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GM Media Press Release

FOR RELEASE: March 16, 2002

CONTACT(S):
Wally Reese, GM Racing Communications
303 979-1133
Wareese@earthlink.net

Corvette C5-R Wins Sebring GTS Class

SEBRING, Fla., March 16, 2002 – Canadian Ron Fellows, American Johnny O’Connell and Englishman Oliver Gavin endured cockpit temperatures that approached 160 degrees on their way to a GTS class win in the 50th Anniversary edition of the 12-Hours of Sebring. It was class win number 14 for Corvette in the 50 years of the endurance event and the first in four tries for the C5-R factory backed racer.

“Finaleeeeeeeeeeeee … we win Sebring,” said Champaign drenched Fellows as fireworks crackled over head and thousands of fans clustered around Victory Podium. “ Our team has come so close on our previous three tries and Sebring has been our Bermuda Triangle. We finished 2 – 3 here last year. So close and now we won Sebring and it’s great get that monkey off our backs.”

The winning Corvette ran flawlessly, covering 317 laps of the 3.7 mile road circuit over the 12 hour period to place 9th overall among 59 car field.

The two Millennium Yellow team cars ran 1 – 2 in class until late in the seventh hour when the throttle linkage stuck as the No. 4 GM Goodwrench Corvette. Driver Andy Pilgrim was able to drive the heavily damaged car to the pits where the crew replaced the entire front body work, wiring, lights and fluids in a lengthy pitstop.

“The throttle stuck just as I was going into the corner and I lifted and it started to slow down but then it kept going. I realized the throttle was stuck. By that time the car was in the “marbles” and it was too late. I was just a passenger until we hit the tire wall and did series damage to the front-end bodywork.

The repaired car returned to the race in approximately 42nd position. Collins, Pilgrim and Frank Freon pushed to the limit to finish 4th in the GTS class and 14th overall.

“We have been working so hard towards this race,” said O’Connell who has recorded three previous wins at Sebring, “and it was a team effort all the way. Last wear we had problems with the starter and that cost us the win. This year we have two starters on the car and two batteries on the car. Really the Corvette is almost becoming like an aircraft with redundant systems.

“We had the opportunity to tour the children’s ward at the regional hospital yesterday,” said O’Connell, “ and signed some autographed pictures of the Corvette for the kids. We told them to watch for the yellow No. 3 and kinda promised them we’d win. I’m real glad for them.”

Oliver Gavin was the winning driver in the GTS class last year competing against Corvette. This was his first drive with Team Corvette and will drive three addition races this year at Le Mans, Road America and Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in October.

“I am delighted to be with this team and to have a win the first time out is just amazing” said Gavin. “The car was very well prepared and ran perfectly. It was so hot today that I was wondering how we were going to cope with the heat. Ron (Fellows) and Johnny (O’Connell) and myself all had tried to prepare for it. My first stint was between 12 to 1 PM and when I got out of the car the medical team told me that my temperature was 103.9 degrees. You know when you have the flu with that kind of fever you don’t even get out of bed let alone drive a race car. With proper cooling down techniques and fluids we all recovered quickly and didn’t have any problems.

The Corvette Racing team will begin immediate preparation to return to France to defend last year’s 1 – 2 finish in the world famous 24 Hours of Le Mans. Preparations for that event will include participation in the one-day test session in May for the June race.

The Corvette race program is an example of General Motors commitment to racing production based cars to “improve the breed” and provide race-track feedback to production design and engineering to ensure that Corvette continues as “America’s performance icon.’