Announcements have been written but not released while the last details of an agreement are completed. However, Murphy is pretty sure Dyson Racing (but not its current two drivers) to be on hand at Montreal, and yes, the Bear knows full well that’s on the same weekend as Mosport. Dyson Racing will wrap up the 2010 season involved in both ALMS and Grand Am, as they have before.

Dyson’s been struggling this season – hell, the past three or four haven’t been anything to write home about. So perhaps a little change of scenery is in order. Plus, maybe you’ve noticed, prototype racing, after a pretty cool 2007 and 2008, well, the only way to put it is…it sucks. Big time. So, why not take on something different? The ALMS thing is sure no fun. (According to sources who have talked to both, Chris is circumspect about all this, Dad less so.)

Anyway, along comes John and Karen McCutchen’s Godstone Ranch Racing, participants in this past Rolex 24 with Davy Jones in Leighton Reese’s new Corvette. John’s been driving in Continental since. The Bear thinks McCutchen will drive the prototype and Davy Jones will join him.

Dyson Racing will participate as the team of record and with team staff and infrastructure and such. Lola will deliver a car, and Rousch-Yates will do the Ford engine. The effort – as at Daytona – will carry Godstone’s imprimatur and benefit Texas Heart Institute. According to Murphy’s sources will be Lola factory-supported. (You didn’t really expect Lola to carry on with Krohn after the names they called each other in Delaware’s Chancery Court, did you? I mean, they wanted Krohn to sell cars and win races, and he’s done neither.)

All the participants are contributing some amount of support to this party…no one is carrying the whole burden, and it seems no one is “just getting a check.” For Montreal and Utah this year, anyway, it looks like this one is pretty much set.

No one will say for sure that there is – or isn’t, for that matter – a 2011 plan. But Murphy thinks this is a bit of that “team building”; if the kids all get along, and they can work out some numbers (from Dyson’s standpoint, with Mazda and BP not coming through as expected this season, almost anything will be an improvement) they’ll continue with a full season in 2011.

Back to Mexico in a Huff

Murphy thought, along with others, that the Gonzalez boys were mad at IMSA for the ride height penalty, got mad and left. Now Murphy’s been told that wasn’t the deal at all. Seems Gonzalez got it in his head that instead of just buying a ride (or renting a team), he was buying a team, or at least part of one. Then Alex (or was it Holly?) sat down and had a little heart-to-heart. No, Alex Job Racing was still – and would remain – Alex Job’s team, lock, stock, and barrel. They must do business differently in Mexico, because ol’ Mission tortilla chips up and left, went back the Monterrey (anyone with any sense is going the other direction from that drug gang cesspool). That’s what the Bear heard at Lime Rock, anyway . And Murphy likes Tostitos better, anyway.

Mid-Ohio Sportscar Course

Murphy was told just this morning that a sale of Mid-Ohio is imminent. He’s written more than once that it was on the block, most recently this June 10 entry:

“The American Le Mans Series could lose its Mid-Ohio round next season. Murphy previously heard the sale of the track is possible – there have been discussions, and a  price has been named…” (Paddock Poop 168.)

Now he’s heard the sale is just about wrapped, up and will be announced soon. Ominously, this source says, “New owners not big ALMS fans.”

2011

If there are enough teams, where will they race? Uncle Scott still prattles on about 11 events, but the Bear can’t find many in the paddock who believe that. Rumors are flying about the addition of Baltimore (that seems pretty certain) and Oklahoma City (less so), but what about the 9 on this year’s calendar? Who will be back, and who won’t. Murphy doesn’t know, of course, but there are lots of rumors about, and a little speculation, so here is your 2011 season:

Sebring, Mosport, Road Atlanta. They are the “house brands,” so they’ll be along for the ride no matter what…except of course, when the Don can get “residential real estate value” for the 700 acres of Road Atlanta. Mercifully, with today’s real estate market, that won’t likely be any time soon. Mosport will stay a sprint race as long as the Tundra Monkeys keep turning up in profitable numbers for a sprint. The party goes on at Sebring (and the land isn’t worth much, anyway).

Long Beach. ALMS is still in the midst of a contract that – according to rumor – hugely benefits the promoters. The series is obligated to (1) pay and (2) show up. Long Beach isn’t going to let this fish off the hook.

Monterey. A fairly successful event, colder than hell the past two years, especially where wind-exposed. Attendance has dropped both of the past two years, more this year, after the date was changed. Changing an event date, not just from one week to the next, but from fall to spring, is never good, but Laguna Seca will be back in 2011.

Utah. Nobody – and Murphy means literally nobody – shows up for this one. Rumors have been rampant it would be gone in 2011, but there are just as many rumors that it will become the next 6-hour enduro. Teams don’t like it, fans don’t like it. What the hell are you going to do with yourself in this sun-baked wasteland for six hours?

Sonoma. The rumors have gone quiet. Best guess is it’s off.

Lime Rock. Attendance is mediocre, and few are happy with the butchering that was done to this track under the guise of an upgrade. No real rumors that it’s gone, though, perhaps since it’s the series only foothold in the Northeast.

Mid-Ohio. The date has to move to make way for Baltimore, but It’s not clear where there’s room. Could it go before the Le Mans break? There are recurring rumors that Mid-Ohio will be off the schedule. A sale if continuing rumors are correct, will almost certainly remove the track from the 2011 schedule.

Baltimore. A good source says Baltimore is a slam-dunk for the ALMS. The promoters want the series, and the series wants to be there. The same source says the contract was in the hands of the series, and the promoters were anxious to see it signed and announced.

Oklahoma City. Murphy hears it’s on, Murphy hears it’s off. That reflects the reality. 50-50.

Road America. Gone. The Bear’s sources on the ground say the Nationwide race drew the largest crowd seen Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine country in years, perhaps in decades. That’s enough, with ISC’s AMA Super Bike, for the track to get rid of the money-losing sports cars. George won’t care, he’s happy with his new NASCAR friends. Though he would jump at a good open wheel weekend if one came along, he’ll accept a Grand Am date to keep Nationwide and the Super Bikes.

New Jersey. Often rumored, but just wishful thinking. In the ISC pocket, no chance for the ALMS.

Houston. Promoters want to re-launch this one. If they do, it will be with IRL, and  likely without the American Le Mans Series.

Go Git Em, Johnny

Others have done so (Montagny) but the Bear was warmed all over that Johnny O’Connell treated the fans like adults and told them what they already know: Lime Rock does not suit the American Le Mans Series. That’s particularly true after the butchering of the recent “upgrade.” Another place where they are lying to you when they say love being there: Miller Motorsports Park.

Murphy’s “Quote of the Week”

This gem comes from the PR release of one of the ALMS teams after Saturday’s qualifying at Lime Rock.

“As usual at Lime Rock, the rain came earlier than expected.”

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Grand Am had a team owner’s meeting and cocktail reception on the 8th floor of the new ISC/NASCAR digs on International Speedway Boulevard last Thursday afternoonand evening. It’s probably where A.C. saw FIA chief Jean Todt accompanied by fiancé Bond Girl (Wai Lin, Tomorrow Never Dies) Michelle Yeow (right, at Cannes, credit Georges Baird). Todt is heading an FIA delegation, including American Nick Craw, on a “good will” tour – shoring up support amongst racing series and motoring club after AAA’s recent resignation.

With Bernie’s payments for F1 rights about to end with 89 years of exclusivity left (what dumbo wrote that contract?) the Frogs are facing a big ($35 million) hole in the budget. If others follow AAA out the door, things will be dire indeed.

As if to illustrate how dire, Grand Am told the assembled dignitaries they are in negotiations with DTM for a tie-up that will bring DTM to the USA. Some think a NASCAR-DTM alliance could get along quite well without the FIA.

Will the tube-frame silhouettes replace the ungainly DP’s at the top Grand Am, just be added to the field, or run in joint weekends? We are getting to the end of the DP’s  “10 year guarantee,” aren’t we?

The good will tour is expected to continue to Georgia (or perhaps Miller) and Indianapolis, among other stops.

Peugeot’s Relief

Peugeot Sport took apart its three failed diesels and were relieved to find they had not been shot by an Audi ray gun, as was suggested by a regular contributor on americanlemansfans.com. The best news for the rest of us (including Murphy, who has his plane ticket) is that the French announced they’d contest the remaining races of the Intercontinental Le Mans Challenge, including a two-car entry at Petit Le Mans.

Ingolstadt on Hold 

After 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,” Ingolstadt won at Le Mans and continued to talk about the R18 as if there were such a thing. Though a few parts and pieces and some engine development can go forward on whatever “slush funds” Ulrich can tap, major advancement of the program depends on funding approval by Volkswagen’s Management Committee. Dr. Ulrich can’t even ask the board until he has a rule set to build to. The ACO hasn’t yet provided one, and that’s the problem, of course, just as it was in 2008 and 2009. 

Murphy hears the ACO’s in some disarray over the 2011 rules, with raging internal conflicts over details and the potential impact on the 2011 Le Mans entry. They’ve told teams one thing, then released drafts that did something quite different, and, ironically the on-going confusion is doing just what the Frogs fear – impacting the 2011 field. At least one project has been stopped dead in its tracks by the release of the most recent draft.

The GT comment was a bit offhand, a general kind of comment that didn’t necessarily represent a “program in being.” However, continuing rules prevarication from the ACO has caused a GT program to become a much more attractive option to Audi. One source says that the R18 – if it does go ahead – is now a “Le Mans only” car; not LMS, not ALMS, not LMIC – Le Mans ONLY.

Against that background, Murphy heard (and tweeted), “A familiar team is said to be currently setting up shop in Braselton from which it will soon begin preparing an Audi R8 for GT2 in 2011.” The rumor said the ‘familiar team” was Champion Racing, but the Bear decided to dig a little deeper, and discovered the ex-Farnbacher Loles shop is now occupied by Eric Barrett, formerly of Miller –Barrett Racing, and for now it’s all quiet in those digs. Barrett is in Europe; it’s believed he’s trying to lay his hands on one of Zak Brown’s GT3 Audi R8’s. What will he do with it is anyone’s guess. Mild it back to GTC? (Edit: A friend of the Bear’s passed on this note from Eric Barrett:”Please tell Murphy I was on vacation (not on an Audi R8 quest). I retired four months ago.” Consider it done, Eric. The same friend clarifies that Barrett is the owner of the building in which Farnbacher Loles was once a tenant. Murphy hopes that business relationship worked out better for Eric than many deals did for others.

No one in the business who Murphy talks to thinks Volkswagen will eagerly field a competitor in the middle of Porsche’s very profitable 911 GT3 Cup business at a time when Porsche is working to expand those sales. Especially one so expensive as to have to be subsidized by its Audi brand.

If Audi decides on an ALMS GT campaign, it won’t be with an “independent” design. Not that they need to, but Audi sees the Jaguar disaster (and the Chrysler disaster before it) just  as clearly as stuffed animals do.

Murphy doubts Zak Brown will ever end up in the ALMS, anyway. Ol’ Zak’s a NASCAR and Grand Am guy through and through. If you don’t believe him, just ask; John Dagys, of Speedtv.com did. In an interview, Brown said (about racing in FIA GT), that he enjoys being with “the big boys.” In racing, an admitted sycophant will always kiss up to a France and ignore a Panoz, and Zak pretty much laid it out that way. If he races GT cars in the US, it will be in Grand Am, “where there are commercial advantages.” Period.

Zak  would get along just fine with Kevin Buckler, who sidled over the table at which execs for Cort Wagner’s sponsor New Century Mortgage were sitting during the 2004 ALMS Banquet. “You want to play on the big tracks with the big boys next year?” he asked, pitching a Grand Am program with Wagner. They took him up on it. That was just two and a half years before the sub-prime mortgage mill, the subject of numerous Cease and Desist orders from states Attorneys General and a US Justice Department criminal investigation, went broke and was liquidated. The Bear remembers the ALMS New Century “FastQual Awards.” “Fast Qualifying” is pretty easy on liar loans, of course.

Kinetic Motorsports

Murphy was told the Russell Smith and Nic Jonsson racing shop laid off five employees last week. The Kinetic Kia Koup deal apparently isn’t enough to keep everyone gainfully employed

Speaking of Koups

The Bear hears it’s decided. The new Audi R18 will be a closed cockpit.

Nissan iie

Though it’s been quietly considered, no North American Nissan GT racing program for 2011.

Riley the Cat?

There was some sniffing around RSR’s shop by parties interested in fielding a Jag-powered DP, odd to say the least, since the direct injection motor will require significant modification to be Grand Am legal. It’s understood any Cat motor has come from Paul Gentilossi’s shop, so the Indians haven’t thrown Rocket Sports under the bus yet. No interest yet from anyone who would run it in ALMS. Folks following that series has probably seen enough.

The Jag’s electrical problems at Le Mans are being blamed by the team on the Zytek-built (edit: not Zytek, “Stack,” apologies) box the ACO installs on each entry as an engine monitor. According the rumor around Indianapolis, the Jag’s Motec system and the Zytek box couldn’t be made to work together.

The New Indy Car

The IRL’s ICONIC  committee responsible for recommending the new Indy Car have been more secret than an Elk’s Lodge, but Murphy’s heard there will be more than one chassis maker chosen, or perhaps a common tub/undertray chassis that other builders will be able to construct their cars onto. 

The Bear heard Robin Miller knows what has been decided but is keeping his mouth shut. (Since when has that ever happened?) Allegedly, one of the seven ICONIC members told him. Cottman? Long?

X Games

Murphy supposes it was just a matter of time with drifting and all, but Rallycross will be part of the Summer X Games in LA, with Subaru a participant.

Hoosiers Suck

No, not the UI (edit: ”IU” not UI, thanks to Privateer Motorsports) football team (on second thought…), or the whole state, but the tire soon to be rebranded Continental and become the Grand Am spec shoe.

Weekend tests after Daytona at Homestead for the Grand Am teams were a disaster. One prominent team went home early and very dissatisfied. A pro driver did a couple of laps and pronounced the rubber “a good way to kill myself.” Best times were 5 seconds off the March pole. In a long run test, a prominent Mazda pilot ran 1:22/1:23 for 16 laps – about a half stint – before the tires fell off by seven seconds and he finally spun.

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The Bear decided to delay Paddock Poop 170 for this important and extremely timely A. C. column.-Murphy-

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.”

The Bear got this note from A.C. tonight. The famous motorsports writer was inspired by the big upgrade to Speedtv’s Le Mans commentary, and expresses some doubts about Murphy’s recent rumor record. Always a practitioner of careful journalistic research, A.C. even gives us a statistical analysis of  the Bear’s scurrilous stuff.-Murphy-
 
I watched some of the garbage known as Le Mans, only because “The Most  Interesting Man in the World” was doing some commentating. Thank goodness he was there, reminding the viewers 236 times about his Rolex collection. I was especially impressed how Scott had such an in depth knowledge of Le Mans, even though he personally could care less about prototypes that are fast, technologically advanced and not made by Riley. And I have to laugh a little at the Audi R15. The design of this car was obviously based on the Riley. Look at them side-by-side. Can you tell a difference?
 Corvette had a rough go of it at Le Mans after a fine start. Perhaps they could learn a few things watching the fine performance of Corvettes in the Rolex series.
 
I am really excited about the smaller fields that Grand-Am has introduced this season. The Rolex series has always been geared to simpletons who like NASCAR, so fewer cars and classes are the way to go. I bring that up because my understanding is that Grand-Am may be restructuring in 2011, going from two classes, to no classes. Not sure how that will work, but Mark tells me one of the benefits is that Timing & Scoring will no longer be needed. More details to follow.
 
The thing I hate most about sports car racing, other than the Nicotine Patch, is all the rumors. That little furry bear seems to always have a rumor about something, and less than 90% of the time, 10% of it is half true and the other 80% is not even close to the majority of the
20% he says might happen if it doesn’t.
 
On that note, let me dispel the rumor there is growing dissension among the NASCAR Nationwide and Truck Series about the money wasted on Grand-Am. I can report to you this is absolutely, positively, probably not true. I have been personally assured by the Grand-Am management that everyone in NASCAR is in full support of subsidizing the road racing department, and that the France family has allocated one trillion bazillion dollars to insure it will exist well into the 2011 season, if not longer. As a shareholder in International Speedway Corp., I can tell you that I am in full support of the company’s involvement in road racing. And so is Godwin. As long as we can keep using those loaner Pontiacs.
 
Another rumor floating around is that the above mentioned company is buying Sebring and Road Atlanta. I have been told that is not true. However, there is interest in buying the ACO and the Le Mans circuit. I know NASCAR has been very keen on building an 8.5-mile tri-oval in France, and this would be an ideal site.
 
I got a lot of nasty emails after my last column about J.C. France. It seems many of you think J.C. got those charges dropped because he was a member of the France family. That is simply not true. J.C. has EARNED everything he has, including all 14 of his exotic cars.
 
Finally, let me issue an apology to the Continental Tire competitors. I have no idea this series exists. Can you prove it?
 
Until next time,
 
A.C.

It has been a while since you’ve heard from A.C. My temp job with the Census Department has really tied me up, and I haven’t been able to attend any Grand Am races since Daytona.

There has been a lot of news about the Rolex Series recently, and its all been good. Probably the best thing is J.C. France has been fully exonerated of those bogus charges against him.  J.C. is a good citizen and an asset to the Daytona Beach community and the Rolex Grand Am Series. It almost brought a tear to my eyes when I saw all those “Free J.C.” Banners at the Rolex 24. 

It was obvious from the start J.C. was targeted by law enforcement. This is called RWGP (“Rich White Guy Profiling”) and has become a serious problem in our country.  The fact he has 30 traffic stops on his record proves the police are unfairly targeting him. From what I understand, the ACLU was going to defend J.C. because of the nature of this RWGP case.  Fortunately, all charges have been dropped.

I wasn’t surprised to hear the good news that Scott Pruett was just named the “Most Interesting Man in the World,” replacing that bearded Dos Equis guy (“Stay Thirsty my Friends”). The announcement was made by the NASCAR Road Racing PR Department after a poll of Grand-Am fans (Andy F., I know you stuffed the ballot box, but I won’t tell anyone).  As I’m sure all you Grand-Am fans know- Scott is simply the greatest race car driver ever.  By the way, Memo Rojas is a great guy too, but not that interesting.

I received an email from a reader suggesting I comment on the dwindling car count in Grand Am. First of all, 12 DP’s is an excellent number, because it’s quality, not quantity that matters.  More important, it’s kind of cool that there is usually one car per spectator at Grand Am races, which creates a very intimate feeling.  NASCAR does not overlook anything!

I really like the new ballast drawing instituted for the GT class. If you are not familiar with it, it is quite simple: When a Mazda team arrives at the track, they draw a number [between 74 and 76] out of a hat, and that is the amount of extra pounds they carry in the race. Non-Mazda teams are exempt.

Don’t know if any of you have had a chance to see the massive new NASCAR offices on International Speedway Boulevard, but they are awesome.  The lobby features a tribute to the France family and the importance of NASCAR to our society. Its like a little museum; there’s a special display by Winston, showing the number of NASCAR fans who got lung cancer during their sponsorship. Another display shows the technology advances of NASCAR (for some reason the timeline ends with the 1970s).  A neat item on display is the actual urine sample Jeremy Mayfield submitted for his drug test.  Probably the coolest thing is the “Wall of Contrived Controversies” the NASCAR PR department has dreamed up to create fan interest.  They were just adding the Jeff Gordon vs. Jimmie Johnson feud when I was there the other day.  Anyway, the Grand Am office is on the first floor in the back corner, next to the restrooms and the “Office of Loyalty.” Inside the Grand-Am office there are 159 different photos of Hurley Haywood on the wall, arranged in a pattern that spells “DAYTONA.”  Really cool.  If you ever have a chance to visit the new offices, I recommend it.

The “silly season” is upon us already!  Lots of juicy rumors.  I’ve heard Jim France is the stroke of a pen away from buying the three Panoz tracks.  If he steps up to the plate, and I think he will, expect the Rolex schedule to expand by three races next year!

I’ve also heard the next generation of DPs will be announced later this year!  The rules will send shockwaves throughout the road racing community (and especially in Braselton).  I am sworn to secrecy, but I will give you these hints: Jim Hurtubise, Zima, and The Village People.

A.C.

Sports Car racing has always been the preferred pursuit of a menagerie of miscreants, so it was no surprise it took J.C. France, cocaine-using (possessing, anyway) son of NASCAR vice chairman Jim France just a half season to get back to competing in Grand Am. Though the Daytona Beach News-Journal wrote he would not, a Bear source said he was indeed at VIR on the weekend.

As soon as the family lawyers got a dismissal of drunken driving and possession of crack cocaine, NASCAR reinstated his license. It seems the arresting officer was had chased the fleeing France out of her jurisdiction before he finally pulled over. Apologists will say “he wasn’t convicted,” but Murphy’s more convinced by the fact that the arrest report still stands, and the confiscated crack still exists, the fact of neither having been challenged by La Familia’s mouthpieces. So France is back to his “lifestyle” without so much as a slap on the hand, though NASCAR said he’d gone through rehab and “rigorous” drug testing. (For six months – right.) Half bro Russell Van Richmond (or is that Reginald van Gleason III) had it a bit tougher. He had to “serve” six months probation.

Grand-Am vice president of communications Kevin Hinson said Grand-Am has no formal substance abuse policy, such as NASCAR’s, and does not expect the sanctioning body to implement one in the near future. Nope, don’t need one of those. Grand Am’s equivalent of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” Murphy thinks.

Get drunk. Race. Lead cops on a chase. Refuse breathalyzer. Have your crack seized. Get it all tossed. I am a Grand Am driver. Priceless.

Indy Keeps 1979 Le Mans Winner

Speaking of miscreants, it takes real talent to make Don Whittington – Le Mans winner, IMSA champion, and former importer of South American agricultural products – a sympathetic figure. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway pulled that one off, though, beating Don out of his famous and valuable Porsche 935 (the one that won Le Mans in 1979). Of course, if you can unceremoniously fire your own brother….

More Change at Haas

Murphy hears Carl Haas isn’t well, that he requires care. It’s rumored whomever was supposed to be doing that at Long Beach “mislaid” the motorsports icon in the lobby of the team’s hotel, and there, like a potted plant, he spent the day. Paul Newman has passed into history. Mike Lanigan is gone. Bernadette (Bernie) is in charge now. Will she move to front and center like other recent (and infamous) female sports team owners Georgia Frontiere and Marge Schott? 

Villeneuve will join the team for Indianapolis and after. Haas now owns the parts business of EMT, leaving that company little more than a shell.

Prototype Cat

Word around the paddock is that Paul Gentilozzi’s Rocket Sports Racing will supply a “free” (fully sponsored/supported) Cat engine to anyone willing to stuff it in a prototype and go racing. How this offer (and Gentilozzi) will be affected by the impending departure of Mike O’Donnell, the program’s most prominent champion at Jaguar, is unclear.

Tequila Trouble in Paddock for Patron

On the heels of the dust-up over telecast start time and display of liquor advertising, ALMS has run into resistance to the new “presented by Tequila Patron” graphics for team transporters.  After NASCAR’s Grand Am had little trouble getting compliance with its “presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16…” graphics, the American Le Mans Series is getting “push back” from major teams that don’t want the association with booze so directly made on their own equipment. Murphy doesn’t underestimate the leverage of NASCAR (or the difference in culture between it and ALMS).

Ménage à trois of a sort

With a new name surfacing over this past weekend, the count is three. Three who have been rumored at some stage of “talking” about acquiring IMSA, ALMS, the tracks, and whatever else might be thrown in. Will that be the “critical mass” that will lead to a sale? It might. You can get one suitor without at least hinting you’re “available,” but not likely three.

Each of the suitors has somewhat different interests, though there is general agreement about the highest value asset – 750 acres of land in Northeastern Georgia. Yes, Road Atlanta is valued not as a race track but as potential residential housing.

USF1 Design Lands in Serbia

When Zoran Stefanovic recently sat at a table with the Mayor of a small town a few miles outside of Belgrade, it wasn’t the announcement of his grandiose “Stefan Technology Park” that was of interest in North Carolina, but rather the large graphic on the wall behind them. Yes, there’s no doubt that rendering is of the USF1 design that graced the team’s assembly bay in Charlotte and also appeared in Racecar Engineering’s March issue.

So, how did it get there? Sold? Copied? More importantly, does it represent a transfer of the design rights?

All that’s important because USF1’s lawyers are telling the North Carolina Department of Labor it has no assets so can’t pay its former employees what it owes them. Ken Anderson is reported to retain shop space at 9900 Twin Lakes. What business is being transacted there? Meanwhile, for billionaire Chad Hurley it’s clearly “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche.”

Hurley and Anderson join Murphy’s April “Gallery of Miscreants.”

Porsche Prevails

The Bear hears from VIR that the crowd was pretty good, at least a significant improvement for Grand Am. Porsche got its 3.8 engine, a 75 pound penalty on the Mazdas, and a 50 pound penalty on Leighton Reese’s Corvette and – not surprisingly – a win. Murphy watched the Speed telecast, and though it wasn’t a riveting show, it was way better than has been seen for ALMS events.

Flav and FIA settle

Flavio Briatore’s “lifetime ban” is over, replaced by a bar from “any operational role” in F1 to be in effect through 2012, and from “other FIA motorsport” through 2011. The Bear thinks the different dates aren’t likely to be without purpose. So in what FIA-sanctioned motorsport will we see Flav in 2012?

Perhaps. At least that’s the intent of Yudson Gondobintoro, a former chairman of GBG Global, a Singapore LLC whose reported revenue derives from rubber plantations in Cote d’ Ivoire and Cameroon. (Murphy remembers another would-be racing magnate with connections to Cameroon.)

Initial reports incorrectly put this operation in Texas, confusing Motorsport Technologies, LLC., Gondobintoro’s Los Angeles startup, with Motorsport Technologies, Inc., a defunct Houston tuner shop of dubious reputation.

Anyway, Yudson has hired Phil Harris (not the comic/band leader – he’s dead, anyway – but the Singaporian Ducate mechanic) to head the operation, created to develop a hybrid race car using Yudson’s electric motor and battery technology. We guess Gondobintoro, who claims a bachelor’s in physics from Cal Berkeley, stumbled on the motor and battery stuff while working on his “Super/Ultra-Capacitor” a project for which he also needs a manager. The Bear wonders, will Harris be guided by Robert Pirsig?

The story gets a little fuzzy (that reminds the Bear of a little nursery rhyme) around the details of the project, one source telling Murphy a Porsche RS Spyder will be the “donor car,” for a Le Mans hybrid, while another foresees a Judd engine purchase, then a whole now chassis designed around the Judd/hybrid drivetrain.

Yudson would appear to have a bit of cash to pursue his invention-based racing. Sinochem International bought 51% of GMG Global for $392 million, in which Gondobintoro’s direct interest was about $25 million (his relatives apparently held much of the rest). This kind of project can eat a lot of cash in a big hurry, (Yudson should ask Chad Hurley), so perhaps there’s some money the Bear hasn’t found?

Ya s’pose Yudson’s been trying to get in contract with Steve Pruitt?

Did someone say USF1?

Friends of Murphy’s hoping to get their back pay from ol’ Hurley and the boys can’t have been encouraged to see two team-owned transporters appear on e-bay after being seized by a UK court. A billionaire and his cohorts welshing (apologies to Tom Jones) on the debt to their working guys is right up there with importing ag products or pump-and-dump stock schemes to support the racing habit, and not far behind ripping off churches.

Real Estate Listings

Remember the  “we’re not for sale” button Scott was wearing at Lime Rock? The missing text was, “but we’ll give you a price if you ask.”

RIP Corsa Motorsport

Steve Pruitt’s off to something else, having created a new racing company (while his last one is kaput) to work on “alternative tranportation technologies.” There’s no hesitation there to trash the technology in Pruitt’s last hybrid in order to promote the next. Don’t look for anything on the track until 2011. Someone observed “…(Pruitt) seems to have taken a page from the Creation playbook…”

Porsche Pushes

Murphy doesn’t know if the Road Atlanta Porsche test actually happened, but the announcement of a GTC “full season” by Bryce Miller under the Orbit banner suggests the Grand Am Porsche “accommodation” won’t be enough. The hoped-for 3.8 is legal, but will it get on the grid, or have teams moved on?  (Cost was suggested to be $182K, nearly as much as the Cup car itself.) In fact, Stuttgart may now be focused on frying future fish.

Porsche’s policy perhaps portends a prospective program poles apart from the past, in which the Weissachians built special “R,” “RS,” “RSR,” Cup and even GT1 911 versions for many racing series, each with different rules, around the globe. Now that it’s safely tucked under the warm armpit of Volkswagen, Porsche is once again exercising its considerable motorsport muscle. In short, the Württembergers want to build one Cup car, and one RSR (probably the new hybrid after the Nurburgring win) and be done with it. In order to do that it needs to get the various sanctioning bodies on board with the Porsche plan. Betting around the paddock is it’s done that with everyone but Grand Am. Since they’re on the Porsche dole, ALMS is a slam dunk. Elsewhere the new GT3/Cup “world car” will be accommodated.

That puts Grand Am on the spot as the sole holdout. The new Cup has one characteristic that runs dead up against Grand Am rules…the Weissachians want a standard rear tire size, a relatively small one at that. As a practical matter that’s good for Maranello, though the Italians are fine with leaving well enough alone. The yelp you hear is from Bowling Green.

The Bear hears they’re split down the middle in Daytona. On one hand Porsche’s made it clear there will be no support in 2011 without the tire size limit, but on the other hand, Stuttgart hasn’t been around much this year, anyway, and the series has a lot tied up in its current rule philosophy. They certainly don’t want to be on the wrong side of the General, do they?

Where’s Philander Knox when you need him?

Murphy hears NASCAR teams have been colluding to keep team salaries down. They’re said to meet regularly to discuss various related topics, disguising the content by communicating through their respective PR personnel. Recent wage reductions at two very prominent teams are the result.

Abruzzi Prototype

Murphy believes the planned Panoz is to be a GT2, but since he reports what he hears around the sport, the word “prototype” is still being used around Braselburg. At least two employees who know about such things have said “prototype.” Does that mean prototype as in a “first-off” GT2, or in the sense of the sport? Whatever “it” is, they are building a show car of “it” to debute at Le Mans, so the wait isn’t long.

ALMS Trivia

The Bear is a big trivia buff. So he’s launching a new feature, a “Murphy’s Trivia Challenge.” (He’s looking for a title sponsor. Suggestions are welcome.) Murphy will ask one question in each Paddock Poop related to some racing topic. Here’s the first. How is American Le Mans Series sponsor (and official jewelry, as far as the Bear knows) Mikimoto historically connected to a famous American Festival?

There’s a rumor out there that the ALMS is “close” to an agreement to return to Infineon Raceway (Sears Point for you purists and old folks) in 2011.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma City’s council has authorized “negotiations” to obtain a 2011 ALMS street race – following in the tradition, Murphy supposes, of Miami, Trois Rivieres, Houston, Detroit, and St. Pete. More about such things from the Bear’s friends here at The Last Turn Clubhouse. 

When the Bear wrote in Paddock Poop 136, back on August 19 that, “St. Petersburg will be missing from the 2010 schedule, but (surprising even to the Bear) it’s rumored that Infineon will be back.” St. Pete officially disappeared soon after, but the Infineon deal didn’t come together in time for the California track to make the 2010 schedule. It still hasn’t, but it’s rumored that it  will, soon. Perhaps.
But perhaps not. Grand Am is also intent on returning to Sonoma. In fact, the Daytona Beach series, in another rumor, also it will be back at Sear Point soon.

But take heart, Braselburgers. Grand Am may be about to catch the street race disease. In Daytona’s case the idea seems to have taken root in the disappointment over its anemic race attendance. In the all-too-common “it-can’t-be-our-product” delusion that management in all endeavors suffers from, the theory is circulating in Florida that fans don’t want to travel to traditional road course tracks. It’s “just too far.” The solution? City-center street courses for Grand Am. Some at the World Center of Racing even think the Prototurtles might eventually return to Long Beach. The Bear’s convinced that there’s nothing like a string of “Festivals of Speed” to screw up a race series.

In the heart of Cheese Country

The Bear mentioned the ALMS’s “official cheese,” Yancey’s Fancy, in Paddock Poop 157. Since, then, Murphy (and his readers) has been eager to know how this important new would be received by the press and the racing community. The immediate reaction was ambiguous, to say the least. At the announcement press conference at Sebring, heard in the cheap seats occupied by the assembled  sports car racing journalists (hand picked for their loyalty) was an incredulous whispered, “Did he say official cheese?” That was before the unveiling of the cheese sculpture of our dearly-departed Panoz LMGT.

The real cheese aficionados, to be found, ironically , around Road America, long a host (although not very enthusiastically) of the series, were miffed, to say the least. They accuse the “official cheese” of not being real cheese at all, but rather cheese curds, a creamery by-product, even though they grudgingly admit it’s a tasty morsel. A native of Dairyland USA affectionately refers to them as cheese turds.

It all sets up for a big dust-up come August, since the Bear’s been reliably informed by a source who grew up playing with toy sports cars virtually on the shore of Elkhart Lake it’s illegal to be in possession of non-Wisconsin cheese north of Waukegan, Illinois or east of Minneapolis. Don’t be surprised to see Wisconsin cows (they’re the ornery ones; the happy cows are in California) picketing the Road America gates.

So has the wine and cheese series become the tequila and milk by-product series?

Not that George and his band of merry boys (and girls) at Road America are much affected by any of this. Big George’s marketing campaign last year consisted of a video that spent ten minutes on the attractions of golf cart scavenger hunts (seriously) and club racing events before it ever got around to mentioning there were actually spectator events at North America’s most revered road racing track. The season ticket mailer featured photos of little SCCA racers that looked like Malibu Grand Prix cars, doing nothing to convey this was a place where one might actually find professional racing. The Bear got his 2010 mailer a couple of weeks ago. The feature this time? NASCAR. Seriously. On the other side it’s got a 1969 Can Am picture of a dead guy and Augie Pabst, Jr.

Murphy got his second mailer, with ticket prices, today. The American Le Mans Series is still buried in the “also running” column. But it always has been. The dead guy Mustang reunion at the urinal weekend seems to be the feature event. The only thing about the ALMS weekend that’s big is the price. The most on the Series’ schedule, more than Sebring, way more than Laguna Seca. The same as Road America’s NASCAR Nationwide, and more than the big faucet weekend featuring the dead guy’s reunion. And they wonder why they don’t draw flies?

With the Wisconsin track drawing a paltry 40,000 in three days last season – only Utah was worse – can it last long on the ALMS calendar? The geniuses at Grand Am will tell you it’s hopeless – too far from Chicago. Murphy will be there in August, anyway. Look for him at the track, at Siebken’s or, if you want to steep yourself real cheesehead culture, at the Commercial Break in Neenah.

Audi Angst

The Bear’s Thesaurus lists “tormet” as an “angst” near-synonym, which is the least fans at Sebring are going to feel with new Audi R15′s, ready for the 2010 season, on track in Monday-Tuesday test sessions at Sebring. It turns out that Murphy’s source that they would actually enter was closer than we thought. In fact, given the build-test schedule there’s been every reason to think they could and should. Fans of a sport are usually benefitted by bitter rivalries, but not when they can just not show up. Most sports have enough leverage through their organizing bodies – leagues, conferences, etc. – to enforce participation. That’s even true in motorsport at the highest levels.

The Bear’s friend Marshall Pruett says over on speedtv.com that he’s be “saddened” to see them on track at Sebring but not racing in the 12 Hours. Murphy would use a different word to describe this circus.

Jaguar building

Rocket Sports’ shop was pushing hard – working long hours –  to complete a second Jaguar before Sebring, but the best guess is that it won’t make it.

Lola Ferrari

Murphy hears Lola’s building an LMP 1 to be powered by a Ferrari engine from the defunct A1GP series. Bunches of the powerplants are available at South African businessman Tony Teixeira’s liquidation sale. The Bear’s trying to figure out how the motors will work, since they’re 4.5 liters. Will they be destroked to 3.4? Did they originate in a non-racing Ferrari, so they can be homologated under the GT loophole?  Or will the Lola actually be powered by the 3.4 liter Zytek used in A1GP’s inaugural season? Don’t look for the new Lola to make it to the USA, though; this is an LMS-oriented project.

In other Ferrari news, a new Grand Am GT looks more likely to debut in Virginia than in Alabama. To further confuse the anoraks, it’s a Prep 2 with a Ferrari-built unit-body chassis (making it a real Ferrari to collectors). So much for simple definitions of the Grand Am rules.

Driving Corvettes

With changes in Team Corvette’s chauffeur ranks widely expected in 2011, the Bear is looking beyond “the usual suspects.” A new whole-schedule Team Corvette driver may be known at  the highest levels, but remains “under the radar.”  He (or she) may not be among those identified as a 2010 enduro “third.” 

Who is Scott Tucker and What is Westfund?

Murphy has no idea.

The Color of Money

A color no one is seeing much of in road racing these days. The Bear’s pretty sure that ALMS – after a real good season as recently as 2008 – is flirting with red ink. Loosing series sanctions doesn’t help, and the manufacturers that once played Sugar Daddy are gone, replaced by cheese, tequila, pearls, and personal lubricants (ok, G-Oil is for motors, but Murphy just can’t help himself). Meanwhile, he’s hearing that the boys in Daytona were $2 million upside down for 2009. IRL is believed by many (including some who should know) to be a financial disaster hanging by a thread. Is everything going to be silhouette roundy-round racing?

Dithering

The gang that can’t shoot straight finally got around to issuing a butanol bulletin today, and they approved it provisionally, with a 30 kilo penalty for the firs two races…that might be continued…or might not.

If they really wanted an alternate fuel they’d have made a definitive decision soon after the close of the 2009 season, allowing teams and manufacturers to make plans, obtain sponsorships, and test. Who the hell needs teams to have sponsorships, anyway? Who the hell wants to promote alternate fuels? Not the “Leader Green Racing.”

Anyone give Dyson Racing’s Mazda a chance at Sebring? Or perhaps they won’t be running butanol after all, since the boneheaded treatment of the fuel in the last two races of 2009 has already driven off BP.

(Murphy adds a note: As has become usual, this bulletin was reissued the next day, adding language after “approved for use” in LMP-LMP1-LMP2 only.)

Dead Horse Department

The Bear sadly watched (and provided some insight into) USF1’s failure. He’d rather now let it go, but Mr. Anderson’s interview requires some comment. The captain of this ship is blaming the FIA, FOTA, Bernie, Max, an unknown lost sponsor and just about everybody except himself. Nonsense. He says the car was “on track” until mid-January. Hogwash. He thinks USF1 has a chance to be on the 2011 grid. Horsefeathers.

Look for the Bear’s Annual Sebring Punter’s Guide soon.

Follow Murphy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Murphythebear

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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