z/28.R as perfect and exactly what we needed in the rain. We still have the fastest lap in the race. It’s just tough because you feel that you have a car that is so good when it’s hooked up, and just because something wasn’t hooked up you feel like you lost something. It’s not a big loss. We finished fifth, which is where we started. It’s not the worst thing in the world, but we know how fast the car was and could have won the race. But we didn’t.”

JOHN STEVENSON, STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS TEAM OWNER: “The guys did an awfully good job. Andrew was amazing. Matt Bell’s performance today was just unbelievable and I just hate it for Lawson that we finished like we did and he didn’t get a chance to kind of move to the front because he was poised to do so. I’m tickled with the finish.”

ANTHONY MANTELLA, MANTELLA AUTOSPORT NO. 8 GULF CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – FINISHED EIGHTH: “It was a great race. Our Camaro Z/28.R was awesome. I’d never raced it at the this track in the rain, and after 10 laps I felt invincible in the car and could really go flat out of the apexes to catch the other cars. The team did a great job.”

MARTIN BARKEY, MANTELLA AUTOSPORT NO. 80 MBRP CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – FINISHED EIGHTH: “It is fun racing here at Watkins Glen at any time, and I really enjoyed my time in the Camaro Z/28.R. Unfortunately in the class split, there was a GS car that wouldn’t advance and kept me back. It’s a little disappointing to see a race like that where we showed good pace. Both Kyle (Marcelli) and Sasha (Anis in the No. 8 Camaro) had some of the quickest pace out there toward the end. It would have been an exciting finish.”