2016 WeatherTech SportsCar ChampionshipSports Cars

[01GTP]

Let me repeat that for you as you obviously did not see that post or you didn't comprehend my statement as to basically take it for what it's worth, to you.

All I have for evidence, take it for whatever you want. Whether made up or not there it is.

http://shiftinglanes.com/2016/10/cadillacs-2017-prototype-racecar-spied/

from the article (about a month old?)

There's my case. You asked for a link, you have one.

 

[IforceV8]

Detroit makes no sense though considering it starts the last day of the Roar.

Looking back at the GM media for the last Cadillac racing debut (ATS-V GT3) they did a stand alone press event at COTA in November 2014. If they stick to that strategy they could have the press at Daytona either during the December test or at the Roar when they will have to have the custom bodywork on the car. I would bet they still have a car on the floor at NAIAS and fly the drivers in to stand around and look pretty after the Roar test.

 

[catamount39]

Okay how did GM test at CMS and NOBODY noticed? Come on modern internet...GET THEM SPY PICS!

 

[Snaeper]

I think a lot of GTD teams are going to be keeping an eye on the future of the class. With the questionable medallion system still causing issues and Lexus and Acura throwing money around and the Porsche factory affiliate now entering their own car, we could see a growing divide like the WEC is in LMP2, where silver drivers are faster than Golds.

 

[aarror]

I think a lot of GTD teams are going to be keeping an eye on the future of the class. With the questionable medallion system still causing issues and Lexus and Acura throwing money around and the Porsche factory affiliate now entering their own car, we could see a growing divide like the WEC is in LMP2, where silver drivers are faster than Golds.

I don't think anyone will have a problem with CORE, Colin Braun and Jon Bennett is a perfectly acceptable pro and am pairing. On the other hand the Scott Pruett/Sage Karam and Ozz Negri/Katherine Legge pairings are utterly ridiculous, they could win races in DPi and have no place in the "Pro/Am" GTD class.

 

[Eva]

I'm probably taking an unpopular opinion on this, but I think GTD should be all pro. You have the Continental series and PWC for the Am drivers to get themselves into. With the massive variety of cars in GTD, it's almost certainly never going to be a battle of pro-am cars anyways.

 

[aarror]

I'm probably taking an unpopular opinion on this, but I think GTD should be all pro. You have the Continental series and PWC for the Am drivers to get themselves into. With the massive variety of cars in GTD, it's almost certainly never going to be a battle of pro-am cars anyways.

While I see your point, I disagree. GTLM is where manufacturers and all-pro lineups belong, GT3 has always been about customers racing the cars. The fact that Acura and Lexus have gone the Audi/WRT "We're totally not a factory team, I swear!" route is really disappointing. And if you do allow full pro lineups in GTD, where does that leave GTLM? I can't see any reason to have two full pro GT classes in a single series.

Of course, if those GT convergence talks had gone through we wouldn't need to have this conversation. Sigh.

 

[mustafur]

Man the new Mazda DPI is Delicious, and it kind of looks like a DP.

http://www.motorsport.com/imsa/news/mazda-reveals-new-dpi-prototype-850765/

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

That GTE class still confuses me. The Corvette, 458/488, RSR look like GT3 cars. It would make sense to have all the GT3 type cars run at LeMans.

So many entries would make it like the classic races. Big field of GT cars would make things so interesting. Fights for positions for the full 24Hours.

I know it would give Audi, NISMO, McLaren, AMG huge incentives to field many cars.

Where have you been, the race at Le Mans in the GTE class is fine, all but last year with the new turbos that tipped the scales by a good portion. You have Aston, Chevy, Ferrari, Ford, Porsche, and soon BMW again. Also GTE isn't GT3, it wasn't meant to be, yes they look somewhat similar and now with Ferrari having the ability to clients to switch between the two with a single car I can see the question being raised. However, GTE was meant to be a proto version of GT3, wider cars more power, better mechanical grip have you and on and on. It was for a time it's gotten back to it this past year but could still be more.

I don't see them needing to have it, I see the top class (P1) needing it more than GTE.

I don't think anyone will have a problem with CORE, Colin Braun and Jon Bennett is a perfectly acceptable pro and am pairing. On the other hand the Scott Pruett/Sage Karam and Ozz Negri/Katherine Legge pairings are utterly ridiculous, they could win races in DPi and have no place in the "Pro/Am" GTD class.

What the hell, who is the pro and am in those other teams...That's just stupid. Sage could be pro quite easily and Scott is obviously well seasoned in this stuff. And the Negri and Legge are probably to a lesser extent than the other two, they're quite pro in both regards. How is this allowed? Where did the money exchange hands between IMSA and manufactures.

 

[Eva]

While I see your point, I disagree. GTLM is where manufacturers and all-pro lineups belong, GT3 has always been about customers racing the cars. The fact that Acura and Lexus have gone the Audi/WRT "We're totally not a factory team, I swear!" route is really disappointing. And if you do allow full pro lineups in GTD, where does that leave GTLM? I can't see any reason to have two full pro GT classes in a single series.

Of course, if those GT convergence talks had gone through we wouldn't need to have this conversation. Sigh.

That last point is kinda the end all. I do see your point about what GTD and most of GT3 stand for, but I don't think IMSA care to be honest. I think IMSA is simply looking at how to put more cars in each class, and those additional entries are just doing what they are assumingly allowed to do.

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

While I see your point, I disagree. GTLM is where manufacturers and all-pro lineups belong, GT3 has always been about customers racing the cars. The fact that Acura and Lexus have gone the Audi/WRT "We're totally not a factory team, I swear!" route is really disappointing. And if you do allow full pro lineups in GTD, where does that leave GTLM? I can't see any reason to have two full pro GT classes in a single series.

Of course, if those GT convergence talks had gone through we wouldn't need to have this conversation. Sigh.

It leaves GTLM being the "we're a default international racing group that primarily races in America other than the couple of weeks we decide or get allowed to race in France". That's all I see it as now, is a means to be connected to Le Mans.

 

[05XR8]

Why? Also why do they always make the bottom black in back too?

Because of this dopey looking mug

 

[01GTP]

Okay how did GM test at CMS and NOBODY noticed? Come on modern internet...GET THEM SPY PICS!

Jordan Taylor used social media about being there. At the time I did not think it was for a test as a couple days earlier he had a video (remember ?) from WGI about the new car sound.
So it's not like they totally hid the fact they were at CMS. Just no spy shots.

For the" link or pic or it didn't happen" crowd.

 

[Northstar]

Where did the money exchange hands between IMSA and manufactures.

Doesn't IMSA use the FIA driver rankings?

 

[catamount39]

Now I'm just pondering excuses here, but hasn't Scott Pruett been down graded on the FIA scale because of his age? If I recall the FIA system automatically lowers your "medal rating" when you hit 50/55 or something.

Doesn't IMSA use the FIA driver rankings?

Yup.

 

[01GTP]

Now I'm just pondering excuses here, but hasn't Scott Pruett been down graded on the FIA scale because of his age?

Yup. And as old as I am (51) I can see why.

 

[IforceV8]

Let me repeat that for you as you obviously did not see that post or you didn't comprehend my statement as to basically take it for what it's worth, to you.


There's my case. You asked for a link, you have one.

Blogger Chad has changed his mind it seems. http://shiftinglanes.com/2016/11/mazdas-latest-race-car-is-a-stunner/

Mazda’s public on-track is likely to happen at the IMSA sanctioned test at Daytona December 13-14. The test is mandatory for all DPi manufacturers and LMP2 constructors. It is likely that we will get our first glimpse of the Nissan DPi at this test. Cadillac is expected to take the wraps off their car within the coming weeks.

Okay how did GM test at CMS and NOBODY noticed? Come on modern internet...GET THEM SPY PICS!

Putnam park also, which is close to the WTR shop in Indiana.

 

[RACECAR]

Now I'm just pondering excuses here, but hasn't Scott Pruett been down graded on the FIA scale because of his age? If I recall the FIA system automatically lowers your "medal rating" when you hit 50/55 or something.

They did at first but a lot of people got pissed so they reinstated it.

 

[Snaeper]

I don't think anyone will have a problem with CORE, Colin Braun and Jon Bennett is a perfectly acceptable pro and am pairing. On the other hand the Scott Pruett/Sage Karam and Ozz Negri/Katherine Legge pairings are utterly ridiculous, they could win races in DPi and have no place in the "Pro/Am" GTD class.

I mentioned CORE not because of their driver pairing, more that they can "peek over the wall" so to speak, and have a stronger relationship with their manufacturer than most teams do.

 

[IforceV8]

• The driver categorisation of any driver over 50 years old will be reduced by one grade for the season following his/her 50th birthday;
• The driver categorisation of any driver over 55 will be reduced by two grades for the season following his/her 55th birthday;
• Any driver over 60 will be categorised Bronze;

http://www.fia.com/fia-driver-categorisation

He was (I think) a Platinum until age 50 with Ganassi then turned 56 in March this year which drops him to a Silver, however

• has been a Factory Driver, paid by a car manufacturer, with results to match;

This makes him at least a Gold unless he can show he is bringing money to the team and not cashing checks from Toyota. This also applies to Legge, Segal, and Negri in the Acura. Negri slipped in as a Silver because he is 52 but if he is cashing checks he should automatically be a Gold at minimum.

Either way this path that IMSA is taking which is basically pushing the Am drivers out of the series while stacking the deck with fake Silver drivers is a road to a dead class. Guys like Ben Keating who have day jobs and spend huge amounts of money in the series will grow tired of hot shoe former Porsche cup drivers and ex open wheel drivers who are on the fringe of whatever series they ran in but cant get a seat at Penske or Mercedes and leave the series for PWC or ELMS.

IMSA might have a dream that they can be a All-Pro sportscar series with the best drivers in the world but the series is built on a sink hole. The product is unwatchable on TV for one which makes it impossible to market unless you like watching a 2.5 hr infomercial with some noises in the background. Until that very basic thing is fixed they are pissing in the wind. OEM's will not stick around when the ROI is so small when the TV numbers are 150,000 avg viewers for a race.

GTLM can still be the top GT class with the link to Le Mans but they need to split the GTD class into GTD-Pro and GTD-Am. Doing that will allow the factory backed cars who are there to sell GT3 cars a place to show how great their BOP skills are and the guys like Keating who are writing the checks and are really capable will have a place to play too. The path they are on now will lead to them having neither one in 2018 when the factories move on and the Am's are in another series.

 

[Roo]

Jordan Taylor pretends to be an IMSA superfan

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

Doesn't IMSA use the FIA driver rankings?

We already know how skewed that is, so who got the check ?

 

[01GTP]

 

[catamount39]

*sees that TRG are back...sees they've switched back to the Beatle*

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Also, here's an article on Jack Hawksworth and some things about the 3GT team. Hopefully they do good, but again, being a brand new team and car I think everybody should expect growing pains out of the box. They may have TRD behind them, but a new car is still a new car.
http://www.racer.com/500-viewpoints/136527-interview-jack-hawksworth-hits-refresh-136527?showall=

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sun Energy happy with the Merc'...and KENNY HABUL EVERYBODY! Jesus this guy makes the rounds doesn't he? Though its good to know Boris Said will be splitting time with him. Glad to see him in a good GT car again.
http://www.motorsport.com/imsa/news/sunenergy1-racing-very-happy-with-new-mercedes-851048/

 

[IforceV8]

2017 initial (until the wire transfers clear) FIA drivers ratings. http://sportscar365.com/gt/fia-releases-provisional-2017-driver-ratings-list/

Riberas and Segal going Gold help clean up the GTD fake silver list but Legge, Negri, and Hi to my family keep their fake silver ratings.

 

[mustafur]

Mathew Brabham Silver lololol.

 

[IforceV8]

Mathew Brabham Silver lololol.

I'm not sure what to make of him, championships in F2000 and Star Mazda, finished well behind his teammate in Lights, finished the Indy 500 22nd and spent the rest of the year jumping trucks between concrete walls this year. I think that Pirtek money would have been spent better racing in a GT car than a stadium truck personally but he is now in a great spot for 2017 with $$$, fake Silver badge, and a famous name so maybe that was the plan all along.💡

 

[mustafur]

I have a feeling it was, driving Jumpy Trucks doesn't really seem like a legitimate option.

 

[JohnBM01]

From a friend's Facebook profile, someone noted that the newer Porsche 911 RSR is mid-engined to better keep pace in the GT ranks. I think the more recent 911 RSRs are great-looking machines. Maybe they will perform a good bit better with this new configuration. I still love the Ferrari 488 GTB machines, but I respect the heck out of Porsche.

 

[01GTP]

Yes, Porsche's are lovely.

http://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/6103/jeff-gordon-may-not-be-quite-done-with-driving

Gordon is rumored to be preparing to join Wayne Taylor Racing in January in the 2017 Rolex 24 at Daytona endurance race. Gordon would team with Wayne Taylor’s sons, Ricky and Jordan, in one of the new IMSA Cadillac-powered Prototypes.