TF Sport’s No. 81 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R will start from inside the third of the LMGT3 class ahead of the six-hour Lone Star Le Mans for the FIA World Endurance Championship at Circuit of The Americas.

Tom Van Rompuy qualified fifth in the Corvette that he shares with Rui Andrade and Corvette factory driver Charlie Eastwood.
He set a lap of 2:06.287 (97.680 mph) around the 3.4-mile, 20-turn circuit and site of the WEC’s only American race this season.

The 10-car Hyperpole session was a tight battle, with the No. 81 Corvette just 0.7 seconds from pole position and less than three-tenths from third position. It continued a strong run for Van Rompuy in qualifying sessions this season with his fourth Hyperpole appearance including a pole-position run to open the season at Qatar.

Hiroshi Koizumi barely missed advancing to Hyperpole with a lap of 2:07.328 (96.872 mph) in the No. 82 Corvette Z06 GT3.R that placed him outside the top-10 by just 0.216 seconds.
Still, it’s the best starting spot of the year for the trio of Koizumi, Sebastien Baud and Corvette factory driver Daniel Juncadella since the Qatar opener in February, outside the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Both Corvettes showed well in the three practice sessions across Friday and Saturday. Both Z06 GT3.Rs were the top-five in the first practice, and Juncadella went quickest in Friday’s second session and also Saturday’s final practice.
The latter was TF Sport’s first 1-2 result in any WEC session this year, with Eastwood just off the pace of his teammate.

Although it’s the only American stop for the WEC, this weekend isn’t the first race for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R at COTA this season as DXT Racing swept both rounds of GT World Challenge America with the No. 63 Corvette of factory driver Tommy Milner and Alec Udell.

Despite a difference in weather conditions in May vs. September and tires – Pirelli vs. Goodyear, a large amount of data and experience carried over to help TF Sport prep for the weekend. From an engineering perspective, suspension and other points in chassis setup with validations from Chevrolet’s Driver in the Loop simulator provided a solid baseline for the weekend’s initial track action.

This is the first FIA WEC race at Circuit of the Americas since 2020. That race was significant in that it was the first start in the championship for the mid-engine Corvette C8.R while TF Sport went on to win the GTE-Am class with Eastwood as one of the drivers.
The team got a feel for Austin and Americana on Thursday with a couple of visits to some of Austin’s most notable landmarks, with Juncadella and Eastwood each driving a Corvette Z06 production car for the weekend.

The Lone Star Le Mans is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, September 1. MotorTrend TV will air live television coverage with streaming coverage on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans also will stream audio coverage of the race.

TF SPORT POST-QUALIFYING DRIVER QUOTES

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

“From my side, qualifying was a little disappointing because we had a really strong car. It’s really close to P2 through P4. Our only way is up tomorrow, so we feel ready for the race and are hoping for a big podium finish tomorrow. From the first session here at COTA, we have felt that we have a really good car.
I think our package is quite strong, and everyone is ready for a good result.

Now it’s just putting the small things together. With the combination of our three drivers, I think we have a strong shot for a good result. From P5, we can do a good job. It’s a long race, and tire degradation in the heat will play a role and play its part. Let’s hope for the best tomorrow.”

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

“We have a pretty good starting place for tomorrow. It’s been promising through practice as well. Rui had his best session of the year in FP3 and is showing some really good pace. We just need to put it all together. We’ve had a fast car the last couple of races, but we haven’t put it together.
Furthermore, we’re probably in the best position we have been in a while, so I’m looking forward to it.”

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

“I am happy with my qualifying time. It is the closest I have been to Hyperpole. I feel like I was better in the free practice session, so I will try to remember those laps in the race and how I did, so I can do a good job for my co-drivers and my team. Turn 11 was difficult for me, and I know I can clean up that for better laps tomorrow in the race.”

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

“This is the best chance we have had this for a good result. With the performance and setup, we seem to be in the right place and the right window. Hiroshi’s position doesn’t tell the whole story. He wasn’t that far from Hyperpole.
So I have high expectations for tomorrow, I have to say, with the sister car being in the top-five and competitive pace. We can all be quite satisfied with what we look like for the race.”

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

“This is my first time in Austin and in fact in the U.S. It’s a great event and the home race for Corvette.
I’m happy for that because there are a lot of fans that follow Corvette. This weekend is a great opportunity to achieve a strong result.
The performance of the car so far has been really good. It’s a technical track and is very nice for our Corvette, it seems.

We have a lot of information on this track from other Corvettes. That hopefully will help. It’s going to be important to stay on the same lap early as the leaders.
I like the track so far and the car is very fast through the technical parts. I think we have the chance for a very good result.”