Continental Tire IMSA Driver Spotlight: Jordan Taylor

Driver Spotlight: Jordan Taylor
Driver, No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP
Follow: @jordan10taylor

Do you think it will be a big challenge jumping between the Corvette DP to the Corvette C7.R at COTA?


“It’s definitely going to be a busy weekend. Our schedule is pretty hectic with all the practice sessions between the two series, most of them being back to back. I think the main thing for preparation is understanding the differences between the two cars and focusing on each cars unique driving style. I have at least had a decent amount of time in the Corvette C7.R to understand what it needs, and obviously I have plenty of experience to be able to jump back into the DP. Both teams are very lenient with the schedule, understanding that we can’t be at one team the whole weekend, so each engineer will be looking to maximize the limited time we have together. I am definitely looking forward to it. It’s not often that you get to compete in the two biggest sports car championships in the same weekend.

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Of the two race cars above, which car do you enjoy driving the most and why?


“I honestly love driving them both. They’re both great cars. Both are Corvettes. Both are rewarding in different ways. The prototype has more power and more downforce, so as a driver you’re going faster, which you really enjoy. And you can be really aggressive with your driving style. The C7.R has less power and less grip, so you have to be more precise because mistakes in that car will get you, big-time. They’re both easy to get up to speed, to a certain point, but both have a big challenge in different ways to get that extra out of every lap.

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What are some of the challenges that COTA presents to a driver?


“COTA is one of the best racing facilities we have now in North America. The track itself is extremely technical. It has all sorts of different corners — high-speed, low-speed, chicanes, hairpins, long sweepers, and elevation change. So, for a driver, it’s a real challenge to get the most out of the car. The two long straights lead into big wide brake zones and into tight corners, which makes passing much more inviting.

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What is the team’s strategy for the remaining two races when looking at the championship?

“Our approach with regards to the championship — we can’t really change what we’ve been doing all year. We’ve had a bunch of podium finishes and a win this year. We’ve been doing all the right things, just a few bad races have set us back. We just need to make sure we are there near the front after the last pit stop when we can go racing. Now that we’re 16 points back, we can take a little more risk on track and with strategy to go for the win.

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What’s your most memorable road trip? Who were you with? Where did you go? 


“Ricky (Taylor, brother), Richard Westbrook and our friend, Mark Jensen, drove from Road America to Kansas Speedway last summer and had a great time. It was entirely racing themed, like every time we stopped at a gas station, we all got out and serviced the car, pit stop style. One time we even replaced a tire with the spare tire. It was great fun. We made stops in Chicago, Kansas City, and a few other places, and we always looked for the most famous, most local and home-cooking type of place to eat to try and get a feel for the culture of the places we were. There’s actually a video on my Vine page  if you want to see what fun we had. The funniest story is one that wasn’t very funny at the time. There was one stretch of road where it said there would not be a gas station for 100 miles or so. Ricky was driving and had our life in his hands. Well, he forgot to look at the fuel gauge until we were pretty far long. We were nervously counting down the miles on the digital readout and it got down to one or two miles of fuel left before we finally found a gas station. That was nerve-wracking at the time but it’s funny now. We still give Ricky grief about it all the time!”