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Former Cadillac ace Cooper to race Callaway Corvette

Callaway Competition USA has announced that Michael Cooper and Daniel Keilwitz will race the team’s pair of Corvette C7 GT3-R in next year’s Pirelli World Challenge.

Reeves Callaway, Michael Cooper and PWC President and CEO Greg Gill
Callaway Competition C7 GT3-R poster
#8 Cadillac Racing Cadillac ATS-VR GT3: Michael Cooper
Podium: race winner Michael Cooper, Cadillac Racing, second place Patrick Long, Wright Motorsports, third place Pierre Kaffer, Magnus Racing
Reeves Callaway
Daniel Keilwitz

Team owner Reeves Callaway and PWC president and CEO Greg Gill unveiled the GT3-spec homologated Corvette, two of which will compete in the GT class in the sprint races and the two-driver SprintX races.

Keilwitz, a 28-year-old German, is a longstanding Callaway driver, and he clinched the first of three titles with the squad in 2010 when he clinched the FIA GT3 European Championship. 

He switched to the ADAC GT Masters Series in 2011 and has become the most successful driver in the series, with 19 victories. In 2013 Keilwitz and Callaway won the championship and finished top three in the points race in 2014, ’16 and ’17. This past season, Keilwitz and Jules Gounon earned Callaway the team title.

Cooper finished second in the World Challenge GT championship this year in the Cadillac ATS-V.R, and also has the 2015 GTS class title to his name, piloting a Camaro.

This year he also clinched the PWC’s SprintX title sharing his Cadillac with Jordan Taylor.

Said Cooper: “I’m very proud to be joining Callaway Competition USA for their factory effort next year. The Corvette C7 GT3-R has already proven itself on track in Europe, and I’m eager to start testing.

“The team that is being assembled by Callaway is top-notch, and will no doubt put us in contention for the championship. This will be an exciting year for the car’s debut in the Pirelli World Challenge.”

Keilwitz added: “I have done a lot of races for [Callaway] in Europe and now I’m really happy to join them also in the USA for my ninth year with the team. The car is really amazing and was performing really well in Europe against all the big manufacturers, so I'm sure that it will perform also well in USA.

“Of course, we have to get some experience with the car on the new tracks, but we also bring a lot of experience from Europe to the USA from the past two years racing with this car.”

“We are proud to have Daniel and Michael on board for our 2018 effort,” said Callaway. “Both drivers have won several championships and will be excellent brand ambassadors for the Corvette C7 GT3-R’s debut year of American competition. Daniel brings with him a wealth of knowledge about our team and the car, and Michael has years of experience on the tracks we’ll be competing on.

“Together, with the team we’re assembling, this will be an excellent program to show our future customers what the Corvette C7 GT3-R is capable of.”

 

 

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