Five full-season Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs ready for pre-Rolex 24 testing to start 2026

DETROIT (January 13, 2026) – Five Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs and seven Corvette Racing factory drivers are set to kick off 2026 during the next two weeks at Daytona International Speedway. Things kick off for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with the annual three-day Roar Before the 24 starting Friday.

It leads straight into the 64th Rolex 24 At Daytona with Corvette Racing eager to capture another class victory or two in the opening round of the season.
Five full-season Corvette GT3s from four teams are part of the 60-car entry across two of the four classes in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. The Corvette collective will test Friday through Sunday on the 3.56-mile Daytona Road Course ahead of next weekend’s season-opening round:

Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports – GTD PRO:
• Antonio Garcia, Alexander Sims, Marvin Kirchhöfer(No. 3 Corvette)
• Nicky Catsburg, Tommy Milner, Nico Varrone (No. 4 Corvette)

13 Autosport – GTD:
• Matt Bell, Orey Fidani, Lars Kern, Ben Green (No. 13 Corvette)

DXDT Racing – GTD:
• Charlie Eastwood, Mason Filippi, Salih Yoluc, Scott McLaughlin (No. 36 Corvette)

DragonSpeed – GTD:
• Giacomo Altoé, Henrik Hedman, Casper Stevenson, Matteo Cairoli (No. 81 Corvette)
This year’s group matches last year’s entry of five Corvettes at Daytona; the biggest change is that all five will contest of the IMSA season. In addition to returning teams Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports in GTD PRO and GTD customer teams 13 Autosport (formally AW) and DXDT Racing, new Corvette team DragonSpeed will debut its Z06 GT3.R at Daytona.

As a program, Corvette Racing has a deep and successful history at the Rolex 24 and includes five GT-class victories, one of those an overall win in 2001. The Corvette Racing factory team scored additional class wins in 2015, 2016 and 2021, and 13 Autosport won in GTD last year under the AWA banner for the Z06 GT3.R’s first Rolex 24 triumph.

In addition, Corvette’s successes at Daytona have bolstered Chevy’s impressive record of 125 wins at the circuit across IMSA and NASCAR’s national series.

Corvette Racing and its teams are looking to build on the global success of the Z06 GT3.R from 2025 into the new season. Corvette teams captured 16 race victories across six different global championships, and Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports swept the full-season GTD PRO Manufacturers, Drivers and Teams titles.

The Roar Before the 24 is set for January 16-18, with seven sessions scheduled across the three days. The Rolex 24 goes green at 1:40 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 24 with qualifying on Thursday, January 22.

SELECT CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R DRIVER QUOTES

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“In a lot of ways, the Rolex 24 each year at Daytona feels like the championship. I think not many people who are there think about the championship very much during the week. That’s something you think about Monday.
Last year when we finished second, it wasn’t that great until Monday, and we realized we had second-place points! It seems like there everyone is fighting all-out for the win, which is classic Daytona.

It will be good to be back there with Alex and bring in Marvin. If he brings to us something of what he had last year in the race, we’ll be very happy! He and the AWA guys did a great job to end up winning the race, which was great for all of the Corvettes.
He’s been around the paddock and in a lot of the big races here and in Europe. The experience is there, and the speed is there, as he showed last year. We’re happy to have him and looking forward to working with him this year.”

ALEXANDER SIMS, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

It’s nice to have continuity again going into a third season with the same main team, and it’s a great addition having Marvin with us. The core group of people on our car are mostly staying the same… Andy Ramsey our race engineer and obviously myself and Antonio, plus Tommy, Nicky and Nico in the other Corvette.
That’s a huge bonus and should give us strength. I think that’s probably the first time in my career that I’ve had three years in a row with the same co-driver and engineer, so that’s very nice.

“We were second last year at Daytona, and I’m quite keen to try and go one better. As with all of the races, the championship is the No. 1 focus and then race wins and other things would be fantastic along the way. That generally tends to happen if you win the championship so we obviously need to try and maximize every race. Daytona being the big one straight off the bat is an immediate opportunity and a great challenge.”

MARVIN KIRCHHÖFER, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It was really nice being back behind the wheel of the Corvette (at November test at Sebring). I was generally quite impressed by the whole setup of the team. I got a nice welcome, too, from my teammates as well. I already knew Nicky from previous racing before, too. That was very nice and I really, really enjoyed working with them. Everyone has been very supportive and very helpful, getting me up to speed within the team and getting reacquainted with the Corvette.
I also had the DIL test a couple of weeks ago in Charlotte, which also was quite interesting. I must say overall that it has been very good and very positive… good preparation for the Rolex coming up in a couple of weeks. Hopefully we’ve done our parts and our work well and can make it a good 2026 Daytona 24 race.”

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Hopefully this Daytona is a boring one! Boring in the sense that we are three laps ahead by Hour Six, and it’s the most boring GT race ever! Last year was disappointing on a number of levels for us on the No. 4 side. We had a great race going for a majority of it and then unraveled a little bit there at the end. I’m hopeful we can have another strong race as we did last year.
There’s no reason why that should change. Daytona is always that crown jewel event and first race in the U.S. each season, with a lot of emotions around it.
For me, this race and the GTD PRO class in particular gets more and more competitive each year, and the excitement ramps up as we get closer.”

NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It’s good to be back and start working with everyone. I’m looking forward to being back in Daytona as always. Like every year, it’s an amazing beginning of the season with one of the most important races of the year. At the start, I feel like this year on the No. 4 side, we need to take a little bit more of a cautious approach to the race.
It’s very important that we finish well because it kind of sets you up for the rest of the season.
I feel like sometimes people can get a little over-excited because it’s Daytona. I really want to do well in the championship.

The dream is to win the driver championship with the 4 car this year rather than 3! So I’m looking forward to realizing that. Daytona is always a very fun time with the teammates, as well. We have a couple of days off between the Roar and the race, which is always a good time to sharpen up our Pickleball skills or paddle skills or mini-golf skills or whatever else we can do!”

MATT BELL, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m really looking forward to defending our Daytona 24 win from last year. It’s very exciting to be coming back under the new 13 Autosport banner while essentially keeping the same group of people that we succeeded with 12 months ago. There are not many teams that have defended their 24-hour win in the past, so our objective is to join the few that have.”

OREY FIDANI, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m very excited about this new 13 Autosport venture heading into Daytona. We’re going into our third year as a part of Team Chevy, and over the course of the past two seasons we have learned so much and made significant leaps with our No. 13 Corvette. We’re all very eager to continue to further contribute to Chevrolet’s success at Daytona and into the rest of the rounds.
I’m ready to kick off another season with Matt and Lars, and we’re all looking forward to bringing Ben into the family.”

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 36 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I’m really looking forward to being back at Daytona with DXDT and the Corvette. Last year wasn’t what we hoped for in my first race with the team in our first race in IMSA. There were a lot of things to learn, and ultimately we didn’t end up finishing the race. But throughout the year the team made some massive strides and everyone is super motivated to get a good result.

I think everyone knows if you can do that at Daytona, it really starts your championship off well. We have a great lineup. Having Scott is brilliant as he brings a lot to the team with his previous experience with the Corvette and in big races. I think we have a superb shot at it.”

GIACOMO ALTOE, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“It’s a new beginning for me with DragonSpeed and Corvette. I’m very excited for what’s coming.
The project is a big one, and we committed properly to do everything in the best way possible.
It will be great to race together with Henrik for his comeback to racing, and we have high goals in GTD. It’s a very competitive class, and it’s always special to start at Daytona, with a 24-hour race.
I can’t wait to be with the crew again and to get to know everyone at Chevy and Corvette Racing, to start this new project together!”

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The field is set to launch the 2026 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season, first, with today’s release of the entry list for next week’s Roar Before the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway.
As this test is mandatory for all teams participating in the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the entry list for the Roar should look substantially the same as the entry list for the race when it is released next week.

As ever, the Roar and the Rolex 24 combines a range of IMSA champions, past and potentially future Formula 1 drivers, IndyCar race winners and NASCAR stars. Most of the driver lineups are confirmed, with only a handful of updates and additions from the mid-December Rolex 24 entry list release. With the withdrawal of Team Tonis’ entry, a field of 60 cars is now set to compete split 11 Grand Touring Prototype (GTP), 13 Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2), 15 Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) and 21 Grand Touring Daytona (GTD).

The Roar test features seven total sessions over three days. All four classes are active over two sessions Friday, January 16, three sessions Saturday, January 17 and a morning session Sunday, January 18.
The seventh and final session of the weekend on Sunday afternoon is reserved for Bronze-rated drivers only.

That leads into the Rolex 24 race week itself,

with two practice sessions Thursday, January 22 sandwiching qualifying, a final practice on Friday, January 23 and
the race start on Saturday, January 24 at 1:40 p.m. ET with live coverage starting on network NBC at 1:30 p.m. ET and streaming flag-to-flag on Peacock.

WeatherTech Championship Track Records – Daytona International Speedway
GTP: Pipo Derani, Cadillac V-Series.R, 1:32.656 / 138.318 mph, January 2024
LMP2: Paul-Loup Chatin, ORECA LMP2, 1:35.532 / 134.154 mph, January 2022
GTD PRO: Seb Priaulx, Porsche 911 GT3 R (992), 1:44.382 / 122.780 mph, January 2024
GTD: Parker Thompson, Lexus RC F GT3, 1:44.494 / 122.648 mph, January 2024

2025 Rolex 24 At Daytona Motul Pole Award Winners:

GTP: Dries Vanthoor, No. 24 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8
LMP2: Daniel Goldburg, No. 22 United Autosports USA ORECA LMP2 07
GTD PRO: Mike Rockenfeller, No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3
GTD: Elliott Skeer, No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)

2025 Rolex 24 At Daytona Winners:

GTP: Nick Tandy/Felipe Nasr/Laurens Vanthoor, No. 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963
LMP2: Rasmus Lindh/James Allen/Paul Di Resta/Daniel Goldburg, No. 22 United Autosports USA ORECA LMP2 07
GTD PRO: Christopher Mies/Frederic Vervisch/Dennis Olsen, No. 65 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3
GTD: Orey Fidani/Matthew Bell/Lars Kern/Marvin Kirchhoefer, No. 13 AWA Corvette Z06 GT3.R

Storylines

• Global All-Stars: As usual at the Rolex 24, a wide range of drivers from across Formula 1, NASCAR and IndyCar join the wealth of international sports car stars that race in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship full-time. Among the extras to watch this year: Scott Dixon, Alex Palou, Connor Zilisch, AJ Allmendinger, Kevin Magnussen and Colton Herta in the GTP class; Logan Sargeant (LMP2); James Hinchcliffe, Kyle Kirkwood, Will Power and Chaz Mostert (GTD PRO); and Romain Grosjean, Scott McLaughlin and Marcus Ericsson (GTD). Dixon, Palou, Power and Ericsson are the four Indianapolis 500 winners in the race with the first three having also won IndyCar championships.

• At Least 30 Countries: Proving the “international” is true in the International Motor Sports Association and the flags flying above Daytona’s famed “International Horseshoe,” at least 30 countries will be represented in the race.

Rolex 24 and IMSA Title Three-Peat Pursuits: Porsche Penske Motorsport kicks off its run to attempt winning both a third straight Rolex 24 overall and its third straight IMSA GTP championship. Winward Racing, meanwhile, seeks its third straight GTD title and a third Rolex 24 win to add to its 2021 and 2024 triumphs.

• A Dozen Manufacturers: A total of 12 of IMSA’s 18 automotive manufacturers race in the Rolex 24, with others sprinkled in additional IMSA-sanctioned championships at Daytona. The dozen present in Daytona include Porsche with a race-high nine cars, along with Ferrari, Chevrolet, Mercedes-AMG, BMW, Aston Martin, Ford, Acura, Cadillac, Lamborghini, Lexus and McLaren. All LMP2 entries utilize ORECA chassis powered by Gibson engines.

• What’s New to Watch: A mix of new teams, new drivers and one new car the Aston Martin Valkyrie makes its Rolex 24 debut will look to impress in their first outings in this race. With BMW M Team WRT taking over the BMW GTP program, RLL Team McLaren shifts to GTD PRO and brings the McLaren 720S GT3 Evo back to IMSA after a year’s absence. There’s also new Michelin GTP and GT tires and multiple evo kits across both the GTP and GT ranks.

• What May be Saying Farewell: With Toyota’s new GR GT3 car on the way, the 10th try for the Lexus RC F GT3 may be Vasser Sullivan Racing’s last with this model to gain its elusive first Rolex 24 win. Additionally, the three-time Rolex 24-winning Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2 may be set for its final Rolex run as well, with the new Temerario GT3 readying for its race debut in March’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.

• Family Ties: There are multiple sets of brothers and family connections in the field. In GTP, Jordan and Ricky Taylor and Dries and Laurens Vanthoor will go head-to-head. In LMP2, brothers Enzo and Pietro Fittipaldi share the same car. And in GTD, a father-son pairing of Dave Musial Sr. and Dave Musial II share a car.
With most of the field confirmed, there will be more than 60 Rolex 24 winners, more than 50 IMSA champions and more than 50 24 Hours of Le Mans winners in this year’s field, with potentially more in each category to come.

Fast Facts

64th Rolex 24 At Daytona
Daytona International Speedway – Daytona Beach, Florida
January 22-25, 2026
Race Day/Time: Saturday, January 24 – 1:40 p.m. ET (WeatherTech Championship | IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Round 1)
NBC Network Coverage: LIVE, Saturday, January 24 – 1:30-2:30 p.m. ET; Sunday, January 25, 12:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Peacock Streaming Coverage: LIVE – Flag-to-flag beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET in the U.S.; International feed coverage available on IMSA.tv and IMSA Official YouTube Channel (outside the U.S.)
Live Qualifying Stream: Thursday, January 22 – 2:05 p.m. ET on Peacock and IMSA.tv (in the U.S.) and IMSA Official YouTube Channel (outside the U.S.)
Circuit Type: 3.56-mile, 12-turn road course
Classes Competing: Grand Touring Prototype (GTP), Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2), Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO), Grand Touring Daytona (GTD)
Race Length: 24 hours