Corvette Racing’s tall marathon-running British ace Oliver Gavin set the pace in the morning practice session on the streets of Long Beach – showing ominous signs of  Chevrolet’s past pace.

Corvette Racing has been part of the past seven Long Beach weekends as part of the American Le Mans Series, and the results have been overwhelmingly solid. The team has four victories at the circuit to its credit including two years ago for the duo of Tommy Milner and  Gavin. A Corvette Racing driver also has set the fastest race lap in class each of the last seven years.

“I do like Long Beach and the circuit.  The guys at Corvette Racing have been working on the setup for this weekend. Because we have so little track time, you have to make sure you come off the truck fast. In previous years, we’ve done that very well,” Gavin said.

“A street circuit can make a little difference to a driver but at the same time you have to say to that you can only drive around in the car you’re given. Sometimes little tweaks and little things in just the right spots can make the difference in having a car on the front row and winning or losing the race. Pace is very, very important there because it’s a short race. You need to qualify well and on top of everything. That’s one of the things Corvette Racing has been good at for so long. We’re hoping for that again this year.”

“It’s most probably the one race where it’s all focused on your one pit stop if everything goes well. You have to get it right. You don’t get any second chances because there is no window for a second stop to make up any time or turn your strategy around. Once you do your stop, you’re done and you’re committed. As a driver, you’re mindful that the in-lap and the out-lap are vitally important.

“There are so many things you have to weigh. In terms of the work level that the driver actually does driving the car is quite short, but it’s very focus. You know that any slip-up is going to make a huge difference on the outcome of your race.”

The team’s sister No.3 machine of Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia also was strong this morning – recording the fourth fastest time.

Teams are back on track this afternoon for the second practice at 5:05pm followed by qualifying for the GTML and Prototype classes.

Michelin Alley caught up with Gavin after this morning’s session – click below to listen to the British ace’s first impressions of the Corvette C7.R at Long Beach.