Pair of Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs complete Prologue testing ahead of WEC opener
IMOLA, Italy (April 14, 2026) – TF Sport and its two Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs are set for the official opening of this year’s FIA World Endurance Championship following two sessions and nine hours of testing Tuesday at the Imola Circuit in the heart of Italy.
The goal was for the team and its set of six drivers to put the two Corvette GT3 racecars through their paces ahead of Sunday’s Six Hours of Imola and first round of the championship.
The two Corvettes combined to complete 302 laps for 921.10 miles around the 3.05-mile, 20-turn circuit nestled in the northern and central region of Italy. Mixed conditions with alternating dry- and wet-weather running was the order of the day with rain falling during most of the second session.
At the end of the day, Corvette Racing factory driver Charlie Eastwood was the quickest of the TF Sport drivers across the two sessions with a lap of 1:42.826 (106.814 mph) in the No. 34 Corvette during the afternoon session, good enough for fourth-fastest on the day.
He will drive the full season with Salih Yoluc and team newcomer Peter Dempsey in the Corvette running under the banner of Racing Team Turkey by TF.
TF teammate Jonny Edgar wasn’t far behind with a lap of 1:42.876 (106.752 mph) in the No. 33 Corvette that he will share with Corvette factory driver Nicky Catsburg and Blake McDonald, who is filling in for the injured Ben Keating.
This will be the third WEC race at Imola for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R with a best showing of sixth a year ago. TF Sport and Corvette did, however, win the four-hour Imola round of the 2025 European Le Mans Series on their way to the LMGT3 Drivers and Teams titles.
The 2026 season is the fifth for Corvette Racing in the WEC. In that span, Corvettes have captured six victories plus the 2023 GTE Am championships. Two of those victories came via TF Sport in 2025 – one for each of its two entries – with the team looking for new heights in its third season as a Corvette Z06 GT3.R team.
Tuesday’s Prologue was a condensed version of the originally scheduled two-day test a month ago at Qatar. It moved to Imola with the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
The Six Hours of Imola and opening round of the FIA World Endurance Championship is set for 7 a.m. ET / 1 p.m. CET on Sunday, April 19. Live streaming coverage plus timing and scoring is available through a subscription on FIA WEC Plus with additional live streaming on the HBO Max app in the U.S.
CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R POST-PROLOGUE DRIVER QUOTES
NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “Honestly today went really good. Not many issues with the car, and we got more dry running than we expected. We were always kind of in the top-five, I would say. It’s nice working with Jonny, and I feel Blake has settled in really quick. So it’s been a positive day. There is a nice mood in the team and so far so good. It’s great for me to be back in WEC. The paddock is awesome and this track is really nice. I’ve missed driving here because it’s been a long time for me. But everything feels really good and it’s really nice to be back.”
CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 34 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “A good first day in WEC ahead of the first round. We thought it was going to be wet the whole day and pretty pointless. But we ended with mixed conditions and got plenty of dry running both in the morning and afternoon. Everyone on the team is up to speed. We look very competitive at this point so hopefully it stays that way.”
PETER DEMPSEY, NO. 34 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It was a good first day. This was my first time here driving the Corvette at Imola. Obviously I had to learn the track but got to drive in the wet, the damp and the dry! So I got every bit of experience needed to be as well-prepared as possible heading into the race weekend. I’m looking forward to Friday and FP1.”
CORVETTE RACING AT IMOLA & LONG BEACH: By the Numbers
- 1: As in one manufacturer and one model of car for the 19th year at Long Beach: Chevrolet and the Corvette
- 3: Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs in competition at Long Beach this weekend – No. 13 of 13 Autosport, No. 36 of DXDT Racing and No. 81 of DragonSpeed
- 5: Number of Corvettes competing this weekend around the world – the three at Long Beach and two in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s Six Hours of Imola run by TF Sport
- 8: Number of Long Beach victories for the Corvette Racing program
- 10: Number of Long Beach sports car victories for Chevrolet. Throw in 12 IndyCar wins, and Chevrolet has claimed 22 victories in the event’s two premier races
- 15: Manufacturer Championships for Chevrolet and Corvette Racing since 2001
- 17: Wins in 2025 for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R across six different series. Three came via TF Sport across the FIA WEC and ELMS
- 33: Tracks at which Corvette Racing has won races – Baltimore, Charlotte Motor Speedway, COTA, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park/Mosport, Chang International Circuit (Thailand), Daytona, Detroit, Fuji, Houston, Imola, Indianapolis, Laguna Seca, Le Mans, Lime Rock, Long Beach, Lusail International Circuit (Qatar), Sepang International Circuit (Malaysia), Miami, Mid-Ohio, Monza, Portimão, Portland, Road America, Road Atlanta, Sebring, Sonoma, St. Petersburg, Texas, Trois Rivieres, Utah, VIR, Washington DC and Watkins Glen
- 40: Number of drivers to win races in Corvette Racing entries since 1999. The latest to join the list was Tom Van Rompuy at Fuji in September for TF Sport
- 73: Years since Corvette was introduced to the world on Jan. 17, 1953 in New York City. A total of 300 cars were produced that year
- 84: Number of drivers in Corvette Racing entries since 1999. Steller Motorsport’s Dennis Lind, Lorenzo Fluxa Cross and Antonie Doquin joined the list at Paul Ricard in GT World Challenge Europe. TF Sport’s Peter Dempsey will make his first start in a Corvette at Imola
- 154: Victories worldwide for Corvette Racing starting the 2026 season – 118 in IMSA, nine at Le Mans, five in the FIA WEC, 13 in GT World Challenge America, three in GT World Challenge Asia and GT America and two in the European Le Mans Series
- 368: Event starts by Corvette Racing since 1999
- 4,630.68: Number of racing miles completed by Corvette Racing in its 17 previous trips to Long Beach. That represents 2,353 laps around the 1.968-mile street circuit… or 272.39 miles per year
- 487,110.42: Total number of racing miles completed by Corvette Racing since its inception. The program should surpass the half-million mile mark midway through this season
Corvette Racing at Imola
2024 – No. 81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Charlie Eastwood/Rui Andrade/Tom Van Rompuy – 7th in LMGT3
No. 82 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Dani Juncadella/Sebastien Baud/Hiroshi Koizumi – 8th in LMGT3
2025 – No. 33 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Dani Juncadella/Jonny Edgar/Ben Keating – 7th in LMGT3
No. 81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Charlie Eastwood/Rui Andrade/Tom Van Rompuy – 6th in LMGT3
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
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