CAMARO Z/28.R AT VIR: Bell Scores Top-Five Qualifying Effort
Chevrolet enters race with Grand Sport Manufacturer Championship lead
DANVILLE, Va. (Aug. 21, 2015) – Matt Bell led Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R drivers with a fifth-place showing Friday in qualifying for the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge at Virginia International Raceway. Heading into Saturday’s eighth round, Team Chevy holds the Grand Sport (GS) Manufacturer championship lead with Stevenson Motorsports first in the Driver and Team standings.
Bell turned a best lap of 1:58.906 (99.003 mph) in Stevenson Motorsports’ No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28.R. Bell will team with Lawson Aschenbach, and the No. 9 Camaro Z/28.R will start directly in front of its sister car.
Andrew Davis qualified seventh in Stevenson Motorsports’ No. 6 Camaro Z/28.R with a time of 1:59.366 (98.621 mph). He and Robin Liddell arrived at VIR holding a 15-point lead in the GS Driver’s Championship with a maximum of 105 points available over the final three events – 35 per race. The duo moved into first place in the standings after their first victory of 2015 at Sebring and were second at VIR last year.
Davis will start alongside Martin Barkey in Mantella Autosport’s No. 80 MBRP Camaro Z/28.R after Barkey’s qualifying time of 2:00.839 (97.419 mph). He will drive Saturday with Kyle Marcelli.
The Camaro Z/28.R won five times during its 2014 debut season. It is based on the road-going Chevrolet Camaro Z/28, and the two share considerable traits:
Engine and displacement (7.0-liter V-8, 427 cubic inches)
Front splitter and rear spoiler with wickerbill
Hood extractor vent
Rockers, wheel-house extension and front tire deflectors
Belly pan
The Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge from VIR is set for 1:25 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 22 with live coverage on IMSA.com and IMSA Radio. Television coverage on FOX Sports 1 is scheduled for 9 a.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 6.
MATT BELL, STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS NO. 9 CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – QUALIFIED FIFTH: “The car was great, honestly, and we had the handling dialed in for those couple of laps. It’s just really the straight parts we don’t do so well on right now, and that’s a series-mandated issue we’re struggling with. It’s unfortunate because we see how hard this Stevenson team works and how much they’ve put in to making sure they have the best cars and working with Chevrolet and engineering firms like Pratt & Miller; but fifth is the best we can do on a weekend where the drivers have no complaints about their cars. We’re always good on strategy, so we’ll probably gain a few places. Big thanks to the team and to Chevy.”
ANDREW DAVIS, STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS NO. 6 CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – QUALIFIED SEVENTH: “We struggled and we’re not used to qualifying as far back and not being as competitive, but the Stevenson Motorsports guys work really hard. We’ve tried to get our Camaro Z/28.R working better, but that was all I could do on one lap. We pretty much get one flying lap on these tires before they start to fall off. We thought in some of the practice sessions it looked like maybe we’d have something to challenge for the front two rows but in reality we’re well off the pace this time. Now we turn our focus to the race. We’ve got the best crew in the business, the best pit stops and great strategy. We just have to drive our own race tomorrow and let the cards fall as they will. I’m proud of the effort of the team and we’re looking forward to having the opportunity to have Team Chevy and Stevenson Motorsports back up front where we feel we deserve to be.”
MARTIN BARKEY, MANTELLA AUTOSPORT NO. 80 MBRP CHEVROLET CAMARO Z/28.R – QUALIFIED EIGHTH: “We’ve been struggling with a couple corners. Through data, coaching from Kyle (Marcelli) and our engineers, we figured some stuff out before qualifying. We found another 0.7 seconds off my best time from practice. I’m happy with it. Everyone at Mantella Autosport really worked hard to get a great Camaro Z/28.R for the start of the race. I feel like we’re in a good spot.”