American Le Mans Series
Black Swan Racing to skip Sebring 12 Hours
© John Dagys
Observant viewers will have noticed that the Black Swan Racing Porsche 997 GT3 RSR had suddenly disappeared from the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring Presented by Fresh From Florida entry list earlier this week.
Today team owner/driver Tim Pappas confirmed that the #54 Black Swan Racing car that had been entered for himself, Anthony Lazzaro and Dutchman Jeroen Bleekemolen has indeed been withdrawn. Instead of kicking off the season at Sebring the team will focus on additional testing and tire development with tire partner Dunlop, before making its race return to the series.
Pappas made it very clear though that the withdrawal of the car for the opening round of the 2010 American Le Mans Series does not mean the cancellation of the program for 2010. “Quite the opposite”, said Pappas. “Despite a strong first outing at the Winter Test, Black Swan needs more work before its ready for competition in American Le Mans. Except for Bleekemolen, Black Swan was not in competition in 2009, so we have had lots of work to do behind the scenes to prepare and unfortunately, we just haven’t gotten everything done on time to feel confident for Sebring.”
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this is a JOKE ! and we can add Creation too, I am sure they will never show up next weekend !
It seems a common thing these days for ALMS teams to just decide to skip races and go testing instead, it’s a shame really, they have had all winter to test, and it was common knowledge that Dunlop didn’t have a very good tire for the Porsche, so they should have chosen more wisely.
Negative points on my list for Black Swan.
If they don’t feel ready, then they don’t feel ready. It’s better that prepare themselves more than so up in an effort clearly lacking.
Testing is just that: Testing. They did well, but time will tell how well the team performs in future races.
I don’t think Dunlop tires are the problem, they are working well on the Bimmer, Aston JMW and other GT2s, its clear the team isn’t ready at all !
The Dunlops are the problem, it’s common knowledge that Dunlop don’t have a tyre that works well on the Porsche.
Black Swan Racing is not a joke. Calm down Internet-people. Black Swan will complete the rest of the series, and the Dunlops will come on strong.
“BMW RLR didn’t do their homework, the Dunlop tires will be the weak point in their program.” – everyone leading into last year’s ALMS.
They know they won’t be title contenders. So why spend on a race you might not finish. Besides Tim Pappas just races as a hobby for himself.
It just happens that he has the cash to afford one of the best drivers out there in Bleekemolen.
We should just be happy that he choose to support our sport. Just look at team Falken and how they started. Now they’re serious enough that Porsche is deciding to rely on them by supporting them with factory drivers.
You will not see this car out anywhere period! its a done deal..Trust me
I feel bad for Bleekemolen because he deserves a competitive ride. Perhaps one of the other Porsche teams can slot him in.
Don’t feel bad, with black swan he’ll be laughing all the way to the bank. Sometimes a good ride is only as good as it pays.
I realize that you can try a greater variety of tires in a test than at a race, but I would still question skipping the race in favor of testing. There has to be a lot to be learned just being out there with a full field on a well rubbered in track rather than running alone on a green circuit. I would also think it would be cheaper, since the entry fee, which likely has already been paid, must be cheaper than renting a race track.
Testing was just a nice word they used to say they’re over matched. The team just got put together. They’re probably still rehearsing.
Even with Bleekemolen’s speed and if they hired another ace, their pit crew still can’t match the Robertson’s crew (Doran manufacturing) the Jaguar’s crew (Riley technologies). Having watched Tracy Krohn at lemans we all know how much of a difference a crew can make.
Every team in GT2 has some kind of manufacturer backing, except Black Swan. And this being the ALMS just like black swan every team is also very well funded. So that’s not even an advantage.
After the 2008 season when Tim Pappas left the ALMS, Falken tire took a hold of the team. So the guys they had at that time are with Team Falken. Essentially black swan is starting from scratch now.
Being in the rehearsal stage with the crew is all the more reason to take part in the race. Where else is a team going get more experience in ALMS than Sebring? Sure they might not be very good, but they would learn a lot for the rest of the season.
so they are now back on the entry list? whats up with this?
oH!!!! did u see John fields crash today!!!!! OMG!!!! Thats bad… like scott sharp at PLM…
Just a quick correction, the Jag is Jaguar (don’t call me Rocketsports) RSR.
Pappas can’t decide what to do with his money (family trust) The family wants to spend money on the luxury yacht crusing program, while Tim want’s to enjoy his hobby at their expense, while telling his siblings that it is good PR for the family real estate business. If you have to ask “how much” you shouldn’t be in it at this level.
Pappas may have plenty of money, but he has treated me poorly. He has owed my company $6,000 for 4 months, and we have yet to see any payment, despite repeated calls and e-mails. Someone ought to teach him about integrity.