American Le Mans Series
Creation and AIM dissolve partnership
© Planetlemans - Marcel ten Caat
<Creation Autosportif Limited and AIM Company Limited of Japan have decided to end their partnership after two years of working together. Midway through a four-year partnership programme agreed in 2006, an arrangement was agreed that will enable both companies to pursue independent courses into 2009 and beyond.
‘It has been an honour and a great experience working with all of our friends at AIM. We will miss them.’ said Creation’s Michael Jankowski. ‘In particular, I would like to thank Mr Yukinori Suzuki of AIM for his support and enthusiasm for the project over the years’ he added.
Jankowski continued ‘Creation wanted to do more in the ALMS and the AIM people were focussed heavily on Le Mans, and from a company perspective you cannot have a business that is dependent upon a single race’.
Mr Y Sakurai, representing AIM, indicated that ‘The relationship between Creation and AIM has been an excellent one. In 2008, however, it became clear that both companies’ objectives for the future had shifted and both felt it sensible to separate our activities as friends—leaving each of us to pursue our own routes to success.’
Mr Yukinori Suzuki, AIM owner added ‘I would like to thank all of those at Creation and wish them every success in the future’.
Taking into account the news, Creation heads into 2009 with a very strong engine package already in place, which brings the required flexibility for programmes in Europe and the USA.
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What engine will then be fitted the Creation car?… Judd?.
i do hope its a jude but with the power reduction anything could come out
Maybe AER? Who knows though, the Creation guys are pretty quirky so I wouldn’t be surprised to see a production engine either. Does this mean Creation will be back for a full(er) season in ALMS? I hope so, for they’re the only ones that seem to have been able to get that chassis working, and since Autocon and Intersport have since moved on (or back) to Lola, it would be nice to see another chassis in P1, especially from a factory effort.
endurance info says they will use Judd power for 2009. I hope Creation makes it to the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring
Pitting AIM’s engines against the factory beasts of the ALMS makes the AIM product look lame. So AIM didn’t like that.
Creation competed in just two ALMS races in 2008. Creation is a small team. In comparison, de Ferran’s team has over 25 employees.
Yeah they did the same two in 07 too, I think a podium finish at Petit last year. Does that mean they’re giving up the LMS to fight the privateers in the US?
Competing against a squad like De Ferran is what AIM does not want. The team is not even at full potential, yet Creation can’t even keep up with them. AIM wants to look competitive, and a team like Courage-Oreca can very well make them look that way.
The ALMS is so competitive that even the Van Merkstein from the LMS would not have a prayer against a team like Dyson racing.
As far as Creation they would just like to have some US based customers. And of course competing in the ALMS gives them brand value as well. Personally I think they should do away with pay drivers, and just get the best pilots then try to reach out to top teams.
P.S There’s nothing “privateer” about all the top teams in the ALMS.
Van Merkstein didn’t have two professional drivers in the LMS this year.
I didn’t mean any of the top teams. I meant the teams like Intersport and Autocon, and perhaps Corsa (though now they are a Zytek factory effort)
Neither of the former liked the creation, and have been performing better in Lolas. I don’t see that about to change.
True Peter Van Merkstein is the owner driver. But even if they did have two studs, in the ALMS they would be at the level of Dyson racing. And Dyson has more history and knowledge of the RS Spyder (better setup).
It would really be nice if creation came to the US. But I think they would only do so for the lucrative pay driver programme that Intersport has been making a killing on. They want in.
I’d like to know what it costs for a race seat in the #30 car. Since Intersport should be getting an automatic invite to LeMans does anyone know what it would cost for a race seat at the 24h?
Most likely Creation is only interested in Sebring, Petit and Laguna since those events are well documeneted, so that allows them to charge the gentleman drivers a premium price tag.