Corvette DPs at Long Beach: first visit results in two podiums

Corvette Daytona Prototypes took two of the three podium steps Saturday in the Patrón Sports Car Showcase, the third round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. Wayne Taylor Racing’s Jordan Taylor and Ricky Taylor placed second in the 100-minute race at the Long Beach street circuit, the first visit to the venue for the Corvette DPs.

Action Express Racing’s Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi placed third in the No. 5 Corvette Daytona Prototype. Saturday’s result gives Corvette DP teams two of the top three spots in the TUDOR Championship’s Prototype standings for drivers and teams.

"It was great to see the Konica Minolta-sponsored Wayne Taylor Racing team with Jordan and Ricky Taylor finish second,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet’s U.S. Vice President, Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. “They had a great run all day. In addition, the Action Express No. 5 Corvette DP with Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi had a great start to the race, and finished strong on the podium which gives them some additional room in the driver point standings."

Fittipaldi and Barbosa maintained their lead in the driver standings, as did Action Express in the team championship. The Taylors are third in the driving championship with Wayne Taylor Racing third in the team category.

"Even though we didn't win, I am quite happy for the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP team for their second-place finish with Ricky and Jordan Taylor doing the driving,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet’s Program Manager for Daytona Prototypes. “We also are pleased for the No. 5 Action Express Corvette DP on their third-place finish that keeps Christian Fittipaldi and Joao Barbosa in the driver championship lead. I do think there is a little bit of work needed by the sanctioning body to get parody between a turbo engine and naturally aspirated engine. But we are looking forward to the next round at Laguna Seca."

The next round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship takes place May 2-4 from Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif.

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP “The only chance we had was in traffic. We knew the No. 60 and the No. 01 had a great straight-line speed and we knew we wouldn’t to be able to pass him if we were in a situation of just car versus car; but if we had traffic in the right spot, we probably had a chance. I kept getting in the wrong spot. So, I was happy to get second. It’s good points for the championship.”

RICKY TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP "It was a good day. Qualifying was a little disappointing. I think we probably moved up the most positions. Jordan did a great job in his stint. It was a great result for Konica Minolta on our car for the first time. It is a start of a great relationship. First of the Corvette DPs. It was a good day. I think we are third in points, this early-on, so we're really close. We have a lot of races to make it up."

CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP “Well, it was definitely a good afternoon. I can’t complain. Obviously we wanted to try our very best to try and win the race, but unfortunately it didn’t happen. Our competitors were really strong and they put together a great race. And we have to capitalize on what we did and get out of here and move on to the next one. We’ll still leading the championship and let’s see what happens in Laguna. Thanks to Action Express and Chevy power.”

JOAO BARBOSA, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP "That was a really tough race. Track position was everything here. Unfortunately my tires took a little bit long to come in, and I lost the lead but there was nothing I could do. I tried to make sure it was a safe race. But it was a good race. We will just look forward to the next one. Our Corvette DP was running really well. But we had nothing for the Ford in straight-line speed. They were super fast but it was good racing."

Team Chevy Racing