IMSA: USCR 2018

[hondafan37]

VFR could switch to Cadillac DPI in 2018
http://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/vi...switch-to-dpi/

[Matt]

Which says more about how awful the Mazda is more than anything.

[chernaudi]

I guess we now know part of the motive for VFR/SOD favoring making DPI and LMP2 two separate classes. The other could be them maybe taking on a pay driver if necessary to keep funding if Visit Florida pulls their sponsorship.

However, the article does state that the team still feels that BOP has put LMP2s at a disadvantage (though it doesn't help that we all know that the Riley, especially in base form, is junk).

[joeb]

Originally Posted by hondafan37

VFR could switch to Cadillac DPI in 2018
http://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/vi...switch-to-dpi/

The easy option would be to switch to Mazda since they already have the correct chassis, but I would not blame them at all for wanting a Caddy.

Flis seems to make the argument that you need a DPI to be competitive for the season championship, and this is me reading between the lines, but having a P2 win a race or two isn't good enough for him.

[chernaudi]

Originally Posted by Matt

Which says more about how awful the Mazda is more than anything.

Don't you mean how bad the Riley is in basic ACO form? As in by far the slowest LMP2 car at LM and that at least the Mazda can get upgrades while the Riley itself basically can't?

At least a Mazda podiumed two races in a row. VFR has been no where since they podiumed at Daytona.

[canaglia]

Team using the worst car, wishes to get his hands on the best car. Simple.

[TzeiTzei]

Was it Van der Zande who said that the Riley is 60kg over the weightlimit?

[AoB Special Stage]

Originally Posted by TzeiTzei

Was it Van der Zande who said that the Riley is 60kg over the weightlimit?

Considering I can't find any evidence of this interview anywhere, I can't say. Does anyone know when and where this was said?

[TF110]

One thing no one has mentioned is that the Cadillac is currently the only DPi available to customers! The article tries to make it seem like there's a choice, but the quotes from the team are that they need to make a decision by Mosport, days from now. And since the only one with a customer option is the Caddy, it's obvious they're the only choice (not just because they're fast).

[Akrapovic]

Can anyone buy a Caddy? I thought they picked those teams specifically.

Although as you say, if you were given a choice it isn't hard is it. Who is buying a Mazda?

[Matt]

Yep, anyone can get it.

[canaglia]

as far I remember, ESM has 2 years exclusivity contract to use the nissan package, GM is open for team requests, can't remember if mazda dpi are for sales too... the latter guess will be available only if speedsource will decide to sell his current cars to get new riley chassis

[chernaudi]

ESM's Nissan deal is pretty much exclusive to them right now unless they, Onroak and Nissan make it available. The Mazda, probably in part due to Multimatic working out that car's kinks, isn't currently available and I'm not sure how soon it will be.

When you consider that WTR is basically a quasi-factory team and AXR is kinda being seen by GM as Audi Sport saw Champion in the ALMS, it does stand to reason that Cadillac had allowances for more semi-works private teams running the cars. IMO, that's not a ton different than Penske running Porsche's factory LMP2 team while Dyson was a semi-works private/customer team. Big difference here is that Penske did often get better equipment (such as getting updates quicker, which has been Porsche's model when they ran factory teams alongside customer teams), while the Cadillac DPIs are pretty much equal, only the teams are the big difference.

[JHamilton]

Clarification from Racer over Atherton's comments re: prototype split. http://www.racer.com/imsa/item/14201...e-class-142012

[AoB Special Stage]

Well that settles that. Also, could Pruett calm down with the [unnecessary] annotations in brackets, please?

[TzeiTzei]

Originally Posted by AoB Special Stage

Considering I can't find any evidence of this interview anywhere, I can't say. Does anyone know when and where this was said?

Hmm... might have been at the Le Mans race thread. It was something like a dutch tv interview.

[carbsmith]

SoD was obviously trying to get a Cadillac for this season and couldn't get a deal, not exactly a shock they still want one.

Originally Posted by chernaudi

at least the Mazda can get upgrades while the Riley itself basically can't?

I wouldn't worry about that. Multimatic has already set up the excuse that the car is undercooled, and it's a simple process to get permission from the ACO for "reliability" upgrades, which in this case would happen to be a complete bodywork rework.

[AoB Special Stage]

http://www.racer.com/imsa/item/14201...rida-promotion

Desperate much?

[TzeiTzei]

Originally Posted by AoB Special Stage

http://www.racer.com/imsa/item/14201...rida-promotion

Desperate much?

Not at all.

[Akrapovic]

Originally Posted by JHamilton

Clarification from Racer over Atherton's comments re: prototype split. http://www.racer.com/imsa/item/14201...e-class-142012

http://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/at...consideration/

This is where the story came from, and once again the headline doesn't actually match what was said.

There seems to be quite a trend for reporting rumours as fact recently, and it's ridiculous. People do like to read rumour and speculation, but reporting it as fact like this isn't the right way to go about it.

[JHamilton]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

http://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/at...consideration/

This is where the story came from, and once again the headline doesn't actually match what was said.

There seems to be quite a trend for reporting rumours as fact recently, and it's ridiculous. People do like to read rumour and speculation, but reporting it as fact like this isn't the right way to go about it.

I agree 100% but the reader has due diligence in these times as well. If one actually read the article, which I'm assuming we both did, you could see through the clickbait title pretty easily.

[Akrapovic]

Originally Posted by JHamilton

I agree 100% but the reader has due diligence in these times as well. If one actually read the article, which I'm assuming we both did, you could see through the clickbait title pretty easily.

Completely agree. People need to read things better (I don't mean people here, just in general) and should analyse articles more.

But it would be nice for journalism to be more responsible in how it reports these things. You can get clicks and you can get conversation from these sort of rumours and discussions, whilst being open about it.

If only someone would build a website that operated in such a way. That'd be nice. And I'm totally not working on it.

[chernaudi]

Both articles did say that IMSA aren't looking at it right now. If IMSA had more than three LMP2s and 2/3 of them wanted the change to be made, IMSA would look at it and maybe make the change over. You right now have only three cars that are ACO LMP2s, and one of them is in favor of the split mostly because he wants a Cadillac DPI. The numbers don't add up.

Granted, Dagys has been making click-baity article titles that are only half truths based on content. Mind you, I'm not giving Pruett a pass, as he's done some of the same stuff to get people to read the Indy Car and sportscar articles he writes for Racer. Just as I'm not giving Jean Todt a pass by saying stuff about sportsmanship today as FIA President when he was often anything but an upstanding sportsman when he was Ferrari F1 team boss, but that's another discussion for another time.

Just like everything else, at the core of the story is ROI. The ROI isn't there right now for IMSA to have two prototype classes as far as DPI vs LMP2. If IMSA decides to allow for LMP1 privateer performance for DPI and they get an influx of pro-am LMP2s, then split the classes. Right now, unless there's a lot of LMP2 pro-am teams knocking down the door, it's not really worth it.

[Scorchess]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

http://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/at...consideration/

This is where the story came from, and once again the headline doesn't actually match what was said.

There seems to be quite a trend for reporting rumours as fact recently, and it's ridiculous. People do like to read rumour and speculation, but reporting it as fact like this isn't the right way to go about it.

I hope people will keep this under consideration the next time DPi 'rumors' are reported on.

[FormulaFox]

Originally Posted by Scorchess

I hope people will keep this under consideration the next time DPi 'rumors' are reported on.

RUMOR: Autobacs to revive the ASL Garaiya as a DPi. :P