American Le Mans Series
ALMS to accept GT3 cars in “Challenge Class”!
© Planetlemans - Marcel ten Caat // Two GT3 Challenge Porsches at Sebring
The rumour floated at Sebring already and was confirmed this week by the American Le Mans Series: a new “Challenge Class” will be added to the grid of five American Le Mans Series races in 2009. In those races the Porsche 997 Cup car will be allowed to race!
Despite rumours about adding the Patrón GT3 Challenge by Yokohama cars to the Sebring grid that, fortunately, never happened but it was already clear that sooner or later IMSA would accept the GT3 Challenge Porsches into its feature American Le Mans Series races.
On Friday the American Le Mans Series announced the first race in which the new class can race will be the Larry H. Miller Dealerships Grand Prix at Miller Motorsports Park, the first non-street circuit race on the calendar in May. The Challenge Class will then also join the American Le Mans Series at Lime Rock Park, Mid-Ohio, Road America and Mosport. Petit Le Mans and the season finale will not have the Challenge Class.
“When the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) launched the GT3 Cup Series a few years ago, one of the primary goals was to develop future American Le Mans Series talent, and with this announcement today we take a big step forward in fulfillment of that goal,” said Series’ President and CEO Scott Atherton. “We believe this is a bold and innovative way to encourage the next generation of entrants for the classes that are eligible for Le Mans as well as for the teams involved in our development series. The addition of these teams and drivers will add new intrigue for the fans as well as the television audience as great new storylines emerge. It’s a win-win for all involved.”
Drivers eligible for the new category are professional drivers along with drivers that race at a professional level, but have other ways to finance their living, so called gentlemen drivers.
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Oh, it will add intigue and storylines alright…every time one of these tossers takes out a leading P1 or P2 car! And with only five or six of those rare beasts on the grid, they need to be protected from assault, not made targets. In truth though it is a sad commentary on the state of sports car racing in the US. In contrast, we seem to be seeing very strong fields in both FIA GT and LMS, so the economic downturn cannot be solely at fault. I haven’t seen the entry for St. Pete but I will be surprised if there are 20 cars on the starting grid. Not ideal.
what next? the KTMs and other GT4 to fill up grids?
I agree with TomE, this is a sad thing for sports car racing in the US. I am certain that the GT1 fields in the LMS are pretty steady, where as the ALMS will not have a GT1 field after Le Mans. The sad thing is that nothing is being done about it, except for the addition of the GT3 class, which probably won’t be that exciting since they are all the same Porsches. The ALMS needed to do something, but I don’t think this is the right choice.
In view of the small grids, it’s the sensible thing to do.
PTG will race a second Panoz Esperante GTLM for the first time in two years (St. Pete this weekend).
I don’t think the new Challenge Class is all that great, but at least the top drivers from IMSA’s Patron GT3 Challenge by Yokohama will get ALMS experience.
FIA GT isn’t looking as good as 2007 and 2007, but more top Saleen S7Rs will race FIA GT this year. Plus, Pirelli is back in FIA GT (not that they left but only one GT1 team raced with them in 2008).
ALMS and IMSA have to deal with Grand Am while the ACO and LMS only compete with FIA GT and V de V sports racing.
ALMS teams which will return/enter by Utah or Lime Rock
Autocon Motorsports - LMP1
Corsa Motorsports - LMP1
Team Falken Tire - GT2
Black Swan Racing - GT2
Creation Autosportif (?? they are getting sponsors)
Corvette Racing - GT2 (Mid-Ohio)
Mundill - LMP1 (Petit Le Mans)
haha this is sorry that alms accually has 2 bring in a deferent series. if any 1 is familiar with the old trans am series they did the same 3 years before the series got canceled
on the othe hand Mundill wont b competative at all a star mazda team runnign alms righ…..Creation Autosportif would be very good for the series but i dont believe they will race and does any 1 know if Black Swan Racing and Team Falken Tire are sister teams
also does any 1 know if the gt3 cars will run with 2 drivers for the whole race ? or will they still run 1 driver and just run the sprint race format
At least Mundill won’t race in grand am.
Black Swan Racing and Team Falken Tire are not sister teams. Black Swan is Tim Pappas and Mr. Bell from the 2008 Bell Motorsports team will work with Pappas again.
check Andy Pilgrim’s website
The Challenge Class will likely have two drivers. Road America has a four hour race.
Will not the Challenge class bring more exposure for Patron, Yokohama, and young sports car drivers? What is bad about that?
well i just think its kinda killing what don panoz set the searies 2 b like cuz i mean the aco would not do something like that…………o and dont get me wrong i cant wait to see mundil
and also so does that mean they will have terry borcheller in that ford gt with tim … or have anthony again ?
When the ALMS started there were three GT classes, the ACO made the change to two classes shortly there after and the ALMS had to do the same to keep the Petit LeMans formula alive. I see this move by IMSA and ALMS as great plus for the series. The IMSA Challenge fields are large and most of the top running cars have sponsored backing. Alex Job is even fielding a car in the series this year, it is now clear whey he did it, so he can move back into ALMS with factory backing like he had in the series before he and Porsche left to try Grand-Am(which they are still doing).
Well while all you guys are having problems in the states with the ALMS. Here in Europe, the LMS is ready to go green with a nice field of cars.
Cant wait till the weekend.
Plus F1, GO GrawnGP!!
(but they will still show the ALMS here in the UK, so I will be watching it)
haha thats funny cuz u guys have 44 cars and we have 17 and yet this year we will still b winning gt1 with chorvette and gt2 with risi and mabey lmp1 with the 1 american run audi
Not a bad idea IF there were more makes than Porsche. But since the grid fillers make up from a one-make series, ummm I hope they don’t get in the way and why? GT2 will be riveting and exciting anyway, more GT cars aren’t needed.
But whatever still going to watch…
Still going to the LBG