IMSA – TUDOR UNITED SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP
ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
JANUARY 25, 2015

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CORVETTE RACING CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – GTLM WINNER
WHEN THAT YELLOW FLAG CAME OUT, YOU KNEW YOU WERE GOING TO HAVE TO FIGHT. WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND?
“I knew that yellow was coming. I don’t know how many races we actually won last year. There was that one at Watkins Glen and a few more. I just can’t thank the whole team and Corvette fans enough and Corvette Racing and all the guys and these two drivers (teammates). We all did amazing. We stayed out of trouble. The car is in perfect shape. Not a single touch. I think that’s what it takes just to keep it alive and bring it home in one piece, that’s the thing. So, again, finally I get this watch and I think these guys were waiting a few years for that (laughs).

“I feel like I’m getting to be an expert in these last-minute finishes. We had a few last year and luckily we won all of them. I’m happy about that but there was a lot of pressure. If I had to choose, I’m glad I was in the car because I wouldn’t have been able to stand back in the pit box. Everything was perfect. It was 24 hours of fuel, Michelin tires, a few sets of brake pads and windshield tear-offs. And that was it. That’s the key. We all drove fast but careful. The thing about this race is that you need to keep everything in one piece for the end. We kept the car alive and working to the end. I’m really excited.”
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 CORVETTE RACING CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – GTLM WINNER
YOU SAID EARLIER IN THE WEEK THAT YOU GUYS WERE REALLY STRUGGLING TO FIND A SETUP. WHEN YOU GO THROUGH THOSE STRUGGLES AND THEN OVERCOME THEM, HOW MUCH SWEETER IS VICTORY?
“Well, it’s just a fantastic feeling. When you arrive at the race and the car just comes alive and you feel you have a car that you can race with, and you can attack, and you can be fast when you need to; then you’ve got to be lucky. You’ve got to stay out of trouble and run to your plan and I think everybody on the No. 3 car, the crew, the drivers and everybody just performed perfectly today. We were fast and made no mistakes and pushed when we had to and relax when we needed to.”
RYAN BRISCOE, NO. 3 CORVETTE RACING CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – GTLM WINNER
YOU WERE TAGGED WITH GETTING THESE GUYS CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS. HOW SWEET IS THIS?
“Yeah, it’s awesome. I’m so proud. There’s a lot of pressure to do my part and this team just gave us a car that was a dream to drive. We started off struggling a bit I think. The key was Friday in final practice. We really got the car dialed in and it was just so consistent through the whole race and was really, really good. I couldn’t wish for better teammates and a better team to race for.”

YOU HAVE WON THE 24 HOURS OF DAYTONA IN THE GTLM CLASS – ONE OF THE MOST COMPETITIVE. YOU HAVE TWO CARS ON THE PODIUM BECAUSE BOTH CHEVY CORVETTES ARE THERE WHAT IS RUNNING THROUGH YOUR MIND RIGHT NOW?
“It’s just unbelievable I mean this team they have worked so hard. It’s such a hard fought race from start to finish. I can’t believe it. I’ve been trying to do this for the last 10 years and it’s just surreal. It was so much fun; the car was amazing, very deserving team, very happy.”

YOU HAD A FAIRLY CLEAN RUN THE WHOLE WAY THROUGH. DO YOU THINK THAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE?
I think it helped, yeah, just trying to stay out of trouble there was a lot of action happening around me. I was really just trying to look after the equipment, but the car was fast. That was key. We had a really fast Corvette. I’m so proud of everyone that put all the effort in and what a great way to start the year.”

JOAO BARBOSA, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP, PROTOTYPE RUNNER-UP
“It was a long day. It was a tough finish we had to overcome quite a few problems in the race. That is what a 24 hour race is all about. All in all we were very pleased with second-place. Our Corvette ran really good throughout the race. We didn’t really have the ultimate pace, but as a team we worked very well. We had a great strategy we overcame three laps down and we came back to lead the race for quite a bit and be in contention to win the race. We came up a little bit short, but it’s a great motivation for the guys that are a little bit disappointed and you still finished second. There are a lot of good things to come for the rest of the season. I think everybody is excited. We know we have a lot of minor details to work out. It’s a great feeling to be back on the podium in Daytona.”

CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP, PROTOTYPE RUNNER-UP
“We are very happy about our finish, but at the same time a little bit disappointed because there is a lot of effort that goes into this race. It’s almost a whole year preparation and then everyone at the end of the day has the same goal, which is to try and win. We got beat fair and square. Both the No. 10 and the Ganassi (cars) they were quicker than us throughout the race. Maybe there was one time or another that we were a little bit quicker than them, but they handled the race better than we did. Hats off to them, congratulations, but I’m very proud of what Action Express did for us. Also, we need to remember at one point we were three laps down. Coming back from three laps down it was still a great recovery. I want to thank Chevy, Mustang Sampling… it was their first experience and I’m pretty sure that they loved it. Now turn the page and move on to the next race. We will see what is going to happen in Sebring, but we are definitely looking forward to it.”

SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP, PROTOTYPE RUNNER-UP
“We kind of knew on pure pace we were not going to be there. We were always between half a second and a little bit less away from the top. On top of that we didn’t have the top speed compared to Ganassi. So, we just kind of ran our race and it was looking pretty decent and we lost three laps when the wire came loose on the fuel pump. The guys did a great job, because this is the kind of stuff that you can take 20 minutes or two hours looking for and not fixing it and then in three minutes we were out. It’s one of these things that again it just shows the quality of the team. Then after that we had to battle pretty hard and we did and got back on the lead lap, but then the temperature started to rise and we started losing a lot of grip. We really didn’t have anything for the guys up front. It looked like it was going to be third and its second place. We will take it.”

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP – PROTOTYPE THIRD-PLACE
“We started the race with electronic issues. We never would have guessed we would have been on the podium so to come back to get a third. On the podium in the Rolex 24, it’s tough competition so we can’t be too disappointed. It’s a long championship quality guys had bad races. We can leave here with good points, theoretically second in the championships, so we will go to Sebring knowing we have a fast car. We had the fast lap of the race. We have a lot of positives to take away from it.”

THE NO. 10 CAR WAS THERE REALLY THE ENTIRE RACE, BUT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE DRIVER TIME. WHAT HAPPENED?
“I think just a miscalculation on drive time. I think you are only allowed to drive four out of six hours. I guess I was going to go over that. So, it is a bit disappointing. We win and lose as a team. We have gone 72 hours now without a problem in this race and we just can’t win it. Two second’s and a third now, but we will look back on it as a good points day and go on to Sebring second in the championship.”

RICKY TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP, PROTOTYPE THIRD-PLACE
“The results were pretty good, but the way it came about was a little bit disappointing. We had such a strong car. The guys deserved to win this weekend. Coming back and fixing our electrical issues and working through the night, more than one night is just incredible effort by all of them. I just feel bad for the guys for all that work and leading so many laps and running up front for so long to come away with the last car on the lead lap is very disappointing.

“It was really disappointing. If we had known we could get a podium when the race started with all of the issues, we would have been thrilled. After running so strong after 24 Hours, anything short of a win is a little bit disappointing.”
MAX ANGELELLI, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP, PROTOTYPE THIRD-PLACE:
NOT THE WAY YOU WANTED TO FINISH…
“Yes, not the way. I just feel sorry for all the fans and our friends at Corvette Racing. I just feel bad. What can I say? It was a mistake, just to be fair. I’m surprised that we did it.”

OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 CORVETTE RACING CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – THIRD-PLACE GTLM
IT WAS A GOOD POINTS DAY FOR THE TEAM.
“Yeah, we’ve got to take some huge prestige from this today. It was a hard-fought race with many, many competitors. It was wheel-to-wheel action throughout the 24-hour race. Yet, each time you got into the car, you had to be absolutely 100 percent and fully on your game. Otherwise, somebody was going to steal a march on you and take positions away or push your throat. But it really was a 24-hour sprint race with a huge amount of incidents and accidents and lots for the fans to see and great Corvette fans here. It was just amazing to see the Corral and all the people here. It was just wonderful. But also, today will be remembered for the victory and the result for the No. 3 car and the way that Antonio (Garcia) and Jan (Magnussen) and Ryan (Briscoe) drove today. It was fantastic. They just did a phenomenal job. You’ve got to take your hat off to those guys. It was their day. It was great for the team and great for the program and great for Team Chevy. I’m happy and really thrilled for the team. And I’m very proud of my guys and the way that they kept picking up with the little problems that we had with our machine and fixing them and finding solutions. They were absolutely phenomenal with that. So, once again I’ve got to say a big thanks to them and I’m proud of my teammates as well, Simon (Pagenaud) and Tommy (Milner) for doing a wonderful job behind the wheel. It’s been a tough day, but absolutely very rewarding. “
SIMON PAGENAUD, NO. 4 CORVETTE RACING CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – THIRD-PLACE GTLM
IT WAS A HARD-FOUGHT PODIUM FINISH FOR YOUR FIRST TIME WITH CORVETTE RACING. HOW DID THAT FEEL?
“I had a great time. The Corvette Racing team welcomed me really well. It was my first time with Team Chevy as well and it felt really nice. The Corvette C7.R is a beautiful car and very competitive. I was really impressed with the GT class and I understand why Corvette Racing is so involved with this series. It’s so competitive between all the competitors and between all the manufacturers. I think it’s an incredible series. Every lap, it’s one-tenth here and one-tenth there, and you try to gain time on the others. When you end up, after 24 hours, on the podium here in Daytona, you’ve accomplished something exceptional. And furthermore, Corvette Racing accomplished two cars; and one of them won. So, congratulations to the whole team. I’m very happy to be part of this team and I look forward to Sebring already.”
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 CORVETTE RACING CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R – THIRD-PLACE GTLM
DESPITE A FEW BUMPS IN THE ROAD, HOW WAS THIS RACE FOR YOU?
“It was a great finish. A first and third at a tough race like this, for as hard as all of us in our class raced, it’s a testament to this team and this car and all these engineers that build a car that we can beat and batter and bruise and every other b-word you can think of, and battle with other cars in our class and come out first and third is amazing. This Corvette was one of the best race cars I’ve had here, ever. It was super competitive; fast on the straight line, and great on the brakes. It was a lot of fun to drive.”

MAX PAPIS, NO. 31 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP – PROTOTYPE FIFTH-PLACE
“The No. 31 team showed resiliency today. We were amazing. We had a lot of speed in the car and we overcame the steering box issues that we had in the beginning and we never gave up. We wrote out there on the board ‘refuse to lose’ and that is the attitude this team has. We still accomplished our goal that was finishing in the top-five. Definitely the car deserved a podium finish. It’s a great beginning for the adventure of Sonny Whelen. I want to thank everyone on the team because today is the proof. This top-five finish might not be a lot for some, but it’s a lot for us because we proved that we never give up. Even when we were 21 laps down our attitude was the same one of the guys that were leading. You don’t buy this kind of attitude it’s within the team. Gary Nelson has built a very good group of people that has this attitude. I think this organization will go really far.”

DANE CAMERON, NO. 31 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP – PROTOTYPE FIFTH-PLACE
“I think overall we should be really pleased. Our goal was to be in the top-five and we achieved that. We had the issue right away that put us down and unfortunately that gap kind of maintained. It’s nice to know that if that wouldn’t of happened we would have been kind of right there another one or two spots ahead. Everything was great. It was a good first race to get everybody in the groove and get everyone working together. I think everyone was really comfortable with the car. The team was great. I think we have a lot to look forward to and we got a good start on points for the season.”

ERIC CURRAN, NO. 31 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP – PROTOTYPE FIFTH-PLACE
“I’m extremely happy with a fifth-place finish. We had some power steering troubles early in the race with Max (Papis) behind the wheel. These Action Express guys nailed it. They got the car in, they got it fixed quickly. We went down 17 laps with that. At the end of the race we were 17 laps down. We gained a little bit, we lost a little bit, but at the end we were as fast as the leaders all race long. My teammates Phil (Keen), Dane (Cameron) and Max (Papis) did a great job. I have to thank Sonny Whelen and Whelen Engineering for all their support. For the combination of putting this deal together for our No. 31 Whelen Engineering Corvette with Action Express. I’m happy. This is a big points day for Dane and me. Moving forward with a fifth-place finish moving to Sebring it’s going to be a good year. Really excited for the whole program, all the hard work these guys put into it. I’m pumped for the season.”

PHIL KEEN, NO. 31 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP – PROTOTYPE FIFTH-PLACE
“It’s been fantastic. I mean the team, Action Express have been brilliant they have made me feel really at home and welcome. It’s a shame we lost 17 laps at the start, but I think apart from that the team and everyone ran flawlessly. I would just like to say a big thanks to everyone involved. A big thanks to Sonny from Whelen, Sunoco and everyone for making it all happen.”