Corvette Daytona Prototype REVEALED!

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Chevrolet Unveils 2012 Corvette Daytona Prototype
Will debut in GRAND-AM Road Racing Series Rolex 24 in January

DAYTONA, Fla. – Chevrolet unveiled its 2012 Corvette Daytona Prototype at Daytona International Speedway today. The Corvette Daytona Prototype will make its competitive debut in the 50th anniversary of the GRAND-AM Road Racing Series Rolex 24 at Daytona from January 26-29, 2012.

"Racing and performance are the founding principles of Chevrolet, and bringing the Corvette Daytona Prototype to GRAND-AM is a tremendous opportunity," said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet vice president, Performance Vehicles and Motorsports. "The opportunity for innovation is what makes the Daytona Prototype Class such a good fit for Chevrolet.

"Sports car and endurance racing is an outstanding platform for manufacturers like us to test and learn. The design of this race car incorporates iconic Corvette styling cues and will be immediately recognized by sports car enthusiasts and fans of GRAND-AM Road Racing," Campbell said. "We are excited to see the Corvette DP compete in the legendary Rolex 24 at Daytona next January."

The new Corvette Daytona Prototype will participate in a GRAND-AM test at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday, Nov. 16.

"GRAND-AM's new Daytona Prototype concept is aimed at allowing manufacturers to showcase their brand in an exciting, cutting-edge fashion," said GRAND-AM President Tom Bledsoe. "Chevrolet, with its new Corvette DP, has done just that. The anticipation of seeing this new Daytona Prototype compete is building each and every day. This announcement has immediate and far-reaching implications with the potential to change the face of sports car racing."

Four teams will campaign the Corvette Daytona Prototype in 2012: No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Racing; No. 10 SunTrust Racing; No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, and the Nos. 5 and 9 Action Express Racing teams.

"The 2012 Corvette Daytona Prototype was developed by a multi-faceted effort involving Chevrolet, Corvette Designers, Pratt & Miller and GRAND-AM. Chevrolet also worked closely with chassis builders Riley, Coyote and Dallara," said Mark Kent, GM Racing director. "The IMSA GTP Corvette Prototype campaigned by Hendrick Motorsports in the '80s was the inspiration for this new Chevrolet Corvette Daytona Prototype. And, like the GTP Corvettes, the new Corvette Daytona Prototype contains numerous styling cues from the street version of the Chevrolet Corvette."

Corvette has a storied history of racing-related feats in Daytona. Zora Arkus-Duntov – the father of the Corvette and chief engineer working on the Corvette in the '50s and '60s – set a flying-mile speed record of more than 150 miles per hour in a Corvette on Daytona Beach, one of a number of record runs on the beach for him. When Daytona International Speedway opened in 1959, Arkus-Duntov turned the fastest laps – 155 miles per hour – in a Corvette SS.

More recently, in 2001, a Corvette driven by Ron Fellows, Johnny O'Connell, Chris Kneifel and Franck Freon was the overall winner in the Daytona 24-hour. Another Corvette finished fourth that year, with Dale Earnhardt Sr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Andy Pilgrim and Kelly Collins.

SOURCE: Chevrolet
 
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xNEVER-ONEx
Why call it a Corvette apart from marketing reasons?
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It wouldn't be the first time GM did it. After all, the Corvette is the engineering testbed for the entire company... Since 1953.

That, and I'd venture a guess that there is about a 30% chance the styling cues of the race car show up on the C7.
 
Why call it a corvette? So people have some sort of brand identity. Those cars already run with LS7s so making a corvette body actually seems like something that should have been done earlier
 
Once you add sponsorship to it, you'll never identify it as a corvette. Especially with those Daytona Prototype near-vertical side windows, which the angle above doesn't really show.
 
OK Mid engine racer is not what I think about with Corvette, the race cars based on the road car are quite good already.

Looks like a fantastic thing for GM though, hope to see it race, maybe get it in GT6?
 
Corvette LMP...

I'll pass. The Corvette styling cues on the front just puts me off.
 
I think if other mfg´s follow suit, GA can be worth a look only for the DP´s. I haven´t had any interest in GA since they banned GT1 cars from participating, but this looks interesting. And yes, I can find motorsport interesting from looks only.
 
Mt. Lynx
I think if other mfg´s follow suit, GA can be worth a look only for the DP´s. I haven´t had any interest in GA since they banned GT1 cars from participating, but this looks interesting. And yes, I can find motorsport interesting from looks only.
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Youve been missing out on a ton of great racing then. I actually prefer the current grandam GT cars to GT1 and the DPs. While most are still tube chasis (wish theyd go for a real model chasis like the porches) they do carry the looks very near close to the street version of said cars. Examples.
http://www.acproducts.us/C6 LG motorsports With crew.jpg
http://www.mazdamotorsports.com/images/cars/speedsource_daytona_2008.jpg
http://jonsibal.com/bpimages/CamaroGTR_12.jpg
http://www.racintoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Bobby-Labonte-in-Grand-Am-911.jpg
http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/12/2011/07/ferrari_grand_am.jpg
http://autoweek.com/storyimage/CW/20110107/GRAND_AM/110109932/AR/grand-am-turner.jpg

Personally thats a much better class than any outright speed DP cars. Considering on corners slow enough for downforce to not play into full effect the GT cars have been known to hang with the DPs. Also one thing you dont get from TV coverage is the ammount of power these cars have, coming into the second straight at homestead you can hear so many cars having wheelspin issues once pointed straight. I very much liked grand am when i went to see it.

plus those rx8s sound lovely, you can hear em from miles outside the track.
 
Is it just me, or does it seem as if the Vette resembles the Nissan R390 road car? O_o
 
TheCracker
Once you add sponsorship to it, you'll never identify it as a corvette. Especially with those Daytona Prototype near-vertical side windows, which the angle above doesn't really show.
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They've actually changed the rules government body design for the 2012 season. They're allowing manufacturers to design bodies now instead of divvying out spec bodies. The greenhouse in general is much narrower and more aerodynamic. They changed the rules mainly because the cars looked ridiculous, and secondly for aero and efficiency reasons.
 
Keef
They've actually changed the rules government body design for the 2012 season. They're allowing manufacturers to design bodies now instead of divvying out spec bodies. The greenhouse in general is much narrower and more aerodynamic. They changed the rules mainly because the cars looked ridiculous, and secondly for aero and efficiency reasons.
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Good. It was about time. The previous ones looked idiotic.
 
I thought it looked epic, and I think a photo shoot with this and the C6.R is in order, I need an avatar that represent my gtp name.
 

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