After coming out strong at the beginning of the season, Corvette Racing looked ready to take the C7.R straight to a championship victory. Yet despite always hovering near the front of the pack, Corvette Racing hasn’t seen a checkered flag in the TUDOR United Sports Car Championship since the 12 Hours of Sebring, and this weekend the team again failed to finish in the top three at the Circuit of the Americas for the Lone Star Le Mans.

Images: IMSA

Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen in the No.3 car managed to qualify fourth, while Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner were relegated to seventh. When the race began Milner managed to move up to sixth place before eventually falling back to eighth place. Garcia and Magnussen never moved beyond the fourth position, and eventually had to settle for sixth place when the checkered flag finally fell.

The loss bumped Garcia and Magnussen from second place to third with Bill Auberlen and Dick Werner moving into second place with their Porsches. The Porsche-driving Patrick Pilet remained at the top of the rankings, fueled by a strong second half of his racing season. The only race left is the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, and Corvette Racing has traditionally fared better at endurance events. Even so, they’d not only have to win, but their opponents would have to turn in dismal finishes for them to even have a glimmer of hope at the championship.

At least there’s always 2016, where the Corvette Racing is already looking forward to changes in the aerodynamics and safety of the C7.R. Sometimes a clean slate is all you can look forward to, though a strong finish would give the team some much-needed momentum going into the off-season, so once racing gets underway they’re ready to take names and checkered flags.