#63 CORVETTE C5-R

Max Papis (I)

Johnny O'Connell (USA)

Ron Fellows (CDN)

Kevin Krollmann (D)

Michael Niemas (D)

Norman Grund (D)

RACE FACTS - Not seen at Monza, both Corvettes started nevertheless as favourites in class GTS. After 11 laps Ron Fellows hits the tire wall at Arnage and comes in with front end damages. Repairs cost the car 6 laps, dropping in the standings from rank 18 to rank 45. Once repaired the car makes a spectacular come-back and is already 13th after a quarter race. Shortly before Ron Fellows realised the car's fastest lap in 3'54". During the seventh hour six places are lost when the car has to come in to check the repaired rear end. 22.45h when  there’s a safety car out on the circuit as the TV feed picks up the Corvette #63, with Fellows at the wheel. A rear left puncture just after the crest on the Mulsanne pitched Ron Fellows into a big old spin and made him collecting the barrier on the Mulsanne. The car rejoins but with substantial damage to the rear and left hand side. Repair costs four laps and the car drops from rank 19 to rank 27. Due to perfect chasing of Papis/O'Connell/Fellows the car is brought back in 17th postition at mid-race, eleven laps behind the class leading #66 Ferrari and eight laps down to the #64 Corvette (having lost the class lead after its collision with the #88 Audi R8 of Jamie Davies).
During the following six hours the car has a troublefree race and moves up into eleventh position after 18 hours. The GTS leading #66 is now eleven laps further, the #64 sister car five laps further. When at 11.40h Tomas Enge has a puncture in his #66, and when he needs more than 30 minutes to reach the pits with a blocked wheel and another half hour for repair, the #63 Corvette can move into ninth place, now seven laps down to the sister car, but runner-up in GTS. The car will finish eight overall, as runner-up in GTS, five laps ahead over the first Ferrari, the #65 Prodrive Maranello 550.