Chevrolet
CORVETTE Rolex 24 At Daytona News
Conference
Chevrolet
Corvette drivers visited with the media in the Benny Kahn Media Center
during Friday’s lunch break at Rolex 24 At Daytona testing. Dale
Earnhardt Sr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Andy Pilgrim and Kelly Collins will
drive the No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C5-R while Ron Fellows, Chris
Kneifel, Franck Freon and Johnny O’Connell will drive the No. 2
Chevrolet Corvette. Earnhardt Sr., ill with the flu, was unable to
attend the news conference.
Ron Fellows on last year’s exciting
Rolex 24 At Daytona finish with the Dodge Viper:
"It’s the closest finish, but we
were still on the wrong end of it. It was a tremendous battle last
year. It was all-out sprint. We got behind in the first four hours. It
was a sprint to the end. It was tires, fuel and go as fast as we
could. The Viper set the same pace. In a 24-hour race, we ran out of
time. We have the car and we have some unfinished business here.
We’re looking to get to the end of the Rolex 24 and be first."
Chris Kneifel on the team’s Rolex 24
At Daytona chances:
"We know the strength of the team and
the cars. Both cars have the capability of running a good hard pace
and anything can happen in these events. You need to make sure you
take care of your business and keep it clean. We’re here to win. As
Ron said, we need to get on top of the podium, and with any luck, one
of the two cars will be there at the end."
Team Corvette’s program manager Doug
Fehan on working with the Earnhardts:
"Anytime you bring in a team of two
guys that are as accomplished as the Earnhardts but who have never
participated at this level of sport, there’s going to be some
difficulties. I outlined to management all the things that I thought
could go wrong. When I got done with that, they said, ‘Does this
mean we shouldn’t do it.’ I said, ‘Absolutely not. This is a
once in a lifetime opportunity.’ I just wanted to let them know what
the rules are and what we have to overcome to succeed. I had not
worked with them nor had I met them. At the first test at Sebring, I
can tell you I was very surprised. These two guys, and I don’t want
to embarrass Little E, are absolutely, totally dedicated to succeeding
in this event. They have chosen in these three practice days to forgo
some of their NASCAR activities which they would normally participate
in to get time in the car. It’s been an absolute joy. I’m
extremely impressed at their level of dedication. They’ve done a
magnificent job of driving a car that they are not accustomed to. Keep
in mind, they have never driven a car that didn’t have a center rear
view mirror. They are excited about it. I’m very pleased."
Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s thoughts on
Rolex 24:
It’s been pretty interesting. We’ve
got a great group of guys behind me. Everybody has welcomed me and my
father into this organization with a lot of enthusiasm and
expectations and we want to fulfill those. We spent two days at
Sebring testing, trying to get accustomed to the car. The car drives
so much more comfortable than what we’re used to in our Winston Cup
cars. It’s hard not to get aggressive with the car. We torn up a
little bit of fiberglass while we were at Sebring, so they told us we
didn’t have any mulligans when we came down here to test. We’re
trying to do the best we can to get acclimated with the track. It’s
quite a different track than any road course that I’ve ever been on.
It’s an interesting race . . . trying to change your way of thinking
and outlook from what we’re use to in Winston Cup where you run as
hard as you can for four hours. Here, you don’t do that. You try to
take care of the car. It’s an endurance race. That’s the main
thing."
Earnhardt Jr. on the upcoming night
test:
"I’m looking forward to that, but
on the same token, I’m going to be very cautious toward it. It’s
something that we’re going to have to do."
Earnhardt Jr. on the Corvette:
"The whole car all around is
different. We got a lot more grip, a lot more downforce. You can tell
the difference in the acceleration and deceleration and how much air
the car has on it versus our Winston Cup cars. We struggle with minute
numbers of drag and downforce in a Winston Cup car and these guys are
working with huge chunks compared to what we’re doing. It’s very
enjoyable to drive, just like driving my Vette down the street. You
can go as hard as you want with it. The throttle response is a lot of
fun and can be your enemy in the long run. You got to be very careful
with the throttle."
Earnhardt Jr. on Turn 1 of the road
course:
"In the Cup car, we don’t use any
brake. It’s just like the first time I went to Watkins Glen. You got
to respect all the corners. Turn 1 here is a corner you got to
respect. You brake real hard and you can get the car real upset and
loose speed on the exit. I’m learning something every lap on the
race track. These guys behind me are a big help. I’m pretty excited
about it."
On why Earnhardt Jr. is driving in the
Rolex 24 At Daytona:
Chevrolet came to me two years and ask me
what I thought about it. We’re under a lot of pressure to drive
Winston Cup cars. I think it’s a lot of pressure. I was pretty
intimated about the idea to come over here and drive something that I
didn’t have any experience in. The more we talked about it, the more
I looked at the car and this type of racing, the more it intrigue me.
I’m not trying to do any other type of racing. This is just a great
opportunity. When my father got excited about it, that just pumped me
up more. Everything he says and does I really believe in. It’s
something I didn’t think we’d be doing. It’s a pretty big deal.
It ranks up there with that first Daytona 500 that I drove."
Kelly Collins on having the Earnhardts
as teammates:
"Driving with the Earnhardts,
somewhere down the line when I’m retired, I’ll be able to say I
drove with those guys at Daytona. To me, that’s rocking chair
equity."
Andy Pilgrim thoughts on the Rolex 24
At Daytona:
"I’m very happy to be at Daytona
again. It’s a great opportunity for all of us. One of the cars will
hopefully win this race. There’s nothing like winning at Daytona.
We’re here to win and that’s what we’re going to do."
Top 10 Rolex 24 At Daytona Test Speeds
(Afternoon Test Session)
- No. 74 Robinson Racing,
Baldwin/Robinson/Hoerr/Lazier, Judd R&S, (SportsRacer Prototype)
125.303 mph
- No. 37 Intersport Racing, Jon Field,
Judd Lola, (SportsRacer Prototype) 125.211 mph
- No. 38 Champion Racing, Schroeder/Wollek/Haywood/Maasseen,
Porsche Lola, (SportsRacer Prototype) 124.037 mph
- No. 95 TRV Motorsports, Volk,
Schroeder/Mirro/Waddell, Chevrolet R&S, (SportsRacer Prototype)
123.047 mph
- No. 20 Dyson Racing Team, Rob Dyson,
Elliott-Forbes Robinson, Ford R&S, (SportsRacer Prototype)
122.073 mph
- No. 27 Lista Doran Racing, Theys/Lienhard/Bentley/Baldi,
Judd Crawford, (SportsRacer Prototype) 121.313 mph
- No. 6 TRP Racing, Tiller/Duder/Sherman/Bucknum,
Nissan Lola, (SportsRacer Prototype) 119.809
- No. 8 Phillip Creighton Motorsports,
Schubot/Dayton/Burton, Ford Lola, (SportsRacer Prototype II) 119.621
mph
- No. 5 Rocketsports, Gentilozzi/Miller,
Saleen S7R, (GTS) 119.393 mph
- No. 2 Corvette Racing, Fellows/Kneifel/Freon,
Corvette, (GTS) 117.848 mph
Others
- No. 76 Gunner Racing, Newman,
Jeannette/Jackson/Brockman, Porsche GT1, (GTS) 117.782 mph
- No. 3 Corvette Racing, Earnhardt/Earnhardt
Jr./Pilgrim/Collins, Corvette, (GTS) 116.616 mph
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