In front of this weekend’s Daytona 24 Hours, Chevy took the time to haul the covers off its newest mid-engined monster meant for customer racing – though you’ll have to wait until next year to see it on the track.

The new Z06 GT3.R is intended to race for the first time in the GT Daytona (GTD) Pro category at the 2024 Daytona 24 Hours, historically a race that serves as the season opener for the IMSA SportsCar Championship. The car will feature a 5.5-liter DOHC V8 (with a flat-plane crankshaft, natch) which began on-track development four years ago during initial testing of the C8.R ahead of its use in the production Z06.

Certain aspects of its on-track development began last autumn, meaning teams will have the benefit of roughly a year’s worth of shakedown before tackling the high banks of Daytona in 2024.

“This customer-focused car leverages learnings from throughout Corvette Racing’s lengthy and successful history,” said Mark Stielow, GM Motorsports Engineering Competition director, before expounding on the expertise of Corvette’s engineering and powertrain teams.

Why does all this matter? Because this program is one of the few in which learnings from the track seem to benefit the road-going model. Looking all the way back to their C5-R program, one can find examples of work and discovery that aided in the development of production engines. Take yer pick from efficiency, materials, and weight savings – more than a couple of items bled their way from the track to the street.

Speaking of Daytona 24, long-time readers will remember the name Bozi Tatarevic as a friend of TTAC, human font of technical information, and an all-around good guy. These days, he’s working with the Vasser Sullivan race team as a pit crew member and frequently posts about that work on his Instagram account. Go check it out and be sure to give him a follow.

Back on track, this year’s crop of bowties in IMSA mark Corvette’s Racing 25th season, with the C8.R starting fourth in class for this weekend’s Rolex 24 At Daytona. It is the second annum for Corvette Racing in the Gtd Pro class, a group made up of GT3 cars from several manufacturers.

[Image: GM]

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