The Z06 GT3.R was publicly launched on 27 January 2023, on the eve of the 2023 24 Hours of Daytona. Its development had begun considerably earlier, with virtual simulations conducted in Chevrolet's Driver in the Loop simulator starting in early 2021. On-track testing commenced in September 2022, kicking off a full year of physical development before customer deliveries began in Q3 of 2023. The car was observed testing at Sebring International Raceway in March 2023.
The Z06 GT3.R was developed to replace the Corvette C8.R, which had competed in the GTE class — a category that was phased out by both the WEC and IMSA. With the industry-wide shift toward GT3 regulations offering broader customer racing opportunities, the move to a GT3-spec machine opened the Corvette Racing program to a wider pool of customer teams.
The first confirmed racing program for the Z06 GT3.R was announced on 23 June 2023: a two-car factory-supported effort in IMSA's GTD Pro class, fielded under the Corvette Racing banner with Pratt Miller Motorsports. Five days later, on 28 June 2023, British outfit TF Sport confirmed it would switch from Aston Martin to Corvette for the newly formed LMGT3 category in the FIA WEC, planning a two-car campaign.
On 3 August 2023, a third program was announced, with Canadian team AWA switching from the LMP3 class to field a two-car effort in IMSA's GT Daytona class for 2024 and 2025. A fourth program in GT World Challenge America was expected to follow later in 2023.
The Z06 GT3.R made its race debut at the 2024 24 Hours of Daytona, where it faced competition from a full field of GT3 machinery in the GTD Pro and GTD categories. The car competed across multiple international GT3 series simultaneously, including the FIA WEC, IMSA SportsCar Championship, the Intercontinental GT Challenge, the European Le Mans Series, the Asian Le Mans Series, GT World Challenge Europe, GT World Challenge America, and GT World Challenge Asia.
The car achieved its most significant result when it won the 2026 24 Hours of Le Mans in the LMGT3 class, marking a return to outright GT class victory at Le Mans for Corvette Racing.
The Z06 GT3.R is based on the C8-generation Chevrolet Corvette Z06, which itself uses a mid-engine layout — a significant departure from the front-engine architecture of earlier Corvette racing cars. The GT3.R adheres to the FIA GT3 Balance of Performance (BoP) regulations, making it eligible for customer teams to purchase and campaign independently without factory support. Pratt Miller Engineering, the long-standing motorsport partner for Corvette Racing, was responsible for converting the road-car platform into a homologated GT3 competitor.
The Z06 GT3.R represents the continuation of an unbroken Corvette motorsport lineage stretching back to the early 2000s, when Corvette Racing first entered the GTS and later GTE classes at Le Mans and in IMSA. The transition to GT3 regulations allows Corvette Racing to maintain a presence at the world's top endurance events while enabling a broader customer racing ecosystem, consistent with the industry's general move away from manufacturer-exclusive GTE machinery.