AWA Retires Daytona-Winning Corvette Chassis
Canadian racing team AWA has recently announced its decision to retire the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R chassis that clinched victory in the GTD class at this year’s Rolex 24 At Daytona. This significant move marks a shift towards a brand-new chassis that was initially earmarked for the 24 Hours of Le Mans but will now make its debut at the upcoming Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, followed by the rest of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season.
The team’s successful acquisition of a second new chassis from Pratt Miller Motorsports and General Motors is expected to pave the way for their highly anticipated entry at Le Mans. This achievement was further solidified after bronze driver Orey Fidani secured the prestigious 2024 IMSA Bob Akin Award, recognizing him as the top bronze driver in GTD.
Andrew Wojteczko, the owner of AWA, shared his insights regarding the retirement of the Rolex-winning car, stating, “With the decision to retire the Rolex-winning car, we just basically moved the Le Mans car now to the IMSA car, and we have a new Le Mans car coming for our team to prep. I think we’re gonna have a few days (after the test to reflect on the win), so I’m really looking forward to that. Yeah, it’s a good morale boost, for sure.”
AWA’s triumph at Daytona served as the culmination of an intense off-season program dedicated to enhancing performance after focusing on reliability in 2024. Following the disappointment of having two cars fail to finish in the previous year’s Rolex 24, the team made the strategic decision to consolidate to one car, which resulted in a series of strong performances in GTD, with a notable fifth-place finish at Road America last season.
The collaborative efforts of race engineer Charlie Ping and data engineer Baptiste Viala played a pivotal role in AWA’s off-season development, setting the stage for a memorable victory by drivers Fidani, Matt Bell, Lars Kern, and Marvin Kirchhöfer.
Reflecting on the team’s journey, Wojteczko remarked, “We knew we still weren’t where we wanted to be base-wise, and the offseason for our engineering staff was primarily focused on performance. Charlie and Baptiste especially spent basically from the checker at (Motul Petit Le Mans in October) to the green flag at Daytona fully focused on performance and improving our internal tools and improving our understanding of the car and the focus on performance.”
Driver Matt Bell echoed this sentiment, expressing his confidence in the team’s capabilities, “We felt we had something underneath us that we could go and take on the competition with, so that gives you some confidence.” Bell’s sentiments were shared by his co-driver Fidani, who commended the support provided by the Chevrolet team, stating, “The Chevy guys are pretty awesome. It’s some of the best support I’ve ever had with customer programs over the years that I’ve run.”
In the midst of the exhilarating GTD battle at Daytona, AWA’s victory was solidified by Bell’s exceptional performance in the final hour, ultimately securing their triumph. Looking back on the race, Bell humorously remarked, “I said this to everybody multiple times, that we were just waiting for the dream to stop, it can’t be this good kind of thing.”
As AWA prepares to embrace the next chapter with their new chassis, the team’s dedication to excellence and unwavering commitment to success serve as a testament to their passion for the sport. The retirement of the Daytona-winning Corvette chassis marks a significant milestone in AWA’s racing journey, setting the stage for a thrilling new season ahead.
