As GM’s plans for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R developed, the clear plan was for two cars in GTD PRO and two in GTD. The GTD PRO program will be handled by Pratt Miller; for its first customer Corvette racing program, though, the nod went to a team without any previous experience in GTD, and only a short history in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, AWA Racing. The team’s history and trajectory, which includes a 2023 Rolex 24 At Daytona victory in LMP3, indicated that it’s on the right path for success, according to Christie Bagne, Corvette Z06 GT3.R program manager.
“AWA comes in with a clear stated objective of growing and moving up through process,” Bagne said. “We’ve seen that happen already; they were successful in GT4, and then stepped into the WeatherTech Championship in LMP3. We’ve seen this team grow in terms of their results, we saw them very successful at Rolex this year, we’ve seen them with good consistency through the championship. We’ve seen the way they do brand representation and the way that they represent brands on social media. All of that has been growing — they’ve been showing they have the capability to be running in this class. They have a clear objective to grow and a clear plan to do that. So all of that was really appealing.”
At the same time that GM is taking a leap with AWA, AWA is taking a leap into a new category with the first GT3 Corvette that GM has produced, and the first GT3 car since the Cadillac ATS-V GT3 that raced as a factory program in World Challenge. Granted, Corvette Racing has a pretty fine record over the last 25 years, a fact not lost on AWA principal Andrew Wojteczko.
“I’d say it’s their long-time understanding of what’s required to build a reliable and competitive car,” Wojteczko said of what drove his decision. “Their focus is on being competitive and winning; I think that’s a great attitude, and something we want to be a part of.”
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AWA competed in IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge with a variety of manufacturers before moving to LMP3, tasting success along the way. But transitioning into GTD, Wojteczko recognizes that GM is putting a lot of faith in him to run a good program in what it considers its most important championship.
“It’s a huge milestone for myself for the team. And I’m just extremely grateful that the steps that we’ve taken caught the attention of Corvette, and they feel like we’re a worthy team to fulfill that role,” he said. “So, yeah, that’s a huge achievement. I’m very, very grateful for the opportunity.”
AWA ran a single Duqueine D08 in 2022, adding a second one at Petit Le Mans last year and running two cars this season. The No. 17 with Anthony Mantella and Wayne Boyd is currently second in the LMP3 points; the No. 13 duo of Orey Fidani and Matthew Bell is fourth. The No. 17 won the non-points Rolex 24 At Daytona with Mantella, Boyd, Nico Varrone and Thomas Merrill. And while Varrone is also part of Corvette Racing’s WEC program — along with Nicky Catsburg and Ben Keating — that has already clinched the WEC GTE-Am title and also won the class at Le Mans, that connection didn’t really play a part in getting the deal done. Instead, it was the quality of the team’s work.
“They take a really organized approach to it,” explained Bagne. “I was impressed by that. They come in and they have they have an org chart defined and they are looking at manageable milestones to be successful. So I would say the the vision that team has and the organization with which they approach executing that vision was really impressive and gave me confidence that they’ll be successful.”
The collaboration begins immediately. Bagne says Pratt Miller is testing the Z06 GT3.R at Road America this week after the race, and Wojteczko and AWA personnel will be on hand to observe as they embark on their two-car GTD program. The Corvette Z06 GT3.R has already undergone homologation testing in Europe, and the homologation is likely to be completed in October. AWA expects that its cars will be delivered in November.