TF Sport of the UK and its pair of Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs are ready to take on the toughest test in sports car racing: the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the blue-ribbon event of the FIA World Endurance Championship.

The lineup of the No. 81 Corvette and No. 82 Z06 GT3.R from TF Sport will look to add to the legacy of the Corvette Racing program at Le Mans – nine class victories and a strong following from fans around the world who flock to the race each year.

The pair of lineups for the June 15-16 race in the TF Sport Corvettes are the same as the previous three rounds of the FIA WEC Tom Van Rompuy, Rui Andrade and Corvette factory driver Charlie Eastwood in the No. 81 Z06 GT3.R while Hiroshi Koizumi, Sebastien Baud and factory driver Daniel Juncadella are in the No. 82 Corvette.

The experience factor at Le Mans between the two cars is unique. The No. 81 trio has eight combined starts, and 2020 GTE Am winner Eastwood is the only of the three to have raced a GT car at the 24 Hours. Meanwhile, the No. 82 trio is an all-rookie Le Mans lineup.

Despite that, hopes are high for continued Corvette success at this year’s race. Corvette Racing won last year’s GTE Am race en route to the WEC championship in the final year of the Corvette C8.R GTE car. It capped a run of nine class victories in the race since 2000 and one of the most successful eras for a single program at Le Mans in the modern era.

This year with WEC adopting GT3 regulations for this year, the entire category will feature cars that will race in the 24 Hours for the first time. From the Corvette and TF Sport side, preparation for the race has been multipronged.

The TF team recently completed a test at Silverstone Circuit to test the Corvettes in low-downforce configuration. Meanwhile, Corvette Racing’s factory drivers from the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship have spent time in Chevrolet’s Driver-in-the-Loop simulator to help explore different setup options for the Z06 GT3.R.

The results will come into view with a combined six hours of running Sunday around the 8.48-mile Le Mans circuit, made up of permanent racetrack and public roads. The annual Test Day will set the stage for practice and qualifying, plus Thursday’s Hyperpole session to set the grid for this year’s race.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 4 p.m. CET / 10 a.m. ET on Saturday, June 15.
MotorTrend will air live television coverage while streaming coverage on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S., will begin Wednesday, June 12.
Radio Le Mans also will stream audio coverage of all on-track sessions, including Sunday’s Test Day.

TF SPORT PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Le Mans is the big one. It’s a very important race for us, and obviously it’s a big race for everyone. It’s the first time the Z06 GT3.R is going to hit the streets of Le Mans. From that, we have a lot of data to gather on the Test Day. The good thing is that both Rui and Tom have been to Le Mans, and of course I’ve been there many times myself.
So hopefully as the driver crew we will be strong from the start, which should give us more time to get an understanding of what this car needs. It’s the first time we’ve had a low-downforce track with long straights. The guys at Corvette Racing,

Pratt Miller and GM have run a lot of simulations and been in the DiL to get some good baseline setups ready for us, which will play a big part in helping us get up to speed. We just need to be on-track for every single minute that the track is green to get as much data as we can.
I’m looking forward to it. For the full crew, we need a proper result at Le Mans. We’ve had some misfortune at the last couple of races, so we’re all as determined as ever to make no mistakes and make sure we are there at the end of the 24 Hours.”

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I am super excited about the biggest race of the season. Le Mans is always a very special race and is the one where you really want to achieve a good result. I’m very proud to be driving the Corvette this year in Le Mans. We prepared ourselves and the car in the best possible way to be able to try to finish on the LM GT3 podium.
Let’s hope the luck is on our side for the big one. I can’t wait to feel the Le Mans atmosphere again and to see all the fans with full support to help us finish the race in the best way.”

DANIEL JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“These are some pretty exciting days coming up. This will be the first time for me at Le Mans and first time with such a successful brand in Le Mans like Corvette. So that makes it even more exciting to have my own debut at this race with the winning program from last year with so much experience. It’s going to be quite special for me to debut at Le Mans.

The Test Day will be about learning the track, and the bits and pieces that are there in real life compared to simulations, and how the car feels. I’m quite confident that we can have a strong race. Seb is also going to have a big highlight, being a Frenchman.
Hiro has some experience at Le Mans, so they are a little more prepared than myself, which is good. When it’s me that gets up to speed, it makes me feel confident. We should have a good car and let’s see how it goes. But yes, very exciting weeks are coming ahead.”

SEBASTIEN BAUD, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It’s a dream come true for me, finally being able to take the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and be a participant in the most legendary race in the world. Since I was very young, It always has been the one thing in my career that I wanted to experience.
It is very much a dream race for me, especially now to do this with Corvette Racing, of which I have always been a fan and have followed them around the world. So now I have the opportunity to be able to drive a Corvette for TF Sport in the most prestigious race in the world.

I have been pushing myself to achieve this goal for four years now, and today it is a childhood dream that is gradually taking shape. So we hope the fans support us, the Corvette team and the 82 car because we will compete with passion and give our best to represent the winning team of last year’s centenary edition.”

All 9 LMGT3 cars will run heavier at Le Mans than they did in Belgium, although the increases range from a single kilogram for the Porsche 911 GT3 R to the 25 kg by which the Lamborghini has been upped.

Aston Martin’s Vantage GT3 Evo has been handed the next-largest increase of 22 kg, putting the car at 1349 kg, although the British manufacturer has had its power upped by two percent compared to Spa.

The power increase however is accompanied by the elimination of the Aston’s previous four percent Power Gain.

The only other cars with increases of more than 10 kg from the previous WEC race are the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R (+11 kg/1347 kg) and the Lexus (+10 kg/1355 kg).

Besides the Porsche, which now runs at 1327 kg, the smallest increases have gone to the Ferrari 296 GT3 (+2 kg/1345 kg) and the BMW M4 GT3 (+3 kg/1331 kg).

The Ford Mustang GT3 has seen its weight go up by 9 kg to 1327 kg, but this has been accompanied by a two percent power increase.

With just one percent power increases are the Corvette, Ferrari, Lexus and Porsche, while the BMW and McLaren 720S GT3, which has had its minimum weight upped by 6 kg (now 1339 kg), are the only cars to have no changes to their base power levels.

The only car with a positive Power Gain for Le Mans is the BMW, which gains one percent above 200 km/h, with all bar two cars having a less favorable figure than before.

The exceptions are the Lamborghini and the Lexus, the latter remaining at zero to put it level with the McLaren and Porsche as well as the Aston Martin.

Corvette and Ferrari see the largest drops of minus two percent, with the Ford joining Lamborghini on minus one percent.

TF Sport’s pair of Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs ran through a relatively trouble-free six hours of testing Sunday ahead of the coming week’s 24 Hours of Le Mans the first appearance for the Z06 GT3.R in the French classic, as well as for the LM GT3 field in which it will compete.

Both Corvettes were firmly entrenched in the lead pack of GT3 cars following two three-hour sessions around the 8.48-mile Le Mans circuit.
Sebastien Baud in the No. 82 Corvette was the quickest driver in the class but only by a couple of hundredths of a second.
His time of 3:59.883 (127.070 mph) in the Z06 GT3.R that he shares with Hiroshi Koizumi and factory driver Daniel Juncadella gave him a slim 0.037-second margin over the next two cars in the class.
The gap from Baud to the 14th-place GT3 car was only 0.774 seconds, which further shows the depth of quality in the first-year class.

Among those cars was the No. 81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Rui Andrade, Tom Van Rompuy and factory driver Charlie Eastwood. Andrade set the best lap of the trio – a 4:00.444 (126.760 mph) effort in the afternoon portion, as well.

The Test Day results put TF Sport in a position to continue the Corvette Racing program’s strong history at Le Mans. Corvette Racing won last year’s GTE Am race – en route to the WEC championship – in the final year of the Corvette C8.R GTE car. It capped a run of nine class victories in the race since 2000 and one of the most successful stints for a single program at Le Mans in the modern era.

TF Sport and the rest of the Le Mans field will have Monday and Tuesday to analyze data and make additional adjustments ahead of Wednesday’s first official practice sessions and qualifying, plus Thursday’s Hyperpole session to set the grid for this year’s race.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 4 p.m. CET / 10 a.m. ET on Saturday, June 15. MotorTrend will air live television coverage while streaming coverage on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S., will begin Wednesday, June 12. Radio Le Mans will also stream audio coverage of all on-track sessions.

TF SPORT POST-TEST DAY DRIVER QUOTES

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“There is such a big build-up to the race and a bit of anticipation of how it’s going to be. For the last few years with GTE, it’s always been the same thing time and time again. For us now, it’s a completely new tire and completely new car.
I think everyone likes the fact that we have the test in and have two or three days to digest it all. If it were straight into the race weekend, it would all ramp up pretty quickly. It was pretty good today and the pace looks strong.
We’re trying to get an understanding how to get the Z06 GT3.R as fast possible around Le Mans.”

(Are you satisfied?) “Absolutely. We had a lot of confidence in the car coming in. We didn’t even do an installation lap; we just went straight into the run because we knew it was going to be solid, which was a relief and great.
Now, straight away, we’re already just fine-tuning things. We’re not going to be changing it upside-down or anything. All in all, things are pretty good.”

RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Today was a big learning curve, having only driven around Le Mans in a P2, which has different characteristics to the Corvette. But I’m really pleased with how it went. The car feels incredible and suits the track really well. In the morning, the track was pretty dirty, but the team made some good adjustments.
I’m feeling strong, and we had some strong runs toward the end between myself and Seb.

The pace was strong, and I’m pretty happy with the balance. A place like Le Mans is all about feeling and confidence. You need that confidence to attack the corners with high speeds. It’s the kind of place where if you make a small mistake, the race can be over. So having a day like this where you feel so comfortable from the beginning, and you can just push. This car gives you that confidence.
This is a good first step for us.”

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“The first laps are now complete, so the first milestone is complete for this big race at Le Mans. I’m happy with that.
I was able to explore the track with this fabulous Corvette GT3, and it was great.
There are some small things where we need to work on and improve. But already I feel like we already are in a strong window.
I’m confident that we will keep working and improving for the first session Wednesday. Everyone has little things to work on.
But even with those things for us, I believe we are in a strong spot. I’m very happy.”

DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It’s my debut in Le Mans, and this was fun.
It looks exactly the same as in my iRacing simulator, so that was pretty cool because I’ve done many laps on there. I was able to get up to speed quite quickly thanks to that. The car feels very nice so far. My teammates are doing well so far. Hiroshi made an improvement of six seconds from this morning, which is encouraging.
It does feel special being part of Le Mans with the atmosphere. But to be honest, nothing really caught me by surprise. It just looks so similar (to the simulator)
I was like, ‘I’ve been here. I know this.’ So that was very telling and quite cool.”

SEBASTIEN BAUD, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“For me, today I realized a very big dream.
I started in motorsport 10 years ago, my dream was to be at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
And my second dream was to drive a Corvette.
Today was very good because the car was a pleasure to drive.
The feeling was incredible, just like it was at the start of the season.
My first time coming out of pitlane this morning, I had a big smile on my face. It was crazy to realize my dream.
Now I’m focused on the race. This is just the pre-event test, so the pressure will come a little more for practice and qualifying Wednesday. We will all stay connected with the team the next couple of days because this is very important to me as this is part of endurance racing.”

HIROSHI KOIZUMI, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I am very happy with today. My goal was to learn this car on this track and not make mistakes.
I feel I did that and even beat my personal target for laptime. It was nice to get a lot of green flag time.
This was not the case last year when I did Michelin Le Mans Cup. I am happy and I think the team is happy, too.
I am more excited now for Wednesday and the race.”

In LMGT3 Qualify, Ben Barker’s early benchmark of 3:55.263 proved to be good enough to top the new-for-2024 class in the No. 77 Proton Competition Ford Mustang GT3.

Barker’s time was enough to knock Frederik Schandorff’s No. 70 Inception Racing McLaren 720S GT3 Evo off the top of the times by just under two tenths, with a subsequent improvement for Schandorff leaving him 0.143 seconds shy.

Remarkably, the top seven times in the new class were occupied by seven different manufacturers, as Daniel Juncadella went third-fastest in the No. 82 TF Sport Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R.

He was followed by Franck Perera’s Iron Lynx Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, Klaus Bachler’s Manthey PureRxcing Porsche 911 GT3 R and Alex Riberas in the Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo.

Aston was the only manufacturer to get two cars into Hyperpole as Marco Sorensen bagged the eighth and final spot for D’station Racing behind the JMW Motorsport Ferrari 296 GT3 of Larry ten Voorde.

The only manufacturers to miss out on Hyperpole were Lexus, whose top representative was 10th-fastest, and BMW, which could only manage a best of 12th.

LMGT3 night practice saw the top four places in the class occupied by four different manufacturers.
The promising start to the week continued for Proton Competition and Ford up top, the No. 88 Mustang setting the quickest lap thanks to Dennis Olsen.
The Norweigan’s 3:58.689 was enough to give him the edge over Marco Sorensen in the No. 777 D’Station Aston Martin Vantage.

The No. 31 WRT BMW was classified third, with the No. 82 TF Sport Corvette fourth.

TF Sport’s Daniel Juncadella saved his best for last Wednesday to send the No. 82 Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R into Thursday’s Hyperpole session for a shot at pole position for this weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Juncadella set a lap of 3:56.105 (129.121 mph) in the Corvette that he will share with his FIA World Endurance Championship teammates Hiroshi Koizumi and Sebastien Baud. The effort was good enough for third in the LMGT3 class ahead of the 30-minute session that will set the first four rows of this year’s grid.

With factory driver Juncadella getting the No. 82 Corvette into Hyperpole, the Bronze-rated Koizumi will drive in Thursday evening’s session, per WEC rules.
Charlie Eastwood came up just short of joining Juncadella in making Hyperpole.
He qualified 18tth in the No. 81 Corvette that he will share with Tom Van Rompuy pole-winner in Qatar to start the season and Rui Andrade.
Eastwood’s best lap was a 3:57.296 (128.437 mph) effort, but starting position means little in a 24-hour race, especially with the weekend forecast of rain in the latter half of the event.

After all six drivers rotated through their respective Corvettes in the opening three-hour session, Eastwood and Juncadella drove exclusively in the qualifying session in an effort to get the maximum performance out of the Z06 GT3.Rs.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 4 p.m. CET / 10 a.m. ET on Saturday, June 15. MotorTrend will air live television coverage while streaming coverage on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S., continues Thursday. Radio Le Mans also will stream audio coverage of all on-track sessions.

TF SPORT POST-QUALIFYING DRIVER QUOTES

DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R – THIRD IN LMGT3:

“I was pushing the limits a lot in that session. We used three sets of tires, so tells you a lot. But that was the effort we had to do in order to make Hyperpole, and it was that last-minute lap that got us in. I’m very happy with that, for sure. I was hoping it would be a bit easier.
Obviously, the level of competition is high and there are still a couple of bits to improve in the car.
Fortunately, we still have a couple of sessions to get it ready for the race.

I’m thankful to have such a nice car like the Corvette to be able to do qualifying here at Le Mans on low fuel and new tires.
It’s a nice experience in my first time here. Thanks to the TF Sport guys for a great car. Now we can look forward.”

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R – 18TH IN LMGT3:

“Qualifying was a lot tighter than I think we expected. The pace ramped up pretty quickly.
From my side, we’re having a few teething problems and didn’t have the car balance in the high-speed where we needed it.
There was a bit of an offset between the cars because we’re still learning it.
We did three runs, and we had a different setup every run because one hour of track time at the minute is so critical.

We started on a completely different spring package between the two cars. Dani obviously did a great lap and when we looked at the data, it was noticeable where the benefit came from. It doesn’t matter where you start, but it does make my first couple of stints a bit harder because I need to go forward and get to the front in the first couple hours.
There’s still plenty of practice time to get our heads around it and then 24 hours to get to the front.”

TF Sport’s No. 82 Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R will start from the fourth row of the LMGT3 field Saturday for the 24 Hours of Le Mans the debut appearance at the French endurance classic for the GT3-spec Corvette.

Hiroshi Koizumi piloted the Corvette in Thursday’s 30-minute Hyperpole session, which set the top eight positions in each of the three classes in this year’s race. Koizumi’s lap of 4:03.681 (125.082 mph) was his fastest of the weekend heading into Thursday night’s final practice and then Saturday’s race.

He will drive with Frenchman Sebastien Baud and Corvette factory driver Daniel Juncadella, whose lap in Wednesday’s qualifying secured a spot in Hyperpole.

The two Corvettes, including the No. 81 of Charlie Eastwood, Rui Andrade and Tom Van Rompuy that will start way back in18th, are part of a 23-car grid in LMGT3.
Saturday’s race will mark the first time that GT3 cars will take part at Le Mans, and nine manufacturers are presented in the class.
The No. 70 McLaren qualified on the class pole.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is scheduled for 4 p.m. CET / 10 a.m. ET on Saturday, June 15.
MotorTrend will air live television coverage with streaming coverage available on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S. plus the audio call on Radio Le Mans.

TF SPORT POST-HYPERPOLE DRIVER QUOTES

HIROSHI KOIZUMI, NO. 82 CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R QUALIFIED SEVENTH IN LMGT3:

“It’s my first Le Mans and my first Hyperpole. I’m so thankful to the team and everyone who is supporting us.
Tomorrow is a full schedule with the parade, which I am looking forward to doing, and getting ready for the race. Dani, Seb and I will analyze our runs from today with our engineers.
We will absorb all the data and learn from it, and hopefully that leads to a good result Sunday.”

SÉBASTIEN BAUD, NO. 82 TF SPORT CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

It was a good result and a good lap time for Hiroshi. He is very consistent and is careful, which is very important for a race like Le Mans.

This is the biggest job. Hopefully Dani can push for the top-three or top-four to put us in a good position. My job is to maintain our position, and I’m focused on that. I’m very excited now about the race.
Tomorrow is the parade, which is a great moment for us as drivers, for the fans, for our sponsors, and for Corvette and Cadillac.
We hope to keep the good energy into Saturday.”

After eight hours

TF Sport charged into darkness at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its two Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R still in the hunt for LMGT3 honors during the car’s first appearance at the French classic.

The clock struck midnight at the eight-hour mark, with TF Sport’s No. 81 Corvette of Charlie Eastwood running 18th of 23 cars in the class just after a restart following the race’s first safety car.
It marked a bit of reversal of fortunes for the trio of Eastwood, Tom Van Rompuy and Rui Andrade, which started toward the back of the grid but pushed toward the top-10 in the race’s opening stages.

Van Rompuy, the Bronze-rated driver in the No. 81 Corvette, drove the opening stint and handed over to factory driver Eastwood as early rain began to fall on parts of the circuits. Eastwood was able to make up time and overtake a handful of cars to 12th by the time he finished his run. Andrade followed with a double-stint before the cycle began again.

Sebastien Baud was in the No. 82 Corvette, which ran 19th at midnight.
Daniel Juncadella began seventh but suffered from a straight-line speed deficit and fell back before handing over to Hiroshi Koizumi, who had a tough job in the mixed conditions. Baud followed for his first stint before all three cycled back through before the safety car came out.

The next update from Corvette Racing and TF Sport will come at the 18-hour mark.

TF SPORT DRIVER QUOTES AFTER EIGHT HOURS

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Our thought process going into the race ended up paying off pretty well. We expected there to be mixed conditions a couple of hours into the race, and it fell in our favor. With that,
I was able to capitalize on some of the Bronzes and things ahead to try to build a gap to them and put us in the mix of the race. We’re struggling on pace, but so much can happen with more rain later. We need to make sure we make all the right calls, stay out of trouble, and make sure we’re there at the end.”

(On traffic): “It was surprisingly bad. Everyone in Hypercar is at 110 percent. They were diving in with moves in Porsche Curves that normally you wouldn’t expect at this hour of the race. But everyone knows if you build a gap at Le Mans, it’s pretty hard to close it.
So it was difficult out there because the rain, some of the P2s had wet tires on, some of them had Bronze drivers in, so I was following a couple of them when it was raining because I had the same pace. It was a busy first stint, but good to get the first one out of the way. Now we’ll press on and try to keep moving forward.”

RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It was a tough double-stint for me, with a little bit of rain just there in the middle. The track was greasy and slippery with low, low grip. It was a balance.
With the track-limit rule we have now, we’re only allowed 10 for the whole 24 hours. So it’s very hard to be on the limit and not make mistakes.
It’s a long race, so we have to be smart and think ahead. I’m happy to get everyone through the first rotations.
We’re taking steps up in the classifications with no mistakes. Hopefully it keeps going that way. We’ll see where we are tomorrow.”

(On traffic)“I think the P2 cars have a lot of respect toward us. Some of the Hyper-cars have a lot less patience. We’ve seen at other tracks where they don’t give us enough space, and it leads to mistakes. We always have to watch out for that, but luckily so far everything has been OK.
Maybe one or two close calls, but nothing too dramatic. We are hoping to just stay clean.”

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It was a tricky first stint. The track was very low on grip, so I think most people struggled a bit. We also struggled more on the straights compared to the others. But my first double-stint is done. I think we made a good call to let me start because we have gained some positions compared to other teams who had to put in their Bronzes at the start of the rain. There is a long way to go. We’ll keep this strategy up, stay out of trouble, and see where we are later.”

DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“That was a better run than before and good. But still the biggest limitation is fighting against the others on the straight. We can’t really overtake other cars.
When I’m by myself, the car is very quick. It’s wonderful in the corners. It’s nice to drive, but it’s a shame we are a bit powerless on the straights.
Furthermore, it’s going to rain at some point, so we need to stay on the lead lap.
That is the hardest bit. If we can manage to do that, things can shuffle overnight and will make things interesting. That’s the goal right now.”

HIROSHI KOIZUMI, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“My first Le Mans stint was very difficult. The conditions were very tough because of the rain.
I did not know how wet or dry it was ahead of me, so I had to be careful.
I did stop when it was still wet, but the car is fine and everything is OK.”

End of the 24 hours of Le Mans

Results not good for either GT3.R Z06s as 23 cars in class and they end in 11th and 14 places, several laps down from the winner :-(

State of the 2 Corvettes with than 16 hours completed

CORVETTE RACING AT LE MANS: Sixteen-Hour Report

Heavy rains impact race’s running, but Corvettes still circulating in challenging conditions
LE MANS, France (June 16, 2024) – Rain threw a wrench in the running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans with TF Sport’s pair of Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R continuing to circulate throughout the night in the car’s first appearance in the French endurance classic.

The two Corvettes ran 14th and 17th after 16 hours in the LMGT3 class race that wasn’t a race for nearly four hours in the middle part of the contest. Heavy rain pelted the circuit just before the halfway, and as a result race officials called for the field to fall in line behind one of three safety cars around the 8.47-mile circuit.

Bronze-rated drivers Tom Van Rompuy (No. 81 Corvette) and Hiroshi Koizumi (No. 82 Z06 GT3.R) were at the wheel for a bulk of the safety car period. The cars circulated the circuit at 80 kph until the rains let up enough for the field to safely return to racing.

The lengthy period did allow Van Rompuy and Koizumi to complete a bulk of their six-hour minimum drive time a requirement for Bronze and Silver drivers.
That left teammates Charlie Eastwood and Rui Andrade in the No. 81 and Daniel Juncadella and Sebastien Baud in the No. 82 to drive the remaining eight hours between them.

The only significant issues for the No. 81 Corvette was a trip to the garage to change the nose of the car during the race’s first safety car period near the eight-hour mark. On the No. 82 side, a couple of minor off-track excursions and a bleed of the clutch system were the only items of note in the first two-thirds of the race.

The next scheduled update from Corvette Racing and TF Sport will come following the conclusion of the race.

TF SPORT DRIVER QUOTES AFTER EIGHT HOURS

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"Our thought process going into the race ended up paying off pretty well. We expected there to be mixed conditions a couple of hours into the race, and it fell in our favor. With that, I was able to capitalize on some of the Bronzes and things ahead to try to build a gap to them and put us in the mix of the race. We're struggling on pace but so much can happen with more rain later.
We need to make sure we make all the right calls, stay out of trouble, and make sure we're there at the end."

(On traffic): "It was surprisingly bad. Everyone in Hypercar is at 110 percent.
They were diving in with moves in Porsche Curves that normally you wouldn't expect at this hour of the race. But everyone knows if you build a gap at Le Mans, it's pretty hard to close it.
So it was difficult out there because of the rain, some of the P2s had wet tires on, some of them had Bronze drivers in, so I was following a couple of them when it was raining because I had the same pace. It was a busy first stint but good to get the first one out of the way. Now we'll press on and try to keep moving forward."

RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"It was a tough double-stint for me with a little bit of rain just there in the middle. The track was greasy and slippery with low, low grip. It was a balance. With the track-limit rule we have now, we're only allowed 10 for the whole 24 hours. So it's very hard to be on the limit and not make mistakes.
It's a long race, so we have to be smart and think ahead. I'm happy to get everyone through the first rotations. We're taking steps up in the classifications with no mistakes. Hopefully it keeps going that way. We'll see where we are tomorrow."

(On traffic) "I think the P2 cars have a lot of respect toward us. Some of the Hyper-cars have a lot less patience. We've seen at other tracks where they don't give us enough space, and it leads to mistakes. We always have to watch out for that, but luckily so far everything has been OK. Maybe one or two close calls, but nothing too dramatic. We are hoping to just stay clean."

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"It was a tricky first stint. The track was very low on grip, so I think most people struggled a bit.
We also struggled more on the straights compared to the others. But my first double-stint is done. I think we made a good call to let me start because we have gained some positions compared to other teams who had to put in their Bronzes at the start of the rain.
There is a long way to go. We'll keep this strategy up, stay out of trouble, and see where we are later."

DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"That was a better run than before and good. But still the biggest limitation is fighting against the others on the straight. We can't really overtake other cars. When I'm by myself, the car is very quick. It's really good in the corners. It's nice to drive, but it's a shame we are a bit powerless on the straights. Furthermore, it's going to rain at some point, so we need to stay on the lead lap.
That is the hardest bit. If we can manage to do that, things can shuffle overnight and will make things interesting. That's the goal right now."

HIROSHI KOIZUMI, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"My first Le Mans stint was very difficult.
The conditions were very tough because of the rain.
I did not know how wet or dry it was ahead of me, so I had to be careful. I did stop when it was still wet, but the car is fine and everything is OK."