John Dagys has been the topic of an almsfanforum thread of late. Some of it runs along the lines of “lucky guy.” Luck? Murphy’s furry backside! Young as he his, John Dagys worked his tail off to get the gig the forum numpties (that rather descriptive word coined by an anonymous “industry observer” who the Bear claims as a friend) dream of. Anyway, John was haunting media rooms writing – on his own nickel – for an independent website (The-Paddock.net, in which he was a partner and the chief editor) while still a journalism student at Columbia College, Chicago.

John started covering the American Le Mans Series in 2005, as a freshman, and started at Speed.com in 2009, the same year he graduated with his journalism degree. In between he slaved over PR releases to keep himself fed while getting paid next to nothing at web publications  in the “mainstream” of sports car racing coverage (“mainstream” in the sports car media world means little noticed, and rarely read, of course).

You wienies want to get a gig like John’s? It’s easy, just learn to write (Ha!), spend a half decade mostly paying your own way , and plan to keep having to supplement your income trying to make the owner of Level 5 look good. (If there’s any measure of genius, that might be it. Of course, it didn’t hurt he practiced with Intersport, another tough nut.) [Edit: Murphy 's told that John does not do PR work for Level 5 or its owner.] After yesterday, stick a fork in the Scott Tucker thing – it’s done.

Murphy’s been there, done that (including the PR articles tagged as “team reports” that once included Intersport, but that’s another story). It got really, really old. As for John, the Bear thinks he’s doing a great job under the circumstances. And Murphy believes what Mr. Dagys writes, too…except for when it’s about Mr. Tucker, of course.

On Lotus AJR

Alex’s racing BFF once told the Bear. “The best sponsor you can have is the manufacturer.” Alex Job Racing is a much better team than Rocketsports Racing. All you would have had to do is walk the paddock and look – really look – at the cars and the work area to see that. Want to know the secret to racing? Given a reasonably competitive car – admittedly that’s in doubt for the Evora – it’s attention to detail. Alex will do just fine.

And if he doesn’t? Some of the forum numpties will write “he should have stayed with Porsche,” proving once again they have no understanding of this sport at all. As Murphy’s friend “Reality Slap” wrote, Alex is in business. Drivers, sponsors (including the manufacturer) paid Alex to race the Evora. What are he and Holly supposed to do?” Starve? Of course not. They’ll take on the challenge, and (you read it here) do much better than Rocketsports did with the Jaguar. Why? Have you ever looked at an Alex Job prepared car? Then at a Rocketsports prepared car? Case closed.

News Flash

You want the definition of really, really big news? Even bigger than “FTC Accuses Scott Tucker of being a Rip-Off Artist?”  This headline might make it in our sport: “Jim France Fields ALMS Team.” That’s what you’d have if Action Express were to run in the ALMS, so yes, that would “rate a laugh or two” as a regular posted in the almsfanforum.

On Dope

Back in January 2007 a driver named Luca Moro was given a two-year FIA suspension for a positive drug test. Two months later, at Sebring, a driver named Luciano da Silva led three laps in GT2. Wink, wink.  An entry is an entry, isn’t it? Do you really need to know anything else about this sport?

No Soup for You

Who remembers the guy who pulled the scam on Cosworth, ordering their engines for an LMP1, then ordering a pair of prototypes from Lola (all a big mistake, to hear him tell it)? Well, lately, he’s sort of back. “Sort of” because the scam isn’t on builders, it’s on fans – the few of you who you read Murphy, anyway.

A while back, Mr. Malooley started posting in the Bear’s comments as “Clay.” Not long after, Murphy began a correspondence with the estimable Mr. Malooley, who (nothing new here) was perfectly happy to talk about his plans for a two-car prototype team. It didn’t work out for 2011, of course, but there was to be a “rented car” (Enterprise will pick you up!) for “a very limited ALMS and LMS program in 2012.” That bit followed teases about meetings and conference calls, hiring crew, and locating shops. None of which can be verified, of course. Most recently, Clay writes in comments to the Bear’s 198 that “the program (will use) an America car, engine, and driver package.” Yadda, yadda, this has been going on for too long.

Murphy never bought Clay’s BS. Really, who would? (Don’t answer that!) And really, would the Bear, very closely associated with the exposure of the Solaroli-CET scam? Who was right there reporting Greg Loles’ demise in the sports’ press? Daily SportsCar was the first to name Clay (good for them, makes up a bit for hanging on so long lapping up Solo Al’s crooked bullshit), way back when he was placing faux orders with engine builders and chassis constructors. But Murphy figured he’d see where this was going. Well, it’s been going nowhere except to more tall tales, it seems. All wrapped in sworn to secrecy by the wealthy big-name sponsors, and always meetings and delays, meetings and delays – and market studies and surveys. Finally it’s time for the Bear to say, “Move along, there’s nothing here to see.” After posting that his yet-unseen  racing operation was working with NASA, Clay followed up with this post:

“We believe the amount of technology available and the fact we are based on the Space Coast will be invaluable. Several companies have offered their assistance in a number of ways. Some of the technology and materials that we have seen is beyond anything currently being used in motorsports. It may help us down the road.”

Geez, what crap.

Murphy will give this little episode a wrap by simply saying, the Bear doesn’t believe it. Not one word. You can read the whole story by reading through the “Comments” at the end of each Paddock Poop over the past six months or so.

On Pretenders

Continuing with our theme, the list of pretenders is pretty long, isn’t it? There was Reg and the gang over at Signature (not much of a gang, of course, since there’s no one there we know of beyond Reg and Matt). That one’s kind of like Clay’s latest, just an April Fool’s trick (carried on for months) on the fan community, both the gullible kind and the sycophant kind (for some of you forum followers, that word means ass-kissers – ok, to be a bit more kind, we’ll call it hero worship). The Bear figures that other than time wasted writing gushingly hopeful posts in forums, there’s no big harm in scamming the fans. Hell, the series has been doing it for years, hasn’t it? ACO leading the way struggling year-after-year to “balance performance” between gasoline and diesel power. Wink, wink. ALMS inadvertently let that cat out of the bag in 2007, didn’t it?

On Real Crooks

Remember the Rands? Murphy wrote this last September.

“Gregory Keith Rand, aka “Greg Rand,” 46, and William Nicholas Rand, aka “Bill Rand,” 41, both of Dallas, were sentenced on July 27th to federal prison terms of 18 years and 14 years, respectively, for fraud. Their father, William Anthony Rand, aka “Tony Rand,” 69, of Plano, was sentenced to five and one-half years in federal prison. In addition, the defendants were ordered to pay $99,707,758 in restitution and forfeit numerous pieces of personal property to the government, including real estate, boats and other personal water craft, luxury vehicles, artwork, including an original Picasso, furniture, antiques, musical instruments, jade, expensive jewelry and wine. Greg Rand was remanded into custody; the others will be allowed to report to the Bureau of Prisons at a later date. The forfeited property will be sold by the U.S. Marshals Service.

Rand Racing contested Grand Am in 2001 and 2002 in SRP II. And yes, some who worked for them were screwed, even after winning judgments against the crooks, when the Rands stripped the assets out of Rand Racing. Among many who worked for this criminal family were Thomas Blam, Risi Competizione, Jeff Braun, Anthony Lazzaro, Nic Johnson, Marino Franchitti, and Ralf Kelleners. How many were stiffed? One for sure, who told Murphy “ I sued and won, but Bill mothballed the team until the statute of limitations ran out, so no restitution here.”
This little note from Murphy is for the superfans who want their heroes to be left alone. The moral of this story is, “sooner or later the Feds will get you,” and, the crooks in our sport hurt real people. Ever since John Dillinger, we can believe if the IRS is in the hunt, something is not right. And what if the next felony will be the third?”

Is there a Theme Here?

Dah! Wink, wink. Today’s theme is crooks, and the Crook de Jour is Ferrari Test Driver Scott Tucker, the Boss’ BFF (or so Murphy’s been told). If you really want to know what Tucker thinks of you rubes out there, just figure he thinks you’ll believe that test driver crap. Ole Scott has the FTC on his ass, and Murphy was on the wire last night with his friends, including the Hunting Dawg, parsing the long-expected news. You didn’t really believe ole Scotty boy would get away with that scam forever, did you? The Bear didn’t, and he said so, many times.

It’s just another in a long line of crooks who think sports car racing will be a fun place to launder their ill-gotten gains.

Another example is the felon who’s son owns the Ohio sports car racing team. Wink, wink. The IRS has finally put that build-and-close, dump-and-run-in-the-middle-of-the-night operation out of its misery. But back to Tucker and his Rent-a-Tribe operation. He seems really to have believed that would keep his consumer loan scam out of the reach of the law.

Someone over in the ALMS fan forum actually thought he was being funny when he asked the Hunting Dawg if he was taking legal advice from the Bear…only to eat his words a few posts later. You want a clue? A case with which Murphy is quite, ah, intimately acquainted is actually cited in the FTC-Tucker Federal Court filing. And the Bear knows that case chapter, verse and seizure. So padlocks it is for Level 5…and its assets, and that might extend beyond Level 5 into the ALMS grid. Don’t give Murphy any of that “innocent until proven..” crap, either. This is the FTC, the SEC, the IRS. They seize it and ask questions later.

It almost extended even further, because Tucker’s BFF (the bald one aka “The Boss”) had been wandering around the paddock for a long time looking for a buyer for the series, almost pleading with those he thought might be well-heeled enough to bail him out from under “The Don,” who of course had long since lost interest in the whole shebang. (Abruzzi, tracks for sale, DeltaWang, what else do you need to know?)

He thought he had that done with Tucker when the deal had to be set aside in last year’s spike in bad publicity for the Kansas City scammer. (Murphy says you’re welcome.) But the Bear’s sources say that wasn’t the end of it. The rumored “investment” by Tucker and his Level 5 team in other operations and entrants has been a holding pattern to find the right time to take over the rest. (And it’s a little more cash laundered, isn’t it?) Murphy can’t prove that, it’s rumor only, but now it’s irrelevant, isn’t it?

BTW. Someone said the Tucker’s Level 5 had made some big commitment/contribution to ALMS. Really? Got pissed off and ran off to the WEC? Parked its car in the middle of a race, as soon as the points were in hand? Murphy’s bent over in laughter.

Where’s the Bear Been?

After more than a decade, he’s really quite tired of the Braselburger crap. He’s got something far more fun and far more important to work on. Check out some background material at http://gourl.gr/owz or http://min.us/msLVTYQei . Go ahead, download. Perhaps you know someone who knows someone who can help.

The Bear will check in occasionally, and he’ll still tweet. But if it’s the same ole mostly-spec-racing crap, well, he’s got better things to do.

Audi  was running at Sebring this week. According to the best minds that analyze such things (Mulsanne Mike, for instance), the 2012 R18 really quite a different car than last year’s R18. Hopefully, the changes will improve the outward vision. A pal of a friend of the Bear drove the R18 a couple of months ago, and reported an “absolute blind spot out of the right hand side.” “It explains the McNish crash at Le Mans,” he said.

In other news from the Bear’s Chief European Correspondent, Romain Dumas is headed back to Porsche soon, there’s a big tug of war over Timo Bernhard, and Oliver Pla was quick at a secret Peugeot test.

Insiders in Europe believe ALMS will have Audi, Mercedes, and perhaps others not fully homologated by the ACO in some form of local GT class – but it’s unclear when that gets done.

The ALMS Field

The American Le Mans Series LMP1 and LMP2 fields, are slowly getting sorted out. In the premier class, it looks like Dyson will field two cars, though we don’t know yet who provides the second. It could be Humaid al Masaood again, or it could be someone else. A third entry seems a stretch, but remains possible. Cytosport is committed, but it now appears likely Mike Lewis’ Autocon partners won’t be able to save the entry and are looking for rides with others. The likely outcome for the class appears to be about what we had last season: two Dyson and one Muscle Milk prototypes.

LMP2 will be a bit stronger (that’s an ursine joke) than it was in 2011. Level 5 is reported to be a two-car entrant. Readers don’t have to be reminded that was last season’s expectation, too. Murphy’s is thus restrained in his excitement for Level 5 in 2012. Rumor has Newman Haas in the field, but if anyone’s seen any firm evidence, give a “holler.” The firmest entries appear to be Conquest and Black Swan. The Bear expects to see at least two LMP2 entries at every event, and as many as five at a few.

LMPC has six confirmed entries. None of those include Intersport, whose drivers and team employees seem to have fled to new team BAR 1 Motorsports, which the Bear believes is a probable entry. For those concerned with this and other LMPC teams obtaining funding, Murphy reminds you that in this class the drivers are the funding. With one more possible, the prototype Challenge class will be s-8 in 2012.

GT will struggle to reach 10 entries this season. The Lizards will return to try to recapture the hardware they believe they deserve – with some justification – every year. Extreme Speed is likely, but has one foot in Grand Am, and that might extend past Daytona. Falken is back and expecting to improve on  its 2011 – which will make it a contender for some of that end-of-season bling. BMW wants a splash for its M3 ahead of its motorsports reorganization that will put that venerable racecar into DTM and hand the keys to GT/sports car racing to the Z4. Corvette has had a disappointing start to its GT(2) program, but is always in the mix (if not mixing it up). Driver changes are in the offing, primarily driven by a desire to provide more stable factory driver support to privateer Corvette teams in Grand Am and around the world. As the Bear tweeted, Antonio will take a full-time seat. Expect Olivier Beretta to be full time with Jack Laconte’s Larbre Racing. Other Corvette Racing drivers will moonlight at Grand Am’s “major” events (Daytona, the Glen, Indy), but will not routinely partner in Grand Am DP and GT entries as they did last year. Grand Am teams are demanding “dedicated” drivers, and to the extent it can, the KGeneral is obliging. The Bear believes the other three Corvette “regulars” – Gavin, Magnussen, and Milner – are set, though there’s been a bit of rumble around a Magnussen move.

The winter’s most popular parlor game has been “Where’s Risi?” in which players try to come up with the most convoluted 2012 racing solutions for America’s premier Ferrari team. A kind of “Where’s Waldo?” for Ferrari fans. 2011 wasn’t a good season for the Houston team, and they’ve responded with some big changes, including substantial personnel turnover. Included in that is driver Jaime Melo, who won’t be back. The early season is pretty well fixed. Risi will field two new 458’s at the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona in January, replacing one previously entered under the Ferrari of Ft. Lauderdale name (you didn’t fall for that little ruse, did you?), then one at Sebring in March. It’s not so certain after that, but some Waldo players are putting their chips on Grand Am. In the end, the only player who counts is Guiseppe, and he hasn’t shown his hand – yet.  There was momentary excitement, a kind of ripple in the force, when Canadian Scott Maxwell a journeyman driver at best, tweeted that he’d landed a drive with Aston Martin. ALMS was the assumption, the hope being it portended another GT entry; Grand Am’s Continental series with Multimatic’s Aston Martin Vantage is the reality.

Grand Am

Grand Am unveiled the Corvette-bodied Daytona Prototype, the first of its new “DP3’s”. Its initial pace at Daytona wasn’t very impressive, lagging behind the DP2’s. Was it just new car teething? Sandbagging? At the time the Bear dismissed its importance, but then heard differently. The Corvette is seriously slow, unable to crack 190 anywhere on the DIS layout. There might be some other “good news,” though, in that a rumored an insurer is weighing in with a desire for slower top ends. That will give the series “cover” to slow everyone else down without it looking like a blatant move to put the Corvette in the game. Murphy guesses that no “balancing” will be quite enough, however, so he’s putting his money on Ganassi Racing to dominate in 2012, just as it did in 2011, 2010…

Scheduling Struggles

While Grand Am announced a 2012 schedule with not much fuss (though it did add its Lime Rock date later), the American Le Mans Series has struggled to pin its calendar down. Not all of that has been the fault of the Braselburgers, the comedies at Baltimore and Texas being the principal culprits, with the ACO’s June big black hole blowing out any chance to get Detroit. It does demonstrate the lack of options the series has been left with, however.

Bernie and Red finally settled their differences, confirming Austin for November, but not before a self-imposed construction delay. The result of that is the ALMS date remains unannounced, its early October date in limbo – for now, at least – pending some assurance the track will actually be complete enough to host a “trial” date ahead of the F1 circus.  Meanwhile, as if the current Baltimore (9/1) to PLM (10/20) gap isn’t enough, the Keystone Kops routine in Charm City has left that event with empty coffers and a $12 million debt. It has just two weeks to remedy that situation. Someone is going to have to come up with some serious cash or it’s buh-by to Baltimore. Necessarily, another Braseburg Two-Step – or perhaps a Cotton Eyed Joe – is underway, the dance partner this time being Virginia International Raceway, Murphy tweeting on December 7 that talks were underway, and AutoWeek chiming at about the same time. No announcement has been forthcoming, though, so as it stands now, the ALMS calendar could well have two gaps, eight weeks from May 12 to July 7, and nine weeks from August 18 (Road America), to October 20 (Road Atlanta).

There are real concerns about Bahrain’s appearance on both the F1 and WEC calendars. Regardless of the insistence by the FIA, ACO, and Bernie that everything is just hunky-dory, a bomb outside the British Embassy and rioting on the Pearl Roundabout doesn’t exactly contribute to any confidence amongst observers that either event will – or should – take place. More than 35 people have died in clashes and protest-related violence since February. Bahrain’s protests are the largest and most sustained to have hit the Arab monarchies and sheikdoms that line the Persian Gulf. There hasn’t been much progress on reforms promised after the February-March protests, contributing continued protests and clashes with security forces as recently as Thursday this week.  Murphy is among many who think that both Bahrain race dates are questionable at best. The status of its putative replacement makes the dropping of Petit Le Mans as a round of the World Endurance Championship a real head scratcher, doesn’t it? There’s good new in this for the civilized world (lately that doesn’t seem to include much ground between the Mediterranean Sea and Delhi). If Bahrain’s WEC round is cancelled, where does that series go? If the FIA and ACO get their act together before March’s Sebring opener, perhaps Petit Le Mans is back. Otherwise, probably just a hole in the schedule between Japan and China.

The Andy Lally Challenge

At Murphy’s last report, the American  Le Mans Series field had already closed out its 2011 with a total of $1,795,000 paid to all competitors.

When we last left Andy Lally, he had six races remaining on the Sprint Cup schedule, and he unfortunately struggled to the finish. For Sprint Cup’s Rookie of the Year, leading a lap at Talladega might have been a highlight, but his race ended in an accident after 162 laps in 39th place, with a purse of $81,300. In the previous race, at Charlotte, a brake problem ended his race after just 20 laps, but the 42nd spot still paid $64,825. At Martinsville, Hermie Sadler filled in, as he had earlier in the season, but then Andy bounced back for a finish in 29th and a $101,475 purse at Texas Motor Speedway. That was it for the season; Andy failed to qualify at Phoenix, and Mike Bliss drove at Homestead in the season’s final race. The $246,800 earned in three races in which Andy drove brought his season total winnings to $2,865,656. That final total almost doubled the earnings of the entire American Le Mans Series field for 2011, and brings the Bear’s Andy Lally Challenge to a close.

Kevin Buckler’s No. 71 entry gave up the 35th spot in owner’s points at Talladega to Bob Jenkins and was unable to gain it back. Buckler’s driver, whether Andy or someone else, will start next season having to qualify to make the grid.

The Bear wishes you all a Happy Christmas and a Wonderful 2012.

Murphy H. Bear

Honda Takes a Powder

Honda’s North American sports car racing program has passed on, the agonizing seppuku of its dying finally ended with one final swift stroke of the kaishaku. The beginning of the end that was announced today was in 2009 when three Acura-supported teams were cut lose. In 2010, the Acura brand was replaced by the HPD non-brand, and reduced to a single LMP2 entry. A tentative 2011 plan with token support, limited to Highcroft field trips to Sebring and Le Mans, was ended today.

Will Honda continue to develop and support the LMP2 V6? Will it simply transfer the center of gravity of its sports car racing to Europe? It’s clear it’s done paying for chassis, and equally so any significant engine program – the V6 is a half-hearted effort, at best. And it is very, very clear – even before this announcement – that Honda is not interested in the American Le Mans Series.

Taken in isolation, Honda’s departure is bad enough, but a wider survey of manufacturer’s plans, some announced, some rumored, should worry sports car racing fans around the globe.

RIP Wankel

Mazda will make radical cuts to its racing budget for 2012, something Murphy reported via Twitter on May 5. Now he’s learned a bit more. With the Wankel finally headed into the dustbin of history, the Grand Am GT program is in its last season, but Murphy hears Mazda North America likes McDreamy’s marketing value, so much so that it has contracted the development of an entirely new turbo 4 cylinder for the TV doctor’s step up to LMP2 in the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup in 2012. So a McDreamy Mazda skips the ALMS’ minor events in favor of the big show with just two North American appearances. The Bear’s 64 dollar question: does Mazda continue its other turbo 4 program, the branded AER motor used by Dyson Racing? Or does Dyson have to move to the new engine to stay in ALMS prototypes with Mazda?

Datsun and Toyoda

Two engine programs burst onto the scene this year, exciting fans hungry for any good news, particularly since these companies fielded the R390 and GT One not so many years ago. Not to be a wet blanket, but the Bear thinks there is less here than meets the eye. Both appear to be doing little more than attempting to squeeze a little marginal revenue out of existing 3.4 liter V8 motors developed for the All-Japan Super GT series – Nissan’s from the Skyline GT-R, and Toyota by its Cologne, Germany-based group for the Lexus SC430. Neither appears to be headed into sports car racing as anything more than engine suppliers with limited budgets, and neither seems to have any plans to participate in the American Le Mans Series. For Nissan in particular, be some pressure in the past two years for racing in North America seems to have largely dissipated in the face of ambivalence from Japan and a “beleaf” the future of racing is electric.

The Four Rings

No, not J.R.R. Tolkien, but the Decade’s Lords of Le Mans. Audi NA decided three years ago a North American LMP racing program was not a good marketing investment. It subsequently proved that by the results it measured after diverting those millions to other advertising.

It’s rumored that Audi AG wants to take a controlling stake in an existing F1 team, something it could do easily at a cost not much more than its on-going prototype program. If it does, instead of old prototypes moldering in a museum, its investment would give it hundreds of millions in F1 concorde distributions, the continuing revenue of an engineering business, and in one rumored case, leadership in flywheel KERS systems. All-in-all not a bad exchange.

And F1 adventure would be the end of campaigning the R18, except for Le Mans; otherwise Audi will continue in the ILMC. There is no possibility of returning to a full ALMS schedule.

Porsche and Peugeot

Murphy doesn’t know if Porsche will step into the gap left if Audi leaves ACO’s prototype ranks, as has been rumored. On balance, what he hears leads him to conclude it will not; the lucrative GT business is just too good not to remain the core of Porsche Motorsport. In any case, if there is a Porsche prototype it seems certain – like Peugeot – to compete in the ILMC events, and not contest the ALMS. The French will continue in the ILMC and at Le Mans for the “service life” of the current 908. Neither Porsche nor Peugeot will contest a full ALMS schedule.

Grand Am

As the Bear noted above, Grand Am GT will be without Mazda next season. Unfortunately Murphy hears there are bigger problems than that. Things aren’t improving in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup. It should be a wake-up call that Clint Bowyer may be done for lack of sponsorship in weeks, maybe sooner.

Teams and others in the NASCAR family are again pressuring Jim France to focus on the company’s premier series, questioning the “diversion” of resources to the “house” road racing series. We’ve been down this road before, but then it was in a context in which Sprint Cup’s weakness was largely seen as recession-caused, and would recover quickly as soon as the economy improved. That’s simply not happening, as anyone looking at the grandstands at Dover Sunday could readily see. What the recession (yes, business and employment is recovering, albeit very slowly) did do was break the love affair between corporate America and racing sponsorships. It’s hitting NASCAR, and has hit road racing much harder.

What does that mean to Grand Am? In the near term, it means that if purse increases recently discussed on International Speedway Boulevard happen, it will require contractions elsewhere, likely to Jim’s support of DP teams, including those “captive” or nearly so, to the France largess. (It was a chuckle at VIR that the “Beat Chip Bounty” was paid from one France pocket to another.)

Further out, Murphy can see a loss of momentum in the transformation of the series and particularly of the Daytona Prototype. However, the Bear isn’t as convinced as some that the “new look” will fall short. After all, a few inches here and there can account for the difference between a Ford and a Ferrari. We won’t know how these cars look until we actually see a car, or at least a to-scale drawing. But lessening financial backing will increase the series’ fear of driving away current entries by forcing too large an investment in new hardware. Similarly, new entries – Ferrari and others – in GT will increase cost by raising the bar for current competitors, again reducing entries. All that will likely make Grand Am more timid in implementing the changes that sports car fans (the traditional kind) have wanted to see in the Grand Am product.

Proposed DP Revisions

We always knew that the (cash) impact on current participants of new DP rules would be minimized, didn’t we? It’s a consequence of having “cheap” as your principal product attribute.

With that in mind, the kinds of changes – mostly bodywork – floated last week weren’t a surprise. Those who are critical might consider that it really does take only an inch here and there to hugely impact appearance. Consider that this look was achieved largely by raising the sidepod profile without any greenhouse reduction at all.

Bounties

With Grand Am paying the $25 grand bonus to itself, the only out-of-pocket payment was the $25 put up by Magnus for beating Bill Auberlen and Turner Motorsports (who none-the-less again landed on the GT podium).

The “Best television coverage in racing”

(As odd as it may now seem, that’s quote from a “State of the Series” presentation at a previous Petit Le Mans.) In a press release announcing the promotion of an underling, the ALMS confirmed the departure of Senior Vice President of Television Production Services John Evenson. He’ll “remain as a consultant to the series.” Pretty soon the series will have more “consultants” than employees. Murphy told his Twitter readers Evenson was shown the door at close of business Friday. The Braselburgers get credit for hiring Miss 12 Hours of Sebring 2008 in the same week.

The most important fans – the ones that bother with such things as forums – had been telling the series almost from the beginning that its television package was terrible. It chose not to listen.

Media Mogul Moves

Don’t be surprised if News Corp. makes a move to acquire the F1 commercial rights.

GRT

Generic Racing Team launched a website last week, then quickly shut it down. The prime suspect called Kevin and pled “Not Guilty.” The NASCAR brass was publically peeved, but privately amused. The search for a disgruntled former employee with advanced website design skills continues…

ALMS Prototype Summary

Muscle Milk will complete the season, as will one Dyson Lola AER (Mazda).

A Dyson second car announcement remains possible.

Autocon is “in” beginning at Mosport, though the “new direction” stuff is a bit overblown – same car, same motor, same drivers, some reorganization of the “partnership,” car upkeep moved to a new shop. No, it did not get “significant upgrades” at Lola.

It seems Intersport will “Field” an LMPC – but no LMP1 or 2.

If they can get the AMR One to run, Aston Martin will make a single ALMS foray, at Laguna Seca, in addition to the Petit Le Mans ILMC round.

Tucker will campaign one LMP2 for the remainder of the ALMS schedule.

Murphy’s seen no evidence that Signature has a car, or an engine, or a crew. (When they do, perhaps they’ll be kind enough to post a photo? Even Solo Al was able to do that.) The team says it’s in the “re-evaluating” mode. It’s getting a little late for this season, isn’t it?

Most likely ALMS (non-ILMC) LMP1/2 entry: Lime Rock 3, Mosport 4, Mid-Ohio 4, Road America 4, Baltimore 3, Monterey 5.

Oklahoma!

Still a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, but not yet a racing event. The “announcement” did not announce an event, but a promoter’s intent to get an event approved. The mayor is for it, the state is for it, yadda, yadda…but no mention of the OKC council, which defeated it last year. With a hoops playoff underway, auto racing isn’t even close to the community’s consciousness.

South America for the ILMC?

They’re floating the idea, along with an assumed constraint of seven (and no more than eight) events, including Le Mans. Drop one of the three European events? Perhaps, but most of the entries are from that continent. It seems equally likely that North America will lose one of its two, doesn’t it?

Andy Lally Update

Andy failed to qualify at Darlington, but won $80,825 at Richmond, and $88,875 at Dover for GRT, er..TRG, which brings his season winnings to $1,020,811. The entire American Le Mans field has won $1,093,000, less $173,000 withheld, the total due to participants to date is $920,000. Teams that have been classified as “factory,” or “factory supported” are not paid purse money. The next privateer(s) does/do not “move up.”  The Bear has already credited the privateer bonus fund that will actually be paid after the season. That may also not reach the $540,000 he has allowed, in which case the total will be adjusted downward as necessary.

The Boss said at Long Beach that Autocon and Intersport were “aiming for” Lime Rock. Murphy’s been told that Autocon will do four or five races beginning with Mosport and ending with Petit Le Mans. Based on team and driver geography, Laguna Seca will be in. The Bear can report that the “upgrade” of the Autocon Lola will not turn it into a coupe. In fact, it isn’t really much of an “upgrade” at all. Lola is repairing the firewall and suspension pick-up points.

What about Intersport? They have crew, car, transporter, shop…all they need is the funding.

Nothing from or about Highcroft indicates they will contest more than Petit Le Mans, and that’s uncertain. The team wasn’t included in The Boss’ speculation at Long Beach, and elsewhere Murphy has heard that the Indianapolis 500 was a priority target for Duncan, particularly since the earthquake in Japan seems to have taken partner HPD out of the picture. Unless there’s a unpublished partnership the Bear isn’t aware of, Highcroft has no entry at Indianapolis. Simon Pagenaud filled in for the injured Ana Beatriz in a Dreyer & Reinbold entry at Barber Motorsports Park. Perhaps there’s a “get the feet wet” deal with one of three Deyrer & Reinbold entries, or another Indy 500 team?

For Dyson Racing a second car likely – but not certainly - depends on funded driver(s). Murphy doesn’t know where that stands, and suspects neither does Dyson. The Bear’s friends who have been salesmen will know exactly what that’s like…”Have you gotten that order yet?” “No, boss, but they promised they’d decide any day now.”

Aston Martin Racing announced they’d participate in Petit Le Mans (a given, of course) and Laguna Seca, so that’s one additional “pure” ALMS round.

There will be no additional LMP2′s  this season. The best The Boss could do at Long Beach was that he’s talked to “more than two” (is that an alternate way to say “three?”) teams, and that one “could come as soon as the season-ending Petit Le Mans if the program is finalized in the coming days.” In other words, one outside chance for one new P2 at Petit (but no help for the non-ILMC rounds). Murphy’s conclusion? No chance.

The Bear recaps, other than Petit – he’s already designated that as a “must attend” event: Autocon will enter 3 or 4 events. Mosport and Laguna are definite, Baltimore is unlikely. AMR will enter Laguna Seca. A second Dyson Lola is possible, but uncertain, as is an Intersport entry.  There will be no additional P2 at any non-ILMC round.

Two Questions

Does Rebel Rock plan on entering GTC in 2012? Do you care?

Get Out There and Spin

The Boss lectured the PR reps at Laguna Seca for 35 minutes that they need to put a more positive spin on the “TV deal.”

Most Important

The Boss of this vibrant racing series could think of nothing more important to do with his time this week than to address geeky high schoolers. That will undoubtedly improve ALMS grids…in 2025.
 
BMW

It’s widely believed that BMW will end its ALMS GT2 program after the 2012 season. Unless it ends it after the 2011 season.

Andy Lally Update

At Taladega, Andy broke out of his thirty-something rut, finishing 19th on the super speedway and earning $100,050, bringing his 2011 earnings to $851,111  The ALMS field  was eligible to earn $209,000. Total to date for the entire entry of the American Le Mans Series (if it was all paid out – and it wasn’t, since factory-supported teams are ineligible) is $1,093,000.

Audi End Game

It’s rumored the R18 will be the last Audi sports car prototype. What’s next?

Oreca Bearish

According to an “insider,” Oreca is not bullish on the ALMS – and certainly not building its business plan on the expectation of future FLM sales to ALMS teams.

Four things…

…The Bear will not write about this time: Abruzzi, Micheal Waltrip, Level 5, and Signature Motorsports.

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?

The last program Murphy ever thought would move too fast to keep up with was The Don’s Abruzzi. Saturday started with Murphy’s Hoschton source saying the Abruzzi will indeed make the trip to Florida next month, where it will spend the Saturday after St. Patty’s day in a tent due to (excuse here) “problems with suppliers.” It ended when the real story – or a part of it – was told in a Gary Watkins AutoWeak article.

Redesign required. Boneheaded mistake – illegal greenhouse size. The Bear asked his Braselburg mole to watch the obits in the Gwinnett Daily Post – someone had to break the news to the Don.

All that just adds more BS to the biggest load about a single car – ok, there are actually 2 cars – in memory. Murphy wishes Mr. Milner good luck. He needs it.

“Doubtful” to “Questionable”

Highcroft may get it done after all. While the search for sponsors is always “iffy,” and tougher now than ever, recent statements from Connecticut have a more hopeful tone. For you punters, that means about 50-50. If it goes to “Probable,” Murphy thinks it will happen this week.

Pecking Order

Cytosport starts at the head of the class at the Sebring Test. Dyson Racing Team got within a half second or so in one session.  Our first read on the new season? An indication of the direction of things for Dyson is the addition of middle-aged Long Beach socialite and rent-a-ride driver Jay Cochran.

Tire Strategy

Wanting a tire that didn’t last long, and after studying performance for its racing cousins in sports cars, F1 did the obvious thing. They selected Pirelli. Do they get the girls?

Sebring Entry

Intersport Racing’s on the Sebring entry, but then, so was the Abruzzi. Seriously, the Bear will make Intersport “Probable,” meaning not completely healthy, but likely to “play.”

Everybody, including the Bear, is pretty happy with the Sebring ILMC entry, but at what price does this come? Is it cannibalizing the ALMS grid? Many around the sport think so. Except for GT(2) the American Le Mans Series is dependent on once-separate single-make racing to make up nearly half its grid. By Murphy’s count 23 of 59 entries (that total including that unlikely Abruzzi entry) will not continue to Long Beach and beyond. The missing will include what will be (at least) the first five finishers in LMP1 and overall.

Driver On Ice

A Ferrari pilot of demonstrated ability in sports cars doesn’t yet have a drive for 2011, and if stories circulating (regardless of frantic efforts to keep it all quiet) are true, he won’t any time soon.

The Other Porsche

With its Winter Test fire damage easily repairable – and mostly repaired in a day – the former Farnbacher Loles via Tim Pappas Porsche will be back for an ALMS season under the Miller Racing banner. Is it the much-needed backup for Flying Lizard’s No. 45, 2010’s only competitive Porsche? (Falken has yet to prove it has a tire that can last an entire stint.) The Bear thought so, but others in the racing biz say that’s the case only if the owner’s kid stays out of the driver’s seat. Otherwise it’s another Flying Lizard No. 44.

Failure is a Prerequisite

IMSA removed long-time Director of operations to a consulting role, just the latest in a long line of replacing key personnel with refugees from defunct open wheel racing series. Having worked for Champ Car – or, in this latest example, Altantics – seems to be primary qualification for catching on to the Braselburg gravy train. Murphy finds that odd.

A Farewell to the Lord

Drayson will not race in 2011. Expect an announcement about moving to a new shop in which a new car can be developed, pushing green science in racing, blah, blah. A return to the ALMS? Probably never.

The Risi Competizione Game Plan

Though Guiseppi considered four possible 2011 programs, “ALMS entirely and only” is the one settled on. Even though the 458 clocked better around the Fiorano circuit than any other Ferrari production car in history – including the Enzo – it’s still believed to need development, certainly more than the F430 GT, which, aside from a sticking wheel nut, came out of the box pretty much ready to race.

Murphy hears that development challenge will be taken up without the team’s long-time Technical Director, a casualty – along with some championships and a pile of cash – of the disastrous mistake at Road Atlanta last October. The Bear concludes it’s a team that takes its motto seriously. Risi Competizione — doing things the right way, everytime.  

Grand Am GT

Ferrari was the first to publically support Grand Am’s new GT3-based direction. Unless, of course, you consider that Porsche went from zero to light speed in jumping back into the World Center of Racing’s sports car series. That hatchet got buried faster than a terrier hides a bone from an Irish Wolfhound. Audi say’s it “won’t build a car specifically for Grand Am.” That’s after spending months in detailed talks with World Center management. Still to be heard from are BMW, Mercedes, and a few others. Still, with Porsche and Ferrari firmly in support, Grand Am will likely be able to launch a “new look” GT field by the time the 50th Rolex 24 rolls around. If that goes with a “new look” DP field, it will truly be a Brave New World (thanks to Aldous Huxley).

Bud Shootout

What Murphy does at his local BWW? Nah, it’s that funny (25 laps, take a break, 50 laps, no championship points) thing at the World Center of Racing.  It was watch that or Lifetime’s Romance Movie Marathon. Murphy did the latter (hey, the Bear’s a babe magnet. Are you? Ok, case closed, then). He just checked in on the Bud thing on commercials. That was enough to see some really weird racing. You think Daytona was two-by-two drafting before the repave? You ain’t seen nuttin’ til you’ve seen this. Weird, just weird. Two sets of two, followed by three sets of two. Speed? 206 mph. Speed alone? 186 by Junior. Murphy’s been a fan of the Earnhardt kid since a time at Sonoma.

A Valentine Recipe

Murphy hasn’t passed on a recipe in, well…years. But it’s Valentine’s Day, and about time. Is this for lobster tails, then? Hell, no…broil and be done with it. A porterhouse? Same thing. How about something really cool for that really cool babe. What’s cool? Something that will take some talent – not really, but will seem to – but is simple and good. Don’t like “seafood?” Sorry, you’re out of luck.

Honey Orange Tilapia (or salmon, or walleye, or any nice white fish) for two (of course).

2 tilapia fillets
2 tbsp honey
¾ cup orange juice (or 2 tbsp frozen oj concentrate)
1 tsp dill – dried (or 1 tbsp fresh)
2 tsp olive oil
Zest of 1 orange (use juice)

Mix all except fish in bowl, put fish in 1 quart plastic bag, add sauce, marinate in refrigerator for one hour or more.

Put fillets and sauce in skillet, poach fish on medium heat until done, reducing sauce by about ½. Plate fish, cover with poaching sauce. Serve. Sides? Asparagus. A nice Chardonnay.

Flying Lizards to Daytona

Before Seth Neiman and Flying Lizard Motorsports leased a Daytona Prototype from Brumos, he talked to Penske about one of the Captain’s cars. Near term, it was decided a lease was more attractive than an outright purchase. Seth will be one of at least two ALMS stalwarts we’ll see at the Rolex 24; what happens after that is still unknown.

Chip to Ford

It’s possible that Chip Ganassi will go with Ford in NASCAR. If he does, it’s likely his DP’s will also be powered by Ford. (Edit: Murphy tweeted an update on November 2: At a team celebration this week, it was announced Ganassi will stay with GM motors. Presumably, that will mean the BMW power in Grand Am continues also.)

Peugeot Power

The test of Peugeot’s new prototype exclusively reported by Autosport was sans engine – the new one, that is. Bruno Famin, Peugeot Sport’s Technical Director, claims it hasn’t even made that decision yet. A hybrid power unit has been rumored, and one of the Bear’s correspondents was convinced of it by the new roof air intake. “A new-rules 2 liter turbo, with KERS,” he wrote. One of Murphy’s technical wizards acknowledged the air intake but pointed out the 90X also has the fender intakes used with the turbo diesel. “They’ll stick with the diesel,” he said. “It still makes better technical and marketing sense.” The Bear has decided it will be one or the other. (Edit: One of the Bear’s favorite tech gurus points out that a diesel/KERS combination remains in the mix, and might even be likely. Whoops! Murphy now believes it will be one of those three. Any other ideas?)

Television and Alternative Media

The American Le Mans Series still doesn’t have a “broadcast” (obsolete word, isn’t it?) package it can announce. What gives? The Bear heard at Petit that the “traditional broadcast” (and its on-air talent) would be history, that 2011 would be docudramas on Versus with live coverage via web streaming. Murphy knows some will cheer that, but he’s not one of them.

So do we get Hindy and crew? Probably, but the Bear hears sponsorship and contract issues remain. (If that is “unhelpful,” Radio Show Limited can issue a statement – again. Murphy’s not in the “helpful” business; plenty in the media have accepted that charter.) A SpeedTV deal is crippled – in terms of value, at least – by the ACO’s grab of the rights to Sebring and Petit. A professional sport needs the revenue that’s possible only with “big league” television coverage. It’s not certain that’s going to happen. Among teams and drivers in the paddock who race for a living, this is a topic of great concern.

Japan to Join GT Ranks?

That’s what the world’s leading sports car racing blog wrote, admitting it was a “rumour.”  (What’s with all the poaching on the Bear’s territory lately?) Two manufacturers mentioned – Toyota and Honda – have had on-again-off-again programs over the past couple of years; nothing new there.

Honda told the ALMS two years ago it would like to field an NSX-based GT1/2, but only after the then-planned new model was introduced – soon after, they cancelled the new car. That would seem to have ended the idea, except that Honda got special permission to race the not-to-be-produced design as the HSV-010 GT and promptly won the Super GT championship in the GT500 class. Since the ACO is similarly perfectly willing to wink at its rules when it suits (see, for reference, the magic homologation of the Abuzzi), don’t be surprised to see an “NSX-something” somewhere in ACO racing.

Toyota might be working on something with the LFA – then again they might not. Old story again.

There is nothing ACO-oriented going on at Nissan that either NISMO or NA knows anything about.

The 2011 ALMS Prototype GridMurphy summarizes what he is hearing around the paddock about the likely 2011 entry for races not part of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup.

LMP1
Highcroft – Expect Duncan to continue with HPD for another season, but don’t take his dalliance with IRL too lightly.
Dyson – Not happy being let down by Mazda just weeks before the 2010 Sebring Winter Test, Dyson will start 2011 with “a foot in each camp.” Though they repeatedly say they want to be in the American Le Mans Series, where the team goes from here is largely funding-dependent.
Cytosport – If no good hardware option is found (Porsche is out of the picture), Cytosport could stay on the sidelines. For now, at least, they aren’t happy with the options.
Intersport – We don’t know why, but someone will come up with just enough cash for Intersport to run about half the season’s miles. In a tough 2010, they had to finish Petit to get near that magic “halfway.”
Drayson –  If the announced ILMC full schedule becomes certain in 2011, this team is much more likely to contest that than a full ALMS schedule.
Autocon – Zytek is likely not an option. If the only thing on the table is a return to the Lola AER, will Autocon race, take some time off, or drop to P2?
ARES (nee Corsa) – No activity on facebook, nor in a race shop, since April.

LMP2
CORE – More likely to be an LMPC entry.
HVM – Broke and looking for funded drivers.
Level 5 – ILMC is likely, ALMS less so.
Libra (nee Taurus, nee ECO) – Libra, Ian Dawson’s act 3, is on track to be as successful as acts 1 and 2.
Signature – The team’s own hope is only for the second half of 2011. This reality show won’t make prime time.

LMPC
Dick Barbour – Katherine Legge? Not likely.  Terri O’Connell (nee J.T. Hayes)? The Bear likes real girls. Too much hype, too little substance (or cash). Reminds Murphy of DBM in 2001: Elford, Panoz, Mugen, Holt, Duno, Graham, de Radigues. Sounded good, didn’t it?
Green Earth Team Gunnar – The real 2010 LMPC champs say they’ll be back.
Intersport – The Ohio team’s cash cow.
Performance Tech, Genoa, and Mathiasen – All possible
CORE – They’ll be here if anywhere.

Once again, the series will struggle to field a dozen prototypes in three classes outside of the two ILMC events.

Bad luck? Hardly. According to the Bear’s sources, the Keystone Kops routine was on display all week, from an embarrassing rented transporter that ultimately had to be covered up, to an empty hospitality suite for Jaguar executives and their guests  – no furniture, not even a cup of coffee.

Even the mainstream press had serious doubts about the program continuing once they saw it at Le Mans. The Daily Telegraph, UK’s largest circulation broadsheet newspaper, noted Jaguar’s “approval (of RSR’s official support) became rather strained” at Le Mans. Twenty years after the Tony Dowe-managed XJR-12 win, the Gentilozzi Jag went just 18 minutes 30 seconds into the 24-hour race before expiring. Murphy hears now that Jaguar will likely end its support for the RSR program before the American Le Mans Series gets to Miller. Will Jaguar continue with some other arrangement? Perhaps, but not immediately. Meanwhile, some suggest that since it’s been largely a privateer effort anyway, Gentilozzi may try to continue.

Bavarians aren’t thrilled, either

Jaguar wasn’t the only famous make that had a troubled Le Mans. insiders admit Schnitzer was an embarrassment to BMW, too. The betting is that the Bavarians will – or have – express their unhappiness, but won’t “changing horses.” For now Schnitzer will continue as BMW’s most important racing partner.

Porsche wins Le Mans GT2 – maybe

Le Mans GT2 winners – or not? What could possibly be in doubt about the winning Porsche’s motor that would take until “early next month” to sort out. Some wag wondered if the timing was dependent on “the check clearing.” Meanwhile, any marketing value in having won Le Mans is frittering away – except, of course, Porsche has been happy to claim its 98th class win anyway. Since the runner up Ferrari is also under review, perhaps Porsche feels secure because the third place car is another Porker?

A Dane Sprints – and Likes it

Jan Magnussen had his Sprint Cup series debut and loved it. He called it “fantastic; unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.”
“They go two wide and three wide. That’ll never happen in ALMS…here (in NASCAR), they allow you to race and to be two and three wide. Fantastic.”  Yuppers, Jan, the ALMS will pull you into the pits for “avoidable contact.”

Kevin to “Start and Park”

Given the instruction by cash-strapped Kevin Buckler’s TRG to “start and park,” 2000 Cup champion Bobby Labonte decided to walk. Andy Lally will get the opportunity to try to make the field, then park for the cash. That’s good for Andy, who gets a chance to show his skills to the Cup paddock.

Murphy told you about Buckler’s plans for new digs at New Jersey – and his sponsorship troubles – last August. Any chance Buckler’s fancy new shop will progress beyond this photo appears to be fading fast.

Mid-Ohio still “on” for IRL

Murphy’s been sorting through the comments on the 2011 schedule by IndyCar VP Terry Angstadt. Of most import to ALMS fans is his confirmation that Mid-Ohio will remain on the IRL schedule, albeit on a different date, the current one having now been committed to the new-in-2011 Baltimore street race.

With Baltimore and Loudon added, two current events will necessarily be dumped to achieve the series’ preferred 17 events. There could be more, but two seem certain according to Angstadt’s latest comments. Also implied in his remarks to the Elmira (NY) Star Gazette is that any “drops” will be within the events that occur before August on this year’s schedule. Since Long Beach is sacrosanct, it seems certain the only impact on the American Le Mans Series is the changed date for Mid-Ohio. Still to be answered, of course, is whether the ALMS will “follow” the IRL to the new date.

Prototypes Prospects

Expect Highcroft to return as Honda’s “Semi-Official Foot-in-the-Door” entry in Le Mans-style sports car racing. Although there have been statements of interest in an LMP1 engine under the new rules (since that would be a 3.4 liter NA designed-for-racing V8 they actually already have one, don’t they?) what they do will be determined by analysis of the final 2011 IMSA rules (if it and the ACO ever actually get around to publishing those). There’s no way there will be enough prototype entries for the series to restore its LMP1/LMP2 structure, so that class distinction is irrelevant and whichever engine appears to have the best chance to win will be the way this goes.

Murphy similarly thinks you can count on Dyson Racing to return, even though both Mazda money (cut this season) and BP petrodollars (other obligations to worry about) are “problematic” at best. Will Dyson stick to the so-called “little four-banger?” Yes, if the redesigned-for-2010 engine proves to be good over the remainder of this season, and the feeling on the team is it’s off to a pretty good start. As with HPD and Highcroft, the idea of a Dyson “class change” is moot as long as IMSA stays with a single LMP class – which it will do if it isn’t planning seppuku (though it does seem to be working on that).

Autocon’s LMP1 entry depends on Bryan Willman’s largess. He loves to race, but sooner or later will “hit the wall” (see Tom Weickardt). How does the Le Mans disappointment figure in that? Will the team be able to replace Shrek if it needs to? The Bear will score a 2011 return as “probably not.”

Intersport likewise needs one or more Sugar Daddies. Futility got old for Richard Berry, and the new Beverly Hills mark (er, driver) has hardly turned a wheel with a third of the season already gone. It’s a crap shoot to predict a top-class LMP entry for this team the rest of this year, say nothing of next, though the Bear expects continuation of its LMPC and IMSA Lites programs.

There’s some speculation that rule changes could end Cytosport’s Porsche run. Some of that appears to be rooted in an idea that a Porsche LMP1 (not just a modification of the RS Spyder) is imminent. Murphy doesn’t believe it is. So, will Cytosport continue? The team is not (like Highcroft or Dyson) an  ALMS competitor of many years. Greg Pickett is “getting on in years” (his lap times show it). Porsche doesn’t seem eager to support the Spyder (though they will continue to do so if adequately paid). Murphy thinks there’s no more than an “even chance” Pickett and his team will return.

Will Audi return? Yes and no. The “no” first. The R18 is about as substantial as any other video game, meaning it hasn’t made it off the hard drive of the design computer, and won’t until Audi’s board says “jawohl.” 

If it does, Murphy expects to see the new prototype in the Intercontinental Cup events and nowhere else. Herr Doktor Ulrich told a respected radio personality earlier in the spring  that a GT program in the American Le Mans Series is probably the way to go. Murphy would be disappointed if an Audi GT effort was wasted on a GTC entry, but it’s not clear which of those directions (GTC or GT), if any, Audi will finally take.

Everything the Bear hears about Corsa/ARES screams “dead on arrival.” Even the most recent team Facebook update couldn’t find anything more positive to say than “we are in a bit of a holding pattern,” and though they “want to race this year,” the “main concern” is 2011. Murphy puts the odds of even that happening about equal to those he gives to full seasons from Creation and ECO Racing. Both of those are slim and none, hoping in vain for one (or more) of those “sugar daddies,” so much in short supply. It’s a measure of the dearth of interest in racing in the American Le Mans Series that beyond ARES and ECO, Murphy can’t even find a good rumor about 2011 prototype entrants.

Drayson Racing is the one entrant for whom prospects for next season (and this one) have actually improved, due to Labour’s UK election loss. That left Lord Drayson “unemployed,” but now free to take on partners and sponsors. His current Judd V10 will be obsolete by the rules in 2011, and his enthusiasm for losing will be tested at some point (See Bryan Willman), but for now the Bear expect’s the Lord to return.

Unless there’s something out there completely under the radar, the American Le Mans Series top class will include no more than the six entries on this year’s grids with “bumps” in the two Intercontinental Cup races at Sebring and Road Atlanta.

LMP2 Kit Car

Kit car builder Bailey Edwards Cars claims it has six people working on a new-rules LMP2 to be built entirely in South Africa. Nearly two years into the project, there’s nothing to show but Greg Bailey’s chatter about testing in October and some artists drawings. To the Bear it looks like a small-scale US F1. Speaking of whom, they auctioned off US F1’s assets the other day, getting about a million dollars for tools, desks, parts and pieces, the largest of which, one tub, brought a mere $8,000. The You Tube guy, who’s turned out to be more big mouth than big money, seems perfectly happy to let his employees get stiffed on the pay due them. Class.

Peugeot’s Plan

Peugeot’s plan to participate in Petit – or in any of the remaining Intercontinental Cup and Le Mans Series races remains in some doubt. At the start of the season, it was Sebring oui, and PLM non. Then they said PLM ( and China) ouah! (Murphy dutifully booked his trip.) Following the Le Mans debacle, though, reports spread that it was now ah non Petit! (At least.) “Directly from the boss,” wrote one of the Bear’s trusted sources. Whatever. Girls and Frogs reserve the right to change their minds – often. As long as Paddy’s is open, Murphy will be happy.

Where’s T-Mobile?

 An article appearing in “Wall Street 24/7” lists the “10 Brands Most Likely to Disappear” T-Mobile, Kia, BP, Blockbuster, RadioShack, Moody’s, Merrill Lynch. Murphy had to laugh when he saw T-Mobile on that list. The chuckleheads ripping the poor Bear lately are the same ones who were touting VICI Racing’s Porsche T-Mobile sponsorship as “all set for 2010.” Murphy’s still looking for it…maybe later? Hey, corporate budget cycles don’t work like that – approving 2010 money in early 2009. What you saw in 2009 was all that was committed. 2010 was just hope – or hooey. The Bear told you as much.

Abruzzi

Le Mans was something short of a complete success for Don, Danny and the rest of the Braselburg gang. The Abruzzi made it across the Atlantic, but worries it might not make it around cancelled its scheduled demo laps. After a run up and down a nearby airport runway revealed a little problem or two (including wrong-length pushrods – “hey, we were in a hurry”), the Italian-inspired automotive sculpture became a static display at Le Mans, and remains in Europe. Parts packages are headed to Winchester, Virginia, so it’s now up to Tom Milner to see if he can build a racer. According to an observer, “It’s 75-1 on making PLM…against.”

Then grab a beer, take a sip, and wait for the Aston Martin. After that, take a little roll on the air mattress with the Significant Other, have a brat, open another beer, take a hit (of the beer or something else), count to ten, and here comes the third “pod,” Autocon, Intersport, and Drayson. (If you didn’t bring a S.O. – or rent one – have another brew, or maybe some of Gus the Gator’s Sebring Hooch Juice.) Really, since they’re creating new classes, ALMS ought to award three trophies in LMP1.

Murphy’s not sure LMP2 will be behind LMP1; actually, you’ll probably miss the LMP2 parade on the mattress, if not during that first beer. Highcroft, Cytosport, and Dyson promise to give us a pretty good race. Here’s hoping some “C”doesn’t take one or more out. If so, use it as an excuse for another trip to the mattress.

The Bear has no idea where the “C” protos will end up. A tire barrier? The paddock? One of his elves says these cars haven’t been run on anything like Sebring (Euro tracks are smoother and slipperier than…oh, never mind) so don’t assume they’ll be all that bullet proof. Six seem to be “official,” and “ready” (meaning they’ve got a car, drivers, and cash) – Primetime, Intersport, Genoa, Level 5, Green Earth Team Gunnar, and PR1.

Others might have a car – or not. Drivers – or not. Cash – or not. (The cash would be related mostly to the driver thing.) Those include Alex Job Racing, rumored to have a car in the shop and Comprent, which went fishing for funded drivers a while back (no sign they’ve landed one).

GT2 is as good as it’s ever been (in Bear memory, anyway). That would be in large part because this is the first Sebring for Corvette Racing, and pair of BMW’s with a season of development. They join Risi Competizione Ferraris (Tracey Krohn might be there with a Merc, instead, but Murphy thinks the odds are that’s later in the season), one of which will compete at the sharp end, and Flying Lizard Porsches – again, one will compete, one will drive around. AF Corse will contribute a competitive Ferrari.

Then it gets a little dicey. The Bear doesn’t think Extreme Speed’s Ferraris are good enough to be in the mix at the front; they may mix it up with the Jag for as long as the Cat lasts. In some order, Robertson, Black Swan, and Falken will bring up the rear.

Murphy knows Alex and Holly will be on hand with a pair of “C” class Cup cars. Expect single entries for P7, GMG (the Bear did a double-take, thinking maybe a ‘professional grade’ truck), Kelly-Moss, and Velox. There’s hope Melanie and Martin will be on hand, but they didn’t participate in support series testing, nor are they on the ALMS winter test entry. Of course, they’re pretty good on this track, having won (among other races) GT1 in the 1999 Florida debut of the American Le Mans Series. With six already accounted for, Murphy thinks you can count on eight GT Challenge entries.

In terms of total entries, the Bear accepts that the two Challenge classes have rescued the ALMS from embarrassingly small grids. They’ll account for 14 of 38 Sebring entries, if Murphy’s right. Attendance slipped last season – worse as the season went on – leaving the Bear to wonder how a field heavily dependent on spec cars will ‘sell.’ It seems contrary to the interests of ‘traditional sports car fans.’ Murphy remembers Roger using that phrase introducing Daytona Prototypes.

What will the entry look like in the rest of the season? With no unexpected losses, there will be six prototypes after Long Beach (Aston Martin stays for that one). The Bear’s not yet convinced that there will be two Jags, but he’ll count two here. He also hears Krohn will be around for the whole season – in something. So add a Jag and subtract the AF Corse Ferrari – it stays at 15 after Sebring, and likely through the remainder of the season. Add fourteen challenge entries; expect a grid of 35 at Laguna Seca and beyond. That’s exactly the number that Atherton’s been using in interviews. If that doesn’t turn your crank, there’s Petit Le Mans, where you can expect a substantially better entry for a designated Intercontinental Cup stop.

To help you get kill time between prototypes at Sebring Murphy’s passing along this little recipe from his friend Gus.

Gus the Gator’s Sebring Hooch Juice

1 gal cut-up fruit – apple, pineapple, watermelon, pear, peaches – anything you want, fresh or canned
4 oranges (quarter, squeeze, put peels in hooch)
4 lemons (quarter, squeeze, put peels in hooch)
4 limes squeezed (quarter, squeeze, put peels in hooch)
1 jar maraschino cherries w/o stems
1 Liter Bacardi 151 rum
1 Liter Everclear (ethanol, if you want to be official)
1 Liter Vodka – any flavor
1 46 oz. can or 2 liter bottle of fruit punch
2 2 liter bottles lemon-lime soda (sprite, 7up, etc.)
1 bag – or block – ice

Mix in large cooler, wash tub or anything else that will hold about five gallons.

Gus recommends that some fruit gets into each cup. He admits he missed the race and a lady friend embarked on a new career. The Bear thinks this is a great way for the gals to get warmed up to go out and collect a few beads. Neither Gus nor Murphy assume any responsibility for blindness, getting run over by a Sebring buggy, drowning in a mosh pit, or anything else.

No sooner than the cats left town than the mice were out. Actually not out, but “in” a meeting. With the RRIC underway in Phoenix on this past Tuesday – that’s where the Bear was – Murphy’s mole (the Moroccan Mole, some call him) reported a ‘big, big meeting’ at 1394 Broadway in Braselburg. The Bear doesn’t know if it was a sanctioned meeting or an incipient revolt, but he’s heard the subject matter was anything but trivial.

Panoz Motor Sports (PMS) Group has a new CFO/accountant. The new guy has been described to Murphy as a ‘slash and burn’ artist. The problem? Not much left to slash. The Bear’s been told the only profitable thing in the company is T-shirt sales – Anna Mae’s Trinket Truck. Nice stuff, but not a big division. In fact, profit or not, it might be on the chopping block as ‘not important enough to mess with.’ Murphy hopes like hell that’s wrong. He likes trinkets.

Cuts in other areas continue – on the pit lane and even in the safety car. Due to illness of the incumbent, new guy Jim is taking over Timing & Scoring (Murphy has been corrected, the job being taken over is Simone’s as Chief Communicator in Race Control; he’s also told she’s recovered very well - well enough to perform – not that anyone on Broadway cared enough to ask…), at least temporarily.

You need a measure of how well things are going? You saw the press release on a Haas “distributor deal.” First question – sent along by one of the elves – “what do you need a distributor for in your home market?” According to some, the real story is Champ Car – the failed racing series just keeps right on giving, doesn’t it? Murphy’s been told Haas loaned Panoz three million to build the Champ Car DP01, and was still owed a million. Cash-strapped PMS Group offered its parts business and a little cash instead, and Carl took it. According to just about everyone in the race car biz, that is pretty much the end for Panoz as a race car constructor.

As if to confirm that, just today the Bear was told the Abruzzi lives – yes, Murphy’s gagging, too. This time though, it’s as a GT2 (Autosport and autoblog.com reported that this past October), and the new story is it’s not PMS Group and it’s not Danny doing the building. It’s Tom Milner being paid by the Don to build the racing Esperante replacement (that had to go, anyway, since its road car certification was based on a Mustang platform no longer in production).

So, how does that work? The Abruzzi is supposedly a modification of the Esperante GTLM (that’s sort of déjà vu, given the constantly morphing history of the Panoz LMP). But what’s the homologation of the  Abruzzi without a street car?

Radisson Road Racing Conference

The nine tracks that host ALMS events met with the Series and with each othern the Canyon I room at the Radisson Airport North in Phoenix. The Bear was there.

Murphy was parked in the next door lobby bar when they broke at 5 pm for a reception in the 44th Street Café, and still there when they finally trickled away near 7 pm, nearly an hour later than scheduled. It seemed convivial, if subdued, in the café. Did the promoters (as predicted by as source) get “reality, no more BS, real solutions?” Time – and the International Moles’ Secrets Association (IMSA) – will tell. The Bear is disappointed to have to report that the recently appointed committee had no representation in sight. Given the current problems of the Series and of PMS Group, they could seize the initiative. Murphy hopes they aren’t solely a creature of the proprietors.

Porsche

The Warsteiners – oh, sorry, that’s the beer, Murphy means the Weissachers – announced eight werks pilots the other day; missing were Emanuele Collard and Sascha Maassen, as the Bear told you a while back. The story is in the remainder, though. It seems there’s not even enough work (werk?) for even eight. Wolf Henzler is assigned to a seventh-place (at best) ALMS entry. Ace drivers (there’s no doubt about that, is there?) Timo Bernhard and Romain (Lettuce) Dumas are assigned to, pretty much nothing. Sure, they make a big deal about the Nurburgring 24 hours, but big car and fan turnout aside, it’s a run-what-you brung event, not exactly Le Mans. Odd, isn’t it? Something has to be planned, doesn’t it?

That’s a matter of debate, some saying they’ll land in a Porsche AG (or NA)-financed Cytosport entry, others saying “ no way, they won’t lay out that kind of money, and if they wanted to, why not just hire Penske again?” Those in that “no way” camp suggest some kind of combination deal with Audi (a car for Timo and Romain at Le Mans, as there was last season), and a few “place-holder” Porsche races (one-off seats at Petit Le Mans, perhaps?). So why keep even those eight on board if there really isn’t that much work? Over-active imaginations will suspect the gestation of a new Porsche LMP to the 2011 rules (which, after all, won’t be much of a stretch from the Spyder, particularly its 3.4 liter V8). The cynics will suggest it’s much simpler; if you’ve got ‘em under contract (and have to pay them), you could just as well try to use ‘em.

Balancing Act

What’s next in the brave new world of performance balancing? Falken seems to be angling for rules to help them run their 2008 Porsche? Not just run it, of course, they can do that if they like, but to make it competitive. That’s nonsense – and besides, it won’t exactly do good things for Porker race car sales, will it? Next, Randy Wars and Grady Willingham will be back in Dick Barbour’s old R. IMSA let a couple run in 2001 after the introduction of the RS, but they didn’t change the rules to make it faster, did they?

Extreme

Or not so. Scott Sharp’s Extreme Speed was planning to run a GT Challenge Porsche along with it’s two GT2 Ferraris. Now it’s dropped the Challenge program. Some say it’s a good idea for the team to concentrate on its Ferraris.

Intersport Raids Comprent

Sources say the Dublin, Ohio team has taken two of Comprent’s former IMSA Lites customers. Meanwhile, the proprietor of the Georgia company is rumored to be buying out his partners in a 5 axis milling machine. 

Spiraling Down

Declining attendance is likely reducing ALMS sanction fees, on top of outright loss of sanctioned series (BMW’s training wheels racing), and declines in entries (and consequently revenue) from other sanctions (Cooper Atlantics had 8 entries last the Bear heard, possibly Patrón GT3 Challenge, cannibalized by ALMS’ Challenge class). Declining and stagnant television viewership is reducing ad rates, and making annual support of the series look less attractive to manufacturers and other partners.

The Rolex

Look for Murphy’s  annual Rolex preview early next week.

Twitter

When rumors surface, the Bear tweets at http://twitter.com/Murphythebear