2018/2019 WEC

[Sevach]

It might surprise you, but some of us actually followed WEC before mister Alonso, because you know... We like racing.

Different priorities see.

Racing at the LMP2 and GT levels, sure. LMP1, not so much.

Agreed. Drop LMP1 and LMP2 and bring in a GT1 category which is a silhouette class where the restrictions are a roll cage fitted and use the same engine as a road going version. Also to reduce the chance of homologation specials, 50 road going examples have to have been sold.

So you can get Bugattis, Keonigseggs and Pagani racing which currently they can't.

You might be getting your wish.

https://www.motorsport.com/wec/news/fia ... 1-1044922/

[VARIANT | one]

It might surprise you, but some of us actually followed WEC before mister Alonso, because you know... We like racing.

Different priorities see.

Racing at the LMP2 and GT levels, sure. LMP1, not so much.

Agreed. Drop LMP1 and LMP2 and bring in a GT1 category which is a silhouette class where the restrictions are a roll cage fitted and use the same engine as a road going version. Also to reduce the chance of homologation specials, 50 road going examples have to have been sold.

So you can get Bugattis, Keonigseggs and Pagani racing which currently they can't.

Ewww... no. The BOP'd Rodeo Drive art-cars are the worst part of sports car racing, IMO. They just need to pick a solid formula for P1. Give 'em a baseline powertrain kg range, let the engineers work out of hybrid, diesel, or whatever is ideal.

[graham.reeds]

And that is why you get a 1 make series because no private team can spend £250 million a year on costs.

I remember when there were Listers, Vipers, McLarens, Lotuses, Panoz, Marcos, Ferrari, Aston Martins and Corvettes. All run as private or semi-private entries. Then along came Porsche and Mercedes *factory* entries, made homologation specials and killed the opposition.

Even when there were 4 marques in the LMP1 series it was pretty hollow as the Nissan was nowhere near the pace.

Currently there are multiple producers of sports cars which have zero sports pedigree as they have never been raced. Pagani, Keonigsegg, Bugattis and the future Aston Martin are all multi million dollar show ponies. Stick a roll cage in them, add a bit of downforce and prove that they are a sports car. No balance of power.

Toyota will win Le Mans and then wind up the team. The 19/20 season could be the first where there will be no big marques in LMP1 and all being non-hybrid. Then smaller marques may decide to try to steal some cheap glory and then the big marques will return and outspend everyone else so everyone else quits. LMP1 with factory teams does not work.

[roon]

[VARIANT | one]

And that is why you get a 1 make series because no private team can spend £250 million a year on costs.

I remember when there were Listers, Vipers, McLarens, Lotuses, Panoz, Marcos, Ferrari, Aston Martins and Corvettes. All run as private or semi-private entries. Then along came Porsche and Mercedes *factory* entries, made homologation specials and killed the opposition.

Even when there were 4 marques in the LMP1 series it was pretty hollow as the Nissan was nowhere near the pace.

Currently there are multiple producers of sports cars which have zero sports pedigree as they have never been raced. Pagani, Keonigsegg, Bugattis and the future Aston Martin are all multi million dollar show ponies. Stick a roll cage in them, add a bit of downforce and prove that they are a sports car. No balance of power.

Toyota will win Le Mans and then wind up the team. The 19/20 season could be the first where there will be no big marques in LMP1 and all being non-hybrid. Then smaller marques may decide to try to steal some cheap glory and then the big marques will return and outspend everyone else so everyone else quits. LMP1 with factory teams does not work.

Whoopie. Then you get a bunch of brand fanbois (because, let's be honest here, endurance racing fans aren't exactly driver centric/loyal and in it for the athleticism ), that justify the "technological superiority" of their favorite car that won in a system closer to the WWE than real competition. Lame.

IMHO, you got engineers competing in stuff like P1, and drivers competing in a spec series like Indycar. If you like tech and the cars themselves, you watch the first, if you like driving as a test of human skill, you watch the second. Everything in-between is a mire of compromises.

[bill shoe]

Demsey-Proton, a production-body GT team using Porsche customer racing cars, has been caught cheating via a fuel sensor that intentionally misreports how long the fuel hose was connected to the car during pit stops. The minimum time per the rules is 45 seconds, but the cheating sensor apparently added 2 seconds via a simple modification to a line of software. So the team only needed to be connected for 43 seconds to achieve a 45 second reading.

The team blamed this cheat on an outside consultant. The FIA asked Demsey-Proton who this consultant was, but the team declined to provide information about this outside consultant or even provide evidence that this person existed. There has been some gray-area activity going on in endurance racing recently, including refueling issues, but nothing this simple and blatant.

article-
https://racer.com/2018/11/17/dempsey-pr ... stigation/

link to FIA decision-
https://racerdigital.files.wordpress.co ... ion-13.pdf

[Maritimer]

All the GTE teams cheat, Dempsey just got caught playing catch up to the rest

[etusch]

What is the thing which assembled rear end of differantial and tied somewhere with belt? Generator motor ?

[Maritimer]

Looks like a scavenge pump to me, has big insulated lines to and from it

[Morteza]

Crazy weather conditions in this race
Stoffel Vandoorne finished 3rd in LMP1 and also Pastor Maldonado won in LMP2

[bill shoe]

This March's "Super-Sebring" combo with WEC & IMSA was a big hit with teams and fans, but the general assumption was it would be a one-off. But WEC & IMSA just announced another Super-Sebring for 2020! Excellent for everyone!

link to typical press release-https://www.sebringraceway.com/news/336 ... arch-18-21

[FrukostScones]

https://www.fiawec.com/en/race/result/4602

MAL!

[turbof1]

So part of the f1technical staff, including myself, was present during the race!

Crazy, crazy weather conditions. It wasn't just the snow, it was also the very unpredictable weather. During the first hour, the start was sunny, turned into a snow storm very quickly, then it cleared in a matter of a dozen minutes, then we got hail/rain/melting snow, again a quick transition to sunny conditions, etc. In the final hour, temperatures plunged to 2 degrees celcius. There was no strategy, there was no control over the race. It was purely the drivers enduring the elements. Very unique experience.

Awesome performance by Vandoorne. In lmp1 if you are not in a toyota, the best you can hope to achieve is 3th spot on the podium. Shame Button left though; he would certainly loved these conditions.

We'll get some of our pictures up of the event soon.

[roon]

[Duckman]

... Then along came Porsche and Mercedes *factory* entries, made homologation specials and killed the opposition.

The Mercedes entry nearly killed their own drivers tbf.