Corvette C8.R To Race In Dwindled IMSA Field As Ford Plans To Shutter Factory Effort
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Corvette Racing and the Corvette C8.R will likely race among a slightly smaller GT Le Mans field in the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship next year, with Ford pulling the factory backing for the pair of Chip Ganassi Racing-run Ford GT entries.
Ford confirmed it would end its factory racing program earlier this year, and while rumors of a privateer steeping up to field the cars have been circulating, the 2020 racing season is approaching quickly and the outlook for the Blue Oval car is looking grim.
As Autoweek highlighted in a recent op-ed, IMSA narrowly escaped a GTLM disaster for 2020, with BMW electing to push forward with its IMSA program for the M8 GTE, but pulling the big two-door coupe from the FIA World Endurance Championship. The BMWs will continue racing in North America in 2020, but anything beyond that is uncertain.
Autoweek’s op-ed also addresses the controversial subject of Balance of Performance (BoP) in sports car racing. With sanctioning bodies constantly adjusting the BoP to ensure the field is equal and make it so one manufacturer does not run away with the title, tin-top racing seems to have become more about playing the BoP chessboard correctly, rather than having the fastest car and most talented drivers.
While Corvette Racing has not announced its 2021 plans yet, it is believed the team will be racing in the IMSA GTLM field come January 2020. It is also expected to debut its new Corvette C8.R race car prior to the 24 Hours of Daytona, which is of course based on the mid-engine Corvette C8 platform. The race car is also expected to use a version of the rumored twin-turbocharged LT7 V8 engine, which will appear in a forthcoming high performance variant of the road-going Corvette C8.
In addition to more balanced handling, the mid-engine platform should also give the Corvette C8 superior aerodynamics to the Corvette Racing’s front-engine race cars, helping it punch through the air down the long straights at Daytona at Le Mans.
The 2019 IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship season will wrap up with the 22nd running of Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta the weekend of October 12th. Porsche, Ford and Corvette are currently locked in a three-way battle for the GTLM manufacturer’s title, with Porsche first at 304 points, Ford second with 278 and Corvette third with 272.
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Thanks Sam for finally reporting on this. As some have posted their support for the BoP BS, I have vehemently denied it. Simply said, if the BoP was a good thing, you wouldn’t have the stacked finishes. IF the BoP was a good thing, there would be no need for any manufacturer to upgrade/update their entries as the BoP would adjust accordingly for ANY individual deficiencies per manufacturer. Doesn’t seem to work that way, does it?? Not according to race results where Porsche gets a 1-2, Corvette gets a 3-4, Ford GT’s get a 5-6, and BMW gets a 7-8 finish. Is it any wonder Ford has withdrawn?? Why race when it’s fixed from the start?? Now we’ll never know how the C8.R’s would’ve done against GM’s #1 nemesis, Ford.
The BoP is BS, as I’ve stated before, as it is currently and needs a revision to be even relevant. Can it work? Maybe, but SOMETHING must be done to be fair to all entries and not just sucking it up for one brand while waiting for their turn to shine.
GMs number 1 competition has always been Porsche. On and off the track.
There is a huge difference in team performance between Porsche’s Core Operated GTLM team, Corvette’s Pratt & Miller, and Ford’s Chip Genassi NA efforts.
It’s not manipulation, its team tactics. RLL is not a good team and Risi is out because without ferrari support they can’t compete.
BOP is about balancing the cars overall performance, not the teams usage of them.
Do you realize you have contradicted yourself??
“It’s not manipulation, its team tactics.”
“BOP is about balancing the cars overall performance, not the teams usage of them.”
That does come down to manipulation/tactics as fuel constraints are part of the BoP.
I also say BS to your second comment as THE CARS THEMSELVES are NOT “balanced”, not even close but if the cars were balanced you would NOT see stacked finishes!! Yet you do….
BoP has FAILED as proven by the stacked finish, period.
Please reread my post as I have not seen ANY reply that explains what’s happening nor how BoP is actually working, it’s NOT. Excuses at best. As it stands, BoP is BS…. Favors Porsche as usual, placates C7.R’s, F’s the Ford GT’s, disregards BMW’s. Yes, please tell me how this BoP BS is saving IMSA, NOT. Why would any other manufacturer want to get involved when it’s stacked?? What is a valid reason to watch??? BS and I’m tired of the BoP fanboys claiming all is fair, IT’S NOT!!! Winning by any team when it’s biased is a hollow victory at best. Major reform is needed, not suggested, if you want to keep viewers/fans and teams….
While BOP is not the perfect solution it unfortunately is the only solution to a difficult problem that will kill the series again.
Many like to conveniently like to forget IMSA died once before. A new series was started and it was sold to the present owners the France family.
Why was it sold? The MFGs were let lose to do as they wished and the cost were driven well beyond the benefit the MFGs received in PR. Porsche, Nissan and finally Toyota drove the cost to where everyone left.
Even the Corvette was a 2 car class in ALMS one year as they drove everyone off till IMSA came back under new owners.
The same thing happened with Can Am with the 917. Trans Am died originally from GM, then Ford dumping more money than the series was worth. That was before the cost we have today that are 50 times more than then.
SCCA show room stock Escort Series died due to factories running cost up with cars that really were not production or in some cases even on the market yet. They banned the Corvette to keep the series alive yet Ford GM and Porsche ran off all the other MFGs at one time or another.
People will not watch or buy tickets to see just one brand dominate outside F1.
Another thing to the BOP critics. The CR7 was kept competitive because of these rules. The Ferrari and Ford would have dominated the last 5 years easily. Chevy was given breaks that kept the car competitive because the series knows Corvette sells a lot of ticket and accounts for much of the TV ratings.
Trust me the BOP when it is against my teams pisses me off but I also know
When the GM teams are not the new car on the block they are still in the hunt.
So hate the BOP all you like but without it Corvette Racing would not be celebrating 30 years of racing this year and would have faded away in GM budget cut or the death of the racing series.
Pure racing died decades ago when sponsorship when on the cars. It’s fate was sealed when the technology and higher cost came along in the last 40 years.
FYI BOP or not Ford was not in this for the long term from the start. The GT is going to end production in 2022 with only 350 more cars being built. They only built it in the first place to win Lemans on the 50th anniversary of their first win and Daytona and Sebring.
You were never going to find out anything from the start. The last thing Ford is going to do is pump money into a racing program for a car they plan to kill.
The truth is they try to keep things even and that is how GM won a championship for the brand last year not winning a race. That was a credit to the BOZp and Pratt and Miller prep/ skills with a very old and outdated platform for the class.
I have been through this for many years and seen the series come and go. If you really were in racing you would see the real cost and how MFGs and sponsors can get ticked off with no return on investment in a series. The teams also do no get unlimited funds evenly either.
When Porsche spent all they could on the 917 GM could not and would not match the cost. Due to that Mclaren left with GM and the series died.
If you think I am wrong read up on the history of road racing in America. None of this is opinion it is just what happened.
Actually Corvette ran the only 2 cars in GT1 class and following year dropped to GT2 class. They were so heavily penalized before they had turned 1 lap that they finally said enough with restrictions, either base them on actual performance or we are gone and the heavy handed BOP was lifted so they could compete. Has anyone noticed that WEC went to an 18 month Super season while FIA ruled that to run at Le Mans a team must run 2 WEC races? Those 2 items ensured that Corvette could not run the C8 in 2019 as you can’t change chassis in mid season. So the C8 was pushed to 2020. And Ford was only in the series for 4 years, coincidently 50 years from 1966 to 1969. They never promised to be in for good which is why they got waivers on homologation, they wanted to win Le Mans on the 50th anniversary, there was no intention of continuing a model line of GTs, it was a 4 year program, period. As to BOP, when Corvette won 4 races, they got slapped with BOP adjustments however Porsche got none when they won 4 so they won 5. In fact this year Corvette got hit with BOP even when they didn’t win a race while the race winner (Porsche) had no change. Pretty much the only thing they haven’t touched is weights of drivers now that they have established minimum pit times.
Screw ford…..they are scared of the C8!!!!
Ford was ending this program either way, it wa originally a 2 year program with possible 2 year extension. But if you actually paid attention instead of being a mouth breather fanboy you would have know that.
The Ford FanBoys say that this is the only way Chevy can beat Ford. ?
GTE/GTLM is actual a dying class, WEC having same problem. Ferrari and Aston Martin GTE cars are actual GT3 car but with GTE spec package. Only Corvette and Porsche are keeping GTE/GTLM this level special.
If the future of IMSA DPi 2.0 would have some same spec with WEC upcoming hypercar or would be allowed to race WEC by ACO. I think GTE would die and be replaced by GT3 car in that time.
DPi 2.0 and WEC Hypercar have made many auto makers interesting. Two new top-level will become to be a mainstream for IMSA and ACO.
You are correct. The IMSA series is in for some changes in the next few years.
There is a need to keep the cars competitive in France as most the MFGs put a priority on it even if they do not run the entire WEC series.
The Hypercar will be interesting to see what we get.
The aston and ferrari were developed like that because they were expecting GT convergence to happen and were trying to get ahead of the ball. Both series have been pretty close in performance and GT3 has less restrictions in homologation. The GT3 car is more of a modified down GTE car and not the other way around.
Hypercar hasn’t made anything interesting. What we have is Aston hoping to reuse their valkyrie for cheap advertising, toyota wanting to use a prototype unrestricted by not having to base it off a car with actual safety requirements outside of the FIA, and a boutique manufacturer who just got told to eat sand by the FIA, all meant to be slower than the current crop of LMP2 cars in lap times.
Hypercar is 99 GT1 all over again at best and 2000 LMPGT at worst.
I would have to disagree with C8.R statment that BOP is what keeped the C7.R competitive, BOP prevented the C7.R from winning more from 5.5L instead of 6.2L to other BOP methods. I am for maximum HP, minimum wieght, fuel capacity limit, limit on displacement 4L for turbo for GT4/GT3/GT2 and naturally aspirated engines in GT4/GT3, but other BOP methods I am not in favor of like adjusting the HP, weight, fuel capacity, or shrinking engine displacement to balance performance. If spending to much money is a concern then spending limits is a good idea.
Controlling spending limits is extremely difficult to police and monitor. It would be easier that way but in a corporate setting you never would track it.
In series they do try it now they ban many materials and that is about al, they can do.
If someone had a better system it would be used.
Other series use intake restrictions to control power that is a real mess and really hurts the teams. Tires Size is another.
Corvette is the fastest car made.I’m sure of that.When the c8 comes out it will be eaten up by BOP.Sucks our Corvette has to be chopped up but to keep the series alive i guess or their will be domination and no series.The frances trying to fix nascar.How’s that working?They will mess this series up but what the Hell will work?NHRA for the Winn
IMSA uses air restrictor size increases and decreases as part of their BoP process.
Corvette is the fastest car made.I’m sure of that.When the c8 comes out it will be eaten up by BOP.Sucks our Corvette has to be chopped up, but to keep the series alive i guess?Or their will be domination and no series.The Frances are trying to fix nascar.How’s that working?They will mess this series up but what the Hell will work? Porshe’s Turn to win.
Kind of losing interest in GTLM Because of BOP .
NHRA for the Winn
Sorry to taint it but even the NHRA runs indexes in most classes.
Also teams like in pro stock sand bag to keep the rules from changing.
Nothing more pathetic than watching a race with throttle stops.
As for NASCAR that is a totally different mess now. I stopped watching when they started the chase.
At least IMSA is in the hands of Jim France who actually drove in IMSA for a good while. He at least sees both sides.
What is meaning of BOP ?
Balance of power.
That is where they take weight and fuel cell size and adjust it to where each car is similar in lap times.
By doing this it prevents teams from having to spend tons of money in development cost over what they already spend.
It also keeps all the teams competitive so fans continue to buy tickets and tune in.
If only one team wins and cost go up with fans not watching then MFGs pull out.
I’m not completely against the BoP concept, just the haphazard way it’s applied. There seems to be no rime or reason to how it’s how or when it’s used. The SCCA was able to make a similar system work in the old World Challenge Series, so why is it so hard for IMSA and F.I.A. to get it right?
Actually, it’s probably a good thing for the Corvette. The only time the Corvette really was successful was years ago, when they were the only fully supported factory team. Sure, they won the championship last year, but it’s been 2 years since they actually won a race. Championships are great for the manufacturer, but race fans go to races to see their favorite car win, not just ride around and collect points.