WEC 24 Hours of Le Mans test day

Corvette's Milner says Le Mans test didn't feel like C8.R debut

Corvette Racing ace Tommy Milner believes the American team's C8.R GTE is in a good place ahead of its Le Mans 24 Hours debut, saying he feels "like we have been racing this car at Le Mans for many years".

Filip Cleeren

Edited: Feb 11, 2022, 6:00 PM

Copy link

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

#64 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C8.R LMGTE Pro, Tommy Milner, Nicholas Tandy, Alexander Sims

Corvette Racing introduced its mid-engined C8.R in 2020 but decided to sit out last year's edition of Le Mans, meaning Sunday's official test day was the first time the new car took to the Circuit de la Sarthe.

The pair of C8.Rs brought up the rear of the GTE Pro field, with Milner setting a 3m53.440s in the #64 entry to go seventh.

Nicky Catsburg's 3m54.281s effort in the #63 sister car was only good for eighth after the car lost a lot of mileage due to an engine and gearbox change.

Read Also:

Despite a low-key start compared to the competition from Porsche and Ferrari, Milner explains Corvette has been able to tick a lot of boxes on the C8.Rs first day at Le Mans.

“We had a bit of a slow start today with some issues here and there, but the afternoon was really strong for us on the #64 side," he said.

"As far as setup goes, we didn’t do lots of work – thanks to a lot of that being done on the simulator. It really felt like we have been racing this car at Le Mans for many years.

"Setup-wise and balance-wise, things felt pretty good. There’s still some work to do, for sure. But I’m happy with where we are."

Nick Tandy, who shared driving duties on Sunday with Milner while Alexander Sims was away on Formula E duties in Berlin, said the car was "everything I expected" around the unique circuit.

"It's been a long day and we've had a few hiccups, things to iron out, but that's why you do a test before the race week," he added.

"I think the most positive thing for me is how comfortable the C8.R is to drive around this circuit.

"I know and Corvette Racing knows what requirements are needed for a car on this type of circuit – fast, relatively low-grip, big braking zones and a pretty flat track, if you like. The car is everything I expected.

"It gives me good visions going into race week of being able to operate at a very high level for a number of stints without too much hassle."

The sister #63 C8.R didn't get as many laps in due to its technical problems, but Catsburg reported his side of the garage still left the paddock feeling positive ahead of race week.

"Not an easy day with the issue in the morning session which took a long time to repair, but the guys worked super hard and luckily we managed to get out near the end of the afternoon session," the Dutchman said after his first laps at Le Mans for Corvette.

"We got some laps in, the car felt pretty good. The sister car was running all day so we’ll be able to get some valuable information from them and we can learn from that."

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Viber

Previous article What to expect from the all-female Richard Mille Racing Team at Le Mans

Next article Le Mans Hypercars: Top speed, rules & how they differ from LMP1

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

Latest news

Why Cadillac F1 boss provoked fresh intrigue by dodging driver question

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1

United States GP

10 min

Why Cadillac F1 boss provoked fresh intrigue by dodging driver question

Lamborghini World Finals | PRO-PRO/AM Qualifying: Pole position for Lind, Bamber, Van der Drift and Marcelli

Lamborghini Super Trofeo

LBST Lamborghini Super Trofeo

World Finals - Monza 2026

26 min

Lamborghini World Finals | PRO-PRO/AM Qualifying: Pole position for Lind, Bamber, Van der Drift and Marcelli

Jorge Martin's endless ordeal since signing for Aprilia

MotoGP

MGP MotoGP

Australian GP

40 min

Jorge Martin's endless ordeal since signing for Aprilia

Johann Zarco retires from Australian GP sprint: It was “dangerous” to continue

MotoGP

MGP MotoGP

Australian GP

1 h

Johann Zarco retires from Australian GP sprint: It was “dangerous” to continue

Feature

Discover prime content

Why Toyota’s 2026 WEC triumphs have put it into the all-time greatest endurance racing team debate

WEC

Barcelona

By Gary Watkins

Why Toyota’s 2026 WEC triumphs have put it into the all-time greatest endurance racing team debate

How Toyota destroyed the competition to seal the WEC crowns

WEC

Barcelona

By Gary Watkins

How Toyota destroyed the competition to seal the WEC crowns

How Ford is “hitting milestones” ahead of its WEC Hypercar push

WEC

By Gary Watkins

How Ford is “hitting milestones” ahead of its WEC Hypercar push

Why there’s no perfect solution to the WEC safety car conundrum

WEC

Fuji

By Gary Watkins

Why there’s no perfect solution to the WEC safety car conundrum

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Become a subscriber.
Disable your adblocker.

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts