[WEC] FIA World Endurance Championship

[fieldodreams79]

About the length issue at RoadATL, you could look at it as a negative or you could see it as a unique aspect that adds a little spice in comparison to other more "standard" world circuits. 50 cars with the world class WEC pilots can do just fine IMHO.

And Acid, I'm a huge Justin Beiber fan. You got a problem with that?

[Marcel ten Caat]

Problem is just that a full ALMS grid + full FIA WEC grid together in one race means you will exceed the maximum allowed for Road Atlanta.

[Aysedasi]

Originally Posted by fieldodreams79

About the length issue at RoadATL, you could look at it as a negative or you could see it as a unique aspect that adds a little spice in comparison to other more "standard" world circuits. 50 cars with the world class WEC pilots can do just fine IMHO.

And Acid, I'm a huge Justin Beiber fan. You got a problem with that?

Good God man, you're prepared to admit it openly on a public forum? Well, good on you for 'coming out'........

[fieldodreams79]

I love the fact JB has tons of money and every teenage girl wants him. He's music is dreadful.

Originally Posted by Marcel ten Caat

Problem is just that a full ALMS grid + full FIA WEC grid together in one race means you will exceed the maximum allowed for Road Atlanta.

Exclude Challenge cars and give them their own race on Friday. There's a way to make it happen.

[Speed-King]

Originally Posted by fieldodreams79

I love the fact JB has tons of money and every teenage girl wants him. He's music is dreadful.


Exclude Challenge cars and give them their own race on Friday. There's a way to make it happen.

Then you'll lose a bunch of them for the whole season. AJR and TGR said that they wouldn't do ALMS unless they got to do all the races.

[Victor_RO]

Originally Posted by fieldodreams79

Exclude Challenge cars and give them their own race on Friday. There's a way to make it happen.

The Challenge cars make some of their season budget by running two drivers for the season and then selling the third seat for the highest bidder for the long races. Cut them out of PLM and you've cut a sizeable portion of their budget.

[Marcel ten Caat]

Or cut the FIA WEC and you'll have a steady ALMS field at Petit Le Mans....oh, wait, that is what has happened.

It's either FIA WEC or ALMS...

[fieldodreams79]

No doubt adjustments had to be made and I don't know exactly what they could've or would've been but there WAS a way to include PLM.

[Marcel ten Caat]

The only way it could have joined the FIA WEC schedule is by ditching the ALMS. Like the European Le Mans Series teams were thrown out at Spa and Silverstone - which will now be FIA WEC rounds instead of joint rounds.

Had that happened the same people that now complain Petit is not on the WEC schedule would than have complained about how WEC stole Petit from the ALMS.

[fieldodreams79]

Originally Posted by Marcel ten Caat

The only way it could have joined the FIA WEC schedule is by ditching the ALMS. Like the European Le Mans Series teams were thrown out at Spa and Silverstone - which will now be FIA WEC rounds instead of joint rounds.

Had that happened the same people that now complain Petit is not on the WEC schedule would than have complained about how WEC stole Petit from the ALMS.

While that is possible, what is better for RoadATL? That's what I want and my opinion in this whole deal is obviously bias.

[FstrthnU]

Just a little something, here is the official WEC promo video (I believe they also showed this at the press conference) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W61zjvlAUz8&feature=g-u-u&context=G2dfebbaFUAAAAAAACAA

[HJJ]

Originally Posted by fieldodreams79

I told my dad last night that the PLM exclusion has a real chance at being the death nail for the track he saw just about every race from the day it opened until he got too busy with his boys and the track where we, as a family, spent many Saturdays growing up. It hurts.

Dude, not going to happen. One could say that the success of PLM was the jumping off point for the ACO to start the ILMC.

Right now I'm happy with a big end of season race for the ALMS not over shadowed by having it share the billing. It will still be a "big event" and never be like the spring IMSA race when they had two dates at the track. I still think with the automatic invites it will draw some ELMS teams as well as some "independent" entries.

Oh, and Krohn's Ferrari 458 sounded fantastic testing yesterday.

And the Bieber thing, you need to go to Sebring.

[joeb]

Originally Posted by fieldodreams79

I love the fact JB has tons of money and every teenage girl wants him. He's music is dreadful.

when I saw the initials "JB" and read dreadful music, I thought you were talking about me. Then I saw the part about girls and money and realized you must mean somebody else!

[fieldodreams79]

Originally Posted by joeb

when I saw the initials "JB" and read dreadful music, I thought you were talking about me. Then I saw the part about girls and money and realized you must mean somebody else!

Sorry for the scare.

Originally Posted by HJJ

Dude, not going to happen. One could say that the success of PLM was the jumping off point for the ACO to start the ILMC.

Right now I'm happy with a big end of season race for the ALMS not over shadowed by having it share the billing. It will still be a "big event" and never be like the spring IMSA race when they had two dates at the track. I still think with the automatic invites it will draw some ELMS teams as well as some "independent" entries.

Oh, and Krohn's Ferrari 458 sounded fantastic testing yesterday.

And the Bieber thing, you need to go to Sebring.

There is writing on the walls. The ALMS and RoadATL expanded at a rate that COULD end up being more detrimental than good. The ATL sprawl has found it's way towards the Hall and Jackson County area at an alarming rate and was only stopped by the recession. There are enough leftist and rightist closing in who either want to stop racing altogether to save whatever is the hippie flavor of the month or won't let you buy a beer within 1,000 feet of a church. If/when the ALMS falls apart, so will RoadATL and it will be left to someone willing to take on the 40 plus year track.

I like your optimism and hope you are right; I have always prepared for the worst and hoped for the best. I wish the best for the WEC and RoadATL and hope they can make something happen together in the future; I realize that there is still a possibility, but in the meantime, I plan on supporting both.

Wish I could make to Sebring to see all the Spring Break honeys and Audi's lone trip to the States this year, but ain't gonna happen. Me and the Old Man will be back together at RoadATL for a motor race the first time in over two decades for the Mitty this year. Hope to see you there.

[deggis]

Originally Posted by FstrthnU

Just a little something, here is the official WEC promo video (I believe they also showed this at the press conference) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W61zjvlAUz8&feature=g-u-u&context=G2dfebbaFUAAAAAAACAA

Looks like that is actually the old promo and new one put together:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qId_7Zs8zIE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gRUbjPg30k

Also the website has been updated, still under construction and still interesting English... http://www.fiawec.com

[Fogelhund]

This talk of WEC at Road Atlanta is beating a dead horse... not going to happen... unless you are proposing a Spring date.

[fieldodreams79]

My first time beating that horse here as comments that I normally ignore set me off this morning before adequate amounts caffeine were ingested.

Sure, make it a Spring race.

[AGD]

Originally Posted by Fogelhund

This talk of WEC at Road Atlanta is beating a dead horse... not going to happen... unless you are proposing a Spring date.

Yes, there is no hope for WEC-ALMS combo races at Road Atlanta. It's just not going to happen and the 2011 ILMC race at RATL was a "plan B" thing as well. A WEC stand alone at RATL in the spring? Maybe, but I'm not sure who is going to show up to see the THE WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP OF PRO-AM COST-CAPPED LMP2 RACING when a) the locals are cheesed off and b) the championship may not even have a local TV deal. But, hey, all these European "World Championships" think they can go to the US (or China or Bahrain) and think that everyone will adore them like Justin Bieber when they are more like Vanilla Ice in actuality.

♫Yo, man, let's get out of here
Word to your mother♫

[Gingers4Justice]

Originally Posted by Chiana

I'm actually starting to think that apart from Le Mans & Sebring the ALMS and ELMS races should actually provide much better spectacle than the WEC ones.

I think a race between myself and my little sister on my scalextric set has more spectacle than the ELMS this season!

Not even RML are racing in it.

[FordCosworthPanoz]

Originally Posted by AGD

Yes, there is no hope for WEC-ALMS combo races at Road Atlanta. It's just not going to happen and the 2011 ILMC race at RATL was a "plan B" thing as well. A WEC stand alone at RATL in the spring? Maybe, but I'm not sure who is going to show up to see the THE WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP OF PRO-AM COST-CAPPED LMP2 RACING when a) the locals are cheesed off and b) the championship may not even have a local TV deal. But, hey, all these European "World Championships" think they can go to the US (or China or Bahrain) and think that everyone will adore them like Justin Bieber when they are more like Vanilla Ice in actuality.

♫Yo, man, let's get out of here
Word to your mother♫

I think any hope of an American television deal (either live or highlights) for the WEC is dead, Leigh Diffey said on twitter that SPEED had no plans to air the WEC races "not that he knows of". Hopefully this does not equal no coverage of Le Mans as well. If SPEED has no interest, then no broadcaster in North America will. American fans will probably have to rely on AudiTV or ACO TV, which outside of Zhuhai worked pretty well.

[chernaudi]

Speed still has rights to the 24 Hours of Le Mans--I heard something about some contract extension last year.

[FordCosworthPanoz]

Originally Posted by chernaudi

Speed still has rights to the 24 Hours of Le Mans--I heard something about some contract extension last year.

Good news.

[chernaudi]

Problem is that, for now at least, leaves North America in the dark outside of Sebring (ESPN thanks to the ALMS' TV contract) and Le Mans (Speed's LM24 contract).

Isn't it ironic one of the reasons why the ACO partnered with the FIA on the WEC was that the FIA was supposed to help promote the series. But then again, sportscar racing has always sort of been a niche/cult sport in NA, and unless the FIA throws a lot of weight behind it, that's probably not gonna change unless NASCAR implodes, which in spite of their screw ups (such as not promoting Grand Am for one and making it more inline with "traditional" sportscar racing and not making it an ALMS/LM/NASCAR hybrid, to name two), isn't likely unless someone really causes them to file for Chapter 11 overnight, which would mean that someone would have to squander quite a bit of money or make a really badly failed investment.

Even with the FIA involved and Todt wanting to build on the NA market for sportscar racing and F1, I wouldn't be surprised if no real NA TV package outside of Sebring and LM comes up this year, which likely won't please Audi or Toyota, as both probably don't want to have to spend money on separate ALMS programs for NA promotional purposes.

[deggis]

Earlier (last year) there was some worry about testing restrictions since they were mentioned in the WMSC decisions:

In order to control costs, there will be limits on private testing and the number of engines used during a season.

Whether or not those plans were supposed to be for the this year, there aren't considerable restrictions regarding testing in the 2012 sporting regs (page 32). What there is though sounds pretty smart:

- "Any private testing day must be declared to the Promoter with at least 30 days’ notice"
- then ACO will inform the date and place to other WEC teams, who can then join the test and this can not refused
- unless the team who had reserved the circuit originally declares it an exclusive testing day, limited to 10 pear year (and in this case 30 days' notice isn't needed)
- tests can not take place withing 48 days of WEC race on the same circuit

I guess you might see top teams on the same test more often and this should help private teams.

Also the regs say that same engine as to be used for qualifying and the race, but wasn't it already like that? At least at LM.

[Victor_RO]

Originally Posted by deggis

Also the regs say that same engine as to be used for qualifying and the race, but wasn't it already like that? At least at LM.

Yep, been listening to the 2009 RLM race broadcast and that rule is mentioned in there, so at least for Le Mans that rule is already 3 years old.