IMSA Race TUSC Round 11: VIR

[Maelochs]

The only difference was that for once the TV director had nowhere else to turn his camera. The racing does not get better or worse because certain other cars are also racing on the track; except in that those cars create traffic for one another, which many of us enjoy.

That awesome GT battle could have happened anywhere at any time with any number of other classes on track. it happened to happen here, when the director sort of had to feature it.

If it had been a battle for third, likely we would have missed the Falken/Risi fight because the director would have been showing the leading car's crew's reaction to seeing their car approaching the finish line (a WEC classic, which happily hasn't actually caught on in North America, actually) or maybe just shown the leading car cross the finish line all alone.

We also got lucky in that the GTD battle had resolved itself before the final lap, because if the fight had gone to the wire in both classes, even two classes would have been too many.

There has been an debate over how many classes should race---I have a hard time with it because more classes is better but honestly it is hard to track four classes in the limited TV time available. Today's race didn't show me that GT-only racing is better, but that given the frequency of commercials and infomercials, two classes are easier to present on TV.

For me, if it had to be two classes, P and GTLM are the obvious choices. P, GTLM, and GTD would be better.

All this is interesting because it all depends on how the series wishes to present itself. If it wants to go for a big TV presence it needs to have fewer commercials and/or seriously consider doing a commercial-free half-hour option for the end of the races. The series also needs better split-screen technology because too often there is more than one thing worth watching happening on a multi-mile track with several dozen cars competing. And for TV, fewer classes is certainly easier to manage.

Live, absolutely everything changes. A fan trackside can wait all day and not see on overtaking maneuver, and likely will not see the finish line (a lot of tracks seem to have have either reserved seating or no seating immediately overlooking start/finish) and even if one had a seat right on the line, that Risi pass happened a couple turns earlier.

Trackside, without a good scoring pylon (and line of sight to it,) trackside PA, and luck (and nowadays a good smartphone app) it can be really hard to know who is leading who after a couple pit stops; all a fan can do is watch gaps. Multiple classes are not a problem especially, because it is a given that you are missing most of the racing action in return for the more immersive sensory experience. However, I don't think racing can support itself on ticket sales.

Another thought: possibly because of BoP, this was one of the best GT races of the season. Part of that was the nature of the track--high-speed corners which really suited the BMWs and straights for the Vipers, and everyone else able to compete to some degree.

Further, the end game included two much-loved teams which hadn't done much in a while. Take away Risi and replace Falken with one of the Porsche NA RSs, and I bet folks would have been less interested.

In fact, we got lucky with VIR, and both classes had real good races. The same line-ups could have put on a lousy show too---just how things played out this time. We cannot look at this race and proclaim that GT-only racing is the best new thing---at least not rationally. If the Vipers had run away with it, if the BMWs had not been able to stay close ... if this had not happened to be an exceptionally good race, we would all be complaining (as we were right up until Sunday afternoon) that TUSC had borked GTLM.

What, no one remembers that now?

[David Land]

Honestly, from a hard-core prototype guy, this series needs to be GT only.

The prototype politics ruin a really good thing in GT.

[Mechanic Z]

Originally Posted by MoMedic9019

Really enjoyed the last 30min.

I think the series would benefit greatly with the next two seasons being GT only.

^ Yeah, that!

This was by far the best TUSC race of the year.!
GTLM/GTD only, all season, would be absolutely fantastic.

Was hoping Wolf Henzler could hold off Fisichella, but second is still a great finish, and the race had a great end anyway! Kudos to Risi on the win.

Hope Jan Magnussen and Richard Lietz both make speedy recoveries.

[Articus]

I won't lie. I thought Henzler could have been a little bit more "robust" on that back straight...

[TRspitfirefan]

Fantastic race!
I was really hoping to see Falken get the victory, but it was still a great run.
Congrats to Risi.

[Fogelhund]

Originally Posted by HORNDAWG

And this is not that, period. This is multi-class, multi-type endurance racing.

I tuned into the Stream today. I saw multi-class, multi-type endurance racing... It was a pretty good event too, maybe the most enjoyable race of the year.

[TRspitfirefan]

Originally Posted by Simmi

What are people's thoughts on the race? I love GTLM as much as the next guy but this has dragged a little for me.

GTLM+GTD was AWESOME!!!!!!

At the end of the day multi-class racing is what I love most about sportscars.

Normally, I would agree. However, with the current state of the "prototype" class in IMSA racing, GT only is the best solution.
Also, GTLM and GTD technically is multiclass racing.

[TRspitfirefan]

Originally Posted by MoMedic9019

Really enjoyed the last 30min.

I think the series would benefit greatly with the next two seasons being GT only.

Originally Posted by David Land

Honestly, from a hard-core prototype guy, this series needs to be GT only.

The prototype politics ruin a really good thing in GT.

Absolutely agree!
Todays race has shown that IMSA can still be world class racing.
The "prototype" class needs to go.

[MoMedic9019]

Originally Posted by Mechanic Z

^ Yeah, that!

This was by far the best TUSC race of the year.!
GTLM/GTD only, all season, would be absolutely fantastic.

Fully agree. The problem is, it would be bigger than NASCAR in just a few short seasons..



















































not that anyone would complain...............unless of course you are NASCAR

[tjh8402]

Originally Posted by David Land

Honestly, from a hard-core prototype guy, this series needs to be GT only.

The prototype politics ruin a really good thing in GT.

I'm the same as you. I love LMPs and still wish we had LMP1, even if it was only two cars. Seeing this race and not missing the prototypes made me realize how unsatisfying I find LMP2 as a top class, much less the DPs and the drama they've caused. I liked seeing what is, really the premier world class category in the series, be the headline act.

[TRspitfirefan]

Originally Posted by Maelochs

The only difference was that for once the TV director had nowhere else to turn his camera. The racing does not get better or worse because certain other cars are also racing on the track; except in that those cars create traffic for one another, which many of us enjoy.........

I disagree completely.
I recently attended the Road America race, where despite the fact that the GT classes are my favorite, I found myself unable to completely enjoy the fantastic racing featured in both GTLM and GTD.
I planned to totally ignore the "P' class, but I was unable to follow through on my intention. Unfortunately for me,I DO still love prototype racing and I care what car wins.
The totally skewed BOP was painfully visible in the prototype class and quite frankly, it really ticked me off!

That awesome GT battle could have happened anywhere at any time with any number of other classes on track. it happened to happen here, when the director sort of had to feature it. .....

GTLM and GTD has consistently produced fantastic racing.
The Race today was really great, but that is pretty normal for these cars.

... if this had not happened to be an exceptionally good race, we would all be complaining (as we were right up until Sunday afternoon) that TUSC had borked GTLM.

What, no one remembers that now?

Isn't that strange.......when the IMSA series puts on good racing, with cool cars, FANS DON'T COMPLAIN.
Perhaps IMSA can learn a lesson here.

[TRspitfirefan]

Originally Posted by MoMedic9019

Fully agree. The problem is, it would be bigger than NASCAR in just a few short seasons..

Surely you jest!
American fans would never be enthusiastic about watching Corvettes, Dodge Vipers, Ferrari's, Porsche's, BMW's etc. ALL racing wheel to wheel right down to the finish line.

[David Land]

Originally Posted by MoMedic9019

Fully agree. The problem is, it would be bigger than NASCAR in just a few short seasons..not that anyone would complain...............unless of course you are NASCAR

What would NASCAR have to complain about? They would hold the monopoly on US Racing with the TWO biggest series in the country?

[joeb]

I thought the race today was petty good. About halfway through I realized that I hadn't missed the prototypes. I do love seeing protos and gt's mix it up but to have a few races a season like this would put a big smile on my face.

[Speed-King]

Originally Posted by MoMedic9019

I think the series would benefit greatly with the next two seasons being GT only.

Not saying you're wrong, but would it be economically feasible?

"Hey P-teams, we don't need you for the next two years, why don't you park it for the next couple of seasons and come back when we need you. Or maybe you want to buy a GTE-car? I mean, they cost a million dollar, but I'm sure you'll find that somewhere..."

[Ephaeton]

Originally Posted by joeb

I thought the race today was petty good. About halfway through I realized that I hadn't missed the prototypes. I do love seeing protos and gt's mix it up but to have a few races a season like this would put a big smile on my face.

Yeah, so-so .. The race was good, the track was (and still is) beautiful - but about halfway through I realized that I really, really was missing the prototypes. And not seeing any prototypes made me realize what kind of prototypes I'd like to see racing (again, such as I witnessed in person at VIR already) along next to GTD and GTLM on VIR. So I ended up not having a big smile on my face.

[seanyb505]

Originally Posted by Speed-King

Not saying you're wrong, but would it be economically feasible?

"Hey P-teams, we don't need you for the next two years, why don't you park it for the next couple of seasons and come back when we need you. Or maybe you want to buy a GTE-car? I mean, they cost a million dollar, but I'm sure you'll find that somewhere..."

Good point. Maybe have protos race at exclusively rovals, and gt exclusively at all other courses. Sort of a science experiment. See which races end up with best attendance.

[Maelochs]

A point I maybe should have made more strongly:

We all got lucky that the GT race at VIR had some exceptional moments. Some people are extrapolating that into "GT Only is the Way to Go!!!111!!!"

Some of those people seem to forget that Just Last Week people were complaining about the BoP in GTLM, and how TUSC had messed up the greatest GT racing on the planet. Just Last Week---as in, a day before the race.

Did that magically change by itself?

No. We got a good race, a very good race ... but as real racing fans know, even if a series manipulates BoP, there is no way to guarantee a good or bad race.

The lesson we should learn from VIR is that The Race at VIR Was a Good Race. Not because there were no prototypes, but because the track suited the BMWs so perfectly. Otherwise, the Vipers might have run away with it and the overweight Vettes might never have been able to catch up, the underperforming Porsches would have continued to bring up the rear, and Risi ... well, how long until someone complains that Ferrari got too big a BoP break?

In other words, Sunday's race Just Happened to be a good race. It could easily have been a dull or boring race. Let's not let our enthusiasm for a specific event confuse our considerations of the greater mileu.

Recall please that BoP was very different a couple races ago, and a couple races before that. The Vettes won too much and the BMWs and Ferraris not enough, so adjustments were made. If TUSC makes more BoP adjustments and suddenly a new car is atop the heap, are we going to be thrilled? Sure if it is our favorite car, but suppose it isn't?

TUSC Management Has Not Changed just because one race happened to turn out well. The authors of the same politics and misplaced BoP which cripples the P-class are still at the helm, and can cripple the GTLM or GTD classes as well.

And how many of you have really considered how you would feel about GT-only racing if Sunday's race had been a runaway, with your least favorite cars winning by a mile and the kinds of spread-out fields we were complaining about just a few days ago?

Sure, some of you would still be pro-GT-only, because you were all a long. But would the rest of you be quite so hyped on GT-Only if the race had sucked? I doubt it.

I am not saying GT-Only is Bad or Good. I am merely counseling caution. Let's not start a movement to change TUSC into a GT series based on one lucky result. After all, the management which brought us dominant DPs is still the management, and if they cannot see what is wrong now, why would they manage a GT-only series any better?

Maybe GT-Only is the best way for TUSC to succeed as a profit-making entity--something it needs to be if it is too survive. Maybe it would lose even more fans--"it's all there is so fans will watch" sure hasn't been working so far. Maybe protoype lovers would decamp for ELMS and WEC.

Maybe an all-GT TUSC would attract more factory dollars and then be able to upgrade everything about it that needs upgrading, like TV presentation for instance. Or maybe it would become beholden to factories, and we would see BoP change from race to race depending on who lobbied most loudly or bought a bigger block of TV ad time. Maybe the series would continue to look at the TV product as a revenue source, and we would see less racing and more car ads.

None of the problems we have with TUSC would go away if prototypes went away, because the problem is with the Management, not Just the management of the P-class.

A very knowledgeable friend told me North America is ripe for a GT3 series, a Blancpain Endurance-style show such as we saw Sunday. I wholly agree---but I am not sure that it is not also ripe for a Well-Run multi-class prototype and GT series. A poorly run version of either ... well, until yesterday No One was very happy with TUSC, GT or P-class.

Let's not let our enthusiasm cloud our judgment.

[TRspitfirefan]

Originally Posted by Maelochs

A point I maybe should have made more strongly:

We all got lucky that the GT race at VIR had some exceptional moments. Some people are extrapolating that into "GT Only is the Way to Go!!!111!!!"

Some of those people seem to forget that Just Last Week people were complaining about the BoP in GTLM, and how TUSC had messed up the greatest GT racing on the planet. Just Last Week---as in, a day before the race.----

Was the VIR race really all that exceptional though?
The old ALMS GT class ALWAYS put on EXCEPTIONAL racing and the new GTD class has shown that it is also quite capable of consistently delivering fantastic racing.
Regarding the BOP adjustments, even the harshest critics of this years GT BOP swings could hardly suggest that it has been anywhere near as bad as the "P" class debacle.

---but I am not sure that it is not also ripe for a Well-Run multi-class prototype and GT series. A poorly run version of either ... well, until yesterday No One was very happy with TUSC, GT or P-class.

Let's not let our enthusiasm cloud our judgment.

A well run American Prototype+GT series would be Awesome, but it would NEED to feature true prototypes. The "prototype" class in TUSC, just is not up to the challenge.

No One was very happy with TUSC, GT or P-class.

I think nearly all of fan frustration stems from the Prototype issue.
Personally, I have not been at all unhappy with either GT class.
If not for the fact that the GT classes are still World Class, I would have abandoned the series months ago.

[ttdriver2009]

I watched the Continental race on Saturday and that was a great race. Only one caution. As for the Tudor race, that was a good one too. Only three cautions. With the Continental and GT only Tutor races, it looks like to me that's a good combination. With all of that green flag racing, much better than the PWC twin races they had at Sonoma which looked like they only had around 30 minutes each, of green flag racing.

[Coach Ep]

Originally Posted by fieldodreams79

So far, the race track is the star of this show.

Best lawn mower race in a long, long time!

'GT only' has potential, certainly for one or two events, IMSA should do the same format at Lime Rock (not scheduled like that in 2015) and have this race last a bit longer. Too bad no full GT3 mode until 2016 also. Nevertheless I can see a great GT event starting to emerge in the future!

[tjh8402]

Originally Posted by Maelochs

And how many of you have really considered how you would feel about GT-only racing if Sunday's race had been a runaway, with your least favorite cars winning by a mile and the kinds of spread-out fields we were complaining about just a few days ago?

Sure, some of you would still be pro-GT-only, because you were all a long. But would the rest of you be quite so hyped on GT-Only if the race had sucked? I doubt it.


Let's not let our enthusiasm cloud our judgment.

I've never been pro GT only until this race. I've long been an outspoken fan of LMP1, even if only a handful of privateer entries, and then a defender of LMP2 as the next best alternative.

That being said, even if one manufacturer had run away with the race, I'd still have the same new pro-GT opinion. I don't want the Prototypes gone because the show in GT is better. I want the prototypes gone because as I now feel the GT cars are far more interesting at this point. I still want, to use the old ALMS slogan, a series where the "cars are the stars". For the first time this year, I felt that way about a race.

I'd rather have see the Risi Ferrari run away with a race than watch a Riley and Coyote trade paint. The constant drama surrounding the class and the series inability to manage it is a distraction, never mind the mess that is LMPC (I mean both the continued inclusion of a spec class as well as the driver talent - or lack thereof). Let the world class cars run by top tier works teams take their spot as the center of attention.

[TF110]

Ive always said that GTE was the only class I really cared for since the drop of lmp1. This was a good race, but Im not feeling the "best of the year" vibe that others are. The Ferrari is still too quick imo.

[jasonjessica09]

What a real treat it was to see an all GT race. I wonder how the IMSA officials and brass will think of it themselves. Perhaps more all GT races will be possible in 2016 when full GT3 cars come in.

The BoP for GTLM is a little off still though. I say reset GTLM to exactly what they had at Daytona including the extra fuel tank capacity.

The GTLM races this year have been so much better in the races when LMPC was not involved. The only exception was Daytona I think. And that was the becaue the GTLM cars were clearly faster than LMPC's so they did not get in the way as much.

[Matt]

just watched the race.

that was awesome.