The Sportscar and Endurance Thread

nome66 · Post by **nome66** » 01 Sep 2012, 22:36

AAAANNNd it's over the 055 nissan taking the overall win and the Lmp2 points. intense battle in GT on the last three laps for third! congrats to the Patron Ferrari there.

RealRacingRoots · Post by **RealRacingRoots** » 01 Sep 2012, 22:59

nome66 wrote:AAAANNNd it's over the 055 Honda taking the overall win and the Lmp2 points. intense battle in GT on the last three laps for third! congrats to the Patron Ferrari there.

Fixed and Falken Tires won in GT :mrgreen:

, which is better than a ESM podium.

I find the penalty they gave to the Conquest Morgan-NISSAN for his pass on the Dyson a bit of a stretch, since DHH was way faster and the only way he could really get past was to bully through somehow.

Ferrarist · Post by **Ferrarist** » 02 Sep 2012, 15:54

nome66 wrote:I SO DEFINITELY CALLED IT YOU GUYS SAID NO WAY BUT READ IT AND WEEP
http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/ ... ng-merger/
AFTER 19 LONG YEARS, FINALLY YES.
autosport was beaten to the punch for once
more or less i got excited.

No...just no! Merger all and well, but if Sportscar Racing is completely run by NASCAR, we can just kiss American sportscar racing goodbye! NASCAR has no regard for international developments or regulations, and stubbornly follows its own way, even if it their way is horribly wrong. If some outsiders happen to come into the series, like the Ferrari 458 or the Audi R8, they are so much restricted, until they can't even beat their DPs. After all, normal GT3 cars would be faster than a DP. Speaking of the DPs: They are just rear-wing DTM cars, but with large V8 engines that feel like they came from the stone age. Hell, the V8 in the back of the Corvette isn't even one from a Corvette but just a generic one from Chevy. Okay, maybe I'm overreacting. The DPs aren't probably that bad, but the fact that NASCAR are running the whole show is. I mean, NASCAR is the auto racing equivalent to WWE. They put more emphasis over "entertainment" than the sport itself.

But let's just say for the moment that I'm skeptic in that regard.

pasta_maldonado · Post by **pasta_maldonado** » 02 Sep 2012, 16:38

Ferrarist wrote:
nome66 wrote:I SO DEFINITELY CALLED IT YOU GUYS SAID NO WAY BUT READ IT AND WEEP
http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/ ... ng-merger/
AFTER 19 LONG YEARS, FINALLY YES.
autosport was beaten to the punch for once
more or less i got excited.

No...just no! Merger all and well, but if Sportscar Racing is completely run by NASCAR, we can just kiss American sportscar racing goodbye! NASCAR has no regard for international developments or regulations, and stubbornly follows its own way, even if it their way is horribly wrong. If some outsiders happen to come into the series, like the Ferrari 458 or the Audi R8, they are so much restricted, until they can't even beat their DPs. After all, normal GT3 cars would be faster than a DP. Speaking of the DPs: They are just rear-wing DTM cars, but with large V8 engines that feel like they came from the stone age. Hell, the V8 in the back of the Corvette isn't even one from a Corvette but just a generic one from Chevy. Okay, maybe I'm overreacting. The DPs aren't probably that bad, but the fact that NASCAR are running the whole show is. I mean, NASCAR is the auto racing equivalent to WWE. They put more emphasis over "entertainment" than the sport itself.

But let's just say for the moment that I'm skeptic in that regard.

No. NASCAR is just shite.

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 19 Sep 2012, 15:03

I can't believe no-one's said anything about this, but Toyota won the Sau Paulo 6 Hours at Interlagos, with Wurz and Lapierre driving, beating both #1 and #2 Audis into second and third respectively. That's a race win at only the third time of asking, which is superb considering they're using completely unproven technology and not just copying Audi. Next season will be very interesting, and hopefully they go for a two car effort to fill out LMP1 a bit more!

Post by **mario** » 19 Sep 2012, 18:25

AndreaModa wrote:I can't believe no-one's said anything about this, but Toyota won the Sau Paulo 6 Hours at Interlagos, with Wurz and Lapierre driving, beating both #1 and #2 Audis into second and third respectively. That's a race win at only the third time of asking, which is superb considering they're using completely unproven technology and not just copying Audi. Next season will be very interesting, and hopefully they go for a two car effort to fill out LMP1 a bit more!

I guess it is because we have been so used to Toyota being somewhat average that it has taken some time to sink in, perhaps? Also, cynically some might suggest that Toyota have effectively copied Peugeot's old 908 instead of Audi (a little harsh, perhaps, but the two cars do seem to have been developed with a similar philosophy in mind).

Anyway, it was pretty impressive for Toyota to take a victory so soon into its campaign, but it has to be said that they were somewhat fortunate in some respects - there was a very favourable safety car period that helped put Toyota comfortably out of reach, and it is also worth noting that Audi have also, unlike Toyota, not really bothered developing a high downforce "sprint" race package because they don't need to (the privateers can't compete and Toyota is too far behind on points to have any real impact).

Toyota did have Audi beaten in terms of pace and tyre management (Audi's drivers could occasionally match the times the Toyota drivers were setting, but couldn't sustain that pace for very long), but Toyota may still struggle to repeat that if they can't get a little more fuel mileage out of their engines (like in Silverstone, they had to go for a late "splash and dash" which could, in a tighter race, have cost them victory).
Either way, the real acid test is likely to be 2013 - Audi will definitely be building a sprint package for 2013 now, so the question is going to be whether Toyota can keep up if Audi do ramp up development.

nome66 · Post by **nome66** » 19 Sep 2012, 20:05

Toyota's been generally average at everything, really(except gurney's GTP team). remember Tora Takagi's works CART machinery? neither do i

FMecha · Post by **FMecha** » 25 Sep 2012, 04:45

nome66 wrote:Toyota's been generally average at everything, really(except gurney's GTP team). remember Tora Takagi's works CART machinery? neither do i

Just look at their F1 program, sir. Massive spending yet no wins and so... a big sod-all :lol:

RealRacingRoots · Post by **RealRacingRoots** » 14 Oct 2012, 02:56

Toyota leads the way at their "home" race in Fuji, although we all know the car is German with a Japanese engine.

The good news is that Shinji Nakano and TAKUMA SATO are both racing, Shinji with the ADR LMP2 machine, and Taku with the LMP1 Oak Racing machine.

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 14 Oct 2012, 16:45

And they managed to win, which means two wins in five races for Toyota, which is pretty impressive. I'm delighted that they've been able to come in and be competitive against Audi, it'll hopefully mean Toyota hang around for a fair while now in endurance racing.

Nakano's team won the LMP2 category too, so along with Nakajima in the Toyota, Japanese rejects had a pretty good time at Fuji!

RonDenisDeletraz · Post by **RonDenisDeletraz** » 15 Oct 2012, 05:42

AndreaModa wrote:And they managed to win, which means two wins in five races for Toyota, which is pretty impressive. I'm delighted that they've been able to come in and be competitive against Audi, it'll hopefully mean Toyota hang around for a fair while now in endurance racing.

Nakano's team won the LMP2 category too, so along with Nakajima in the Toyota, Japanese rejects had a pretty good time at Fuji!

Isn't Nakano a Lucky Barstard?

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 15 Oct 2012, 06:19

eurobrun wrote:
AndreaModa wrote:And they managed to win, which means two wins in five races for Toyota, which is pretty impressive. I'm delighted that they've been able to come in and be competitive against Audi, it'll hopefully mean Toyota hang around for a fair while now in endurance racing.

Nakano's team won the LMP2 category too, so along with Nakajima in the Toyota, Japanese rejects had a pretty good time at Fuji!

Isn't Nakano a Lucky Barstard?

Nope, he's only got two sixth places to his name. But he is a CART lucky bastard :lol:

Wallio · Post by **Wallio** » 03 Nov 2012, 15:10

Thread Resurrection!

GTE and GT3 to be merged by 2015.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/103398

Looks like Grand-Am was ahead of the curve on that one.

Ferrarist · Post by **Ferrarist** » 04 Nov 2012, 12:28

Wallio wrote:Thread Resurrection!

GTE and GT3 to be merged by 2015.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/103398

Looks like Grand-Am was ahead of the curve on that one.

I can only applaud the decision to reestablish ONE truly global GT class. This will be a godsend for manufacturers and teams. Manufacturers, because they can sell their cars whereever they wish, and for the teams because it will provide them with a large market of potential GT cars. Furthermore, teams could theoretically do all major GT races around the world with one and the same car. Hopefully everyone involved (GALMS, FIA, ACO, SRO) can work productively with each other.

RealRacingRoots · Post by **RealRacingRoots** » 05 Jan 2013, 00:23

Ooookay. The ALMS/GA baby has it's class structure for 2014.

*LMP2, Daytona Prototype and the Deltawing will become the top LMP class. The presumption is that the DP and Deltawing will be made more powerful to equalise with the LMP2s.

*LMPC will return from ALMS.

*Both top GT classes from each series will be a part of the series. This allows the GTC racers from ALMS to have a class of their own once the merge happens.

So:

LMP2/DP/Deltawing
LMPC
GTe
GA GT + GTC

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 05 Jan 2013, 00:33

The DeltaWing doesn't need any improvements to bring it in line with LMP2s, if anything it was better than them at Le Mans wasn't it? Sort of stuck in between LMP1 and LMP2 in terms of pace.

What I can't understand is why the US insists on doing things differently compared to the rest of the world. Obviously now they can't change the fact that there's a whole bunch of teams running GT cars to different specs, likewise with the DPs. But really what should happen is they should bring the whole lot into line with the WEC and the rest of the world so that the ALMS or whatever it will be called can be of a similar level to ELMS and the Asian series that's in the works, meaning the teams that do well can go to Le Mans and the WEC can visit somewhere like Sebring and not have problems. I get that the US likes to have its own identity with things but as with IndyCar and the general state of US motorsport, they're just shooting themselves in the foot, for the umpteenth time.

RealRacingRoots · Post by **RealRacingRoots** » 05 Jan 2013, 00:50

AndreaModa wrote:The DeltaWing doesn't need any improvements to bring it in line with LMP2s, if anything it was better than them at Le Mans wasn't it? Sort of stuck in between LMP1 and LMP2 in terms of pace.

What I can't understand is why the US insists on doing things differently compared to the rest of the world. Obviously now they can't change the fact that there's a whole bunch of teams running GT cars to different specs, likewise with the DPs. But really what should happen is they should bring the whole lot into line with the WEC and the rest of the world so that the ALMS or whatever it will be called can be of a similar level to ELMS and the Asian series that's in the works, meaning the teams that do well can go to Le Mans and the WEC can visit somewhere like Sebring and not have problems. I get that the US likes to have its own identity with things but as with IndyCar and the general state of US motorsport, they're just shooting themselves in the foot, for the umpteenth time.

afaik, the ELMS and AsLMS will be using the LMP2/LMPC/GTe/GT3 class structure. So outside of GT3/GA GT, with GT3 not existing in America (Pirelli World Challenge is the closest to GT3), the class structures are the same but with the Americans consolidating their top flight prototypes. So I wouldn't say they are as different as they are being portrayed.

IdeFan · Post by **IdeFan** » 09 Jan 2013, 08:13

In terms of pace the Deltawing was on the tail end of LMP2 at Le Mans and pretty much right in the middle at Petit. The result at Petit was mainly down to staying out of trouble when the other prototypes were tripping over each other.

The challenge for endurance racing is not just balancing the pace, but also balancing factors like fuel economy and tyre wear which often end up deciding longer races. I don't know how the DPs are compared to LMP2 but the Deltawing is much easier on its tyres than a conventional LMP2 (at LM they were looking at doing eight stints on a tyre, compared to the three or four typical of other teams). Its not going to be as simple as adding ballast/changing restrictors until the laptimes are the same.

Post by **mario** » 09 Jan 2013, 12:21

Some quite sad news seems to be emerging today, and it concerns one of the better known privateer teams - it appears that a French court ordered Pescarolo Sport to go into liquidation on Tuesday after an attempt to restructure the debts of the team failed.

Although Henri Pescarolo himself is hopeful that he can form a new team from scratch in 2014, that would depend strongly on whether he believes that he can afford to compete in the LMP1 category given the upcoming reforms are likely to have a major impact on the privateer teams. The other possibility is that Henri would convert his facilities and mechanics over to running the operations of another car instead - he claims to be speaking to two teams about possibly running or servicing their cars, although it would be under their name rather than Pescarolo's name. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105024

Sad though it is, hopefully this will finally wake the ACO up to the problems that the privateers are facing at the moment - threats to withdraw from the P1 category are one thing, but for a team to go into liquidation altogether is a major problem, especially since it is one of the more successful and famous outfits. Sadly, though, I fear that the dominant position Audi had within the world of Endurance Racing means that the ACO probably won't pay any attention to the concerns of anybody but them...

RealRacingRoots · Post by **RealRacingRoots** » 10 Jan 2013, 00:23

Tragic stuff, Henri and his team did mega work during the 2000s to give Audi a battle, especially in 2005/2006 when the C60 Hybrid was a rocketship.

Privateer teams are going to ALMS this season, which really impresses me. Rebellion has confirmed one car, Muscle Milk and Dyson are already there, and I've heard JRM may join in the fun. ALMS is going to be epic for it's last year.

Faustus · Post by **Faustus** » 10 Jan 2013, 09:04

I think the days of P1 privateers in the WEC are as good as over, especially with the new engine regulations for 2014. It is doubtful that anyone apart from manufacturer teams will be able to afford the expense.

IdeFan · Post by **IdeFan** » 11 Jan 2013, 18:17

The Dubai 24 hours is on right now, steam here:

http://new.livestream.com/accounts/2362362/events/1784668

Onxy Wrecked · Post by **Onxy Wrecked** » 11 Jan 2013, 22:40

Can't wait for the Rolex 24 as Daytona proves to be more than a superspeedway.

Post by **mario** » 11 Jan 2013, 23:33

RealRacingRoots wrote:Tragic stuff, Henri and his team did mega work during the 2000s to give Audi a battle, especially in 2005/2006 when the C60 Hybrid was a rocketship.

Privateer teams are going to ALMS this season, which really impresses me. Rebellion has confirmed one car, Muscle Milk and Dyson are already there, and I've heard JRM may join in the fun. ALMS is going to be epic for it's last year.

Not to mention the days when they negotiated a deal with Peugeot for their 908 and sometimes ended up beating the works team, which was something of a throwback to older times when private teams could purchase cars from works teams and compete on a more level playing field with the works entries.

Faustus wrote:I think the days of P1 privateers in the WEC are as good as over, especially with the new engine regulations for 2014. It is doubtful that anyone apart from manufacturer teams will be able to afford the expense.

I'll definitely agree with you there - the changes to the engine regulations would be bad enough given the expected cost of development, whilst several privateers have said that the cost of purchasing an energy recovery system from the manufacturers (assuming that they would licence them in the first place - Audi has said that it might be open to licensing future iterations of their KERS if they can bring the costs down enough for it to be commercially viable, but Toyota's comments have been a bit more ambiguous) would be far beyond what they could cope with.

That assumes, of course, that you have a chassis in which to install your engine in the first place - Pescarolo's demise shuts down one independent chassis manufacturer, whilst although Multimatic Inc may have secured the rights to Lola's current IP and have stabilised things for now, the long term future for them is somewhat uncertain. Dome, meanwhile, have hinted that they might also drop development for the LMP1 class S102.5 and modify it to compete in the LMP2 instead because demand for LMP2 cars is much stronger - at this rate, we might run out of chassis suppliers before running out of engine suppliers.

I imagine, though, that the manufacturers might be a little uneasy about this too to a certain extent. Whilst they may be able to justify some of the costs of development through technological transfer, if possible, I imagine that they'd also prefer to offset some of the costs of development via engine sales to independent teams.
The budgets of the teams in Endurance Racing may be modest compared to F1, but the manufacturer's outfits are not exactly cheap to run (running into tens of millions of € a year) - having a manufacturer dominated environment also runs the risk of potential cost inflation through potential spending wars since the regulations are relatively liberal compared to most other sports (which is something of a double edged sword - looser rules may mean more innovation, but those ideas may require a lot of investment in order to come to fruition).

All in all, whilst I may be interested in seeing what the new regulations may bring, I'm also concerned that they may do as much damage as good to the sport.

IdeFan · Post by **IdeFan** » 12 Jan 2013, 18:55

Actually Mario Pescarolo's role as a chassis manufacturer lives on through OAK/Onroak/Morgan. OAK bought out all of Pescarolo's chassis manufacturing capability in 2009 after Herni's team went bust the first time, they seem to be doing pretty good business with the Morgan LMP2 that is derived from the Pescarolo 01. It was competitive with the HPD in last year's ALMS and while the Conquest entry is still in doubt for 2013 they have sold two other chassis over the winter, one to Europe and one to the new Asian series.

It really mirrors the situation overall in LMP. The cost capped P2 is quite popular and competitive, but outside of the Factory teams P1 is very quiet.

Post by **mario** » 13 Jan 2013, 10:06

IdeFan wrote:Actually Mario Pescarolo's role as a chassis manufacturer lives on through OAK/Onroak/Morgan. OAK bought out all of Pescarolo's chassis manufacturing capability in 2009 after Herni's team went bust the first time, they seem to be doing pretty good business with the Morgan LMP2 that is derived from the Pescarolo 01. It was competitive with the HPD in last year's ALMS and while the Conquest entry is still in doubt for 2013 they have sold two other chassis over the winter, one to Europe and one to the new Asian series.

It really mirrors the situation overall in LMP. The cost capped P2 is quite popular and competitive, but outside of the Factory teams P1 is very quiet.

As an LMP2 manufacturer, it is true that Pescarolo's heritage as a chassis designer lives on through OAK Racing and is still thriving, but as an LMP1 privateer chassis designer things are not looking quite so rosy. I'll admit that I was looking at things from the P1 category point of view, given that the ACO has effectively turned the P2 category into the "privateers cup" in all but name.

OAK Racing have said that they are getting sick of the constant regulation changes that the ACO has been imposing in recent years on the LMP1 class, and the further changes for 2014 that will require a new chassis design appears to be the final straw. A few months ago, they stated that they are actively considering withdrawing from the P1 class at the end of this year, since the new regulations will give the manufacturers such an advantage that there is no point in trying to compete with them.
With the privateers downgrading to the LMP2 class, where the strict cost cap measures means that the manufacturer teams are disinterested in competing, the demand for independent chassis designers is much stronger, which explains why OAK Racing and Dome are actively considering shifting just to the P2 class.

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 13 Jan 2013, 14:27

Whilst the rule changes have driven privateers out of LMP1, I can't help but feel that the ACO have intended to achieve this all along. As you say Mario, LMP2 is thriving at the moment, with loads of different choices out there for teams and lots of interest. This is fantastic from a privateer point of view because it is the ideal environment in which they can thrive, but at the same time, not attractive to the manufacturers. Therefore by ensuring that LMP1 promotes relaxed regulations, innovation and uncapped spending, that creates the best environment for manufacturer entries who are given freedom to pursue their own agendas within the sport.

This could probably go in the unpopular opinions thread but for me it seems as if the ACO and FIA have got things spot on - i.e. they've developed an endurance series that appeals to both privateers and manufacturers, and insured themselves against either class going to the wall. By that I mean that if the manufacturers suddenly hit hard times or loose interest, the popularity of LMP2 ensures that the series can still maintain a high number of entries. And at the other end of the spectrum, if costs rise prohibitively for privateers, even in LMP2, the attractiveness of LMP1 for manufacturers ensures the series can still draw those entries for the series. In essence, they've managed to achieve the best of both worlds, which in tough economic times, particularly for the car industry and motorsport in general, is no mean feat.

Admittedly it's a shame that the two classes mean that privateers are never going to reach the level of the manufacturers, but perhaps that's the best way to have it anyway. The privateers have their own class, trophies and championship to fight for, whilst the manufacturers still get the exposure and glory at the front of the field which is why they compete and will help them sell cars. It's not the ideal situation and won't give us the giant-killing opportunities that we like to see, but ultimately I think the ACO have made the right decisions so far with the LMP regulations for the WEC. Time will tell if they can maintain that however, but what they've established is an excellent set of foundations to build on in the future.

Post by **mario** » 13 Jan 2013, 21:13

I certainly agree that the ACO has, most likely, been steadily engineering a situation where the LMP1 is effectively reduced to a manufacturers only category, playing off the card of technology transfers in order to attract manufacturers into that category.

The idea of effectively splitting the privateers and manufacturers in the way that you describe does, in principle, have its attractions, but I still have a niggling concern in the back of my mind that this isn't necessarily the wisest path for the ACO to be treading. In some ways, it might be preferable to still leave something of a toehold for the privateers in the P1 category to act as an intermediary between the established manufacturer outfits and potential new entrants.
Leaving the option for an interested third party to supply engines, which could act as a way of testing the waters, might not be a bad idea, especially if they are capable of doing so on a more modest budget. Nissan and Mazda, for example, are supplying engines for the P2 category, in part because both parties can adapt existing engine designs at relatively low cost to fit the regulations (Nissan is utilising a derivative of the engine they designed for their GT500 cars, whilst Mazda is working from a stock block diesel engine).
I'm also a little uncomfortable that the FIA has been clear that it views the changes as beneficial for F1 as it may drive manufacturers towards it - whilst that may benefit both categories, there is an uncomfortable potential for a parallel with the change to the 3.5L engines that helped lead to the demise of Group C. We shall see how things turn out, but I am not entirely sure that the full ramifications of this won't damage sports car racing as much as it helps.

IdeFan · Post by **IdeFan** » 14 Jan 2013, 13:45

A good compromise might be persuading Audi, Toyota and Porsche to make their cars more available to customers, and making it affordable for the customers to run them. Lola and HPD are never going to get near a factory Audi, but they might be able to fight a customer one, especially over 24 hours. If you could get each manufacturer to sell a to a couple of customers then you would end up with 15 top line LMP1s (9 factory plus 6 customer) which is a pretty healthy chunk of the grid.

Ferrarist · Post by **Ferrarist** » 14 Jan 2013, 14:08

IdeFan wrote:A good compromise might be persuading Audi, Toyota and Porsche to make their cars more available to customers, and making it affordable for the customers to run them. Lola and HPD are never going to get near a factory Audi, but they might be able to fight a customer one, especially over 24 hours. If you could get each manufacturer to sell a to a couple of customers then you would end up with 15 top line LMP1s (9 factory plus 6 customer) which is a pretty healthy chunk of the grid.

Absolutely! I don't get why Audi just sells their "old" R18 Ultras (Which aren't really old, as they were developed for the 2012 season as well.) to some wealthy privateers. Granted, they probably don't want a third-party to get access to their diesel technology. But Audi Sport still has their hybrid R18s, so they still have an advantage over the rest, barring Toyota.
On the other hand, I like the clear distinction we currently have in the class structure: LMP1 for manufacturers, LMP2 for privateers. That's alright, everybody gets their own playground, and most people should be pleased. Also, if LMP1 falls on hard times, the ACO can still rely on LMP2 making the show for them. So there won't be a repeat of 1992, if things get tough.

RealRacingRoots · Post by **RealRacingRoots** » 14 Jan 2013, 19:50

Ferrarist wrote:
IdeFan wrote:A good compromise might be persuading Audi, Toyota and Porsche to make their cars more available to customers, and making it affordable for the customers to run them. Lola and HPD are never going to get near a factory Audi, but they might be able to fight a customer one, especially over 24 hours. If you could get each manufacturer to sell a to a couple of customers then you would end up with 15 top line LMP1s (9 factory plus 6 customer) which is a pretty healthy chunk of the grid.

Absolutely! I don't get why Audi just sells their "old" R18 Ultras (Which aren't really old, as they were developed for the 2012 season as well.) to some wealthy privateers. Granted, they probably don't want a third-party to get access to their diesel technology. But Audi Sport still has their hybrid R18s, so they still have an advantage over the rest, barring Toyota.

I'm fairly sure Audi sold old R8s to be used by Factory-Supported teams. It sure looks like the great divide between the Factory and Privateer teams have grown to new depths in the last 2 years. Although with new regs coming in 2014 may feature a split in regulations. LMP1-H (H stands for Hybrid) and LMP1-L (L stands for Light) with the L cars being Privateer only and 20 kilos lighter then the H cars. I doubt it will be enough, as the Factories will constantly be updating their cars. Although at the rate things are going, I don't know if Privateers will show up for LMP1-L or we will get another battle like HPD vs Porsche had back in LMP2 during 2007/2008.

Ferrarist · Post by **Ferrarist** » 22 Jan 2013, 10:34

Alessandro del Piero and Patrick Dempsey to launch a sportscar team: http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105222

Kostas won't like it for sure. :lol:

IdeFan · Post by **IdeFan** » 22 Jan 2013, 11:05

Ferrarist wrote:Alessandro del Piero and Patrick Dempsey to launch a sportscar team: http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105222

Kostas won't like it for sure.

Doesn't specify what car they would use, or even what class. One would assume it would be a Lola LMP2, since thats what Dempsey ran last year, but I believe that car was actually owned by Level 5 and not Dempsey Racing, so it could be anything.

It says one entry at Le Mans, two in ALMS, which reminded me of something I read last week about Level 5:

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/alms-level-5-stands-down-from-p2-for-2013/

Level 5 own (amongst other things) two HPD LMP2s, the car which took pretty much every prize in LMP2 last year (WEC, ALMS, Sebring, Le Mans, Petit). They're not running ALMS this year because theres no competition in LMP2, but are running one car at LM. They also say if they are ready to run the cars on behalf of another team if a suitable party came along.

So my guess is, Dempsey/del Piero have struck a deal to run Level 5's LMP2s, both cars in ALMS but only one car at LM (because Level 5 are using the other one).

DanielPT · Post by **DanielPT** » 25 Jan 2013, 10:10

Meanwhile, I am surprised that no one mentioned this, but Le Mans 24h got a bit more slightly boring this year!

nome66 · Post by **nome66** » 26 Jan 2013, 18:40

The 2013 24 hours of Daytona is in 2 hours. who's watching?
i hope the indycar drivers participating do well this year, as they did last year. i'd also like to see how the new Diesel Mazda 6 performs.

i noticed Grand-Am has sort of a "Roval Triple crown" going on in this year's calendar with the addition of Kansas Speedway.

i hope they do something with that, or at least something better than that silly "US Endurance Chamionship" thing they had last year with Daytona, Indy, and The 6hrs of the Glen. it didn't make any sense because there are only 2 races on the schedule(last year and this year) that are more than 3 hours long.
it's a shame they don't have the race on the Glen's short circuit this year. last year's was fun to watch.

Ferrarist · Post by **Ferrarist** » 26 Jan 2013, 20:40

Anyone else following the Daytona 24?

Well, the official Grand-Am site only offers a radio stream from MRN. With commercials that remind me of those GTA fake commercials. All that's missing is Lazlow saying something. :mrgreen:

The official SPEED stream has only onboards, so does anyone have a "proper" stream?

EDIT: http://www.viponlinesports.eu/motorsports/126287/1/rolex-sports-car-series-racing-:-24-hours-at-daytona:-part-1-live-stream-online.html

Post by **tommykl** » 26 Jan 2013, 20:47

I'm not following it, all I know is that there's a Belgian in there who surely won't be up front

Chives5150 · Post by **Chives5150** » 27 Jan 2013, 17:14

It'll be interesting to see as time winds down how the #10 Corvette will do. They've been a bit down on power, but they've been knocking off consistent laps. I'm also pretty excited to see the #60 Ford back into the mix, albeit with assistance from the new caution procedures.

...

Well, now Wayne Taylor thinks there's something fishy about the #02 Ganassi stopping on track to allow the #01 to change brake pads under caution. I do think it's a legit problem with the #02, however, as they are now retiring from the race...

Chives5150 · Post by **Chives5150** » 27 Jan 2013, 20:49

Pardon the double post, but...

Dominating performance by the #01 Ganassi. The Wayne Taylor and Michael Shank guys made it interesting towards the end, but nobody could really contend with the Ganassi boys.

Amazing battle to the finish in GT with the Audi's. Great to see them being competitive.

The beautiful Napleton Racing #16 Porsche Cayman brings home the GX win! Great for them!

Ferrarist · Post by **Ferrarist** » 27 Jan 2013, 21:07

Ganassiwinslol :roll:

Sadly, the only American sportscar team, which could beat them right now, won't probably race in North America by 2014. I'm referring to Greg Pickett's team. The Luhr/Graf lineup would eat Pruett and Rojas for breakfast. Penske is also unlikely to do something with sportscars in the near future, and even if he wants to, he'd probably do WEC.