BMW back at Le Mans
Discussion
F1's loss is sportscar's gain! BMW have confirmed they will be entering the Nurburgring 24 Hours, Spa 24 Hours and Le Mans 24 Hours with their GT2 spec M3s. Its subject to getting a place from the ACO but no way they will turn them down. So GT2 will now see a genuine fight between 4 manufacturers; GM, Porsche, Ferrari and BMW. Good times. And a GT3 spec Z4 is on the way as well
dobboMK1 said:
Its subject to getting a place from the ACO but no way they will turn them down.
But how will they get a place? They can't get invited, so they have to qualify - correct? Is it a matter of the ACO accepting applications, waiting for June practice (if there is one) or getting on the waiting list.Those M3's are mighty quick in the ALMS so it gives the Corvettes another challenge if they can get in.
Only some of the invites are automatically selected (winners from last year, winners of the ALMS etc etc) but the rest are 100% at the ACO's discretion. They will base their selection on past performance plus the diversity it will add to the grid. The M3s tick both boxes. New manufacturer and guaranteed performance (already have wins behind them in ALMS and VLN).
'99 was their win, the last before the Audi group domination.
It'll certainly be an interesting entry. Luc Alphand was rumoured to be in negotiation to switch from Corvette to BMW before this factory team announcement. GT2 certainly has the potential to be the hot category next year, especially considering that the LMP teams will be reluctant to do too much before the new 2011 regulations.
Sportscar racing appears to be in rude health all thing considered as Audi have announced their plans for an expanded programme next year as well, including the new Le Mans Intercontinental Cup, which also entails entering 5 races in the Le Mans Series (not including the 24h). Combined with the new teams being announced and some familiar (to the masses) drivers coming into the series it all bodes well.
It'll certainly be an interesting entry. Luc Alphand was rumoured to be in negotiation to switch from Corvette to BMW before this factory team announcement. GT2 certainly has the potential to be the hot category next year, especially considering that the LMP teams will be reluctant to do too much before the new 2011 regulations.
Sportscar racing appears to be in rude health all thing considered as Audi have announced their plans for an expanded programme next year as well, including the new Le Mans Intercontinental Cup, which also entails entering 5 races in the Le Mans Series (not including the 24h). Combined with the new teams being announced and some familiar (to the masses) drivers coming into the series it all bodes well.
ccr32 said:
Will there be a GT3 class at LM this (next) year as well then? Or have they renumbered the classes or something?
Apologies - finger far from the pulse over here...
No, 2010 classes are (the traditional) LMP1, LMP2, GT1 and GT2.Apologies - finger far from the pulse over here...
The ACO have changed the rules in the GT classes to entice the FIA GT cars though.
Edited by Red Firecracker on Wednesday 9th December 11:44
Slurms said:
Wonder if this means Andy Priaulx will be driving at the LM24
Jörg Müller and Dirk Werner will be the regular drivers for the GT races. Andy Priaulx, Augusto Farfus and Dirk Müller will also be involved with the GT programme. Uwe Alzen and Dirk Adorf will also be in the team for the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring.
All according to t'internet, so take those details as you wish.
Munter said:
Digger Man said:
Its turning into a touring car race.!!!!!!!!!!!
...ummm...didn't it start as a touring car race?At a time when Grand Prix racing was occurring throughout Europe, Le Mans was envisioned as a different test from motorsports. Instead of focusing on the ability of a car company to build the fastest machines of the time, the 24 Hours of Le Mans would instead concentrate on the ability of manufacturers to build sporty yet reliable cars. This would drive innovation in not only reliable but also fuel-efficient vehicles, since the nature of endurance racing requires as little time to be spent in the pits as possible.
At the same time, due to the design of Le Mans, a drive would be created for better aerodynamics and stability of cars at high speeds. While this was shared with Grand Prix racing, few tracks in Europe featured straights the length of the Mulsanne. The fact that the road is public and therefore not maintained to the same quality as some permanent racing circuits also puts more of a strain on parts, causing more emphasis on reliability.
Beginning in the late 1970s, the demand for fuel economy from around the world led the race to adopt a fuel economy formula known as Group C in which competitors were given a set amount of fuel, from which they had to design an engine. Although Group C was abandoned when teams were able to master the fuel formulas, fuel economy would still be important to some teams as alternative fuel sources would appear in the early 21st century, attempting to overcome time spent during pit stops.
These technological innovations have had a trickle-down effect, with technology used at Le Mans finding its way into production cars several years later. This has also led to faster and more exotic supercars due to manufacturers wishing to develop faster road cars for the purposes of developing them into even faster GT cars.
The race field has usually consisted of approximately 50 competitors. Each car is required to have no fewer than two seats, although in recent years only the ability to place a seat in the cockpit has been understood but not enforced. No more than two doors are allowed; open cockpit cars do not require doors.
An Aston Martin DBR9, entrant in the GT class.Although all cars compete at the same time, there are separate classes. An overall winner is awarded at the end of the event, while class prizes are given as well.
Classes have varied over the years, but currently there are four. Custom-built Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) are the top two classes, LMP1 and LMP2, divided by speed, weight, and power output. The next two classes are production-based grand tourer (GT) classes, also divided by speed, weight, and power output as GT1 and GT2. Although the top class is the most likely winner of the event, lower classes have won on occasion due to better reliability.
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