Two months on from their impressive debut double at the previous round of the GT World Challenge America powered by AWS in Austin, drivers Alec Udell and Tommy Milner added to their spotless 2024 record this weekend at Virginia International Raceway, driving the No. 63 KÜHL Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R to victory lane twice, making it four wins from four attempts this season. On the other side of the garage, Scott Smithson held off the competition after a great start from Bryan Sellers to capture their first podium finish since switching to the No. 08 FENEX Corvette.
Coming into this weekend, the big question was whether the No. 63 could carry their momentum from the previous round through a long summer break and into the team’s home race. The team had memories of success in Virginia, when Erin Vogel became the first women to win in SRO competition with her and Michael Cooper’s Pro-Am win in 2021. Milner, a native Virginian who has been racing at VIR since it reopened in the early 2000s, had won twice previously with Corvette at the track. This being the first time the new Z06 GT3.R would race the circuit, though, no one knew quite what to expect.
Working through a few issues in testing and practice, the team eventually found the sweet spot in qualifying, with Milner taking Race 2 pole and Udell starting second in Race 1. The No. 08, for their part, qualified very well too, with Sellers and Smithson each putting in top four times in Pro-Am during the session.
Prior to the weekend, the forecast had looked wet, and many teams in the paddock were prepared for a wet race on Saturday. The rain arrived two hours prior to Race 1, and although the track had dried by the time the green flag flew, the curbs and grass were still treacherously wet. Smithson was one of many to get caught out by this in the caution-filled race, beaching the No. 08 at Oak Tree while recovering from a spin. Udell, though, was able to keep his nose clean and hand the car to Milner, who withstood pressure during multiple restarts and stayed in the front through to the checkered flag, earning their third win of the year.
Sunday afternoon brought a new challenge, with both blue Corvettes starting from the front two rows. By the first corner, Sellers had made his way up to third and the Pro-Am lead, where he continued to run nose-to-tail with the Pro class points leader No. 120 Porsche. The No. 63 of Milner continued to build a gap to the two behind, but just as the pit window opened for a driver change, a full course yellow flipped the race on its head. After taking over for Milner, Udell was impeded in the busy pit lane, bumping him down to second, behind the No. 120 of Adam Adelson as the race restarted.
Both cars restarted well, and Smithson briefly assumed the virtual lead of the Pro-Am race but unfortunately found himself on the outside battling for the lead, allowing Philip Ellis and Samantha Tan through. Udell found himself swapping spots with Adelson and the No. 85 of Spencer Pumpelly as the three battled for the top step of the Pro class podium. After a spirited fight, Udell was able to make the pass for the lead and break free from the two chasers, leading the race until he was tracked down by the hard-charging Ellis, who made the pass for overall lead with just 11 minutes remaining. At the same time, Smithson was scrapping for the final step on the podium with the No. 29 Turner BMW. The fight went to the checkered flag, with Smithson expertly placing his car to ward off multiple attacks from Justin Rothberg on the final lap.
“I’m so happy for our entire team with how this weekend has gone,” expressed Team Principal David Askew. “Following up on our performance at COTA was going to be a tough challenge, and the whole team rose to the occasion. It wasn’t the easiest of weekends to start, and the drivers and engineers really collaborated to get the cars in the right window. For us, it’s an even better weekend than COTA because we got to see all four drivers on the podium. For us to do it at our home race, just two hours from our shop, is special. I think we all see the potential that the team has with this platform, and we’re going to work hard to maximize every result from here on out.”
DXDT Racing will be back in action in less than a month, traveling to America’s National Park of Speed, Road America, on August 16 in Elkhart Lake, Wi. You can follow along on DXDT’s social media accounts and watch when the team hits the track at youtube.com/GTWorld.
From the Drivers
No. 63 KÜHL Corvette Z06 GT3.R
Alec Udell
"We made steady progress throughout the weekend. That was really nice to see… that every time we made a change, the car would respond the way we were hoping it would. So we were able to really develop on the balance of the car all the way through the practice sessions and even into qualifying. We were all expecting rain (Saturday) and it never came, so from that perspective it would have been nice to get some running in the rain just to have that experience with the car from my side. I know that it’s going to be a good car in the wet from what I can feel. From an execution standpoint, everything that we did this weekend was great from DXDT, the support from Corvette and Pratt Miller was very helpful. We came in with some good knowledge and we were able to put it in the real world. I’m happy for the success the team has had on the Pro side and the Pro-Am side. It’s cool to see the development there. Each time out, we are gaining more knowledge from a team perspective and from my side. Tommy has a ton of knowledge with this car, and it’s helpful for me to be able to learn from some great drivers like Tommy and Bryan. I’m looking forward to what can come next. It’s special to have those four wins. We will focus on the next point that we can improve on.”
Tommy Milner
"The team is working very well. All the guys at DXDT have a lot of experience. They've been working really hard the last couple of years to put this kind of program together. It's cool for me to be a part of it and help them get over the hump. This shows what this team is capable of. It shows what this car is capable of. Alec is doing a fantastic job, as well. We're hitting on all cylinders right now. Everything is working really well right now, so we'll ride this for as long as we can.
“Nothing feels like home more than VIR in a Corvette. So it was a lot of fun this weekend with DXDT and the Corvette. The car wasn’t the best to start with, and we spent a lot of time with the engineers and finally sort of hit it in Race 1. No changes for Race 2, and the car felt the same. Great qualifying from Alec, and a pole for me was also a great place to start from. It was a little racey at the start of Race Two with the Porsche but we were able to stay out front. Alec had a little bit more of an exciting race than I did, but still did an amazing job all weekend. We both had to work harder Sunday, but the car was great and the team did a fantastic job with all the right strategy calls. I’m super-happy. Going four-for-four is pretty special. The goal is to keep that rolling as long as we can. We might have a little harder time at Road America, but you never know. We’ll do our best to get two more wins.”
No. 08 FENEX Corvette Z06 GT3.R
Bryan Sellers
“I’m super-happy with how Sunday went. Scott drove a great race at the end there under a ton of pressure from the Turner BMW. He kept his cool, drove defensively really strong, and it was nice to see him take that step and gain that confidence in that scenario. I’m super-proud of the team today as a whole. When you look at the Corvette program, the sister (Regulator Racing Mercedes) program, it was just a strong day overall. It makes me proud of what we are all building together. I can’t wait to see what comes down the road. I feel like we are really starting to get our heads around the Corvettes and what it takes to be successful with them. I’m excited for the next round at Road America.”
Scott Smithson
“It was another great weekend of learning and progressing in the No. 08 Corvette. We were looking at the radar prior to this weekend wondering if it was going to be wet or dry, and in the end it stayed dry for the most part, but wet conditions off track made for a tricky Race 1 for us. In Race 2, though, it turned around for us. Bryan made an awesome start to get up to third and the Pro-Am lead, and then I got in under the yellow and it was basically a street fight from there on out. Philip [Ellis] and Samantha [Tan] made it by, but I was pretty determined to hold on to third. Rothberg made it up alongside me on the final lap, but I broke a little later into one, was able to hold on to the position, and now we’re able to celebrate our first podium with Corvette!”