DETROIT - Corvette Racing celebrated its season-long dominance in the GTS class following a ninth win in 10 ALMS races at the grueling, 10-hour/1,000 mile Petit Le Mans finale. The dramatic win was realized on the race's penultimate lap as Corvette C5-R driver Ron Fellows ran down the leader to capture the lead as well as the drivers' championship in marking a clean sweep of the post-season awards for Corvette Racing. GM Racing and Corvette earned consecutive championships as the 2002 GTS Manufacturer Champion and 2002 GTS Team Champion with race partners Pratt & Miller. Corvette drivers sweep the drivers' championship, led by Ron Fellows. Johnny O'Connell, Fellows's driving partner, finished second and co-drivers of the #4 Corvette, Andy Pilgrim and Kelly Collins, tied for third in the championship. In addition, the 2002 GTS Chief Mechanic Award went to Corvette mechanic Bill DeLong for the second consecutive year, and Goodyear Tire, providing tires exclusively to Corvette, earned the 2002 Tire Manufacturer Championship.
Combined with two consecutive wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Corvette continues to write chapters into its own history book as it celebrates its 50th anniversary as America's favorite sports car and performance icon.
"The Corvette C5 was an excellent base from which to build the C5-R, "said Vehicle Line Executive and Corvette Chief Engineer David Hill, "but I am reminded that racing is a demanding endeavor where nothing comes easy. Even with 50 years as America's performance icon, it took a lot of work in conveying the data back and forth between our production and race teams. In the end, the race car was made better by utilizing the performance DNA of the production Corvette, and the next generation Corvette will certainly benefit from technologies and designs developed on the C5-R."
Corvette driver Ron Fellows earned his first drivers' championship in what has been a very successful career in several racing disciplines. "It's sweet," said Fellows. "We barely missed it last year by a few points so to finally win a driver championship is that much sweeter. But, It is the whole team that wins championships not just the driver. It's the guys who change Goodyear tires and work the computers and the GM engineers and mechanics that make the car work the way the drivers need it to work. This Corvette team is the hardest working team in the paddock and that shows in all the wins and championships."
While Corvette will set its sights on a competitive GTS field for 2003, Team Cadillac concluded its three-year LMP program with its fourth consecutive podium finish and best ALMS team performance. Team Cadillac was on the heels of the race leaders for the entire 10 hours and finished a strong third and fourth while running a near flawless race.
General Motors (NYSE: GM), the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, designs,builds and markets cars and trucks worldwide, and has been the global automotive sales leader since 1931. More information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.
[ 15. December 2002, 11:46 PM: Message edited by: USA-1 ]
Posted by Elie Garfinkel (Member # 1635) on :
quote:Originally posted by USA-1: Just thought some people would like to know.
DETROIT - Corvette Racing celebrated its season-long dominance in the GTS class following a ninth win in 10 ALMS races at the grueling, 10-hour/1,000 mile Petit Le Mans finale. The dramatic win was realized on the race's penultimate lap as Corvette C5-R driver Ron Fellows ran down the leader to capture the lead as well as the drivers' championship in marking a clean sweep of the post-season awards for Corvette Racing.
Corvette driver Ron Fellows earned his first drivers' championship in what has been a very successful career in several racing disciplines. [/URL]
Here's a shot from just this past summer of Ron Fellows with some of our Toronto F-body Motorsports members during a show 'n shine and tour at the LS1 engine plant in St. Catherines, Ont. (if you can't recognize him, he's standing in the back row, 5th from the left. If you can't recognize me, it's because I'm taking the picture!) http://www.geocities.com/sselie/RonFellows1.jpg
It has been suggested that Ron (good ol' Toronto boy - well... Mississauga, actually)is arguably the best all-round race driver in the world today. And he's one heckuva nice guy, who's happy to talk cars and racing with any gearhead in close proximity! A very humble and down-to-earth guy who is also a good listener!
Best regardSS,
Elie
Posted by USA-1 (Member # 1535) on :
Ron Fellows is without question the best rain driver there is.
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
