ALMS And Grand Am Announce Plans To Become Most Confusing Thing In The World

[zako85]

ALMS And Grand Am Announce Plans To Become Most Confusing Thing In The World (http://jalopnik.com/5973168/alms-and-grand-am-announce-plans-to-become-most-confusing-thing-in-the-world)



One thing I do like about Rolex Sport Car series is that they only have two classes: Daytona Prototype and GT*. Looks like the next year, the merged series will have two prototype classes (the merged DP/P2 class, and LMPC) and two GT classes (the ALMS GT and Grand Am's GT). I hope this is only for a transition period.



*As of now I view the new GX class merely as a curiosity/demo class.

[Corvettian]

Hopefully by the end of the first season they'll have realized that just how confusing it really is, and will have (or will be planning to) rationalize the classes. Only die-hard fans will be able to tell the difference between the different GT classes, for example, and that's no good if they want to attract new fans.

[zako85]

Wikipedia has a minor blurb about the United SportsCar Racing Class structure:

United SportsCar Racing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_SportsCar_Racing#Class_structure)

My understanding there will be four main classes for now. Two for prototypes and two for GT cars.

Prototype (P): A class that merges the Grand Am Daytona Prototypes and ALMS P2 (LMP2) Classes into one class.

Prototype Challenge (PC): A spec class for prototypes just like it used to be in ALMS. It's meant to be cheap junior prototype class. I guess kind of like what GP2 is to Formula 1.

GT Le Mans (GTLM): ALMS GT Class as it used to be. Cars are compatible with 24 Hours of Le Mans race.

GT Daytona: The Grand-Am GT class (which contained all sorts of cars, like GT3, tube frame cars, etc) merged with Porsche Cup cars from the ALMS GTC class.

The ALMS P2 class cars are much faster than the grand-am Daytona Prototypes. They will need to be equalized in performance. I don't know if this will be accomplished by placing more restrictions on P2 cars to slow them down or less restrictions on DP cars. The PC cars are also quite fast and supposedly almost as fast or faster than DP cars. Being a more "junior" class, I assume PC cars will have to be slowed down if the next year's P class cars are not fast enough.

I am a fan of having two GT classes that consist of cars that look almost the same. It probably would be nice to have them merged or perhaps slowly merge the GT Daytona teams into GT Le Mans. I personally haven't been a huge fan of Daytona's GT rules allowing tube frame cars in the GT competition.

[Jamez99]

well I did some research and also discuss this with some of my friends and after that we conclude the result there is possibility to change some way of working with this situation is no classes

[bugeyedgomer]

Fox Sports to Broadcast USCR
IMSA and FOX Sports Announce Five-Year Multi-Media Rights Deal | American Le Mans Series (http://www.alms.com/articles/imsa-and-fox-sports-announce-five-year-multi-media-rights-deal)[/QUOTE]

[FormerFF]

It's really not that confusing. There are two prototype classes and two GT classes. Sports car racing traditionally has multiple classes, and watching the prototypes carve up through the slower cars is one of the attractions to this form of the sport.

LeMans also has four official classes, plus "Garage 56" which would include cars like the DeltaWing.

[zako85]

I understand the multi-class racing thing. What makes the next season truly fascinating (or despicable, depending on the perspective) is the true trainwreck of many different classes. In the main prototype class, there will be the ALMS LMP2 cars and Grand Am's DPs. Supposedly DPs are cheaper to run, but slower. Something will be done to speed up the DPs to be competitive with LMP2 cars. The prototype field will be huge. It will be interesting how all that pans out, and who comes on top.

[jimclark]

"ALMS And Grand Am Announce Plans To Become Most Confusing Thing In The World"
Easily confused, are you? :rolleyes:

P.S.:
well I did some research and also discuss this with some of my friends and after that we conclude the result there is possibility to change some way of working with this situation is no classes
Huh??????? :confused: :confused: :confused:


I guess I am too... :|

[zako85]

"ALMS And Grand Am Announce Plans To Become Most Confusing Thing In The World"
Easily confused, are you? :rolleyes:

P.S.:
well I did some research and also discuss this with some of my friends and after that we conclude the result there is possibility to change some way of working with this situation is no classes
Huh??????? :confused: :confused: :confused:


I guess I am too... :|

Please don't scare him away. That post was cute ;p

[Doc Austin]

I liked the Grand American's two class format. It kept things simple and all the fans had a basic understanding of what was going on. I've never liked apples and oranges racing, performance adjustments, etc. I like a straight up fight where the rules are the same for everyone.

I'de imagine what GA is doing now is making it possible for everyone who has a car to race, and they will streamline things down later when they see how it plays out.

[zako85]

I liked the Grand American's two class format. It kept things simple and all the fans had a basic understanding of what was going on. I've never liked apples and oranges racing, performance adjustments, etc. I like a straight up fight where the rules are the same for everyone.

I'de imagine what GA is doing now is making it possible for everyone who has a car to race, and they will streamline things down later when they see how it plays out.

The class structure will be reworked a few years later. I believe the goal is to become more compatible with the mainstream GT and prototype racing, and specially Le Mans. I heard in two-four years, the FIA and ACO (the organizers of 24 hours of Le Mans) have a plan for new GT classes that will replace the GT3 and GT2 (the current Le Mans class) as well as LMP2. At that point, the TUSCC may supposedly go along with the new specifications. The current class structure is not too bad in TUSCC. The P class will have like 15-18 cars in a typical race, the LMP2 cars, the Daytona Prototypes, and the Delta Wing. The GTD class will have a lot cars too, like 20 of them, half of them Porsche 911 GT America. The GT LeMans class is more expensive and meant for factory teams and pro all-drivers, so it will have less cars, but I hope the battles in it will be just as epic as in ALMS's GT class in the past. The only class I don't like is PC. It's a spec prototype class, so somewhat boring and unnecessary at this point, specially since PC cars will be using up slots that could be used by P, GT, or GTD cars.