If there’s anyone to set a lap record around Canadian Tire Motorsports Park (CTMP), it’s Ron Fellows.
The Canadian professional race car driver and Corvette Racing legend started attending races at this very track, then called Mosport, as a kid; now, he’s one of the track’s co-owners. As for the car? The 2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 already has a reputation for shattering track records.
With a 1:18.2 lap of the 2.5-mile Ontario circuit, Fellows claimed a new production-car lap record of CTMP with the eighth-generation Corvette ZR1. Don’t feel bad for the driver he beat the previous lap record, a 1:22.12 set in a 2023 Corvette Z06, also belonged to Fellows.
“CTMP is a track where you’ve got to be brave,” Fellows tells GM News. “It’s so rewarding to get an excellent lap time there. It’s got some sharp elevation, and around 60 percent of the lap is high-speed cornering.”
A challenge to be sure, but one that Fellows was up for: The 66-year-old retired pro has a driver’s championship title in the American Le Mans Series, and notched wins at Le Mans, Sebring and Daytona.
The track also provides an excellent canvas for the Corvette ZR1. Introduced for 2025, the ZR1 features the most powerful V8 engine produced in America from an American automaker1. Dubbed the LT7, it’s a 5.5-liter twin-turbo power plant with a flat-plane crankshaft, putting out up to 1,064 horsepower and 828 lb-ft of torque.
The ZR1 accelerates from 0-60 MPH in 2.3 seconds 2, 3 and achieved a top track speed of 233 MPH4 with GM President Mark Reuss behind the wheel at the High-Speed Oval Track at Automotive Testing Papenburg last year.
“Between corners, the car just accelerates so hard and doesn’t stop,” Fellows says.
As any good racer knows, it’s not all about power. When equipped with the track-focused ZTK Performance Package, the ZR1 gets track-ready upgrades to the tires5, carbon-ceramic brakes, and suspension, and the Corvette ZR1 generates over 1,200 pounds of downforce at top speed, increasing grip even further.
“When you’ve got more downforce, you can be that much more aggressive with corner entry,” Fellows says. He was also impressed with the braking performance. “Into Turn 8, for example, I was braking about the same place as I was with the Z06, but going over 20 mph faster.”
“Working with our longtime Corvette ambassador Ron is such a pleasure,” says Aaron Link, Global Vehicle Performance Manager. “He is the consummate professional, and with the C8 ZR1, he has proven yet again why he earned the ‘Magician of Mosport’ moniker long ago.
This track is so demanding and so fast; we knew the ZR1 would be excellent here, but both Ron and the car exceeded our highest expectations.”
Fellows founded the Ron Fellows Performance Driving School, which operates out of the Spring Mountain Motor Resort and Country Club in Nevada. It’s a school for Corvette owners and prospective buyers, with programs for the Stingray, E-Ray, and Z06. Fellows are still working out curriculum for the ZR1, but he offered up a taste of what participants can expect.
“It’s just getting comfortable with the pure acceleration, and also getting comfortable with how the car stops,” Fellows says. “With the added downforce, it’s all about getting people to trust the car’s cornering capability.”
The CTMP lap record is one of many for the ZR1. Corvette engineers set five production-car lap records with the ZR1, with chart-topping runs at Watkins Glen, Road America, Road Atlanta, and both the Virginia International Raceway Full and Grand courses.
Over at the legendary Nürburgring racetrack in Germany, the Corvette ZR1 and all-wheel drive ZR1X hold the fastest lap times of any American automaker.
It’s a legacy fellow is proud to contribute to.
“I’m incredibly privileged to get the opportunity to do things like this, to work with GM Canada and the engineering team: Aaron Link, Brian Wallace, Tyler Michaud and Matt Jamison.” Fellows says. “It’s an absolute joy to be able to go out and try to achieve those goals.”
1 Assembled with US and globally sourced parts
2 Requires ZR1 Carbon-Fiber Aero package. GM estimated. On a closed course. Based on initial vehicle movement.
3 On a closed course only. Based on initial vehicle movement. Requires available ZTK Performance Package.
4 On a closed course only.
5 Do not use summer-only tires in winter conditions, as it would adversely affect vehicle safety, performance and durability. Use only GM-approved tire and wheel combinations. Unapproved combinations may change the vehicle's performance characteristics
. For important tire and wheel information, go to my.chevrolet.com/learnAbout/chevrolettires/ or see your dealer.
