The future of the WEC

Not entirely sure it’s within the spirit of the rules but with GTE-Pro going away next season, Corvette have cleverly managed to keep a factory effort on the grid in GTE-Am with the signing of Ben Keating. 1 car each in IMSA and WEC before the new Z06 GT3.R debuts in 2024.

 
Doc Austin said:
Any idea how much one of those spec hybrid units weigh?
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I’m not sure about the weight of the hybrid components themselves but the overall minimum dry weight of the car is a good bit chunkier compared to their predecessors.

Hybrid LMP1 - 875 kg
DPi - 930 kg
LMH/LMDh - 1030 kg

Interestingly enough, lap times in LMDh testing so far are rumored to be quicker than anyone anticipated. Supposedly at Daytona there was one car that was bombing it into turn 1 north of 200 MPH, which has been a spooky number for insurance reasons at the track. They were supposed to be slower than DPi but might actually have to be pegged back a bit.
 
You know they aren't going to let the LMDh cars be faster than a hypersled. We've had a good safety run with these P2 and DPI cars, so maybe keeping the speeds at sensible is a good idea.
 


Ferrari 499P Hypercar Unveiled | dailysportscar.com

Ferrari have taken the wraps off their race-liveried Hypercar for the first time, with confirmation too that the new-for-2023 car will be named the Ferrari 499P. The car was revealed at a gala dinner at Imola as part of the festivities for Ferrari's annual Finali Mondiali festival. Liveried in...
www.dailysportscar.com www.dailysportscar.com
 
I revisited the first few pages of this thread today and it's shocking how much a lot of our attitudes about the series has changed. Most of us were disgusted by how badly everything had been run, but look at the enthusiasm we have going for sportscar racing now.

Everything got turned around in a very short time thanks to the convergence. As sportscar fans, we have a lot to be thankful for.
 
Well, God help me, but I am looking forward to Bahrain this weekend. I have been pretty critical of WEC, but only out of frustration. Next year we are going to see what WEC can really be. I'm glad this era is almost over, but at least it's going out with a bang.

I have a gut feeling that Peugeot is going to get in the fight, which is not what the other two teams need with the championship on the line.

I think Alpine has had a remarkable year. They have made the most out of any favorable BOP and minimized the damage when they had a bad one. When they can win, they do it in style and when they don't, they are still picking up points. They are very much the underdog here and you know how I love those. This could be the biggest upset we have ever seen, which makes viewing Bahrain a serious must-watch.


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Alpine got absolutely hosed this weekend with BoP.

Could have had an epic championship bout today in LMH.
 
Wow.

So, the 51 can STILL lose the championship. The spots lost by the 51 by/and if the GTE-Am cars will count towards its championship battle. The car that has to pass the 51 for it to lose the championship? It does not count towards the manufacturer championship OTOH.

Iron Dames.
 
Not a terrible season overall. I don’t think Alpine were ever going to be “allowed” to win Le Mans or the championship on pure pace but could elsewhere, and they did win two races out of it - two more than anyone probably expected.

Ah well, time to really usher in the new era. So many Hypercar and GT3 entries to look forward to over the next couple of years, the series’ most competitive days are still ahead.
 
FLRacingFan said:
Not a terrible season overall. I don’t think Alpine were ever going to be “allowed” to win Le Mans or the championship on pure pace but could elsewhere,
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It's hard to believe the WEC would actually rig their championship, but there has to be a good explanation for why Alpine faded so badly in the last two races.

I do believe they stacked the deck for Lemans though. That was an embarrassing blowout.
FLRacingFan said:
Ah well, time to really usher in the new era. So many Hypercar and GT3 entries to look forward to over the next couple of years, the series’ most competitive days are still ahead.
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I think this year wasn't that great, but I cut the series some slack because next year will be better. Hypercar got off to a slow start because the manufacturers didn't all jump in right away. This was sort of a stop-gap season and considering that, it could have been a lot worse. At least we had a fight into the finale, so from that standpoint it was a success.
 
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