One of the reasons the C5-Rs managed to stay ahead of the Saleens last year was the superior preparation done by its Pratt & Miller crew. What goes on in the garage area prior to the race is every bit as important as what happens on the track.

After nearly a year of wind tunnel development and on-track testing, the two-car C5-R team made its debut at the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 1999. In the face of intense competition from an already successful three-car factory Dodge Viper team, the C5-Rs struggled at Daytona and through all of 1999 and into 2000. The Corvette won the GTS class for the first time at Texas Motor Speedway in september 2000.
With renewed commitment from GM, and building on all they had learned during the previous two seasons, the C5-R team truly dominated in 2001. They won six out of eight American Le Mans Series races enroute to the ALMS