CORVETTE DPs AT LONG BEACH: Momentum Heads to California
After history-making Sebring win, Corvette DPs seek first Long Beach victory

· Barbosa, Fittipaldi enter with Prototype championship lead

· Corvette DPs took two podium spots in 2014 Long Beach event

· First street race in 2015 TUDOR Championship season

DETROIT (April 14, 2015) – After scoring an historic first victory last month at the Sebring 12 Hours, Chevrolet Corvette Daytona Prototype teams head west for the first of two California races in the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. First up is the Tequila Patrón Sports Car Showcase on the streets of Long Beach, Calif.

With a total of five podium spots in the first two TUDOR Championship races, Chevrolet is tied for first place in the Prototype Engine Manufacturer Championship. A victory Saturday would serve a double purpose: break the tie and secure Chevrolet’s first Long Beach Prototype victory.

As has been the case in the first two TUDOR Championship rounds, four Corvette DP teams are set to race at Long Beach. Two of them were podium finishers in 2014: Wayne Taylor Racing’s Jordan Taylor and Ricky Taylor were second, followed by Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi of Action Express Racing in third.

The latter pairing – along with Verizon IndyCar star Sebastien Bourdais – were overall winners at Sebring in their No. 5 Mustang Sampling Corvette DP as Chevrolet power won overall in the 12 Hours for the first time in 50 years. Jordan and Ricky Taylor teamed with Max Angelelli to finish second at Sebring in the No. 10 Konica Minolta Corvette DP.

VisitFlorida.com Racing’s Richard Westbrook and Michael Valiante placed third at Sebring with Mike Rockenfeller in the No. 90 VisitFlorida.com Corvette DP. They were fifth last season at Long Beach. The first-year pairing of Eric Curran and Dane Cameron in Action Express Racing’s No. 31 Whelen Engineering/Team Fox Corvette DP was fourth at the Rolex 24 and fifth at Sebring.

The 11-turn, 1.968-mile circuit is a tight and twisty layout with mostly all slow-speed corners. Long Beach is probably most known for its Hairpin turn that leads to a lengthy frontstretch that measures nearly three-quarters of a mile. The slow corners mean there will be very little difference in cornering speeds between the Prototype and GT Le Mans cars – the two classes which make up the field at Long Beach.

“Sebring was a great event for the Corvette Daytona Prototype,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet Program Manager for Corvette Daytona Prototypes. “Now we move from the two longest races on the schedule to the shortest one. It’s a completely different dichotomy. A 100-minute race means there is little time to recover from mistakes. Teams will likely make just one pit stop, so strategy and execution has to be perfect. The other big challenge teams face is getting power down out of the slow corners – most especially the Hairpin as it leads to the longest straight on the circuit. So getting the most out of the traction control and basic chassis setup are key.”

For the 2015 TUDOR Championship, all Corvette DP cars are running with updated Chevrolet bodywork that reflects the Corvette C7 production line.

The frontal area sees a striking change in design from the previous generation Corvette DP, including updates to the hood surface, headlights and radiator inlet area. The rear window area also has been updated. The Corvette DP will take styling cues from the C7 including the rear taillights.

At the heart of the Corvette Daytona Prototype is a purpose-built 5.5-liter Chevrolet LS9 V-8 engine developed by ECR Engines. The peak output is 560 hp as the power is regulated by a pair of sonic air restrictors that are mandated by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) – the sanctioning body of the TUDOR Championship.

The Corvette DP also features a new engine management system from Bosch Motorsport for 2015 and a continuation of a six-speed sequential gearbox with paddle-shift. The brakes feature six-piston calipers with carbon rotors. Without the driver, the Corvette DP weighs 2,285 pounds.

The second round of the 2015 TUDOR United Sports Car Championship is the 63rd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida on Saturday, March 21 from Sebring International Raceway. Coverage will alternate between FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports 2 and IMSA.com. Flag-to-flag radio coverage will be available via IMSA Radio.

Corvette Daytona Prototype Quotes
JOAO BARBOSA, ACTION EXPRESS RACING NO. 5 MUSTANG SAMPLING CORVETTE DP
“Long Beach is a very challenging track. I love racing on street courses and we ran very well there last year. Qualifying is really important because passing is extremely difficult; fortunately we’ve had speed this year in qualifying so I’m optimistic we can start towards the front and put ourselves in a good position early in the race and try to score another victory. Maintaining your track position is key, because if you start slipping backwards through the field you don’t have time or passing opportunities to make it back up.”

RICKY TAYLOR, WAYNE TAYLOR RACING NO. 10 KONICA MINOLTA CORVETTE DP
“I think a lot can be translated into this weekend at Long Beach. Our pace at Daytona was excellent, and our teamwork was flawless at Sebring. We need to combine those when we get to Long Beach because there will be no room for any mistakes. It is exciting to start our sprint races. We are always trying to be slightly conservative when we go racing in the long ones, but these races are really cut-throat and we can race hard, once again. I think everyone’s game is up from last year and I know our team is stronger in all aspects, so it will be very competitive. I think qualifying will be crucial to a good result as it is very difficult to overtake and, with only one other class on track, we cannot rely on GT traffic to open up opportunities.”

ERIC CURRAN, ACTION EXPRESS RACING NO. 31 WHELEN ENGINEERING/TEAM FOX CORVETTE DP
“A street course is always a challenge of its own with the temporary concrete barriers, curbs and everything that gets setup to facilitate a great race on public streets. When you factor all those variables into one racetrack it equates to a very unforgiving circuit. Long Beach has a straightaway where you can reach 160 MPH, then you have the fountain turn that you wrap around a fountain at 60 MPH, and some other really technical braking zones.”

MICHAEL VALIANTE, VISITFLORIDA.COM NO. 90 CORVETTE DP
“It’s always great to race at tracks with a long history in motorsports. The street course at Long Beach certainly ranks high in the history books as a prestigious event. The race atmosphere is great with attendance being so high and the location really adds to the excitement. The TUDOR United SportsCar event attracts many fans and when you look at how tight the competition is this year, I think they are all going to be in for a great show. We’ve had a solid start to 2015. The first two races are the events where you can lose the most points, and we had solid third-place efforts in both. Last season we found ourselves in a hole after failing to finish at Sebring, so it feels great to be in a much better position to start 2015.”