Quote:
Originally Posted by Pandamasque
The biggest problem with Vantage is that it didn't get the treatment that DBR9 had. They should have raced it competitively for a few years and then sell a lot of them to privateers, it would be a top machine by now. Instead they were busy with LMP1 and hoping the V8 will sort itself out somehow.
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This is a fair point and I think it shows the reason why AMR has struggled the last few years. I think they have simply bitten off more than they can chew. Developing the Lola-V12 and "developing" the Vantage at the same time was probably pushing it given their budget, but then developing a totally new in-house LMP1 while "developing" the Vantage takes the strain to a whole new level. Focusing on the Vantage while ignoring everything else might enable them to get back into gear. We'll see though. They have some work to do and who knows what their budget situation is like at the moment. If nothing else, as KA said, just having some stability and everyone working in the same direction should help tremendously. I just hope they don't try to take (politic for) any shortcuts.
Also, getting some fresh ideas into the organization may be beneficial after a disastrous season. I hope this discussion isn't off topic given the new GH-C thread, but wasn't GH-C given some new responsibilities/job title within AMR this season? Something about him focusing on just the factory team instead of all the privateer efforts? Maybe that did not work so well. It's hard to say from the outside.
Speaking of the privateers, what is AMR's relationship like with the privateers at the moment? Has the AMR-Jota situation been settled as far as deposits and stuff go? How is working with AMR different than working with Porsche and Ferrari? Could that situation be improved? I wonder how AMR running factory Vantages will impact the privateer situation. It could lead to a better car for privateers, but teams may not want to compete against the factory. We'll have to see how that shakes out because I know the privateers are an important revenue stream for AMR.