2017 24 Hours of Daytona

Kiante said:
Doesn't matter how great of shape someone is, fatigue will take it's toll.
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Sorry, but my studies here at RF has ruled out endurance racing and fatigue as an issue. in todays plush race cars. Anything more than a continous 90 minutes is to much, probably 60 minutes.
After that they need a full course caution to bunch of the feild, and see the excitement of what the restart lanes will be.
Cause 24 hours or a 500 mies of racing just aint it no more, got to sex it up with some enhancements.

They could have at least done did a score of
Segments with p1-10 points awards, and winner interviews with all 4 classes . They did a good job of fully exhausting the caution time potential, usually for 10 minutes or more each just needed them segments. Them segment points, a little lugnut drama, and a little scoring confusion would make it much better. The thing desperately needs one of Brians weekly surveys and his applied wisdom.
 
On the hunt for some team victory merch. Anyone seen anything yet?
 
DUN24 said:
This was ******* awesome. I need to get to this race someday.


This sport is looking healthy. Big up's to IMSA for the hard work the past few years.
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Even got a headline on the front page of ESPN.com..

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Watching on TV,they had completely different commercials on than what is typical of a NASCAR race.This race is definitely on my bucket list,wife said she would go if we could stop at outlets on I-95 outside Jacksonville.Can anyone tell me if prices on hotel rooms are jacked up liked NASCAR races with minimum 3 day stays.How expensive a trip is it?
 
darlingtonfan said:
Watching on TV,they had completely different commercials on than what is typical of a NASCAR race.This race is definitely on my bucket list,wife said she would go if we could stop at outlets on I-95 outside Jacksonville.Can anyone tell me if prices on hotel rooms are jacked up liked NASCAR races with minimum 3 day stays.How expensive a trip is it?
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I would definitely plan ahead as they were pretty jacked up this year, the most I've seen for the Rolex so far. Most of the stuff on Speedway Blvd. and A1A seemed high, with a few exceptions, so don't be afraid to look in Ormond Beach or Deland or something.
 
FLRacingFan said:
:mad:
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The 'Vette was down on pace all weekend.

I wonder if Chevy really wants to go the mid-engined route because even Porsche is moving the engine to more a of mid-engine than rear engine configuration. They were down on pace and top speed, it was just not enough for the Ford, Porsche, or Ferrari. Its still going to be a great season though, that was a fun race.
 
Kiante said:
The 'Vette was down on pace all weekend.

I wonder if Chevy really wants to go the mid-engined route because even Porsche is moving the engine to more a of mid-engine than rear engine configuration. They were down on pace and top speed, it was just not enough for the Ford, Porsche, or Ferrari. Its still going to be a great season though, that was a fun race.
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They'll probably have to honestly, Porsche knew what was coming with the GT and 488 and got it rectified quickly. This is year four of the C7.R so they'll have to put out something new in the near future to compete with these guys. Not sure how well the fan boys will take it but as long as it isn't turbocharged they should be okay.
 
FLRacingFan said:
They'll probably have to honestly, Porsche knew what was coming with the GT and 488 and got it rectified quickly. This is year four of the C7.R so they'll have to put out something new in the near future to compete with these guys. Not sure how well the fan boys will take it but as long as it isn't turbocharged they should be okay.
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I'd be bummed to see them move the engine to the rear(mid). If they are going to move anything, I'd hope the engine stays in front of the driver and everything gets moved back. The front end of those cars are pretty large so they might still be able to stick to their roots while adapting?
 
DUN24 said:
I'd be bummed to see them move the engine to the rear(mid). If they are going to move anything, I'd hope the engine stays in front of the driver and everything gets moved back. The front end of those cars are pretty large so they might still be able to stick to their roots while adapting?
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We shall see, the BMW M6 didn't fair too well nor did the Aston and both are front engined.

Its safe to say that most manufacturers will go the mid-engined route because of the overall balance of the car. If you saw the onboard of Pilet those turning those laps in the Porsche. There was no fuss in steering input. It didn't oversteer or understeer that often and the car looked composed throughout the race in dry, mixed, and wet conditions.

Chevy is reluctant, but I think the change will happen sooner than later. The V8s' are pretty solid on fuel efficiency as well, its not time to put on the t'chargers just yet.
 
Could you guys see Lewis Hamilton doing this race some day? Seems right up his alley. And the draw would be huge.
 
Kiante said:
We shall see, the BMW M6 didn't fair too well nor did the Aston and both are front engined.

Its safe to say that most manufacturers will go the mid-engined route because of the overall balance of the car. If you saw the onboard of Pilet those turning those laps in the Porsche. There was no fuss in steering input. It didn't oversteer or understeer that often and the car looked composed throughout the race in dry, mixed, and wet conditions.

Chevy is reluctant, but I think the change will happen sooner than later. The V8s' are pretty solid on fuel efficiency as well, its not time to put on the t'chargers just yet.
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The M6 has major issues, BMW has been totally irrelevant with that car and already building an new model to debut next year. Aston, I'm not sure how, but they did pretty well in the WEC last year. That car is old as hell as well too though and they'll have to come out with something new, because with Ford and Ferrari having a full year of competition completed now they have all of the kinks worked out.
 
Greg said:
Taylor was there, a fender inside works for me, close the door at your own risk.
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I agree. If this were Nascar, it's not even worth discussing as the rules and customs concerning contact are more liberal. However, I love the irony of that move putting Jeff Gordon in victory circle. Has Jeff called his teammate a dipsh!t yet for driving like that?
 
What a race!!!! There were battles at the end of the race in just about every class. The GTLM class is what NASCAR should look like, 4 manufacutrers fighting it out for the lead with an hour left. All 4 cars look like they have been taken right off the showroom floor with the exception of the rear wing. The Prototype class had an amazing finish too with two great teams fighting it out for hours on end. Wish the final pass could have been cleaner but the cars were so evenly matched there was no way that was going to happen.

Just an outstanding race to watch!!!! Can't wait for Sebring! Go IMSA!!
 
Charlie Spencer said:
Yeah, 6 out of 11 GTLM entries, 3 manufacturers, not just on the lead lap but all together, after 23 hours without needing Lucky Dogs or wave-arounds. When a sanctioning body attempts to equalize manufacturer differences, these are the results it's aiming for.
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They do have a sort of wave-around procedure but it never really seemed to come into play. The parity in GTLM is incredible.
 
FLRacingFan said:
The parity in GTLM is incredible.
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At one point we had four different GT manufacturers nose-to-tail fighting for the win. It doesn't get any better than that.

DPI is a little less balanced since the Caddys seemed to have the speed edge on the others, and with two of the three suffering no mechanical or electrical issues at all, that's pretty decent reliability.

The rest of the DPIs suffered all kinds of piddly little issues, though the visit Florida Riley/Gibson had a pretty clean run, and it was not that far off the outright pace. On the banks the Caddys ate that car up, but remember Riley cars traditionally carry a ton of downforce. That car will be really good at some of the other tracks.

Mazda had decent pace, and actually led for a bit, but they have to dial out some reliability issues, and then they will be a threat.

The Nissan came together so late that it's a miracle either of them finished, and early on they were to that far off. A few more miles on that car and it will be really good.

Mostly I like the new cars in spite of some aesthetic issues. The longer the race went on, the less offended I was by even the big mouth bass they call the Nissan DPI (arguably one of the ugliest cars of all time), but if we can get used to today's hideous looking F1 cars, there is hope we can learn to love the Nissan too, especially if they can get into the fight a little better.

Initially I was disappointed there were only 12 prototypes and 54 cars overall, but every entry was pure quality. We will probably lose a few DPIs after Sebring, but then again, we only had six Daytona Prototypes for their debut, and only three at the next race. Eventually that became a pretty healthy class, so there's real hope the DPIs could become modern day GTPs.

There is plenty of talk about other cars coming, and lots of us think the economy is about to turn around. As healthy as P2 is overseas, the DPIs getting a good start, and GT racing as good as it has ever been, there is plenty of reason to be hopeful we might be seeing a new golden age of sportscar racing.
 
Also, let's not make the same mistake the Indycar fans made in tearing their own sport apart with petty bickering. Let's embrace and support what we have, even if we don't like some of it, and create a good vibe that will hopefully draw in new fans.

Something else I failed to mention is that Jeff Gordon winning the race can only help IMSA. With Angelelli retiring, Taylor is talking about bringing in a European driver for the endurance races. As much fun as Jeff seemed to have, I don't see what would be wrong with giving him some more endurance races. He didn't do that badly and only made one simple mistake on cold tires, and hopefully he learned not to do that again. Even some of the veteran like Fittipaldi fell off the road on cold tires. That, and Brendan Hartley (a world sportscar champion) ate the safer barrier on cold tires, so Gordon has little to be ashamed of. Considering Gordon's lack of experience in such deplorable conditions, he did rather well.

If Gordon gets some DPI time there is no doubt he can find the speed, and the attention having him in the series, even if for only a few races, would be golden for the series profile. It would not kill us if all the Jeff Gordon fans showed up at Watkins Glen to see him race. The only question is whether or not he would be willing to do it, and like I say, he did seem to really be enjoying itself.
 
Nothing to be embarrassed about when a 'too many championships to count' driver like Pruett eats a large serving of wall while the sun was still shining.

I raised the same question about Gordon in another discussion, and was reminded he's tied up with his Fox broadcasting job until July. That rules out Sebring. I'm optimistic about the Glen, a track he's already familiar with and has frequently expressed interest in running 'The Boot'. I'm not venturing any guesses about Atlanta, although it is close to home...
 
Charlie Spencer said:
Nothing to be embarrassed about when a 'too many championships to count' driver like Pruett eats a large serving of wall while the sun was still shining.
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To be fair, he's over 50 and hasn't raced in over a year.

I raised the same question about Gordon in another discussion, and was reminded he's tied up with his Fox broadcasting job until July. That rules out Sebring.
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All contracts are negotiable. I'm sure they could draft in Carl Edwards (for example) just for one race.

I'm optimistic about the Glen, a track he's already familiar with and has frequently expressed interest in running 'The Boot'. I'm not venturing any guesses about Atlanta, although it is close to home...
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The biggest obstacle is learning the car. Jeff says he read a manual on the steering wheel that went on for page after page. Learning circuits is easy enough with sims and video games, not to mention simply driving around in a rental car or on a bicycle. Add to that Gordon is an exceptional talent an I can't see many worries about whether he can be competitive or not.

I just think it would be terrific for the series and sportscar racing in general.
 
Gordon has run the 24 hours before so he is no rookie, but he might be considered a rookie for the current car.
 
Jeff will be in the 10 later this year, One of the overnight clips they did was that they inked that deal 2 years ago, and jeff is a full time alternate on that ride, +/- his FOX and hendrick obligations.

It has definitely become a 24 hour sprint race. I think the new fueling rules helped balance the field as well. It made driver changes and brake changes much less critical. As the 10 showed, you could completely F up a pit stop and still be competitive. Doesn't happen too often in nascar.
 
Doc Austin said:
At one point we had four different GT manufacturers nose-to-tail fighting for the win. It doesn't get any better than that.

DPI is a little less balanced since the Caddys seemed to have the speed edge on the others, and with two of the three suffering no mechanical or electrical issues at all, that's pretty decent reliability.

The rest of the DPIs suffered all kinds of piddly little issues, though the visit Florida Riley/Gibson had a pretty clean run, and it was not that far off the outright pace. On the banks the Caddys ate that car up, but remember Riley cars traditionally carry a ton of downforce. That car will be really good at some of the other tracks.

Mazda had decent pace, and actually led for a bit, but they have to dial out some reliability issues, and then they will be a threat.

The Nissan came together so late that it's a miracle either of them finished, and early on they were to that far off. A few more miles on that car and it will be really good.

Mostly I like the new cars in spite of some aesthetic issues. The longer the race went on, the less offended I was by even the big mouth bass they call the Nissan DPI (arguably one of the ugliest cars of all time), but if we can get used to today's hideous looking F1 cars, there is hope we can learn to love the Nissan too, especially if they can get into the fight a little better.

Initially I was disappointed there were only 12 prototypes and 54 cars overall, but every entry was pure quality. We will probably lose a few DPIs after Sebring, but then again, we only had six Daytona Prototypes for their debut, and only three at the next race. Eventually that became a pretty healthy class, so there's real hope the DPIs could become modern day GTPs.

There is plenty of talk about other cars coming, and lots of us think the economy is about to turn around. As healthy as P2 is overseas, the DPIs getting a good start, and GT racing as good as it has ever been, there is plenty of reason to be hopeful we might be seeing a new golden age of sportscar racing.
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I think Cadillac had a lot of faith in the reliability of the engine, more so than the other teams did in theirs. ESM only got their car in late December and barely had miles on it (Roar, and a couple of shakedowns at Sebring and PBIR). VFR got their Riley awfully late as well and had issues pop up a few different times this month, and as you said, the Riley has a lot of inherent downforce in it that can't really be trimmed out. The ORECA (particularly Rebellion) had pretty solid pace although they obviously had issues. I am most disappointed in Mazda; seems like they're always behind on reliability and it's even worse considering they had so long to develop the new car just as Cadillac did.

I am still confident on another OEM or two coming on board in the next year or two, namely HPD/Acura/Honda coming back next year. Maybe at some point Bentley and/or Mercedes decide to hop on as well. It's a pretty good debut car count and maybe the best part is that all four chassis are represented, whereas in the WEC it looks like it's going to be Formula ORECA (ELMS looks solid though).
 
FLRacingFan said:
I think Cadillac had a lot of faith in the reliability of the engine, more so than the other teams did in theirs. ESM only got their car in late December and barely had miles on it (Roar, and a couple of shakedowns at Sebring and PBIR). VFR got their Riley awfully late as well and had issues pop up a few different times this month, and as you said, the Riley has a lot of inherent downforce in it that can't really be trimmed out. The ORECA (particularly Rebellion) had pretty solid pace although they obviously had issues. I am most disappointed in Mazda; seems like they're always behind on reliability and it's even worse considering they had so long to develop the new car just as Cadillac did.

I am still confident on another OEM or two coming on board in the next year or two, namely HPD/Acura/Honda coming back next year. Maybe at some point Bentley and/or Mercedes decide to hop on as well. It's a pretty good debut car count and maybe the best part is that all four chassis are represented, whereas in the WEC it looks like it's going to be Formula ORECA (ELMS looks solid though).
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I wonder if the series will still be around come the next five years or so. Considering formula E is going to continue to grow, will the considering cost factor be the demise of WEC? I can see the field continuing to grow IMHO for FE.
 
Kiante said:
I wonder if the series will still be around come the next five years or so. Considering formula E is going to continue to grow, will the considering cost factor be the demise of WEC? I can see the field continuing to grow IMHO for FE.
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If Audi leaving and going to Formula E wasn't a wakeup call I don't know what would be. They seem to have taken notice, but I wonder if it's too late. They need to get a Peugeot or BMW in the game as soon as possible. I'm not sure they even get to 60 for Le Mans this year unless they had a ton of applications from IMSA/ELMS/AsLMS. There's not much point in being in LMP1 Privateer, GTE-Am has like four cars, LMP2 is going to have literally all of one chassis unless there's a big surprise at the end of the week. I'm sure the Porsche-Toyota battles will be fun still and GTE-Pro will be a big draw for the foreseeable future but there's a lot of work left to do for sure.
 
FLRacingFan said:
If Audi leaving and going to Formula E wasn't a wakeup call I don't know what would be. They seem to have taken notice, but I wonder if it's too late. They need to get a Peugeot or BMW in the game as soon as possible. I'm not sure they even get to 60 for Le Mans this year unless they had a ton of applications from IMSA/ELMS/AsLMS. There's not much point in being in LMP1 Privateer, GTE-Am has like four cars, LMP2 is going to have literally all of one chassis unless there's a big surprise at the end of the week. I'm sure the Porsche-Toyota battles will be fun still and GTE-Pro will be a big draw for the foreseeable future but there's a lot of work left to do for sure.
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Too much internal competition for the FIA, WEC will probably fold later on.

I wonder who would be interested in taking that LMP1 slot left by Audi? Would be cool to see Bentley, but anything VAG related I doubt we will see. Maybe, Ferrari will see it as an opportunity to push another brand? (Alfa or Maserati)

I doubt Peugeot is interested, it would be cool to see Renault or Citroen. I'd say, I would be pleading to get Sebastian Loeb into WEC to bring in Citroen, call it crazy, but it might be something as a "last resort" considering Loeb is trying to win every fooking major event possible. WEC needs another major brand though, but I doubt the interest is really there now considering the insane cost of WEC and developing an LMP1 car. Get a major name, but the only guys I could see with some weight is a Bourdais or Loeb right now IMHO that would be willing to get the French to invest into the series again.
 
Kiante said:
Too much internal competition for the FIA, WEC will probably fold later on.

I wonder who would be interested in taking that LMP1 slot left by Audi? Would be cool to see Bentley, but anything VAG related I doubt we will see. Maybe, Ferrari will see it as an opportunity to push another brand? (Alfa or Maserati)

I doubt Peugeot is interested, it would be cool to see Renault or Citroen. I'd say, I would be pleading to get Sebastian Loeb into WEC to bring in Citroen, call it crazy, but it might be something as a "last resort" considering Loeb is trying to win every fooking major event possible. WEC needs another major brand though, but I doubt the interest is really there now considering the insane cost of WEC and developing an LMP1 car. Get a major name, but the only guys I could see with some weight is a Bourdais or Loeb right now IMHO that would be willing to get the French to invest into the series again.
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Peugeot has said they're interested because they a) got their financials back in order and b) won Dakar, but they still have cost concerns. Hence why the regulations freeze and all of the waivers/allocations they're willing to give new OEMs. BMW had a proposal for LMP1 last year but their board voted it down.

It is crucial they get at least one, because if Porsche or Toyota leave then I think the other follows as well. Then, what becomes the top class at Le Mans? Privateer LMP1s? LMP2? Not good.
 
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