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Le Mans / ALMS
IN THE COCKPIT: Oliver Gavin, VIR
Saturday’s race at VIR was always going to be special, no matter what the outcome was...
Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner locked up the ALMS GT championship at VIR. (Photo: Richard Prince/GM)
It’s going to be difficult to say this without sounding big-headed or pleased with myself but, hey, who cares: I WON THE 2012 AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES GT DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP, oh and GM Chevrolet won the Manufacturers and Corvette Racing won the Teams titles! And we won the race in Tommy’s back-yard. You could say it was a good day.
Saturday’s race at VIR was always going to be special, no matter what the outcome was, as it was my 100th start in the ALMS. Surely that can’t be right; I’m not nearly old enough to have done 100 races over there, never mind what I did before joining Corvette Racing? Tommy [Milner] and I also knew that we could seal the championship but we had to finish either first or second in class and, with the super-competitive nature of the category, plus the narrow and windy layout of VIR, that was a long, long way from being an easy task.
I was asked before the race if I was nervous but, to be honest, I wasn’t. We’d already won three races this year and we know that the C6.R is capable of beating anyone. This was a four-hour race so there was plenty of time to make the race come to us, and we had a pretty healthy 28-point lead going into the weekend. We knew we just had to be safe, sensible and not get caught up in any dog-fights.
But everything worked for us, right from the first corner on the first lap where there was a huge mess, with cars everywhere after a prototype spun. I think I was most probably only millimeters away from hitting an LMP but he just got out of the way in time and the danger evaporated. As I went through the gap I thought, “this is definitely our day”.
Tommy drove brilliantly for the middle two hours and never made a mistake; he was fantastic. By the time I got in for the final hour, our two nearest rivals had both had set backs and we had a fairly clean run through to the finish. As we’ve already done several times this year, we navigated our way through issues and problems and didn’t make any mistakes.
This was my fourth ALMS championship but I haven't won one since 2007 so it’s been a long time coming. I thought it might have happened last year but it didn't completely come together and we were runners up.
This year, with Tommy, it's gelled really well and we've become a great team. You can have these great runs in a season, and we’ve only finished off the podium twice in nine races and that consistency has been one of the keys to our success.
For me, to win the race and win the three championships in my 100th race - I don't think there is anything else I could have done to make me happier. As I said earlier, things worked out for us at VIR but, you know, we've worked at it and we made our own luck.
The other key is the people, and I could name and thank so many people within the Corvette Racing team that did a fantastic job, but it was all of them, it’s been a real team effort. Plus everyone back home, of course, who have supported me all the way. It didn't come down to one person; it was like all of the bits of a jigsaw puzzle which come together to make a great picture.
The final jewel in our 2012 crown would be another victory like we had a couple of years ago at the final round of the season, the 1000-mile or ten hour Petit Le Mans event on 20th October. We’ve got absolutely nothing to lose and it’s going to be a massive amount of fun as a result. I can’t wait!
~Olly
A former British F3 Champion and Formula One test driver, Oliver Gavin has raced in North America for the last decade for Corvette Racing, representing General Motors. He has achieved three American Le Mans Series GT1 Championship titles and four GT1 class wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and in 2012 will also be racing in select races with Spirit of Daytona in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series.
For more information, visit: www.olivergavin.com, Facebook Oliver Gavin, or Twitter @OliverGavin
Saturday’s race at VIR was always going to be special, no matter what the outcome was, as it was my 100th start in the ALMS. Surely that can’t be right; I’m not nearly old enough to have done 100 races over there, never mind what I did before joining Corvette Racing? Tommy [Milner] and I also knew that we could seal the championship but we had to finish either first or second in class and, with the super-competitive nature of the category, plus the narrow and windy layout of VIR, that was a long, long way from being an easy task.
I was asked before the race if I was nervous but, to be honest, I wasn’t. We’d already won three races this year and we know that the C6.R is capable of beating anyone. This was a four-hour race so there was plenty of time to make the race come to us, and we had a pretty healthy 28-point lead going into the weekend. We knew we just had to be safe, sensible and not get caught up in any dog-fights.
But everything worked for us, right from the first corner on the first lap where there was a huge mess, with cars everywhere after a prototype spun. I think I was most probably only millimeters away from hitting an LMP but he just got out of the way in time and the danger evaporated. As I went through the gap I thought, “this is definitely our day”.
Tommy drove brilliantly for the middle two hours and never made a mistake; he was fantastic. By the time I got in for the final hour, our two nearest rivals had both had set backs and we had a fairly clean run through to the finish. As we’ve already done several times this year, we navigated our way through issues and problems and didn’t make any mistakes.
This was my fourth ALMS championship but I haven't won one since 2007 so it’s been a long time coming. I thought it might have happened last year but it didn't completely come together and we were runners up.
This year, with Tommy, it's gelled really well and we've become a great team. You can have these great runs in a season, and we’ve only finished off the podium twice in nine races and that consistency has been one of the keys to our success.
For me, to win the race and win the three championships in my 100th race - I don't think there is anything else I could have done to make me happier. As I said earlier, things worked out for us at VIR but, you know, we've worked at it and we made our own luck.
The other key is the people, and I could name and thank so many people within the Corvette Racing team that did a fantastic job, but it was all of them, it’s been a real team effort. Plus everyone back home, of course, who have supported me all the way. It didn't come down to one person; it was like all of the bits of a jigsaw puzzle which come together to make a great picture.
The final jewel in our 2012 crown would be another victory like we had a couple of years ago at the final round of the season, the 1000-mile or ten hour Petit Le Mans event on 20th October. We’ve got absolutely nothing to lose and it’s going to be a massive amount of fun as a result. I can’t wait!
~Olly
A former British F3 Champion and Formula One test driver, Oliver Gavin has raced in North America for the last decade for Corvette Racing, representing General Motors. He has achieved three American Le Mans Series GT1 Championship titles and four GT1 class wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and in 2012 will also be racing in select races with Spirit of Daytona in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series.
For more information, visit: www.olivergavin.com, Facebook Oliver Gavin, or Twitter @OliverGavin
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