He’s been thinkin, how much can you rip the gang that can’t shoot straight before it’s just same ol’ same ol’? Which it has been for a long time. When The Bear launched this thing – way back in 2005 – he was documenting exciting and fun stuff. That started fading about three years later, and the whole damn thing’s turned pretty dark. Which Murphy doesn’t really like. At all.

Good News

Anyway, here’ some good news. Ah…ah…geez…The Bear’s thinkin’…ahah! That’s it! Dyson will be back racing against Greg! Like last year. And there will be some P2 guys – no one really knows how many – but it might include the Payday Lender King. Well, perhaps not King, but Chief, since he’s “gone native (American).”

GT will be cool, though there are way too many indications that’s headed for a slip, too. But all the more reason to enjoy it when you can. The Bear still isn’t sure whether the Texas car dealer will be back with his Ferrari(s) (that “s” is pretty unlikely, for sure). That will leave the Mexican cactus squeezers in charge of Ferrari’s prospects – and they haven’t had a lot of luck cracking the top 5 – ever. Not likely to change.

Where were we? Oh, yeah. Good News. There will be a handful of spec. LMP’s and another handful of spec. Porsches on the ALMS grids. If that turns your crank, then by all means go for it. Brewskis  and brats (with an “a,” you know who you are way over there “down under,”) – and stronger stuff – with friends at the track hasn’t changed, regardless of the rest of it, right? That part of sports car endurance racing is a big part of its uniqueness, something that the stocker guys and OW guys (and girls) really have trouble understanding while sitting on their tushes in grandstands, heads on swivels like a rotating perversion of the crowd at Wimbledon.

Watchin’ the Rolex

Anyway, back to racin’ Like it or not, the Rolex is racin’ and the Bear’s going to settle in to watch  in a couple of hours. Last year he was in Daytona Beach and even spent some time at the track. A disaster, though he met some really cool people. This time it’s his comfy rocker and his telebision. Ain’t it great not to have to screw this the streaming crap? (And crap it is.) Hey, ‘burgers, where the hell is Roku? Too busy? You have to be fricken kidding.

Good Ole Georgia Boys, New York Lawyers, and a Formerly FIA Frog in Volusia County Court

And Don, ol boy, suing a poor graphic artist known for poster of ocean liners? (and a girl at that)? The Bear ain’t much of a speller, but he sure kin’ git a person’s name spelt right, specially on a lawsuit. Will it get tossed for the mis-spell do ya think? Jus more paperwork keepin’ the New York lawyer busy, I spose. Anyway, does the new Grand Am tech guru Gabriel Cadringher know too many secrets? Did you have a contract wit him? More busy-work. No wonder there’s no time to open a Roku channel of  yer racin’.

The 50th and the 60th

The 50th Rolex at Daytona. The whole world knows it’s the 50th, what with the gnomes of International Speedway Boulevard telling a story-a-day for a couple of months it seems, making sure everybody knows that great history. While who knows that Sebring is the 60th? (The Bear’s got a Sebring 50th commemorative bottle of The Don’s red – he and J. had some back 10 years ago at your Chateau at the safety pin, pretty good stuff, but this one is staying firmly corked and in the Bear’s cellar, where it’s been for the past decade.) What’s your PR department doin’ to tell the folks about the big race in March? Other than the new book (cool) by Sebring’s PR boss Ken Breslauer, all we’ve heard so far is the Frogs ain’t showin’ up wit their diesel. That should make it a one-marque race up front – again. (Murphy still thinks that Audi truck looks like a platypus.) Still, Sebring is the best party on the planet, and for Le Mans-style racin’, bein’ the only WEC round, the only ALMS race worth going to – except for the hard-core partiers, of course, who can have a good time at all but the dumb-ass street courses.  (Have ya’ll figured  out The Bear really does not like street courses?)

Where Were We?

Ok, the Rolex. Here are Murphy’s famous “Top 5” picks of the classes. He’s been pretty good at this. You can look it up.

Daytona Prototypes (new or old), the Top 5 finishers, in no particular order:

10 Angelelli/Briscoe/Taylor SunTrust Racing Corvette DP
02 Dixon/Franchitti/McMurray/Montoya Chip Ganassi Racing BMW Riley
90 Garcia/Gavin/Magnussen/Westbrook Spirit of Daytona Corvette DP
5 Donohue/Fittipaldi/Law Action Express Racing Corvette DP
01 Hand/Pruett/Rahal/Rojas Chip Ganassi Racing BMW Riley

The Bear’s not enamored of the pole-sitter. DP’s become a pro driver’s class. Peter’s got some nice drivers goin’, -check out the two Scots and the German guy, but he’s had to sell too many seats, so the three that could win it all are carrying a pair of weak sisters. Is this the year that Bob can break through and bring GAINSCO the big win? Daytona’s not been kind to the insurance maggot. So Murphy can’t make them a favorite, either. Spirit of Daytona has a really nice driver line-up, but has France cash converted this team from a couple of guys in a Daytona garage to a real race team? Sun Trust always has a shot, and while the World’s Greatest Race Car Driver (hello to the family at home) will start at the rear, Chip’s Grand Am regulars will be back in the hunt soon enough.

In GT, Porsche’s got the numbers. (24 Porsches in the field of 60 sort of overwhelms the whole damn event, doesn’t it? Pretty soon we’ll not be able to tell the difference from ALMS until we read out ticket.) Ferrar’s got a new car. Murphy’s not a Mazda fan, but they won in 2010, and McDreamy and company climbed the podium last year. The Camaros have struggled in practice and qualifying. Will they find the pace in the race?

Again, the Bear doesn’t like the pole winner to come through on top, for pretty much the same reason as above for Daytona Prototypes. He likes the Lizards a lot, even with the owner aboard – that doesn’t hurt nearly as much in this field as it does in the ALMS GTE field – and Seth is experience even if not fast. That should help a lot on a tough, crowded track. The Ferrari’s may be new, but they look good, and the Grand Am configuration isn’t a “high stress” kind of thing subject to the teething issues the GTE cars are.

45 Bergmeister/Long/Neiman/Rockenfeller Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche GT3
63 Beretta/Bertolini/Vilander Risi Competizione Ferrari 458
93 Auberlen/Dalla Lana/Marsa/Muller/Werner Turner Motorsport BMW M3
67 Bertheau/Bleekemolen/Goossens/Henzler/Pumpelly TRG Porsche GT3
23 Collard/Holzer/Leitzinger/MacNeil  Alex Job Racing Porsche GT3

Rumors

What? No rumors? Maybe next time.

Murphy wrote in May’s Paddock Poop 190 that McDreamy would go LMP2 racing with Mazda, probably in the newly announced World Endurance Championship. A month later, Speedtv.com told you pretty much the same thing in an “exclusive.”

Since then, Patrick Dempsey has announced his Mazda GT team will continue with whatever Grand Am races it can manage given the resources that will be required to launch the LMP2 program, with two cars to go at Daytona and no promises after that. The full WEC was considered and rejected, and the Mazda LMP-power is in doubt due to delays by the Japanese company. When considering a program at this level, it seems badging an AER valve-cover will no longer do.

Ferrari in Grand Am

Slam-dunk? Perhaps for Daytona, but not for the remainder of the season. When Ferrari decided to build a Grand Am 458, Mazda was headed out of GT. Now it appears the gang on International Speedway Boulevard can’t bring themselves to give up an old friend. Mazda will be back in 2012. For Ferrari, who will accept losses to Porsche (tradition, there), but has a hard time getting beaten by BMW, is absolutely apoplectic about a Mazda RX8 winning a race in which anything from Maranello participates. Given the way Daytona has manipulated the rules to keep McDreamy’s cars competitive, no one trusts them not to allow an underweight Mazda to make a Ferrari look bad. If Mazda is back, then Ferrari is probably out as a full-season entrant – unless there’s a privateer who will defy Maranello to run a Prancing Horse without its blessing, or help.

The Houston Ferraris

The best Ferrari team in North America (you could argue in the world) is Guiseppe Risi’s Houston Wild Bunch. (Murphy thinks Houston is the wild west, so he just couldn’t help himself). What will they do next season?

As arrogant as they are in Braselburg, they probably don’t know how much they’ve pissed off their premier Ferrari team. Trust the Bear, there’s no love lost there. So Risi Competizione is considering its 2012 options. Here they are, ranked in order of probability: (1) WEC, (2) Grand Am, (3) American Le Mans. What keeps Grand Am out of first place? Mazda.

Lotsa Protos?

That was the rumor this week that the ALMS would have more prototypes in 2012 than the WEC. Excuse the Bear, he’s choking with laughter. Autocon is probably gone, with long-time leader Mike Lewis leader  certainly gone. The IRS is chasing Intersport around – that’s never good. Tucker? Over 20 state’s Attorney’s General have set their sights on the payday loan, rent-a-tribe king. Cytosport? Greg’s as pissed off as Guiseppe. Dyson and Oryx? Alone? Get real. One thing Chris and Rob don’t relish is to look foolish racing against themselves. Maybe they mean to count a pack of LMP Challenge cars. Or counting on Signature. Now the Bear is really gagging.

What about Grand Touring

Jaguar shouldn’t be back, but against all reason, they might. Is that the most incompetent GT program in the history of the sport? Murphy thinks so. If they’re back, does anyone really care? Robertson’s – and the Doran Ford – are gone for sure, and probably Risi Competizione. If Extreme/Patron is back – and that’s doubtful, too – it will not be with a Ferrari. BMW has been mentioned. Corvette will likely return, but the fuse is burning down there. Keep losing and all that executive support will evaporate overnight. That’s the way big, impersonal corporations work.

Grand Am

Chip Ganassi has to choose between Corvette and BMW power for 2012. BMW wants him, so much they are willing to promise him one of the North American DTM teams in 2013. Chip and others think that Chebby power will have the upper hand next year, though. It does already this season, Chip’s BMW wins having all come in the first half of the season, with the “Worlds Greatest Sports Car Driver” keeping him in front the rest of the way. Starworks is the other BMW team, but as much as the Bear likes Peter, BMW isn’t as high on him.

Robin Liddell may be headed to Autohaus. Jordon Taylor to Stevenson to partner Paul Edwards (Chebby doesn’t plan on losing another championship if they can help it).

The Grand Am schedule won’t be announced until SEMA in November. There are 15 possible venues  to be winnowed down to 12. ALMS will have to go first, and that will answer some key questions: Will ALMS retain Long Beach? Will they keep Road America? According to rumors, both are “in play.”

Out of the Kitchen

Clay Malooley is working on another American Le Mans Series program. Just sayin’.

State of the Series

The Boss and The Don will again preside on the Friday before PLM. If they don’t move away from the ACO’s shackles, the paddock will be very disappointed, Murphy hears. Some say that “status quo” will be the death of the series, or at least the trigger to team departures. However, the Bear thinks they are delusional enough in Braselburg to believe they’re doing “just fine.”

The WEC and the ALMS

In 2012, North America may retain Petit as a WEC round…that’s about 50-50. After that, it’s doubtful. Will there be much worth watching in the American Le Mans Series next year and beyond. Just the Bear’s opinion – and remember, Murphy’s attended over 100 ALMS races. Anybody else out there been more loyal? (That wasn’t paid to be there.)

Your Bookie Lays the Odds.

Murphy’s first job was Society Editor for a British sports car racing publication. He noticed the Limeys bet on everything…and the Bear means anything. So Murphy’s laying odds here at the Jellystone Casino on the things sports car fans worry about.

Robertson Racing returns to the American Le Mans Series  100-1
Risi Competizione returns to the American Le Mans Series in 2012  2-1
Petit Le Mans is a World Endurance Championship round in 2012  Even money
Sebring is a World Endurance Championship round in 2012  1-5
Ian Dawson brings a race team to a North American event  3-1
An Ian  Dawson entry takes the green flag in a North American event  10-1
Audi races a prototype in the American Le Mans Series  50-1
Peugeot races a prototype in the American Le Mans Series  200-1
Jon Field dodges the IRS  50-1
Level 5 races in the American Le Mans Series in 2012  50-1
Cytosport/Muscle Milk contests a full 2012 ALMS schedule  150-1
Dyson Racing contests a full 2012 ALMS schedule  2-1
Ferrari contests a full 2012 Grand Am schedule  5-1

by A.C. Guillermo

 The storm clouds are gathering. 2012 is shaping-up as a showdown year between the NASCAR Rolex Grand-Am Series presented by Chip Ganassi and the floundering American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patron.  

I know 2011 has barely started, but already the stage is set for a battle next year between Daytona and Braselton. If you only knew what I don’t know! (Editor’s note – AC must have consulted Yogi Behra on that one).   Each sanctioning organization is set to embark on an aggressive expansion, and you can put your money on the ALMS coming out the first loser when it is all said and done.

Let’s check the scoreboard.   Next year the Daytona Rolex 24 will celebrate its 50th Anniversary, while Sebring will its mark its 60th anniversary. Although Sebring has a better history, a more exciting circuit, more fans, a much better entry list, and a far better anniversary celebration, they still don’t have a Hooter’s in Sebring. Grand-Am 1, ALMS 0.

Scott Pruett won’t be entered at Sebring. So make that Grand-Am 2, ALMS 0.  

Next year the ALMS will again host two rounds of the ILMC, and will likely expand into at least three new markets by 2013.  Meanwhile, Grand-Am will continue with its non-spectator concept, using Homestead as a model.  Expect to hear about races in 2012 that were held at five new venues nobody will know about, adding to the allure and mystique of Grand-Am racing.  Grand-Am 3, ALMS 0.  

Grand-Am will be the feature race at the Austin F1 weekend, and each DP will have an F1 pilot as a co-driver. You heard it here first.  Grand-Am 4, ALMS 0.  

Grand-Am will begin to field a huge variety of GT3 entries in 2012, including Audi, Audi, Audi and Audi.  Grand-Am 5, ALMS 0.  

Grand-Am will run a version of the DTM (see my previous columns for details) and will somehow manage to make all the cars look alike. Grand-Am 6, ALMS 0. 

Chip Ganassi will not be allowed to race in that series. Grand-Am 7, ALMS 0.  

ALMS will continue with its internet broadcast concept, while Grand-Am continues broadcasting on the NASCAR Network (new name for  SPEEDTV to be announced soon).  Grand-Am 8, ALMS 0.  

The new DP bodywork will be stunning, sleek, ground-breaking and evocative (thanks for that word, Godwin). Even though they may still make your eyes bleed, Wayne Taylor will love them, and so will you. Grand-Am 9, ALMS 0.  

The ALMS Green racing initiative will be countered by a far more effective Grand-Am marketing program touting the Rolex Series’ lack of fans, meaning far less fuel is consumed by people coming to Grand-Am races than ALMS events. Absolutely genius.  The “Less fans. More Fuel” slogan will first appear on the Spirit of Daytona entry.  Grand-Am 10, ALMS 0.  

Mark R. has assured me Grand-Am “Competition yellows” will continue in 2012, and will be supplemented by “Competition Timing & Scoring,” that will add and subtract laps from various teams as needed. Grand-Am 11, ALMS 0.  

Finally, the big one. I know you won’t believe this, but it is going to happen. At least one round of the Rolex Series (and maybe two), will be on an oval next year. Yes! An oval race for sports cars. Why not! Its going to be wild. You think that will be too hard on equipment? Ever seen a street race?  Grand-Am 12, ALMS 0.  

A shutout.   I think my track record is pretty solid in reporting on the NASCAR Grand-Am Series. If you checked back at my previous columns, you would not find one single true thing I reported was not true considering the truth is what happened and the untruth didn’t, unless the truth was falsely reported as untrue.  

Grand-Am Notes 

• At Barber, J.C. France was sporting one of his new “Don’t You Know Who I am?” shirts, part of a new apparel line he designed exclusively for wealthy offspring who frequently get pulled over by the police… 
• A 17-foot tall statue of Scott Pruett will be erected in front of the NASCAR offices later this year, joining statues of Ann & Bill France, Dale Earnhardt and Tim Richmond …. 
• Yours truly was not a bit surprised to find out an ALMS Media Guide was found at the Bin Laden compound in Pakistan …
• Since nobody showed up for the Grand-Am Fan Club meeting at Barber, any future meetings will be held in Hurley Haywood’s office at the Brumos dealership in Jacksonville .…
• Although the same team wins every Rolex Series race, I am told that will change in 2012.  Suntrust has already purchased three victories, and the Gainesco Team is seeking financing to purchase two others …
• NASCAR and SPEEDTV issued a joint statement vehemently denying there was collusion between the two parties to prevent the ALMS from being on that network. SPEEDTV also explained that it was a “technical problem” that resulted in Scott Pruett only talking about Grand-Am cars while commentating at Le Mans last year…
• Daytona officials were devastated when the State of Florida recently voted down permission to have fans buried at the speedway.  I’m told the Daytona Security Department was especially disappointed. …
• Heads-up for ALMS fans and IMSA staff: Baltimore has the highest VD rate in North America …
• Rumors still persist there is a supporting series sanctioned by Grand-Am; I’ll let you know what I find out…
• More details to come, but I have to get back to my hobby of posting anti-ALMS rants on the Grand-Am forum.

 

 A.C.

It’s not like it’s a big recall. You are dealing with two copies built on left-over Canadian-built race-car chassis. A torch, order some glass, and viola! (The body panels never did fit, anyway.) The bookkeeping makes the Bear a bit crazy, and leaves him wondering how this project can ever produce a competitive race car. Winchester need a part from Hoschton? The Don writes a check in Braselburg, mails it to Winchester, then Winchester writes a check and mails it to Hoschton. Meanwhile, Gordon’s got a consulting job with the Abruzzi at Sebring. Murphy expects he’ll be in charge of the tent flap.

It’s all pretty odd. The Bear remembers a big dust-up 2001 when not enough Bavarian touring cars were built. That led to our first ALMS one-make racing class.

The Baby Sitter Chronicles

[Redacted] If this rumor is true, it will be in the public domain soon enough.

Le Grand Petit

There’s another dust-up of late – this one in the media and in sports car fan forums – whether the entrants at the joint Intercontinental Le Mans Cup round- ALMS Petit Le Mans will be limited by the Road Atlantic track capacity.

Those who dig into such things looked at the Sebring entry plus the ILMC cars that received waivers from the ACO to skip, the possibility of one or two post-Sebring ALMS additions and concluded the Petit entry will go into the low sixties. It’s possible there will be some attrition in ILMC entries, but what we’ve seen so far appears to be only the exercise of waivers offered by the ACO for a few that can’t have a car ready for Sebring, and ALMS entries seem more likely to grow than shrink, with Autocon doing selected events, and Intersport, Highcroft, and Signature “in the wings.”  SpeedTV columnist John Dagys picked up on the problem, concluding after asking Scott Elkins that PLM would be able to accommodate as many as 60 cars.

Meanwhile, Murphy was doing a little digging of his own.

If you apply the FIA formula for track density for an event in the FIA calendar, then you can only start 46 cars at Petit. That’s what a professional track designer with first hand intimate knowledge of Road Atlanta came up with. And it’s what Murphy’s friend, Canuckistani engineer Paul Collins, came up with.

Here are Paul’s calculations:

N = (0.36 x  L x W x T x G) where the letters are all factors based on tables found on pages 12 and 13 of this document. (Appendix O to the International Sporting Code, Procedures for the Recognition of Motor Racing Circuits.)

L is related to length
W is related to minimum width of the track
T is related to time
G is related to the car classes

In this case L = 13 (track is 4.1km long)
W is 10 (width is 40 feet, or 12.3 meters, rounded to the nearest whole number)
T is 1.4 for a race up to 12 h (the value of T only goes up to 1.5, so you won’t gain a significantly larger number of cars by going longer than 12 hours)
G is 0.7 because the cars are sports cars with big engines (this value would go up to 1 if ALMS was GT only – if you got rid of the prototypes, defined as “sports cars” in Appendix O)

That means N = roundup (0.36 x 13 x 10 x 1.4 x 0.7) = 46 cars. If the minimum width of the track were 13m, N would be 53 cars. If the minimum width remains unchanged but we had IMSA GT instead of a mixed field that included prototypes, the number would be 66.
All that is actually irrelevant, however, because the same Appendix O  specifies that the minimum track length for any race that exceeds 6 hours in duration shall be no less that 4.7 kilometers. Road Atlanta is 4.088 kilometers.

There’s even more reason to stop worrying and get on with life. The FIA might never have inspected or rated Road Atlanta anyway. FIA technical chief Charlie Whiting has only made one visit to the track that the Bear could uncover, in the company of CART’s Kirk Russell, at the time Vice President of Competition and Technical Director, in late 1998 after the Don’s upgrades for the first Petit. Reportedly, all Charlie had to say at the time was “I did not expect to see a track like this in America,” taken at the time as a compliment. But that wasn’t an official FIA inspection, Charlie was just along as Kirk’s guest. This was the final inspection for CART, but by then the Don was put off by the constantly increasing CART sanction fees (at that time beyond $3 million) and no deal was made.

ACCUS, the FIA ASN for the USA (go look it up), can inspect a track to the FIA, and might have done so, but, again, the Bear couldn’t find anyone to say so. And Murphy’s learned that you really don’t have to be an FIA licensed track unless you’re holding an FIA championship event, and neither the ALMS nor even the ILMC is that. Not that it would make any difference, there’s really no way around Appendix O, is there?

Wonder where Scott Elkins gets “60?” So did Murphy, but then it occurred to him that since Road Atlanta is a non-conforming track anyway, its capacity can be anything the ACO and IMSA want it to be, and that will likely be somewhere around 60 in October.

There’s money at stake; certainly no one wants to send a team home – contracts were signed with sponsors and drivers based on nine events, and losing Petit Le Mans wouldn’t be a small thing for anyone. The FIA wants PLM to happen, the ACO does, Don Panoz does.

So what now? Then Murphy checked the FIA calendar and saw that Petit Le Mans is a “restricted event.” What was that? Back to FIA documents (this time, to the International Sporting Code, paragraph 19. Restricted Events, and eureka! There it was! (With thanks and apologies to Archimedes.)

In certain exceptional circumstances, the FIA may grant authorisation for restricted international events, which on account of their specificity may be organised as a dispensation to Appendix O of the present Code, to be entered by an ASN on the International Sporting Calendar.

A “dispensation” is an “exemption or release from a rule or obligation,” and Appendix O is “Procedures for the Recognition of Motor Racing Circuits.”

The bottom line is clear. Come October, if 63 cars show up, and all of them survive practice, 63 will race. The rules allow 20% more than the grid limit to practice, anyway, so there’s a big fudge factor up front.

Odds and Ends

As the Bear asked in a Tweet, the other day, if Tony Kanaan, Gil de Ferran, and Jay Penske together can’t raise enough sponsorship money to field one IndyCar, who the hell can? Is it any wonder that Highcroft, Intersport, and others in sports car racing are finding it difficult to raise enough money to race?

For those who don’t follow the Bear’s Tweets, here’s some other stuff that’s happened in motorsports:

* Lord Drayson off to play with electric cars.
* Intersport off the Sebring entry.
* Luca Moro returns to Sebring, rumored to have been there in 2007 as “Luciano DaSilva.” Another indication that the sport can “overlook” something when it suits them.
* Rahel Frey replaces Katherine Legge at Audi for DTM. Murphy wants another hug from Katherine; maybe now he’ll get it.
* Trevor Bayne won “The Great American Race.” Who?
* Bahrain F1 was postponed. Dodged that one.
* Roger Penske turned 70. Happy B’day, Roger.
* Lou Gigliotti sues GM, Michelin, Corvette Racing, Doug Fehan. Win, lose, or settle, this can’t be good for Gov’t Motors.
* Racer names American Le Mans at Road America the 2010 “Race of the Year.” Who knew?

Krohn rumor No. 5: Georgia shop working on independent ALMS Ferrari entry. One-off Rolex 24 in Lola then ALMS GT for 2011. One car or 2? Honestly, Murphy hears a new Krohn rumor just about every month, from McLarens to Mercedes, and now Ferrari. The Lola partnership has been in Delaware Chancery court, while the oilman continued to race the car in Daytona Prototypes. Beyond coming from a pretty good source, this one makes some sense. Krohn has paid Risi to run a Ferrari for him in selected races over a number of years, so why shouldn’t he strike out on his own?

Lola no more; Prodrive talking to ORECA for next Aston Martin proto chassis. Yes, “talking” is what the Bear heard, though you’d think they’d have to be further along than that. Perhaps they are, and the news that there’s a “donor” chassis is just now catching up with the reality. One’s thing seems to be widely believed in the industry: Lola and Aston Martin Racing/Prodrive don’t want anything to do with each other. It’s that intellectual property thing.

New (final?) ILMC schedule announced; Seven events. Petit back in, Japan out. China TBA, Imola added. Is this good news or bad? If you’re planning to go to Petit or Sebring, you’ll see it as good. If, on the other hand you live just up the road from, say, Road America, what then? You have to hope the GT field holds together, because the prototypes are going to suck. Console yourself that it will be even worse at some other stops, like Lime Rock and Mosport. The Bear can’t believe the Cannuckistanis are going to be very happy. No Japan. That tells Murphy that there may be a Toyota motor in an LMS team, but there’s not going to be any significant participation in the ILMC by Japanese manufacturers or teams. Why Imola? That can’t be more than a place-holder, can it? What’s left of the LMS schedule? Two races? Everything else is co-opted by the world thing.

Six for Grand Am. TRG, TRG/Steven Bertheau, TRG/Black Swan, Brumos, Magnus, and Muehlner take delivery of new-for-2011 Porsches. This in interesting for lots of reasons. First, it’s an indication that Porsche is “back” in Grand Am. Most of those new models can be expected to continue in the remainder of the Grand Am schedule. There’s only one for Brumos which was thought to be a two car team. Also there’s no new team there, so if there’s a new Porsche team on the horizon, it’s headed to the American Le Mans Series, not to Grand Am.

Rolex 24 Ferrari GT announcement imminent; quality of effort indicated by “modern alchemist” and drivers Bell, Simonsen, and Farnbacher. Murphy hopes this actually happens, especially after a good Sebring test the week before Thanksgiving, but he’s a smart enough Bear to know that it’s a long way from a press release to a grid. The news this week was not good, with promised financing seemingly going into hiding. The car in Regis Lefebure’s photos from Homestead was not “Tony’s Ferrari.” This is:

Pumpelly, Lally announced in TRG’s third Rolex 24 Porsche entry. According to Porsche’s release, this is not one of the new-for-2011 Porsche 911 Cup cars delivered for the Rolex 24.

Just got information on an “open top spec prototype series for gentlemen drivers.” Just what we need. HSR will host a “Race Your Radical” series with its other events. Now there’s word of a GT3 Cup series associated with HSR. Really, just what we need  – another place to race Porsches.

Another schedule change – the expected Road America 4 hours “sunset finish” and move to Saturday August 21 is finally announced by ALMS. At least all these revisions in the schedule since it was rushed out at Road America in August are keeping us entertained while we’re waiting to find our what television coverage we’ll get.

The Bear hears an ALMS prototype team is considering a jump to GT. No word on the racing series for the GT program. An ALMS prototype team principal is spending a little time in Europe in the Stuttgart area. Murphy doesn’t think it’s a vacation. The Cytosport rumors a team source bemoaning the lack of prototype options after Porsche’s retirement of its RS Spyder.  Then the Bear heard Greg was in Germany for something other than a vacation. The conclusion? Perhaps a GT team, but it’s been quiet of late, so who knows? Is this the rumored new GT team, or is that a move up by Alex Job Racing, or a second car at Falken? All of the above? None of the above?

A life member of the Peerage was poking about in Leafield, giving credence to rumors he’ll join the ranks of prototype constructors. Leafield is where the former TWR shops are located. Lord Drayson is rumored to want to build his own chassis. A source said he was touring the TWR facilities. Murphy’s heard nothing since.

Sour Milka

It’s not a rumor that the IRL has cut its cash-sharing program to 22 entries from 24. The collateral damage was Conquest, which ran its No. 36 as an arrive-and-drive with five different pilots. The real target was Milka Duno, for whom Dale Coyne will not be able to collect $1.2 million from the series.

The Under-Boss Says So

The Under-Boss tells John Dagys at speedtv.com the combined ACO-rule schedules will make contesting the ALMS and ILMC “very difficult.” What he calls “product” will have to be “on both sides of the Atlantic.” Murphy’s translation of “product”: cars, tools, tires, transporters, tables, chairs, timing stands, stopwatches, fire suits, shoes, spares,  gloves, fireproof underwear. Like that’s going to happen.

Dyson and Riley

It’s been rumored that Dyson is “looking at” a new Riley. Murphy has been skeptical, but he’s lately been told that Riley is actually building something, so unlike the company’s last LMP announcement, the project has moved beyond a drawing. The connection to Dyson – or anyone else – remains tenuous, but Bill Riley has some hope to be building. (Another source chimes in, “In spite of what you’ve heard, they are presently building nothing and still waiting for a “donor”. At this point it would be impossible to field a car by Sebring.” -MHB-)

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Pratt & Miller is in pre-build engineering a Caddy for GM. What effect on other GM programs, if any? Seemingly nothing for ALMS fans, since Murphy’s been told that Corvette Racing (the Pratt & Miller American Le Mans Series program in its entirety, he believes) has been approved/funded by GM to race through the 2013 season.

Over at Grand Am it’s different, where GM is pressuring teams to ditch their Corvettes in favor of Camaros – or Camaro look-alikes. So where does the Caddy go? We’ve seen a CTS-V running around the Nurburgring lately…not sayin’…just sayin’…

Grand Am Help Wanted?

A well-known native New Yorker, laid off in recent major Daytona Prototype Grand Am team “reorganization” was  seen at lunch will ALMS team owner. Did he come away with a job offer to help with the new Grand Am program?

BMW  Turbulence

It’s rumored in Europe that BMW will radically cut racing programs in 2011, most pushed aside for 2012 DTM. Less affected (whatever that means) will be the American Le Mans Series program, which has separate, North American, funding. Murphy hopes that means the Rahal cars will be on the track for the entirety of the 2011 schedule – however many events that turns out to be.

Retirement – or Not

Long-time ALMS driver Chris McMurry retired after the 2009 season. Now – in the fine tradition of Michael Jordan and Brett Favre – he’s itching to go racing again and almost certainly will be back in ALMS next year. Sure enough, McMurry has shown up listed as a driver on the LNT Zytek at Silverstone. Does that mean Autocon will swap the Lola for the Zytek in 2011? Or is that driver independent of Autocon and of future plans?

Lizards Live, and Cats, too

Contrary to rumors reported earlier by Murphy, the demise of the Flying Lizards has been much exaggerated. He hears they’re committed to a 2011 return.

Rocket Sports Racing Jaguar will also be back for another go in 2011. That sound you hear is a sigh of relief from David, Ed, and Seth.

 Mosport

The facilities at Mosport are a long-running joke in the ALMS community, and nothing draws more ire than the media center. It’s run-down, cramped, and in a communications black hole. But don’t bother expressing your displeasure. You just might be told if you don’t like it, you don’t have to come back.

With the IT guy unavailable because he was moonlighting in track security, the Bear grudginly has to give credit to management for keeping close watch on the Don’s Loonies and Toonies.

Intercontinental Le Mans Cup and Petit Le Mans.

It appears that the new world championship won’t contribute much to Petit Le Mans this season. First, in some some classes, there’s no need for teams to travel between continents. For instance, in GT2 it’s a manufacturer’s championship, to which a combination of teams can contribute. So, for Ferrari there’s no point in sending a European team to Road Atlanta; Risi Competizione and Extreme Speed can carry Maranello’s banner. It’s the same for BMW (Schnitzer at Silverstone, RLR at Road Atlanta), and Porsche. Petit will get the Peugeot and Audi diesels, but it’s always gotten those anyway, and might have this year with or without the cup. There’s a chance we’ll see a couple of LMP2 entries, a pair of Saleens for the otherwise empty GT1, and maybe the Signature Aston Martin. That’s the maximum, according to Murphy’s sources – four diesels and five other entries.

Other additions include second cars for Robinson Racing and Rocket Sports, an Abruzzi (maybe), and an electric Porsche (the Bear likes to call it that), Libra Racing’s Radical. Will Add the 34 ALMS “regulars” to that, and total entries are 48. The ACO in its ILMC page also predicts there will be 48. Are Murphy and the Frogs missing someone?

Schedule Follies

After a decade of announcing its schedule at a multi-media Friday event at Petit Le Mans, the Braselburg Brain Trust tossed it out over a month ahead at a hastily-called Road America presser with the Big Boss sitting alone in front of a Road America banner with a hand-held mike. The Bear’s invite got lost in the mail, so he had to depend on his friends for the poop.

The thing turned out to be as fictional as many of the paddock rumors Murphy writes about. Miller’s “out,” as the paddock expected, and Baltimore is “in.” It was a bit ominous to some of the Bear’s woodland friends that the release tagged a race as TBD (determined), than the far more certain TBA (announced). That worry was well placed. Baltimore (the TBA) came through (Murphy had reported that Baltimore insiders were anxious for its announcement weeks ago) but Oklahoma City (the TBD) cratered. Neither outcome was a surprise.

Road America is back, after rumor (and speculation) to the contrary. That’s a mild surprise because the sports car event is now likely no better than 5th in drawing fans to the picturesque Kettle Moraine region track, after the Nationwide stockers, AMA Superbikes, Brian Redman’s little cook-out, and the SCCA National Championship run-offs. Did a sanction fee cut keep one of Murphy’s favorite race courses on the schedule?

But why the early announcement? It’s good Murphy’s Braselburg Mole is on the job. The sleeper agent’s bugs in a conference room on Broadway were able to catch this:

(background noise unintelligible)
Unidentified Voice: …that stupid bear thinks Road America will drop off the schedule. (laughter)
Media Honcho:  He got the Baltimore thing, though. (silence)
TV Guy:  Hasn’t everybody? (laughter)
Media Honcho:  But the Bear reported the Baltimore committee is waiting for us.
Big Boss:  I refuse to read that stupid stuffed animal. What does he say about Oklahoma City?
Media Honcho:  He doesn’t believe it will happen.
Big Boss:  Well, we’ve got him there, then, don’t we?
(Here there’s a long pause; has there been a bug failure?)
TV Guy: (quietly, breaking into the silence)  He says Miller will not be back.
Big Boss: (angry or frustrated)   I wish we could keep something secret around here. I thought we had that damned mole, but he’s still lurking around here somewhere. I want him found! (bangs table). (more quietly) Sorry, it just makes me so mad.
Chief Sycophant:   They still think we’re going to have a bigger schedule on the forums. One “best guess” was 12 races.
Big Boss:   So?
Chief Sycophant: (sputtering)   Well, I thought…ah…that, well…that would be good…that you’d like that, Big Boss…(trails off)
Big Boss: (with determination)  We’ll have ten, that’s more than this year. And that damnable Bear thinks it will be just eight. Let’s announce it and stop all this stuff. Besides, the stuffed one will be wrong, then, won’t he?
TV Guy:  But…but…it’s not final yet.
Big Boss: Close enough. Have you check arranged the TV stuff?
TV Guy:  Do we have to announce that?
Big Boss: I suppose we can do that later…
IMSA VP Guy: I’ve been working on the schedule this year.
Big Boss: (irritated)  You have?
IMSA VP Guy: (tentatively) You asked me to…
Big Boss: Ah, yes, I guess I did. So?
IMSA VP Guy:  There might be changes after the announcement.
Big Boss: It wouldn’t be the first time, would it?
IMSA VP Guy: I suppose not….
Big Boss: That’s it then. The announcement will be in Wisconsin, we’ll say we’re doing it early for the teams, sponsors, yadda, yadda, and act like it’s all set. If it has to change later, then so be it.
Sycophant Guy: (eagerly)  Yes, boss.
Media Hondo: Yes, boss.
IMSA VP Guy: Yes, boss.
TV Guy:  Yes, boss.
Big Boss: That’s what I like to hear.

The Bear has absolutely no idea who those guys on that audio are, nor whether it has anything to do with the American Le Mans Series. It’s probably fiction and likely just coincidental that at Road America the Big Boss announced a schedule of ten races later reduced to nine, with an 11 week gap in the middle which later changed to 12, with a date for PLM that later changed, and a date for Mosport that later changed, too. Of the ten race dates announced at Road America, six will actually happen as announced – so far.

It seems that Braselburg isn’t done adding to the 2011 schedule yet. Not all of you frequent the independent American Le Mans Series fan forum (Murphy recommends it), so the Bear got permission to post this item  about an expected 2011 ALMS event.

For the third year, the Bear’s picking five entries likely to contend for the win in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. In 2008, his list of five captured 1, 2, and 3. Last year, they grabbed the top two steps.

Before he picked, Murphy gave away the five rools that will let his friends pick the Daytona Prototype winners, too. Not much has changed, so here they are again:

1. Riley only. The first non-Riley in 2008 was 15th. Last year, a Dallara snuck into 4th, a Crawford into 8th. That’s not enough to change the rool.
2. Teams you’ve heard of. Ganassi won its third in a row in 2008, another of Murphy’s teams,  Brumos won in 2009 – and took third, too. Ganassi was second and fifth, Penske sixth, GAINSCO seventh. The Bear didn’t mention SunTrust, which was fourth; they’ll replace the departed Penske among our picks. Murphy thinks “nicely turned out” counts for a lot. It’s a team that does that.
3. No oil billionaire drivers, no scrawny girls. No drivers with the same name as the team. No brain doctors or heart doctors. In other words, absent an LMS-type ‘gentleman driver rool’ DP is a “pro only need apply” class.

Rolex Favorites

The Bear had no trouble picking four, but his fifth turn out to be ‘a bear,’ so to speak. After Ganassi (2), GAINSCO, and Brumos, it came down to SunTrust Racing, a familiar (and successful) team (see rool 2.) but with a Dallara (rool 1.). It was the SunTrust Dallara that snuck into 4th last year, too. On the other hand, there’s Action Express Racing, a “rookie” team (that runs afoul of rool 2.), while meeting rool 3. (drivers), and rool 1. What to do? The elves told the Bear it was time to do a little research.

A little digging uncovered that Action Express is the ‘second Brumos entry,’ owned by long-time Brumos associate Bob Johnson, with a number Brumos staff and crew, and with drivers Barbosa and Borcheller. So, with good leadership, it might meet rool 2. after all. SunTrust’s 4th was a break-through for the non-Riley Dallara, three of four drivers return – Ricky Taylor (son of team owner Wayne) replaces veteran gentleman Brian Frisselle. Is that an improvement? Was last season’s Dallara break-through a trend or an aberration?

Here are Murphy’s by-the-rools five favorites for the 2010 Rolex. Last year we asked if this ‘Looked familiar?’ This year, it’s ‘Look familiar – again?’

01 Ganassi  Papis, Wilson, Pruett, Rojas – BMW / Riley
02 Ganassi  Dixon, Franchitti, Montoya, McMurray  – BMW / Riley
  9 Action Express Barbosa, Borcheller, Dalziel, Rockenfeller – Porsche / Riley
59 Brumos Donohue, Haywood, Law, Leitzinger, Matos – Porsche / Riley
99 GAINSCO   Fogarty, Gurney, Johnson, Vasser – Chevrolet / Riley

If anything, Ganassi is fielding even better driver lineups. Brumos returns without the drug felon, and with Leitzinger and Matos – a huge upgrade in talent (and sense) if a Bear ever saw one. Two-time Grand Am champion GAINSCO returns with drivers as good as anyone – intent on capturing the prize that’s eluded them. Action Express – as we’ve explained – is ‘Brumos Lite’ with a better roster of pilots.

Murphy makes SunTrust his “dark horse.” Level 5 having morphed into NPN Racing might have made the Bear’s favorites list, until Tucker, the designated rich guy, listed himself in both cars, diluting otherwise stellar driving lineups. If you can figure out which car will not get Tucker’s driving help, pick the other one.

Taking a Flyer on GT with the Bear

The Bear decided it’s time to pay some attention to the GT field. Just in time for the faux Mazdas to drop from contention, now having fallen to second tier teams and too many otherwise-employed drivers out for a weekend fling. That doesn’t rule out other bodies on the tubers – the odd BMW and Corvette look-alike.

So, what are Murphy’s GT rools?

1. At least 3 pros to carry a weekender. If so, doctors and CEOs are O.K. here.
2. Teams with experience and talent. Some of these are easy to pick out: TRG and Turner Motorsports, for instance. Others aren’t so obvious.
3. Current or former ‘factory’ drivers. They don’t go – or aren’t sent – where they have no chance.

23 Alex Job Baldwin, Burtis, Farnbacher, Pagerey, Ragginger – Porsche GT3
44 Magnus Bleekemolen, Lietz, Potter, Stanton  – Porsche GT3
67 TRG Bergmeister, Long, Neiman, van Overbeek – Porsche GT3
71 TRG Bernhard, Dumas, George, Labonte, Pumpelly – Porsche GT3
94 Turner Auberlen, Dalla Lana, Hand, Said – BMW M6

07 Godstone Ranch Corvette is the Bear’s GT dark horse. Young up-and-comer to watch is Thomas Merrill, Salinas California, Corsa Team PR1 BMW.

Murphy’s Predictions

A smaller field gets less opportunities to hit the favorites, so the good ones will mostly be there at the end. If it rains – and it seems it might – all such bets are off.

Matt Connolly Motorsports will be relevant in Matt Connolly’s mind and among the cogs.

We’ll see more of McDreamy than we do on Grey’s Anatomy.

No one will mention that Krohn Racing is in a dust-up with Lola. Krohn, who shouldn’t want to bend the Lola with few spares (and none in the pipeline) will drive anyway, and bend the Lola.

Sebring and Le Mans will disappear into a parallel universe for the duration of the coverage.

Jack Baldwin and Hurley Haywood, separated at birth in May 1948, will insist senior discounts at Hooters on International Speedway Boulevard. Well, Jack will, anyway.

With only six NASCAR drivers on hand, that story line should be a bit more subdued in this year’s telecast. Those seats are filled by current and former German factory pilots.

Kia Goes Grand Am Racing

When it came time to pick a ‘platform,’ the fast-growing manufacturer ‘passed’ on the Global Leader Green Racing to field a new factory team. It’s particularly interesting that a manufacturer intent on building a new ‘luxury’ image would consider, then reject, the American Le Mans Series.  Wouldn’t it’s market strategy have fit ALMS’ ‘World Class’ image?  Too bad it was abandoned to chase a green strategy.

Perhaps the Braselburger boss has been too busy with alternative energy mucky-mucks to waste time with automobile manufacturers. After leaving Phoenix, he went hobnobbing in Toronto chatting up “alternative fuels” this past weekend.

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Sebring and Petit Le Mans will  be different, not just in degree, but in kind, from the other races on the American Le Mans Series schedule in that they will run ACO classes to ACO class rules. That means that LMP-1 and 2, and GT-1 and 2 entrants will be required to adhere to the French club’s weight, restrictor, and aerodynamic rools for Le Mans, the Le Mans Series, and the Intercontinental Cup. The principle impact is to keep the prototype classes – such as they are – separated.

The new IMSA spec classes – LMP-C, and GT-C – will be allowed to compete alongside the “official” ACO-recognized racers (a version of LMP-C will also be allowed by the LMS this season).

Murphy has been given the best thinking, speculation, and inside knowledge of all his elves. That still leaves more than one ‘gap,’ but for now, here is the consensus of the Bear’s forest creature friends (aka elves).

LMP-P (Peugeot Class) – Barring a change of heart because of a lack of competition, Peugeot is in. Given they are the cause of no competition, having vetoed an ACO-accepted “interim” Audi, the Bear expects the Frogs to show. This is worse than Audi’s diesel domination, occurring years after the diesel advantage should have been resolved, and in a race in which competition (Audi) was possible, but rejected due to Peugeot’s narrow self-interest and the lack of balls in Georgia. The Frogs will score a meaningless – perhaps Pyrrhic – victory. One of the Bear’s elves took exception to that, writing “There are no meaningless wins at Sebring.” Murphy sees his point, and agrees given Sebring’s historic place in racing, so he’ll put it this way: If the political leverage of an entrant could render Sebring less than it should be, this is it. If the current care-takers of this race – ALMS/IMSA – had a sense of its importance (much greater than their own) they’d at least strongly protest. Audi could seize the moral high ground here, of course, by “facilitating” a Kolles entry (or two) of the R10 – a driver or two, a bit of engineering, etc., etc. – things they did with Champion.

LMP-1 – With the French diesels in their own race, LMP-1 is mostly left to privateers, three of which are confirmed or certain (Intersport, Drayson, and Autocon) one “maybe” (Corsa), and two “when hell freezes over”: Creation and an unidentified, but rumored, Lola Aston Martin (the latter having gone to a collector, according to the Bear’s best sources). Murphy leans toward expecting only the three currently “confirmed” privateer entries to make the Sebring grid. The Bear’s heard that Oreca may return to North America with a Sebring entry of its AIM-powered 01. What? Not the Peugeot 908 they have agreed to race in the LMS and alongside the factory entries at Le Mans? Not according to Murphy’s source, leaving the Bear scratching his furry head. He’ll rate this one just “possible.” That still leaves his likely LMP-1 (exclusive of diesels) entry at three.

LMP-2 – These will be the best of then non-diesel entries (again proving that absent artificially slowing these guys down, the prototype world is upside down). Highcroft, Dyson, and Cytosport will enter an Acura, Lola-Mazda, and Porsche Spyder each. Any or all of the three could enter a second car; Murphy’s odds on that are Highcroft 4-1 against, Dyson 2-1 (an elf rates this probable), and Cytosport 3-2, the latter’s better odds based on rumor of a direct interest by Porsche in adding a Spyder to a race they could well win overall (if the Peugeots find trouble along the way). A rumored OAK Racing Pescarolo falls into the Bear’s infamous “when hell freezes over,” category. On balance then, Murphy thinks we might end up with (figuring, in his usual optimistic way, that one of the “big three” will be able to field a second car) four total LMP-2 entries.

Total “legitimate” prototypes on the grid will be nine.

GT-1 – Won’t be any.

GT-2 – (Except for Sebring and Petit, just “GT”) Corvette will be there, as will BMW, Porsche and Ferrari, each represented by a sort-of-quasi-more-or-less-factory team, Pratt & Miller for Corvette, Rahal Letterman Racing for BMW, Flying Lizards for Porsche, and Risi Competizione for Ferrari. Of those the “less” in terms of factory participation/support Ferrari, and the “more” is Corvette. Those “premier” teams account for 7 entries, and are “confirmed.” Also certain-to-be on hand are three more Ferraris (2 Sharp’s Extreme team, and 1 AF Corse), a Falken Porsche, and a Robertson Ford. Some of the elves count Rocket Sport’s Cat as a sure thing, but the Bear isn’t entirely convinced. There have been rumors of significant (and expensive) homologation problems. He’ll call it “probable.” The Black Swan Porsche is a “maybe” – Murphy thinks there’s an even chance they’ll land in GT Challenge instead. There’s rumor of an unidentified Porsche floating around, too ephemeral to get above “doubtful” in the Bear’s pantheon. Twelve, then, one probable, two less likely. Taken together, perhaps 13 starters?

So, before we get to the spec/club racer specials, the Sebring field totals just 22.

The field filler doesn’t add much – aesthetically or numerically. In LMP Challenge, four are “possible,” but only one (Intersport) is “confirmed” thus far, and even in that case the Bear’s waiting for the Ohio team to name a second driver-with-a-budget. (Murphy’s heard Richard Berry has finally sold his Lola and assorted parts to the Fields, however.) None of the others (Comprent, Genoa, and Gunnar) can be considered to be firm entries; two of three would seem likely. Three on the grid, then.

GT Challenge? That’s an interesting question. Remember this class is made up of racers that originally set out to do a few short sprints in a one-driver, one-make series. Sebring’s 12 hours is a huge jump. Murphy’s been told to expect something closer to the low side of an entry rumored to be between 5 and 9. Other imput – from an “insider” – says the self imposed limit of 10 will be fully subscribed. Professional prevaricator he is, the Bear will go with 7.

So there you have it. Twenty-two cars based on last year’s classes – the structure we’ve had for about a decade. Add the “new stuff,” (field filler of little interest, at least to Bears) and you’ve got 32; just one more than the Bear predicted about this time in 2009. Only 26 actually started that 2009 race – Murphy told you he’s the eternal optimist. Whether the “filler” keeps the 58th Annual 12 Hours of Sebring from being a disaster is an individual judgment. The Bear knows what he thinks.

Around the Paddock

With a lousy ALMS entry anticipated, the potential for a strong LMS entry is striking. What gives? Is the economy worse here than in Europe? (Not really.) Is the ALMS’ “green” initiative hurting rather than helping (Their European cousins are still promoting great racing, so probably.) Does the North American sports car endurance “split” continue to hurt? (Undoubtedly, according to European Car’s motorsport editor in its January issue, “Something’s gotta give, as the saying goes. As CART and the IRL have shown, nothing lasts forever. Both GA and the ALMS have seen their grid numbers fall considerably… Insiders expect both series to chug along but eventually the bottom line will force the issue.”)

The Bear hears rumblings of infighting amongst the Braselburgers, undoubtedly symptomatic of declining fields and finances, particularly in critical television-related revenues (including “wrap-around” contracts with manufacturers).

The new guy in charge of IMSA rools side of things is riling teams and others over what’s to be done with/to prototypes in 2010. Not just disagreement with content, but failure to consider teams’ input, and now delay in getting the rools settled.

There’s growing disaffection amongst Sebring fans with the stewardship of Sebring in recent years. The ACO marginalized its importance in regard to Le Mans by selecting its field before the Florida classic’s green flag. With its preoccupation with being green, logos, and cute lights in the sides of cars, the ALMS has presided over a steady decline in Sebring fields. That will be just one of the things that bites its butt in this and coming seasons.

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With Le Mans behind us – an perhaps too much time on everyone’s hands – the rumors of a Grand Am-ALMS merger/acquisition came roaring back. A.C. surreptitiously met with Murphy at a Daytona watering hole, dutifully reported by the Bear in  130. Shocking news at a Clandestine Meeting.

Soon after, Grand Am sources added even more information, even as Miller abandoned the story. Finally, ALMS reacted, a source telling the Bear the whole thing was a disinformation campaign floated from Daytona, something the Braselburgers claimed was a regular tactic of their Florida antagonists. 

All that blew over by mid-month (except for SA’s “We’re Not For Sale” button at Lime Rock), so Murphy turned to the soap opera in F1 with a story about Bernie’s ouster. That was, it seems, premature.

At Lime Rock a rumor surfaced of an “equivalency” formula for DP’s, reported in Murphy’s after-Lime Rock Paddock Poop 132. Ultimately that went nowhere, but the real story behind it was likely the addition to the ALMS field of the spec LMPC’s. Just about the same thing for many endurance sports car fans. They look better than DP’s but are just as much – no, more – outside the historical spirit of the sport.

There was also a great deal of “background noise” about ALMS finally dropping GT1 (which had already been “a dead man walking” for years) and re-combining LMP (they’d achieved that finally in a 2008 season that will likely go down as the high water mark of the series before (stupidly) abandoning it in 2009. The two-class thing turned out to be correct, of course, but Panoz, chasing revenue rather than racing, screwed it up by adding two spec classes back in.

The race wasn’t bad, but the highlight of Murphy’s Lime Rock trip was Red Molly at Bodle’s Opera House in Chester, New York.

At the end of the month in 133. PLM prospects. What next for BMW? the Bear considered the likelihood that Audi would finally join Peugeot at Petit Le Mans – he thought they would, but ominously also wrote that, “More important, Audi is by no means committed to the ALMS in 2010, but an improving economy and settling the “Mouse and Elephant thing” with Porsche clears the decks for a return. Unfortunately, some are saying that full ALMS seasons will come to an end if a seven race (with Le Mans) “world championship” of sorts happens. Manufacturers will get as much – or more - value from two appearances each in Europe, North America, and Asia, plus Le Mans. That’s the reasoning the Bear is hearing, anyway.”

Sadly, the Intercontinental Cup has since become reality, as has exactly what Murphy predicted based on what he was hearing. Audi has announced a PLM-only 2010 ALMS schedule, likely a permanent change for them and for any Porsche LMP that might come along, too. ALMS fans will need to resign themselves to a few “big” races, with the rest of them being decidedly “national” in character, their fields populated by mostly spec-racers.

Paddock Poop 133 brought the first news of a trash can for BMW’s F1 program, continuing delays for Rocketsport’s Jag, Farnbacher Loles hiring better mechanical talent (with other people’s money, of course), and a 1,000,000 visit milestone for Murphy and LTC.

August

On the 6th, in Paddock Poop 134. Murphy spilled the beans on Atherton’s upcoming confab at Road America:

“What he Knows (that you didn’t – until now)

“The American Le Mans Series will add a prototype class based on the ACO’s nascent Courage-Ford V-8 series. The prototypes, selling for $345,000 complete, will be built by EMT in Braselton. To control costs, engines will be sealed (and available only from EMT), only two sets of gears can be used (long and short circuit), and only a “small range” of springs can be used to modify set-up.”
Thus, in a stroke, and for PMG’s short term gain, the ALMS created the class that will kill it.

A few days later, the Bear told you Audi would be at Petit Le Mans (you had to think a little bit on that one…but just a little). Drayson’s purchase of a Judd-powered Lola coupe was in the same Poop, and Murphy told you the idea that de Ferran would field an ALMS team (along with an IRL team) was fanciful, to say the least.

Over two different columns the Bear (who’s not particularly technically inclined) garbled the Porsche weight “penalty.” In part, that was because he had a hard time believing that Porsche had the ACO so completely by the short hairs that it would do something so completely meaningless for a blatant and serious rule violation.

A.C. brought us up to date on the Evil Empire in “AntiTRUST Me,” reminding us that Henri Zogaib beat Greg Loles to the Ponzi Punch. Though the NASCAR crowd did pretty well keeping that one relatively quiet (so, too, is ALMS, Porsche and the ACO on Loles) it was likely a bigger cash take for the Daytona crook. Our erstwhile NASCAR correspondent backed off his earlier prediction that Grand Am would devour the ALMS in 2010 (but not much) when he wrote:

“I guess I ruffled a few feathers about NASCAR taking over Sebring and Road Atlanta next year (they don’t want Mosport because its too hard to learn to speak Canadian).  As mentioned above, NASCAR believes in fair competition, so instead of taking over Sebring and Road Atlanta, NASCAR will just wait for Darwin to finish the job, if you know what I mean.” Not sure about the rest of it, but the reason not to include Mosport in the deal rings true to Murphy.

A.C. told us a bit about the topics he’d deal with on his radio show (2-4 am on WZQU Ormond Beach, 1850 AM): “I am happy to talk about how Scott Pruett freed those journalists held in North Korea, or why the Riley DP is the most technically advanced prototype in the world, or how the Rolex Series has record crowds everywhere it races, or whether Enzyte really works.”

August brought word that the ALMS would be exclusively on Speed in the coming year; that changed later with the announcement of two CBS dates. Inexplicably, one is the 6-hour Monterey endure, delayed a week, an event uniquely suited to Speed. Are you going to hope they’ll do some quality editing? Murphy rates that chance slim and none.

The Bear told you Greg Loles would have Pratt & Miller build a pair of BMW’s for Grand Am, but he got the model wrong. He told you Farnbacher would split to concentrate on Ferraris in Europe. Horst knew something the rest of us didn’t. He told you St. Pete would be missing from the 2010 schedule, but also reported that Infineon was rumored to be back: 50%, then. He told you that Audi would not go on to Laguna Seca after Petit Le Mans.

Midweek Motorsport called Lord Drayson’s Lola Judd “a major new LMP effort.” For the Bear, who reported it a week earlier, it was still just a one-eyed old guy, but in faster hardware. It couldn’t be worse than blowing an engine a day in an Aston Martin GT2,, but it wouldn’t be much better, either.

Murphy thought the remaining Japan round of the Asian Le Mans Series would be cancelled. That was wishful thinking. It survived, morphing into a stop on the upcoming (and ill-advised) Intercontinental Cup.

Following leaks, interviews, and rumors to the contrary, the Bear was finally able to tell you, that “the on-again, off-again Panoz LMP is finally dead…including a recent Frankenstein-like reincarnation of the original 01.  Undeniably and reliably dead. Not only merely dead. Really, most sincerely dead! (Murphy’s thanks to his friends the Munchkins.)”

He plugged his friends over at sportscarpros.com in Paddock Poop 137, currently on another of its not-infrequent hiatuses. He’s told, however, that “Rumours of demise may be greatly exaggerated.” We all hope so.

September

On the 3rd of the month, Murphy took his first shot at the Petit Le Mans field, figuring the grid would fall between 29 and 33, with 31 likely starters.

He reported rumors that Grand Am’s DP fields would be depleted in 2010, including the departure of Brumos (though he included the contrarian rumor that Brumos would continue with a single Riley powered by the Cayenne V8). Also in Grand Am, he wrote that the Krohn-Lola dispute had hit a wall, and “…the big-time racing car builder and its oil magnate partner may be headed to court.”
The Bear got Camaros and Corvettes mixed up in a Grand Am GT story about a switch from Pontiac in 2010. Well, hell, it’s the same tuber chassis, anyway.

A.C. was off to Vegas, hoping to “recoup from the Zogaib debacle.” It didn’t help. He also wrote, “One day, fans will return to the Rolex 24. We don’t care about technology, or green racing, or Le Mans … Braselton will never defeat Daytona. That is a sure bet.” Though both are weak, could we see some trends in that direction in 2010? For the first time in a decade, Murphy thinks so.

The Don made one more “run,” trying to raise money for his “supercar,” the one we thought was “truly dead.” Mercifully, it went nowhere – again.

The Bear “took a shot” at the 2010 ALMS schedule; it was off the mark, with Monterey staying at the end, and Sonoma in May. Turns out of course that Sonoma was a no, and Monterey went to May. Perhaps the Don needs the party income at the Chateau?

NASCAR Vice President of Corporate Communications Jim Hunter was the designated attack dog on the American Le Mans Series for its proposed “Challenge Class” rules. In a lengthy blog, he called the ALMS’ new rules, “misguided,” and “counter-productive,” while accusing the Braselton-based race series of circulating “calculated misinformation and propaganda” to “undermine Grand Am’s success.” Pretty frantic stuff.

With the ACO floating new aero rules for 2010 that would make the R15 obsolete, and incur costs for others, Murphy opined that IMSA shouldn’t “commit hiri kuri with the French.” It did, of course. ACO/IMSA rules then exempted everyone else from the aero changes, making the net effect just the whacking of Audi from ALMS/LMS grids. A fine thank-you for decade of support – including millions of Ingolstadt cash into ALMS coffers.

At the end of the month, it was off to the North Georgia Mud Bowl (red mud at that). It not only rained Cats and Dogs, they were also seen celebrating in Paddy’s.
Murphy was the first to tell you that Mercedes would dump McLaren in favor of Brawn, and reviewed the rumors that would “rationalize” the VW-Audi-Porsche product line and racing programs. Time will tell.

The Bear said “the other Japanese F1 team” (that would be Toyota) would soon exit F1, but for a sports car program to follow, “don’t hold  your breath.”

October

The test of the new LMPC after Petit was a success, and clearly disturbing to the Empire on International Speedway Boulevard. The Lola-Krohn fight heated up. Murphy observed that the ALMS’ crack PR machine couldn’t even get Scott Sharp’s Sebring crash on Sports Center. NASCAR got a routine barrel roll on at the top of the show, though. Braselton was trying to dump most of the operating cost of Sebring on its biggest tenant, Central Florida SCCA, while keeping the lion’s share of the revenue. Another sign that things are dire in Georgia, the Bear thinks.

Murphy said Audi’s return to the ALMS was unlikely, and Acura was certainly gone. (Since then, privateer Duncan Dayton might have saved the series by deciding to field an old Acura P2 with leased engines.)

A.C. wrote about a little incident on the Florida coast in Daytona Vice.

Mid-month the Bear reported on his return to his favorite place (and former home) the Monterey Peninsula. He dropped in to see David (Mike was on vacation) at the Sardine Factory and Gannady over at Clint’s place. He partied below the hairpin with friends of Enzo (and of the Bear, of course).

After the race it was off to the Mucky Duck, band in the back and friends from Poughkeepsie, England, and a few other places in the front. The Bear agreed if Mazda were to “step up” in the coming season, the Lola AER just might turn into a nice little package. It seems clear that they have not, likely making that entry one more disappointment of 2010. If – as is rumored – two drivers do not return, it will be a disappointment to Murphy whatever else happens.

Murphy told you about a Ferrari being prepared to Grand Am Prep 1 rules for competition in the coming season. The cat was having some homologation troubles. Momentarily there was a rumor of two more BMW’s, but it turned out they are for Europe. The Bear noted a press release was issued by “Farnbacher Loles” about a pair of KONI M3’s (it seems KONI is no longer the sponsor of that Grand Am series, by the way), but pointed out, “Murphy has more than once reported rumors they would split.” Of course they had. We’re reminded once again that press releases are as often as fictional as paddock rumors.

The Bear went over 25,000 readers for the month.

November

November included rumors of Penske testing “something from Aichi in Spain.” No legs. Likewise, stories of a Duncan Dayton Peugeot; about those Murphy wrote, “If you take winning Le Mans out of the picture, the Peugeot rumor fades into oblivion, and you take Dayton at face value that another Acura season is in the cards – completely independent of Acura.” That’s pretty much how it’s turned out. The Acura “support” amounts to little more than keeping the engines running.

A Dinan-built Ferrari motor was slated to power a DP at Daytona and after, run by Scott Tucker. Murphy thought the F430 Prep 1 GT would make the Daytona grid, too, but it will not.

The Bear threw out a few ALMS and Sebring possibilities and dismissed a few, too. In the latter category was Creation, about which Murphy wrote (again), “Creation advertised (via another of those “interviews” in which nothing new is revealed) for a funded driver (déjà vu).” He reported three Ferraris were probable, one Risi and two Sharps.

Murphy planned a trip to see Michael in Las Vegas, but a deadline for his second recipe book and work on his inaugural Christmas quiz derailed that plan.

Comprent, tagged for an LMPC entry, was still looking for funded drivers. Mercedes dumped McLaren in favor of Brawn, just as the Bear said it would.

December

Murphy started the month “Sweeping out the Bear Cave,” a few odds and ends heard around the paddock. The Bear bade farewell to PTG and any Panoz race car. (They really hadn’t been any good since the Tony Dowe-engineered Reynard-based GT1/LMP01, had they?)
Risi Competizione was “in again, out again,” as a full season entry. Murphy stayed skeptical. In Grand Am DP, the Bear heard – and passed on – that Ganassi would switch from Lexus to BMW power.

One of those “odds and ends” was this little item entitled “No Farnbacher, No Loles, “The Bear’s repeatedly reported rumors that pointed to the termination of the Farnbacher and Loles partnership – that’s happened now, of course. Lately he’s questioned whether Greg Loles would continue in ALMS, or even be able to bring his ambitious Grand Am plans to fruition. This week the mill has been churning. That includes a medical event earlier in the week, chattels in the Georgia shop packed for shipping to Connecticut, missed payments, and an RSR of disputed ownership.” Little did the Bear know that just a few days later, one day after announcing his 1st Annual Christmas Quiz, the crap would hit the fan for Greg Loles…or Loles would be the crap…

Loles invented another way to finance his racing; steal from a church (and its members). Is that one better than Grand Am’s Henri Zogaib, who stole from his fellow racers? Two crooks. One in each sports car series. Talk about competing with each other!

The same day, Murphy reported that Dyson Racing would likely field just a single car and Audi would contest just one ALMS race – Petit Le Mans. As if that wasn’t enough, Lou was selling his ALMS Corvette and heading for Grand Am. It wasn’t a good day for anyone in sports car endurance racing.

Cytosport was rumored to be planning a bigger ALMS program and to have a “secret project” after Muscle Milk dumped its SCCA Trans Am sponsorship. Would they run a second Spyder for Porsche and for Bernhard and Dumas?

Murphy published, scored, and announced the winners of his Christmas Quiz.

Paddock Poop 148 fittingly closed out a lousy year, with stories of massive pay cuts in two of North America’s leading racing teams. Greg Loles was in the slammer with scant chance of getting out any time soon. Papers filed with a Michigan court concerning Loles’ Grand Am GT project revealed that GT costs in Grand Am aren’t substantially different than they are in ALMS. Of course we knew that already, didn’t we?

The Bear went over 30,000 readers for the month.

Happy New Year, every one of you.

That pilot hogged so many laps the Jedi were fuming. Even more ominous, a Sith apprentice well known within the Empire had stationed himself outside Turn one to dutifully record upon tablets who piloteth the new land speeders, and how fast. Like his driver compatriot, he would report to the Dark Lord on the Peninsula.

The Dark Lord is angry. With one purchase order already in hand, the challenge to the Empire is clear and present.

Rolling

The oil magnate wrote off one of his two guppies testing at Daytona last week. The TWR design acquired by a builder of ubiquitous prototypes and “sold” (or something – all that’s a matter of legal dispute) to the Houston gentleman driver is pretty much a lame duck, or a ruptured duck, or a dead duck.

The Bear’s gotten the story behind the Lola-Krohn fracas. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Martin expected his “partnership” with the oil gazillionaire to be about selling cars (since that’s the business he’s in). So it came as a big shock when Roger mentioned (rather off-handedly) that the oil magnate’s chief henchman had (rather rudely, Murphy hears) turned the Captain down when he wanted to buy two of the Lolas (better engineered, was the observation) instead of the Rileys he ended up with. Is it any surprise that news was doomsday for the partnership? That’s what the Bear heard anyway.

A reported Italian tire failure sent the Dee Pee barrel rolling down the front “straight” (beginning past the tri-oval, Murphy’s told, past the turn-in to the infield course and nearly to NASCAR 1)  The car is toast. With the legal dustup between the oil gazillionaire and the car’s Brit builder it certainly won’t be replaced. So where does the 1970’s psychedelic green go? To a Challenge LMP?

Rolling II

After the weekend the sports stations were gushing over the same mundane kind of “roll-down-the-track” routinely seen in NASCAR. That media machine was doing its usual good work keeping the Empire at the top of “Sports Center.” The much more spectacular Scott Sharp ALMS incident was unnoticed. Is that becaue the “good guys” in Braselton think it should be about “the racing,” or perhaps because it didn’t fit their “green message?” Or has the our favorite road race series dropped so far below the radar that even a spectacular crash goes unnoticed?

Talks

There are not-entirely-cordial talks in progress about the Braselton racing conglomerate  and its biggest tenant at its most iconic property. Neither is happy it seems. The Georgia gang seems to want to offload operating costs while retaining the cash flow. The tenant wants some of the latter in return for picking up more of the former. The Bear overheard the phrase  “sanctioning authority for international events.” Wonder what that means?

Thanks

The Bear sent his friend his “visit” tracking results, now over 25,000 a month, only to have one of them claim to be responsible for most of them. Murphy’s west coast friend says he’s “obsessed with rumor, innuendo, and conspiracy…especially when they’re based in fact…” Some in high places would like to silence the Bear. The furry one will persevere.

Auto Union and Acura

IF Audi has any interest in an ’10 car, it has to be well underway by now, even if it’s a revision of the R15. Reports (ok, “rumors,” but there are rumors and there are rumors, right?) are that indeed “a new car” is “in build.” Whether that’s to ’10 rules, or to ’11 rules (though those rules aren’t published yet, Audi and others have met with the ACO and have likely gotten enough information to proceed with initial design), or both, isn’t known.

New car or not, Audi’s unlikely to return to an ALMS in which there is no competition, and it’s all but certain now that Acura will not return under any circumstances. (Though the Bear still thinks that some smart competitor will grab an HPD engine lease.) Even if Toyoter (cute, huh?) is thinking about a return to sports car racing it won’t be soon enough to make 2010 look anything but bleak for our favorite road racing series.

The Circus 

They were catching up with Murphy at Suzuka. The “big rumor” was the split between the team descended from the Land of the Long Cloud and the Deutsche daughter. The motor that will power the team’s new supercar was also mentioned as evidence they’re able to jilt the daughter.

The board was meeting in Aichi prefecture, and the Bear hears the plug will be pulled soon. Whether that’s good for sports cars is a matter of dispute around the sport.

Murphy’s Mailbag

Dear Bear: “Any word on how the Don’s Friday dinner went? Didn’t he find $25,000,000 for his LMP?” Jim Bob, Daytona Beach, Florida
Dear Jim Bob: No go. Not enough crazy people in the room. (Besides, only the gubment has that kind of dough, and you know who’s got the peninsula gubment wrapped up, don’t ya? (wink) But the Bear hears the Don is off to Monza for Superleague with Haas’ right hand man. The Haas – Panoz deal is still in works, perhaps imminent.

Dear Bear: BMW and Dunlop have made their partnership official. Does this mean the M3 program will be around for a while? – Bobby, Hilliard, Ohio
Dear Bobby: Yes. But it doesn’t mean they’ll pick up more of the tab.

Dear Bear: Do you think we can get the Captain back in the American Le Mans Series? Scott, Braselton, Georgia
Dear Scott: You saw the headline, ”GM to Wind Down Saturn Brand After Penske Halts Talks,” and you used to work for him, so Murphy shouldn’t have to remind you that whatever the Captain does is fully paid for, and that doesn’t mean out of Rogers pocket, either. The Empire is paying him for another season. Can you find someone to foot the bill for Green Racing? The Bear thought so.

The Bear’s Society Page

Before he landed in the annual get-together in Road Atlanta’s Turn 10 woods, Murphy visited Don, Barbara and the Sebring Turn 13 gang at Turn 10. (That’s a lot of Turns, a lot of friends, and a lot of beer. All of which is the beauty of road racing. The Bear can’t even imagine keeping his furry little butt in the same bleacher seat for a whole race!)

The Bear’s off to Laguna Seca, his most favorite place. He’ll be partying down (and across) the track from the corkscrew on Friday night (photo above from last year’s event), and otherwise can be found at the Sardine Factory, Knuckles, Mission Ranch, the Mucky Duck, and other favorite hangouts.