Corvettes at the 2024 SCCA Runoffs held at Road America

Four out of Eight Corvettes scored top finishes in their four respective classes at Road America on the 60th anniversary of the SCCA Runoffs.

The Registry of Corvette Race Cars was founded on the premise that the SCCA is the backbone of sports car racing.  For the record and to the best we know, it is the sole source for uninterrupted records of Corvettes in Production Class national points championships from 1956 that grew into the Runoffs (winner-take-all) from 1965 through today.

Rick Dittman from Lincolnshire IL # 24 2016 Corvette and Rocky Elli, from Winnetka IL # 11 2015 Corvette finished 3rd and 4th respectively in the GT1 class consisting of 10 cars.  Winner Dave Ruehlow from Hartland, WI # 31 re-bodied his 2015 Corvette as a Camaro which some racers believe have better aerodynamics.

Michael Quattlebaum from Houston, TX # 22 2005 Corvette by G-Speed and Dominic Starkweather from Cave Creek, AZ # 112 2003 Corvette finished 13th and 20th respectively in the GT2 class consisting of 24 cars.

Lou Gigliotti, a pioneer racer and prolific Corvette constructor from Princeton TX # 28 2006 Corvette was critically injured in a heavy crash caused by a driver in slower car that accidently cut him off down the long straightaway into Canada Corner during a practice session.  Our thoughts and prayers are with him.

James Candelaria from Boca Raton, FL # 134 2005 Corvette started 2nd but ended up 4th after spinning on lap 3 in the Billy Mitchell bend.  Andrew Aquilante who has also won in Corvettes, led flag-to-flag in his # 33 2009 Mustang outdistancing all 8 cars in the T1 class.

Kurt Rezzatano from Phoenixville PA # 37 2004 Corvette swapped the lead but his 20-year-old car ran out of tires and brakes to finish 2nd to a much newer BMW M2CS in the 8 car T2 class.

The Corvette, with the most powerful mass-produced engine of all time, has proved to be a cost-effective way to win races.

Corvettes drove out the more expensive marques and filled the grids during the late 1950’s to early 1960s, the 1970s and the early to mid-2000s with a handling package developed by Joe Aquilante of Phoenix Performance. 

Now is a good time to look to the future as prices for used C8 Corvettes for potential SCCA competition are finally coming down.

Photo Credits: Pete Gorski Visors Down, Kevin Bowman, John Seaman, Brian Hoskins