[h=2]IMSA: Corvette returns duo for Daytona, Sebring[/h] Monday, 12 December 2016


RACER Staff / Images by LAT, Marshall Pruett

Mike Rockenfeller and Marcel Fässler will return to Corvette Racing to contest the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring.



The pair will reunite with Corvette's four full-season drivers and teammates from the same events in 2016. Rockenfeller will drive with Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R as Fässler teams with Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner in the No. 4 Corvette.


All six Corvette Racing drivers will attend a two-day IMSA test for the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on Tuesday and Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway. It's the place that saw Corvette Racing finish 1-2 in the GT Le Mans class in 2016 with the two Corvettes separated by just 0.034 seconds – an all-time record for the event.
"Both Rocky and Marcel were valuable parts of our endurance program in IMSA last year," said Mark Kent, Chevrolet director of motorsports competition. "We are glad to welcome them back to Corvette Racing for the Rolex 24 At Daytona and Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Their experience, record of success and team-first mentality are ideal for Chevrolet and Corvette Racing as we attempt to repeat the 2016 victories in the two biggest endurance races in North America."
Fässler, Gavin and Milner led the record-setting finish for Corvette Racing in last year's Rolex 24 as the team won at Daytona for the second year in a row and third time in six tries. The No. 4 Corvette C7.R also doubled up in Florida by winning at Sebring – also for the second consecutive season. In 2015, Garcia and Magnussen were part of the winning lineup in the No. 3 Corvette C7.R for both endurance events.
Both Rockenfeller and Fässler have won endurance racing's two premier 24-hour races – the Rolex 24 and 24 Hours of Le Mans. In addition to his two triumphs with Gavin and Milner to start the year, Fässler teamed with the reigning GTLM champions to place third in class at Road Atlanta's season-ending Petit Le Mans.
He drove for Corvette Racing in 2009, is a past FIA World Endurance Championship champion and a three-time winner at Le Mans. He also won the 24 Hours of Spa in 2007 driving a sixth-generation Corvette.
Rockenfeller did the Daytona-Le Mans double in 2010 by winning both events overall. He is experienced success in both prototype and production-based competitions including the 2013 DTM Championship and GT-class wins at both Le Mans and in the American Le Mans Series.
Corvette Racing and Chevrolet enter the new season after a sweep of all six GTLM championships in 2016 – Manufacturer's, Driver's and Team's in both the full WeatherTech Championship season and the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup. Gavin and Milner won four times to win the GTLM Driver's titles, and Garcia and Magnussen were third in points with an overall victory at VIR.
The 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season begins with the Rolex 24 at Daytona on Jan. 28-29.