http://www.grand-am.com/News/Article.asp?ID=9321

Another casualty of BMW Motorsports lack of support in the USA

Too bad for Dinan and BMW supporters.

Sorry Bill - should read: Auberlen

oh snap, I figured Patrick Long would have been the second driver. go AJR!
Jake

Any word on if they're sticking with the 3.9 litre flat six, or going to the Cayenne-based V8 like a few other teams are?

If Crawford puts a little money into chassis development this year, these guys could be championship contenders.

-Charlie

That will probably be my 2008 DP team to root for. We will see what else happens up to the first race.

Any word on if they're sticking with the 3.9 litre flat six, or going to the Cayenne-based V8 like a few other teams are?

If Crawford puts a little money into chassis development this year, these guys could be championship contenders.

-Charlie

The Cayenne V8 is only for the 09 car at this point. That is an independent effort and has no support from the factory. The great thing is that GA allows the independents to develop this type of powerplant. This sounds counterintuitive to this "so called" NASCAR-type series.

They are at the mercy of the chassis at this point. This year proved to be extremely difficult for the Crawford. Joey has been testing for Crawford quite a bit this year so that's a good sign for them but with so many "new" chassis coming next year it'll be impossible to tell who has the advantage for the first few races. I suspect the Riley will be as strong as ever but Lola/Multimatic, Dallara/Doran, and others should play a factor at some point in the season.

I hope for Bill, Joey, and AJR that the car is competitive. They all deserve it. I'd rate those two better than just about anyone in sports car racing today and I've been lucky to have been able to work with both of them. I've learned a lot from them. I hope they run away with the championship.

what happenened to the Ruby drivers from 2007?

there goes a very good thing :(

Did you guys miss the fact that they drove for Panoz last year in ALMS? While Bill drove for Sigalsport last year it sounds like they have a lot of things going on with this new publicly traded deal and they were never a factory effort. In fact I want to say that I heard BMW has very little interest in the DPs. Maybe TomM knows more, but I'd say that they are still with BMW technically and if/when the factory effort comes back, I would be suprised if they aren't behind the wheel.

I would say that BMW has very little interest in any racing in the US.

Whereas Acura pays $10k to win in Grand Am Koni Challenge, BMW pays a little over a fifth of that. And that was last year - this year who knows?

JJ?

Face it - BMW's only interest here is to sell autos and pull money out of the US. No investment in it's ardent supporters

In 2007 BMW paid $22K to win the Drivers and Team championship in ST. In GS they paid out $26K and got the drivers, team and manufacturers championship. Acura paid over $100K in contingencies and parts. They ended up with the manufacturers championship in ST.

Why should BMW do any more? They forked out $48K in 2007 and almost won it all.

As for the DP's and the new Prep 2 M6's in GT, BMW has no interest or support. I've been told that by the horses mouth.

Porsche has no interest in the Cayenne V8 either. The engine was bought at a dealer and LBP built it into a race engine. It was all funded out of some guy's pocket.

what happenened to the Ruby drivers from 2007?
they were factory Porsche guys. Responsibilities in ALMS sometimes kept one from the GA race, so I suppose AJR wanted a pair of full time drivers.
Jake

DP chassis' are developed...wow, could have fooled me lol

I'm interested to see how long the learning curve is for the M6 setup, should be fun to watch either way.

I hope for Bill, Joey, and AJR that the car is competitive. They all deserve it. I'd rate those two better than just about anyone in sports car racing today and I've been lucky to have been able to work with both of them. I've learned a lot from them. I hope they run away with the championship.

I agree. I've always been a huge fan of Bill, even more so after finally getting to meet him this year at Laguna. Easily the coolest most down to earth pro driver I've ever met. Both guys are a class act in opinion.

In 2007 BMW paid $22K to win the Drivers and Team championship in ST. In GS they paid out $26K and got the drivers, team and manufacturers championship. Acura paid over $100K in contingencies and parts. They ended up with the manufacturers championship in ST.

Why should BMW do any more? They forked out $48K in 2007 and almost won it all.

As for the DP's and the new Prep 2 M6's in GT, BMW has no interest or support. I've been told that by the horses mouth.

Porsche has no interest in the Cayenne V8 either. The engine was bought at a dealer and LBP built it into a race engine. It was all funded out of some guy's pocket.

OK JJ, I'm only a driver but I'm missing your point?

OK JJ, I'm only a driver but I'm missing your point?
I think he was saying that BMW didn't put much money into the BMWs in Koni Challenge because they didn't need to in order to be effective.
as for Rolex, that's a different story.
Jake

there goes a very good thing :(

They picked up a DP ride, no one said they are leaving PTG and ALMS.

If Bill can win in the Sigalsport car, I should hope Bill and Joey can do it a handful of times in the Ruby Tuesday car. Of course, Pat Long and Jorg Bergmeister arent exactly amatuers and they couldn't get it done....

I think he was saying that BMW didn't put much money into the BMWs in Koni Challenge because they didn't need to in order to be effective.
as for Rolex, that's a different story.
Jake
Exactly! I don't have a BMW because I'm waiting for a cash windfall from them. I have one because they work and don't require an army of guys to replace every part on one, each race weekend. If I wanted to bust my hump, I'd get an Acura. I'm lazy and BMW's just rarely break (unless you have idiot drivers).

That's a bad pic of Joey. It almost looks like he has a mullet. I will defnitely be rooting for AJR in 08.

So where can we see Pat Long in America next year? I assume Jorg is committed to ALMS only for next year?

Since we are talking about jumping ships, has anyone heard anything regarding BMW's return to North America on a factory level within the next 2 years?

So where can we see Pat Long in America next year? I assume Jorg is committed to ALMS only for next year?
I would also assume that Jorg is signed with Flying Lizard next year. Patrick will probably be doing 3rd driver stuff in the RS Spyder with Penske or maybe a full-time ride with the unknown team that got an RS Spyder. then again, he could also be a full-time driver with Flying Lizard, or just the 3rd for Sebring, Le Mans, and Petit.
I've read somewhere that he was going to be doing more driving in Europe, so I would imagine that would be in the LMS or maybe FIA GT, where the RSR is getting mauled by the F430...
Jake

I would also assume that Jorg is signed with Flying Lizard next year. Patrick will probably be doing 3rd driver stuff in the RS Spyder with Penske or maybe a full-time ride with the unknown team that got an RS Spyder. then again, he could also be a full-time driver with Flying Lizard, or just the 3rd for Sebring, Le Mans, and Petit.
I've read somewhere that he was going to be doing more driving in Europe, so I would imagine that would be in the LMS or maybe FIA GT, where the RSR is getting mauled by the F430...
Jake

There's a 3rd RS Spyder entry? Interesting. Tafel is switching to F430s, which says something about the RSR's competitiveness. I wonder if Porsche Motorsport is working on a heavily revised/updated RSR. Maybe TomM can shed some light on it (and the whole F430 vs GT3 RSR thing while we are at it)?

There's a 3rd RS Spyder entry? Interesting. Tafel is switching to F430s, which says something about the RSR's competitiveness. I wonder if Porsche Motorsport is working on a heavily revised/updated RSR. Maybe TomM can shed some light on it (and the whole F430 vs GT3 RSR thing while we are at it)?
yeah, there have been stories of a team putting in to buy an RS Spyder. At first, I thought it was a rumor, but there have been quotes by the Porsche Motorsport guys talking about 5 RS Spyders in the US. Another RS Spyder has been purchased and is supposed to be run in Europe.
as for the RSR, Tom can give more input, but the F430 seems to be a better car all around, but it could be that it is further developed right now. I read something about Ferrari having an update kit for the F430 if the RSR gets faster, but that could just be talk.
Leave it to the 2 classes (LMP2 and GT2) to create the biggest stories...
Jake

That's a bad pic of Joey. It almost looks like he has a mullet. I will defnitely be rooting for AJR in 08.


:rofl Joey always has the flyest sunglasses on. I predict he has his own line of them in a few years.

Gatorz. He's been one of their guys for a while now. I like Spy's better myself...

As for the Porsche/Ferrari battle, we'll see. Porsche spent a lot of effort on the RS Spyder for the last few years and I think some of that is the reason the 997 is off the pace of the Ferrari. It's not a lot but enough that that car has an advantage.

Porsche has updates planned/in the works for 08 and I think has even started selling 08 cars now or at least taking orders for them. I've heard the new Porsche is faster but I've also heard the new Ferrari is also faster. An 08 Ferrari is also EXTREMELY expensive. Over 600k for a new 08 car. A Porsche for sure isn't that much and is probably closer to 400. Time will tell which car is quicker but I'd give the advantage to Ferrari since they're building off an already faster car. The difference in lap time I've heard for the Ferrari is ridiculous and the difference in lap time for the Porsche is only just awesome. Who knows though. Sebring will be the first time we get a look at who got it right.

Sebring will be the first time we get a look at who got it right.
hopefully it will be Porsche. either way, I hope this upcoming season is as exciting as the one past.:buttrock
Jake

Exactly! I don't have a BMW because I'm waiting for a cash windfall from them. I have one because they work and don't require an army of guys to replace every part on one, each race weekend. If I wanted to bust my hump, I'd get an Acura. I'm lazy and BMW's just rarely break (unless you have idiot drivers).

And I guess that you're not racing in Koni for the prize money either :lol