Photo: Jake Galstad / IMSA
Jordan Taylor admitted he was shocked by the news that he and driver Nicky Catsburg would have to drive the last seven hours of the Rolex 24 in Daytona as a duo following driver Antonio Garcia’s COVID-19 diagnosis in the middle run.
Taylor, Garcia and Catsburg teamed up for the first endurance victory for the Chevrolet Corvette C8.R, but Taylor and Catsburg were forced to drive more than they expected in the run-up to the checkered flag.
“It was not good news to be honest!” said Taylor. ‘I was done with my [second] three times … I was supposed to be done. I was supposed to go massage and relax and watch Nicky and Antonio go racing.
“I was so excited to relax and then they said, ‘Hey, Antonio can’ t get back in the car. “To be honest, I was shocked. I was like, there is no way.
‘Antonio is our guy; he is our finish. This is who we want in the car for the end. I was so disappointed with Antonio because I know how much it means to him, how much he wants to win it and finish the race.
“Luckily we practiced well. We have great support from the doctors here to keep us healthy and fit. Its physicality was not too bad, it was more, I would say, the mental tension was difficult. ”
Taylor said the team had asked IMSA for instructions on how to proceed and expressed confidence in the team’s own preventative measures, but acknowledged that he would not join his family as a precaution to set a historic day for the Taylor family. to celebrate.
“Corvette Racing and Pratt & Miller take safety and health very seriously, so the protocols we have are very serious,” he said. ‘The drivers do not really interact, not even within 24 hours.
‘I did not see Nicky all the time, but I handed the car over to the next guy and we will see each other after the race. For me, Antonio, I saw before the race and it was the last time.
‘Even then we always keep social distance, we always take the correct protocols, from surface to surface we wear gloves and hats and helmets so that nothing in the car can be in danger for us.
“We did not worry too much. We took the lead from IMSA and NASCAR to trust ourselves.
“They gave us this platform to chase and to be here. The last thing we want to do is break their protocols and do something unsafe and unhealthy.
‘We stuck to what they said and yes, it’s definitely sad and disappointing that Antonio was not there for the end, but he was a big part of our victory today.
‘He drives these three cars, he’s been here for years and he started the race so well for us. So it was sad for us that he could not share it with us on stage, but we will definitely see him in a few weeks if he is well and clean and we can all go celebrate.
‘It’s fine with me to sit alone at home as long as it lasts and [look after] my Rolex for a while. I will be tested and make sure I am safe.
“I just live with my dog and I do not think dogs can get COVID at the moment, so we will get along.”
