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No close call this time for Fellows' team

The winning Corvette crew can forget last year's 24 Hours of Daytona defeat.

[AP photo] The No. 2 Corvette, driven by Ron Fellows, gets service in its final pit stop on the way to victory.

By MIKE READLING

© St. Petersburg Times, published February 5, 2001

DAYTONA BEACH -- For the past year Ron Fellows had been haunted by a number. Whenever he thought of Daytona, or someone mentioned a Dodge Viper, the number would pop into his head and cause him to cringe.

That number, 30.879 seconds, was the margin of victory, or defeat for for Fellows, in last year's 24 Hours of Daytona at the hands of the Viper. That breaks down to a heartbreaking 1.283-second differential per hour, extremely close in an event where the margin of victory is usually measured in laps.

Now Fellows has a whole new number to think about: No. 1.

Fellows and co-drivers Chris Kneifel, Franck Freon and Johnny O'Connell assumed the overall lead during the 22nd hour when the No. 16 Team Dyson Ford Riley&Scott retired. The Grand Touring Super class Corvette claimed a chilly and soggy 39th annual 24-hour event, the first win of any kind at Daytona for all four drivers.

"This is better than winning the Stanley Cup. And I'm a hockey man," said Fellows, a Canadian. "This is unbelievable, you're going to have to pinch me. To win the overall title ... woooooo. I just can't believe it."

Sunday also marked the first win for the Corvette, which returned to sports car racing three years ago.

"Party time, Corvette style. No question about it," Kneifel shouted across Victory Lane.

Their teammate, the No. 3 Corvette driven by Dale Earnhardt, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Andy Pilgrim and Kelly Collins, was the most popular car. That car finished second in GTS and fourth overall.

Unlike Earnhardt's Corvette, which battled fuel and halfshaft problems and spun several times on a slick track, Fellows' ride was smooth and uneventful. The drivers switched stints without incident and, aside from a hot gearbox which set off an in-car alarm with 30 minutes to go, the car was running strong to the end.

"We started out from the start of the race with a plan to (drive double stints) and rotate and it worked out great," Fellows said. "In terms of mental fatigue it feels like a 48-hour race. This makes up for last year. It's a sweet win for all of us."

Fellows and company virtually had the win handed to them during the 21st hour when the No. 16 driven by Butch Leitzinger suddenly pulled off in a cloud of smoke.

Leitzinger, a three-time 24 Hours champion, pulled himself out of the cockpit and walked back to his pit, not even bothering to look back at the steaming car.

Leitzinger and teammates James Weaver and Andy Wallace led by 27 laps at the time and had led every hour since 5 p.m. Saturday. They were so far ahead, the No. 2 Corvette needed an hour to move into the top spot.

"We were just coasting, all the lights were green," Leitzinger said. "I think we threw a rod. There was no warning at all, just a sudden explosion. I tried to make it around but I knew there was no way."

Freon was driving the No. 2 at the time and saw the Dyson machine sitting off the side of Turn3, but said that didn't change the team's mind-set.

"It didn't change anything for me," Freon said. "We went the same pace. I was thinking, 'If he fixes it, great. If he doesn't, even better.' "

The No. 31 Porsche GT3R took second overall, capturing the Grand Touring class title. The No. 63 Mazda Kudzu won the SportsRacer Prototype class and finished 11th overall.

In the SRP II class, the No. 21 Nissan Lola won despite receiving the car a week ago.

"It is absolutely incredible," said Andy Lally, who shared drivers duties with Paul Macey, Peter Seldon and Martin Henderson. "A week ago it didn't look like it was going to happen at all. But the crew got in there and worked all day and all night and it ran flawlessly tonight. We agreed before the race to take it easy and our patience paid off."

The No. 11 Camaro claimed the American GT class, finishing 28th overall. That was the only car in the field using BF Goodrich tires, meaning it was the only team that had to mount and balance its tires at the track.

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