Corvette Preparing for Possible Portimao, Spa Rounds

Photo: WEC

Corvette Racing could contest the opening two rounds of the FIA World Endurance Championship, as a prerequisite to its targeted return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year in GTE-Pro.

Multiple sources have indicated to Sportscar365 that the Pratt & Miller-run squad is preparing for the potential of running both the 8 Hours of Portimao on April 4 and the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps one month later with a single Chevrolet Corvette C8.R.

While a formal announcement has not yet been made, such a program would be consistent with its previous participations in the WEC, which is believed to serve as a prerequisite for securing its factory entries for Le Mans.

When reached by Sportscar365, a Corvette Racing spokesperson said: “If there are opportunities to support the WEC, we would definitely look into it.”

Corvette’s last WEC appearance came in the Lone Star Le Mans event at Circuit of The Americas in February 2020 in what was planned to be a two-race program that included the 1000 Miles of Sebring, which was canceled during the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

The team later withdrew from Le Mans last year, breaking its 20-year consecutive streak of participation in the French endurance classic.

It’s understood that IMSA’s reshuffled calendar, which has seen the Long Beach and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca rounds moved from April to September, has been among the determining factors towards a potential expanded European program for the 2021 season.

The date shuffle means there will not be a GTLM class race between next month’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring and the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen in late June, leaving a significant gap for the U.S.-based team to contest the opening three WEC rounds, as it stands today.

The third and fourth rounds of the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at Mid-Ohio and Detroit, respectively, do not feature the GTLM class.

Sportscar365 understands that Corvette has a test at Sebring scheduled for early next month, which could be used to prepare for both the 12-hour and its WEC-bound chassis, should it officially commit to the program.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John