Every hour, every minute and every second at Sebring International Raceway count. The small margin between glory and disappointment can be measured in those units of time.

As part of the Super Sebring event each March, Corvette Racing takes part in two consecutive days of endurance racing – starting with the FIA WEC-sanctioned 1000 Miles of Sebring on Friday and concluding with the historic Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring as part of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on Saturday.

The Setup

This year, we took a behind-the-scenes look at the strategy and highlights of each day, with help from Corvette Racing's longtime PR rep, Ryan Smith. In addition, Corvette Racing driver Nicky Catsburg helped walk us through each event.

The Dutch driver stood on the top step of the podium in the twelve-hour IMSA race in 2022 after helping pilot the No. 3 Corvette C8.R to victory in GTD PRO. This season, he is one of a trio of drivers competing in the full WEC calendar for Corvette Racing in the No. 33 Corvette C8.R for the GTE Am category.

The Team Chevy driver has competed in both Serbing events in his career, providing an expert perspective on the notoriously bumpy and flat, 17-turn, 3.74-mile road course in central Florida.

Catsburg notes that the approach is slightly different between the two events, with safety cars more common in IMSA than WEC, with the latter sometimes utilizing a virtual safety car during caution periods. This means there are fewer chances to catch up from behind, so drivers need to push from the first green flag. But in both races, the old adage of "to finish first, you must first finish" still applies.

"If we do the Sebring 12 Hours, then you get in the car multiple times," Catsburg says. "So first stint, you kind of work your way into it. You feel what the car is doing and slowly get into a rhythm. You do your first stint, you try to survive because it's all about the end of the race in IMSA. Then at the end of the race … that's when you put the guy who's going to have to do the job. In the dark you have to be super sharp, you have to be aggressive, track position is important. So you kind of work your way up until the end of the race.

"In WEC it's a little different, because in WEC we don't have the yellows like they do in IMSA. So there you need to be on it right from the start, but of course it's still an endurance race, you still need to bring the car to the finish. So for me I always try to take a cautious approach, kind of build your way up to it and make sure you're still there in the end when it's about the podium spots."

Sebring is famous for its parties and rowdy fans – this weekend alone we spotted fans dressed as dinosaurs, Vikings, cows and monks. Burning couches are the stuff of legend, as are the track's notorious fire ants. But the circuit itself, built on the World War II-era Hendricks Army Airfield, is also regarded as one of the toughest tracks in the world on both driver and machine. It is an experience Catsburg knows well.

"Your whole body gets kind of shaken up," he says. "I always get a bit of a headache around Sebring because it's just a long time in the car, going over these bumps, shaking, shaking, shaking, so it is more physical. I think for the prototype drivers it's probably much worse because they feel the bumps much more than we do. So it's more physical, but it's not horrible."

The Races

12:00 - 2:00 p.m. Start of 1000 Miles of Sebring

Popular and accomplished privateer driver Ben Keating of Texas has qualified the No. 33 Corvette C8.R on the front row in the GTE Am class in his first race with the team, turning in a best lap of 1:59.345 (112.841 mph) on Thursday evening.

Under bright and sunny Florida skies, and on a track made up of drivers and teams from around the world, Keating gets an early taste of the class lead in Turn One. But, after drifting wide, he is overtaken at the end of the lap and falls in line in second place.

After only a few minutes, an extensive safety-car period takes place after a massive crash just behind Keating. Keating pits the No. 33 to be topped off with fuel, and the team asks their driver to take care of his tires during the car's first stint, planning for a lengthy period on track.

He fights for second for many laps and takes the lead when cars begin to pit.

However, he and the team are caught out and forced to come down pit road during an ensuing caution period. Thus, the cars behind who had already made pit stops are able to pass. Keating rejoins the field in fifth place, but soon returns to the runner-up spot.

2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Keating has driven the entire first quarter of the race as part of a triple stint to start.

After completing 69 laps, at around 2:40 p.m., Keating finally gets out of the car for the first time and is replaced by young Argentinian driver Nico Varrone.

"The Corvette is really amazing," Keating says. "It's got such a low center of gravity and is really nice in the low-speed corners when you need a nice shoot-out . … That big Chevy V-8 is really impressive. I really felt like our car was better on the long haul (vs the No. 85 competitor). We were neck and neck for the first 40 minutes of a stint, and I really feel like we had the advantage over the last 20 minutes. ... The car is really amazing. It's fun to drive around here and soaks up the bumps better than any car I've ever driven. Kudos to the team. They know how to set this car up for Sebring."

When Nico Varrone takes over behind the wheel he eventually moves into the second spot, and then into the lead when the team's closest competition in the No. 85 receives damage and brings out a full-course yellow. As a result, Varrone opens up a massive gap to second place.

4:00 - 6:00 p.m.

Varrone remains in the lead into the late afternoon and keeps the Corvette at the front of the field. He eventually completes a triple stint, before handing the reins to Pro driver Nicky Catsburg as the race nears its final two hours.

"I have to say that it's everyone's dream to drive around here but three hours around Sebring is really tough," Varrone says. "I was pretty tired, but the team asked me near the end of my second stint if I could do one more. I said yes for sure, but I was destroyed. I just kept focused. My engineers gave me great advice on what I was doing. So, I could manage the gap. I tried to push it as hard as I could but wanted to bring it safely home."

6:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Catsburg is at the controls and continues to extend the No. 33 car's lead. The Corvette team has played the driver strategy to perfection, utilizing its Bronze driver Keating first, then moving to Silver-rated Varrone, before finishing out the race with Pro driver Catsburg. GTE Am regulations stipulate that each team must feature a Pro driver (Gold or Platinum-rated as determined by the FIA), along with a Bronze driver and a second Bronze or Silver driver. 

Corvette's strategy has allowed the team to continually get quicker throughout the race. But the race isn't over until the checkered flag flies.

8:00 p.m. Conclusion of 1000 Miles of Sebring

With darkness having descended over Sebring International Raceway, Nicky Catsburg brings the No. 33 Corvette to the checkered flag as fireworks light up the night sky. The race has reached its eight-hour time limit shy of the 1000-mile advertised distance. The victory is the team's 14th overall at the track and its second in full-time FIA WEC competition. It is also the team's 123rd win worldwide.

"There's so much to say about today," Catsburg says. "If you look at the execution, it's not like we were out-pacing everyone by so much. We just made zero mistakes. In the pit lane, I feel like we were by far the fastest team, which is a big credit to the guys. They're working out so much … four days per week. It pays off. It's super nice to start the season off like this. Those guys (Keating and Varrone) in their first race for Corvette and their first win, I think that's pretty cool. They did a flawless job, so big hats off to everyone!"

The team moves to the podium to celebrate. The IMSA race is up tomorrow.

10:10 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Start of 71st Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring

The Spaniard Antonio Garcia is on the pole for the GTD PRO class in Corvette Racing's No. 3 Corvette C8.R. He qualified first after making a quick lap of 1:59.315 (112.843 mph) on Friday. There is much pageantry for the historic event and a variety of GM executives are gathered around the team's pit stall as the race is set to begin. 

When the green flag waves Garcia jumps out to an early lead and continues to widen the gap.

An untimely full-course yellow just past the one-hour mark drops Garcia to eighth when the Corvette can't get to pit road before it closes and many competitors leapfrog the team. However, back on track Garcia cuts through the field and moves back into the second spot.

The team then uses strategy and a quick pit stop to leap a position when Jordan Taylor takes over after Garcia's double stint.

"We have a lot of history and a lot of success at this racetrack. We kind of know what conditions could be like. Instead of chasing the conditions, we can be a little more proactive. So far the car is running pretty good," Garcia says. "We have a strong lineup. Jordan (Taylor), Tommy (Milner) and I have all won this race many times. This is immense and I think our lineup is stronger than anybody when it comes to experience, and that's all across the team."

1:00 - 4:10 p.m.

American driver Jordan Taylor is in the car as the race nears its three-hour mark. After making his first stop, he falls to second in the running order behind a competitor on a vastly different strategy. Still, Taylor maintains a quick pace and moves back into the lead around 1:40 p.m. He will stay in the car through two pit stops, before handing the reins to fellow American Tommy Milner.

"We seem to be more in the hunt than we were at this point in the race last year," Taylor says. "Then, we looked at the data of it and we pretty much stayed out of trouble and had a flawless race. We did have the fastest car. We seem to have a little bit more speed in the car this year, but it's the same name of the game especially with how hot it is ... staying out of trouble. 

"You can see everyone making mistakes. We have to limit that at this point. We got caught out by a yellow early which sent us to the back. The guys did a great job on the stops to jump us back again. We're not even halfway yet but it already feels like we have been racing for 24 hours!"

4:10 - 8:00 p.m.

At the halfway point just past 4 p.m, Tommy Milner has been in the car for about an hour and the yellow No. 3 Corvette C8.R remains in the lead. Now is the time of the race when the Florida sun shines brightest and the temperature is hovering at 86 degrees. It makes for the hottest part of the day and the track is the slickest it will be throughout the race.

Milner turns in a triple stint, but on the last one begins to notice the car doesn't feel quite right over the bumps in Turn 17 and Turn 1. Milner has had contact with a GTD car. Ultimately, the team replaces the damper in the left rear when Jordan Taylor climbs back aboard in early evening, but the team has lost a lap and fallen down the running order.

"We'll have to be smart with strategy to get the lap back," Milner says. "It's disappointing, for sure. The car was very good. The race definitely isn't over, but it's a bummer to race that hard for so long, to be up front that long, and now we have to fight hard. We have two fantastic guys up next - Jordan now and Antonio at the end. Those two guys will do everything they can to make that happen.

"Ultimately we have a very fast car. The unfortunate thing is that there are under four hours to go, so the opportunities to get that lap back are getting smaller and smaller. It's just frustrating."

Such are sometimes the breaks of endurance racing.

8:00 - 10:10 p.m.

Jordan Taylor has fought to get the team's lap back as the track descends into darkness and headlights slice through the Florida night.

Part of the challenge of Sebring this time of day is simply how dark areas of the track are. While that may play a role in how some teams approach this portion of the race, for Corvette Racing, the team has so much experience around the historic circuit that the strategy really doesn't change at all.

With just under an hour and a half to go, Taylor brings the car in to hand over the controls to Antonio Garcia, who will finish the race. Garcia works his way up to third, but a stackup on a restart with approximately 30 minutes remaining drops the Corvette down the running order in a race which has been filled with attrition and chaos.

10:10 p.m. Conclusion of 71st Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring

Garcia brings the No. 3 Corvette C8.R to the checkered flag in the fifth spot in the GTD PRO class. It is a disappointing result after leading much of the race. However, it is proof of the team's "Never Give Up" mantra.

"I'm really disappointed with the finish, but it has nothing to do with the team," Garcia says. "They did a great job all weekend with the car, our strategy and helping to keep us in the race when things weren't looking so good."

The line between triumph and disappointment is thin and sometimes is a result of events completely out of a team's control.

But as Corvette Racing celebrates its silver anniversary season in 2023, it will continue to put the C8.R in position for success and even more celebration.

Be sure to keep watching The BLOCK for more on Corvette, Chevrolet Performance and all motorsports disciplines.