Callaway Corvette GT3-R Comes to Race in America

After two years racing in Europe, Chevy OKs Callaway to race Pirelli World Challenge. The Camaro GT4.R also now heads to Europe to race in 2018.

Callaway Competition USA will race two Corvette C7 GT3-Rs in 2018, the team announced November 20. That will mark the first time that a Callaway-built GT3 Corvette has raced in an American series.

Chevrolet has dissuaded Callaway from bringing their GT3 cars stateside for years in the interest of not competing with General Motors’ Cadillac program in Pirelli World Challenge. Cadillac’s exit after the 2017 season opened that door for the GT3-spec Corvette.

Callaway Competition USA will run a two-car team in PWC. They have yet to unveil the cars or announce drivers. However,  the team intends to do so at the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) show in Indianapolis on December 7.

The C7 GT3-R debuted in the German ADAC GT Masters for Callaway in 2016. French driver Jules Gounon romped away to the 2017 ADAC GT Masters title this year by more than 50 points. In 14 races this year, Gounon and his co-drivers racked up three wins, six podiums, and 12 Top 10 finishes.

The ADAC competition points to the GT3-R holding a strong position against other GT3 teams in Pirelli World Challenge. That comes as no surprise. Chevy gave Callaway their blessing to build both the C6 GT3 and C7 GT3, knowing Callaway builds to high standards.

Reeves Callaway started his tuning shop in 1977 and by 1985, he partnered with GM to build twin-turbo versions of the C4 Corvette. Callaway has built a number of iconic road cars as well as incredibly potent road-racing Corvettes. The company’s current lineup includes the 757-horsepower Corvette SC757 and 750-horsepower Camaro SC750 as well as a number of highly tuned Chevy trucks and SUVs.

Pirelli World Challenge kicks off its season March 9 to 11 at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in support of IndyCar. You can find the full 2018 PWC schedule here.

Camaro GT4 heads overseas

While the European-raced GT3-R heads to American shores, another Chevy instead heads to Europe for 2018. Holland-based V8 Racing acquired a pair of Chevy Camaro GT4.Rs to race in Europe. Motorsport News UK suggests they may campaign the cars in the British GT Championship.

Black Dog Speedshop won Pirelli World Challenge’s 2017 GTS class championship with a Camaro GT4.R. That makes this something of a GM exchange of champions for 2018.

[Photos: Callaway]