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Official 2017 WeatherTech Sports Car Championship Season Discussion
It's almost time to go racing again!
2017 ushers in the new DPi class and who better to kick it off but Mazda with a super sexy new race car (see post below)
2017 Schedule
Jan 06 - Jan 08: The Roar Before the Rolex 24
Daytona Beach, FL
Jan 26 - Jan 29: Rolex 24 at Daytona
Daytona Beach, FL
Mar 15 - Mar 18: Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring
Sebring, FL
Apr 07 - Apr 08: Grand Prix at Long Beach
Long Beach, CA
May 04 - May 06: Lone Star LeMans
Austin, TX
Jun 02 - Jun 03: Chevrolet Sports Car Classic
Detroit, MI
Jun 29 - Jul 02: Sahlen's 6 Hours of the Glen
Watkins Glen, NY
Jul 07 - Jul 09: Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
Clarington, ON
Jul 21 - Jul 22: Lime Rock Park
Lakeville, CT
Aug 03 - Aug 06: Continental Tire Road Race
Elkhart Lake, WI
Aug 25 - Aug 27: Michelin GT Challenge at VIR
Alton, VA
Sep 22 - Sep 24: Monterey Grand Prix @ Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Salinas, CA
Oct 04 - Oct 07: Petit LeMans
Braselton, GA
FOX TV Broadcast Schedule
2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Television / Streaming Schedule
Date Event/Venue Channel Times (All Times ET)
As mentioned above this season we say goodbye to the Prototype class we've known for almost 10 years and usher in the new DPi's.
IMSA has yet to update their website on the specifics of each car but when they do, I'll update this post with details.
speaking of new cars, Mazda was the first manufacturer to unveil their DPi race car and it's a stunner!
California, USA: The new Mazda RT24-P race car was unveiled today at the Los Angeles Auto Show, ushering a new era in the prominent history of Mazda Motorsports' flagship endeavours in North America.
The new car will compete under Daytona Prototype international (DPi) rules in the Prototype class, the top level of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. After significant on-track testing, it will make its racing debut at the 2017 Rolex 24 at Daytona in late January.
KODO Design
Mazda is known globally for the engineering and design excellence of its vehicles, and the new Prototype is no exception.
The bodywork of the race car was developed by Mazda designers utilising the 'KODO - Soul of Motion' design philosophy.
KODO represents the instant that energy becomes motion, such as the muscular beauty as an animal pounces or a human leaps into action. The KODO design cues on the Mazda RT24-P include the sleek body contours and the five-point Mazda grille.
"KODO design is at the heart of any vehicle that carries a Mazda badge, and that is very evident in the design of the 2017 Prototype," said Ken Saward, senior manager of Design at Mazda Design Americas, which falls under the Mazda North American Operations umbrella.
"We considered the two main parameters of designing a successful race car for this series: aerodynamic performance and the new-for-2017 technical regulations.
"Working with Multimatic's aerodynamicist and engineers, we discovered that applying the KODO design philosophy to the surfaces and the silhouette of the car enabled us to create a dynamic, purposeful-looking design and a very aerodynamically efficient one."
Managing the two-car Mazda Prototype factory race team is Florida-based SpeedSource Race Engineering.
The team will race the new Riley Mk. 30 chassis, developed by Riley Technologies in relationship with Multimatic.
Riley Technologies is a prominent chassis design and development company with 99 race wins and nine Prototype season championships in North American endurance racing since 2004.
Canadian-based Multimatic has worked with Mazda since 2014 in the Prototype category, and has developed and built some of the world's premier on-road supercars and successful sports cars for the race track.
The Mazda team will be the first to test the Riley Mk. 30 chassis later this month.
The Mazda RT24-P will be powered by the Mazda MZ-2.0T engine which raced during the 2016 IMSA season. The approximately 600-horsepower engine, developed and raced with Advanced Engine Research (AER), is a 2.0-litre, inline four-cylinder turbocharged engine.
"This is a huge moment for Mazda Motorsports and the entire Mazda family," said John Doonan, director of Mazda Motorsports North America.
"To have a car which features Mazda design language at the top level of our motorsports program is meaningful for us as a brand. We believe we have the right team, the right drivers and the right chassis to win races and championships.
"Mazda has good, long-standing relationships with Riley and Multimatic, and is happy to be the first to test their new chassis.
"We look forward to seeing it make its racing debut at Daytona with Mazda bodywork and the Mazda MZ-2.0T engine.
"The strategic vision of IMSA to give auto manufacturers this opportunity to integrate our branding - to better engage our passionate fans - is unique and we're proud to be the first to unveil what is possible."
What's in a name?
The Mazda RT24-P name echoes the Mazda Road to 24, a driver development program that provides scholarships to help championship-winning drivers progress from grassroots into the upper categories of professional sports car racing.
The "24" also represents the two-litre, four-cylinder race engine. The "P" signifies Prototype.
Mazda currently holds a more than 55-per cent market share in grassroots racing, and the Mazda Road to 24 helps provide championship-winning drivers an opportunity to earn scholarships to compete in pro categories such as the Battery Tender Global Mazda MX-5 Cup presented by BF Goodrich Tires.
Mazda's similar scholarship system in open-wheel racing is known as the Mazda Road to Indy. By the start of the 2017 season, Mazda will have provided $14.9 million in driver development scholarships to 53 drivers since 2007.
2017 driver lineup
All a product of the Mazda Road to Indy or Mazda Road to 24 Program, Jonathan Bomarito, Tom Long, Joel Miller and Tristan Nunez will drive the RT24-P in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship next year.
Bomarito has raced in several open wheel categories, and is a USF2000 and Mazda Atlantic Series race winner. He also won the ROLEX 24 and was the Grand Am Series Rookie of the Year – driving a Mazda RX-8 - in 2010.
Long has raced in the Spec Miata Championship, was the 2005 MX-5 Miata Cup Champion, and gave valuable feedback in the development of the 2016 Mazda Global MX-5 Cup car.
Miller has a degree in engineering, has raced USF2000 and is Pro Mazda race winner, while Nunez has driven a Mazda6 in the Grand Am GX and is a Mazda Prototype Lites Champion.
If there's one thing I'm worried about is that they're still running that same 2.0L MZ motor from last season which proved to be highly unreliable and just didn't have the HP to compete with other teams.
Maybe another year of data and offseason modifications can help wield some better results.
I'd love to see Mazda making a run at a few podiums this season!
the long rumored Cadillac DPi has finally been unveiled!
Cadillac has taken the wraps off its DPi contender, the DPi-V.R, which will debut in January’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona.
The long-awaited official confirmation of the program came on Wednesday, months after the car first took to the track in private testing.
“Cadillac is proud to return to the pinnacle of prototype racing in North America after a 14-year absence,” said Johan de Nysschen, president of Cadillac. “Cadillac’s V-Performance production models — the ATS-V and CTS-V — are transforming our brand’s product substance, earning a place among the world’s elite high performance marques.
“The Cadillac DPi-V.R further strengthens our V-Performance portfolio, placing Cadillac into the highest series of sports car racing in North America.”
The Dallara-chassied Cadillac was the first 2017-spec LMP2 style car to run in September and has since completed additional tests at NCM Motorsports Park, Watkins Glen, as well as a 24-hour endurance test at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Wayne Taylor Racing has undertaken the majority of the early development, with team veterans Ricky and Jordan Taylor and Max Angelelli, who will again spearhead WTR’s lineup next year.
Two-time and defending Prototype champions Action Express will also make the switch from fielding Corvette DPs with its two-car team, with an unchanged driver lineup.
Dane Cameron, Eric Curran, Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi all return to the AXR squad.
The DPi-V.R has been designed with elements taken from several Cadillac V-Performance road cars, above all the CTS-V. It features V-Performance wheels with Brembo brakes, and multiple V-Performance-inspired vents, air intakes and emblems throughout.
“The DPi-V.R race car was an exciting new canvas for the Cadillac design and sculpting team,” said Andrew Smith, Global Cadillac Design executive director. “The studio embraced the opportunity to interpret the Cadillac form language, line work and graphic signature for this premier prototype racing application.
“Every detail of the final design was selected to support the car’s on-track performance and unmistakable Cadillac presence.”
It will be powered by a naturally-aspirated 6.2-liter V8 engine producing 600 horsepower, based on the engines found in the Cadillac CTS-V and Escalade. The rear-wheel-drive layout features a X-TRAC paddle-shift transmission.
If there's one thing I'm worried about is that they're still running that same 2.0L MZ motor from last season which proved to be highly unreliable and just didn't have the HP to compete with other teams.
Maybe another year of data and offseason modifications can help wield some better results.
Yeah, I'm not looking forward to another season where one car has the engine blow up early in the race, while the second car suffers a stupid chassis part failure right near the end of the race.
***The Mazda RT24-P ran with its 2017-spec engine for the first time, after initially carrying out three days of testing with an interim powerplant. The car battled high gearbox temperatures in the morning, as well as a brake cover delamination, which was quickly fixed. “We’re learning things now that I rather find [out now] than at the Roar or the race,” Mazda Motorsports director John Doonan told Sportscar365.
***All five Mazda drivers: Jonathan Bomarito, Tristan Nunez, Joel Miller, Tom Long and Spencer Pigot, rotated through the car before lunchtime. The car completed 56 laps on Tuesday, the most of any Prototype entry. “The whole goal is to put as much mileage on the platform as we can. So far, so good,” Doonan added.
big.
read an article with Bomarito talking about how much longer these cars are but also that they're extremely narrow compared to the DP they raced last season.
for some reason I wan to say 7 inches longer...? (if I can find the article again I'll look for the quote)
IMSA today released the 2017 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Sporting Regulations, which featured some key revisions to start procedures and points allocations for the upcoming season.
No more Split Starts
Beginning with the season-opening Rolex 24 at Daytona on Jan. 28-29, the start of all WeatherTech Championship races will include the entire field in one pack taking the green flag at the same time. Previously, the field was separated into two categories, Prototype and GT.
The two categories were separated by several seconds and each received its own green flag to start the race. While the starting grid for each race will continue to be separated by category, the entire field will start each race together.
"While we saw some benefits of split starts, having the entire field start the race together will offer more excitement for our race fans both onsite and watching on television," said IMSA CEO Ed Bennett. "The 2017 WeatherTech Championship will include breathtaking machinery throughout the field. By putting the entire field together in one group, the opening moments of our races will be that much more exhilarating and set the tone for fantastic competition all the way to the checkered flag."
Points Award Revisions
The 2017 Sporting Regulations also will include a number of revisions to the way points are awarded at each event.
If all drivers in each car achieve all drive-time requirements, the car and all drivers will be awarded the number of points associated with their finishing position in the race. If a team's drivers do not meet the drive-time requirements, the car and drivers will be placed at the back of their class in the finishing order and receive the points associated with that position, subject to drive-time infraction order priority.
Additionally, the car that achieves the fastest race lap in each class and each driver in the line-up will receive one bonus point. The single bonus point awarded at each event to all drivers and teams that started the race has been eliminated.
I have mixed feelings about them getting rid of the split start.
I just worry that some of the GTD drivers could get over zealous and take out a Prototype on the first lap.
I have mixed feelings about them getting rid of the split start.
I just worry that some of the GTD drivers could get over zealous and take out a Prototype on the first lap.
swoope; jealous that you'll be there, enjoy!
thanks,
will do. so 3 classes now? i have to admit i liked the daytona prototype / gt series more that the imsa series before the merge..
i watch it all. but feel the new imsa has to many classes.. down to 3 would be an improvement..
Cars have arrived for this weekend's Roar before the 24 giving us our first real glimpse of what these cars will look like in race form and possibly the final livery.
Mazda appears to be running different color schemes for their cars. (I kind of like it!)
Tequila Patron ESM (this bad boys is powered via the engine in the Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3)
Moving on to the GT Cars:
Acura NSX
I'm curious to see how this car performs
Aston Martin:
Ford GT:
Expectations are high for this team after winning LeMans
congrats on getting the car back up and running. how far away is the Roar from you?
silly in a good way. lol weather was beautiful yesterday, with a small crowd..
i did not do any timing so comments are just by looking at stuff.
mazda prototype is fast
mustang in gs is fast
new lexus is stunning but off pace, likely shaking new car down.
the battle between the ford gt and corvette during practice was fun.
i will be there for the continental race on the 27, unless the weather is going to suck.
Got my DVR all ready to go and I'm excited to kick off the race season. Oh, that reminds me. Contrary to the TV schedule released by IMSA (in the 1st post) I found that DirecTV is carrying almost all of the coverage on FS2.
I'll have to double check the day of the race to make sure they don't move things around like they did last year.
That's the plan, a couple of buddies and I going over early Saturday for the day. Hopefully we can meet up with Swoope at some point. The weather forecast is calling for a high in the low 60's, great racing weather, hopefully they are right.
Wish you could make it, maybe you and Greg can come out next year?
11-28-2016, 01:40 PM
am driving the rx8 to the roar! 
