The American Le Mans Series returns to action this Saturday at Long Beach with a strong entry of 36 cars. Long Beach also marks the first event with combined LMP classes.After much speculation and anticipation, IMSA released the new regulations to balance the LMP1 and LMP2 machines.
The P2 cars remain mostly unchanged except for an increase in fuel
capacity to bring them up to the P1 cars capacity. P1 is where most
of the changes have been made. All P1 cars will run at 900 kg after the
Drayson ran with a 25 kg weight reduction at Sebring. E10 powered
P1 machines will see their restrictors shrink by 5%, but E85 cars will
be allowed to keep their restrictor as is.
The new LMP class features seven entries at Long Beach, highlighted by the Lola Aston Martin returning for a second race. Aston Martin is one of the early favorites for the race with a strong car and strong driver lineup of Adrian Fernandez and
Harold Primat. Highcroft racing also appears to be an early contender after a dominating performance at Sebring was cut short after electrical problems. Intersport Racing will be making their return to the series after a devastating practice crash ruined their chances of making the grid at Sebring. The winner of the LMP class may end up being the team who runs the smoothest race and avoids the pitfalls a crowded street course can provide.
Le Mans Prototype Challenge also features seven entries. The class was met with mixed reviews after its
debut at Sebring. Drivers complained about a lack of horsepower and unfortunately no changes have been made yet to give the cars more power. PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports makes
their LMPC debut after successful seasons in the Cooper Tires Atlantic
Championship. Johnny Mowlem will be one of the drivers. Level 5 will
be a favorite after a strong run at Sebring and a very strong driver lineup headlined by IndyCar driver, Ryan Hunter-Reay
GT2 has consistently provided some of the best racing in the ALMS in recent years and 2010 provides the strongest GT2 field in history. Six manufacturers are involved and the racing brings back memories of Trans Am racing of old. Risi Competizione won the first race of the year with a commanding victory, matching the pace of other competitors with ease. They look to have regained their 2007 form. Corvette Racing looks to rebound after one of their worst performances in recent history. The Corvette team ran into mechanical problems that were only worsened by an inter-team pit lane collision. Sebring proved to be a race they would very much like to forget. Two other teams who would like to forget Sebring are the two Porsche teams of Flying Lizard Motorsports and Falken Tire Racing. Falken looked strong early, leading for half an hour before they dropped back and ran a good pace. Later in the race a wheel nut problem caused a rear wheel to come off collected the #45 Flying Lizard car of Joerg Bergmeister. Bergmeister lost many laps after pitting on a closed pit lane and the team could not recover. Falken saw the same wheel nut problem occur again in the race, taking them out of contention. BMW showed incredible pace at Sebring, but have been hit with a weight penalty going into Long Beach. The GT2 field is wide open this year and predicting a favorite is next to impossible. I'll go with the # 45 Flying Lizard to win after a tough result at Sebring. Stay tuned for more Long Beach related items
photo credits: John Dagys (check out his stuff on speedtv.com)
I bet you one of those LMPC cars will cause a huge wreck. Thats what it will take to speed those things up. And having the power to pass is really important in Long Beach seeing thats the easiest and safest way to get through traffic....
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