2010 Le Mans 24 Hours

[noodlexyz]

Hey guys,

What are your predictions for this years race? Looks like its going to be a big three way battle for P1 with Audi, Peugeot, and Aston Martin, plus GT2 looks to be a total slobber-knocker on ice with prison yard rules!

Speed finally stepped up their coverage to include all 24 hours and an extra hour of bonus coverage which is cool.

Here's the entry list...http://www.lemans.org/wpphpFichiers/...es_invites.pdf

Im on the Matech bandwagon (those Ford GT's are hot and so is Natacha!), Grosjean is super quick!

I took off of work to watch the race!

Enjoy the race gents,

-Ryan

[Kredithai]

Rooting for JLOC in GT1. They didn't even get to finish 1 lap last year, hoping for better luck this year.

Corvette team will have tougher competition this year stepping down to GT2.

And there's 12 ex-F1 drivers in LMP1 alone!

Aston Martin all the way! They better bring back the chandeliers in their pit garages!

[Charlie]

Pugs walk off with it, Audi experiences teething issues the entire race, Gas powered LMP1s aren't within 5 laps of the lead cars. Corvettes wreck when they actually have to drive at more than 80%, The jag explodes before the drop of the green flag, and the M3 is plagued by weird issues the whole race.

-Charlie

[bigrojo37]

I cant believe the Jag is in the race. That thing wont make it to the grid...maybe on a wheel chair.

[TomM]

Pugs walk off with it, Audi experiences teething issues the entire race, Gas powered LMP1s aren't within 5 laps of the lead cars. Corvettes wreck when they actually have to drive at more than 80%, The jag explodes before the drop of the green flag, and the M3 is plagued by weird issues the whole race.

-Charlie

One Pug and one Audi make it to the end without much trouble.

Agree on gas powered LMP's

One corvette goes out early and another towards the end

Jag "finishes" 40 laps down to the lead GT2 car.

One M3 has issues. Other one finishes on the podium.

[noodlexyz]

I cant believe the Jag is in the race. That thing wont make it to the grid...maybe on a wheel chair.

Its in for heritage reasons, unlike a lot of races the vast majority of the entrants for the 24 hours are picked by a selection committee to ensure a solid and diverse field...Spyker comes to mind. I agree it probably wont do well but you never know, Le Mans is very cruel and underdogs do score wins there...look at Panoz in 06, no one saw that coming!

I predict the diesels will duke it out for the win but I would like to throw in a petrol powered Aston into the top three. I don't know if you guys follow the LMS at all but those things are trimmed out rocket ships from another planet! AMR has put mucho dollars into that program as well has Prodrive. Those cars are very fast at the top end, faster than the diesels by a margin. Weather dependent of course because if it rains the diesels will have the upper hand!

GT2 again will be the overall highlight. I really like BMWs chances this year, especially the 79 car with the Dirks and Andy. All of them are very fast and very proven drivers. Corvette has such a long history at Le Mans that its hard to take them out of the podium, even with a newer car. Ferrari has a stacked driver line up as well with some great ex-f1 talent. Porsche is a little light this year but the GT3 RSR is damn near bulletproof and team Matmut is always quick and the Flying Lizards have Bergmeister who is easily in the top two factory Porsche drivers!

P2 will be a battle between the two HPD ARX-01's. They are easily the two most advanced cars in P2 and the two best teams other than RML and OAK racing, both of which have proven packages though so it could be interesting.

Heres my rundown...


P1
Peugeot car #2 (as long as Minassian doesn't crash it)

P2
Highcroft Racing car #26

GT1
Matech Ford GT car #60

GT2
Team Matmut car #76 (too dominant to not pick as the winner)

Cheers,

-Ryan

[JETninja]

Go to Club Arnage and download their epic Spotters Guide. Its a must have.

Morning before the race, a 10 lap race of Group C cars is happening, hope Speed shows a bit of it at some point.

And I've seen the Jag in person at Long Beach and Laguna Seca actually do a decent job, sure not fighting for wins but far from last in GT2....its a start.

[Kredithai]

Didn't realize Patron Highcroft is racing this year. It's Duncan Dayton's ultimate objective but I thought they were still a few years away.

I'd be surprised of BMW makes it to the podium. Michelin is the tire to have in Le Mans, and the Dunlops may not be as durable as Michelin. Hope I'm wrong, though.

[duncan17]

I went last year (more drunk Englishmen than I"ve seen in one place before including concerts in London) and the Aston Martin's sounded magnificant. The rules haven't changed enough to make them ultimately competitive with the deisels but even Sunday morning people would stop what they were doing to listen to them go by every lap. Great atmosphere if you have a chance to go....

[JETninja]

Didn't realize Patron Highcroft is racing this year. It's Duncan Dayton's ultimate objective but I thought they were still a few years away.

I'd be surprised of BMW makes it to the podium. Michelin is the tire to have in Le Mans, and the Dunlops may not be as durable as Michelin. Hope I'm wrong, though.

IIRC there are 4 to 6 tire companies in this years race. (Michelin, Dunlop, Hankook, Bridgestone, Khumo, ? ) Dunlop has really improved (Sebring 12hr, Petit 10hr, Laguna 6hr Bimmer's were competitive in all 3) lately and if they get any rain they really shine in the wet.....

[Simon Tibbett]

Peugeot > ALL.

[JETninja]

Peugeot > ALL.

LOL! Maybe, though Audi did seem to learn and put in a lot more track time (testing and race) this time around with the R15+...so I wouldn't hand it to the Frenchies just yet.....

[JETninja]

My yearly Lemans email to work buds and friends...

Hello Race Fans we have a very special 24 Hours of Lemans this year. First off, the ACO made an announcement today! A modern implementation of the old Herringbone start will be used, though its more for looks and Photo Ops (Drivers have 7 minutes to get into the car and properly belt themselves in, something that didn’t always happen in the old frantic starts from the late 20’s till 1969.) …..after they are belted in then at 4:30pm (French time) all 56 cars will proceed on the Formation lap.

Cars & Classes.

P1 - Is insane! We have 19 or so P1 cars! 4 Peugeot Diesels, 3 Audi R15’s 2 Audi R10’s, 3 Aston Martins, Nigel Mansell and Sons in a Zytek, Lord Drayson and his Lola Judd Coupe, and many more.

P2 – It’s the premier at Le Sarthe of the Highcroft Acura (w/new low downforce package) along with another team running an Acura, Lola Coupes, Zytek’s and more.

GT1 - Luc Alphand’s Corvettes, a Saleen, an Aston, a Lambo and 3 Ford GT’s with one be driven by an all Female Team!

GT2 - All the usual suspects plus some new cars. Team Corvette is now in this class, and BMW makes a return with the M3’s. Also Jaguar celebrates is 75th Anv with an entry, along with all the Porsches and Ferrari’s, Aston Martin and a Spyker.


Plus something we won’t see (maybe a small segment will show a few minutes of it) but that morning a Group C 10 lap race will be ran. Check out this list of Group C entrants:

No. Name Car Group
2 Bob Berridge (GBR) Mercedes Benz C11 C1
3 Geoff Lister (GBR) Jaguar XJR 9 C1
4 Justin Law (GBR) Jaguar XJR 9 C1
7 Henrik Lindberg (DEN) Porsche 962 C1
8 Peter Harburg (AUS) Porsche 962C C1
9 Nick Chester (GBR) Spice SE88P GTP
10 Martin Overington (GBR) Porsche 962 C1
14 Nathan Kinch (GBR) Spice Chevrolet SP92 GTP
15 Larry Kinch (CDN) Spice SE88C C1
16 Elliot Kinch (GBR) Spice SE89C C2
17 Kent Abrahamson (SWE) Nissan RC90 C1
18 Paul Whight (GBR) Aston Martin AMR1 C1
22 Richard Eyre (GBR) Jaguar XJR 16 C1
23 Gareth Evans (GBR) Nissan R88C C1
30 Paul Livesey (GBR) Spice SE89 C1
32 Chris Buncombe (GBR) Jaguar XJR 8 C1
34 Gary Pearson (GBR) Jaguar XJR 11 C1
40 Richard Bateman (GBR) Spice SE90 C1
42 Donald Miles (GBR) Jaguar XJR 5 C1
52 Chris Roche (GBR) Tiga GT287 C2
60 Erich Richenbacher (SUI) Cheetah C1
62 Rob Sherrard Sauber C9 C1
77 Henry Pearman (GBR) Porsche 962 C1
81 Mike Furness (GBR) Spice SE88CL GTP/lights
88 Andy Purdie (GBR) Nissan RC90 C1
99 Mark Sumpter (GBR) Porsche 962 C1
101 Duncan McKay (GBR) Spice SE88C C2

Too cool or what!!!


TV / Web

Ok, Television Coverage here, Speed made this announcement.

http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/ ... m-le-mans/

SPEED and SPEED.com are scheduled to present 25 hours of live and uninterrupted coverage from this year’s Le Mans 24 Hours race at Circuit de la Sarthe, France’s most famous racing circuit.
At 8:30 a.m. ET on June 12, SPEED begins coverage from the 78th annual endurance classic with the race’s opening laps. Once the linear network leaves Le Mans to broadcast Michigan International Speedway’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series final practice (12:30 p.m. ET), the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race from MIS (NCWTS Setup at 1:30 p.m. ET & VFW 200 at 2 p.m. ET) and qualifying for Formula One’s Canadian Grand Prix (4:30 p.m. ET), www.SPEED.com continues full coverage with live streaming starting at 12:30 p.m. SPEED rejoins Le Mans at 6 p.m. ET to its completion – which will include overnight and the finish.

So for us here on the West Coast on Speed and Speed HD;

June 12th (Sat) 5:30am (actual race start is sometime later) to 9:30am. It returns again at 6:00pm and continues until 6:30am on Sunday.

For the Gap, go to Speed.com and watch the streaming coverage. The announcers on the web and during the night hours are the Radio Lemans crew, you can actually listen to them through your PC all event long by going to http://rlm.0157.org/


Spotters Guide

A MUST HAVE – Download the 2010 Club Arnage Guide to Lemans. It covers everything from Spotters Guide, Schedules, History, Camping, Food, etc…. You’ll find links for Live Timing & Scoring, Fan info and more, you have to see this incredibly well done document.

http://www.clubarnage.com/caguide/download.html

(It’s in a PDF format, and that brings up a point. Adobe’s reader is very much a security liability on your PC these days for whatever reason. I suggest you remove it and go with another PDF reader, there are dozens of free ones and they don’t share Adobe’s security issues. I use Foxit on my home PC’s)


Pics of some of the American Team cars being unloaded from their shipping containers
http://www.pitlane-vision.com/index....tte&Itemid=119


Official Site (you can find Official LT&S)

http://www.lemans.org/en/


Great Info Sites

http://www.planetlemans.com/ Great articles class by class, expect lots of stuff and pics race day

http://www.mulsannescorner.com/RCELeMans2009.html Looking closely at the engineering aspect

http://theracesite.com/index.cfm?tem...ome&mag_cat=31


Forums (usually have to be a member)

http://www.americanlemansfans.com/index.php (official ALMS forum site)

http://www.ten-tenths.com/

http://www.theraceforums.com/forums/

http://www.speedtv.com/forums/viewforum/26/

Streaming (For those that cant get Speed.com, from last year, may work, may not)

http://www.myp2p.eu/competition.php?...ne=motorsports Might work for Qual & Race (also check out SpeedTV.com for 24hr Race Stream)

Last year it also showed up here
http://www.justin.tv/directory/sport...hot〈=en



Formula One

Also this same weekend, F1 returns to North America – The Canadian GP is back.

Practice Friday 11am on Speed
Qual Saturday 1:30pm on Speed
Race Sunday @9am on Fox. (Boo!)

The Canadian circuit is very fast with no room for error (lots of serious walls) and is known for eating brakes. It was off the Calendar last year and is welcomed back by both fans and the drivers as they enjoy the course and North America.

[AllMotorKing]

Here's a quick spotter/livery guide posted as well.

Click on this link for the full size images.

[MiniD]

Pugs walk off with it, Audi experiences teething issues the entire race, Gas powered LMP1s aren't within 5 laps of the lead cars. Corvettes wreck when they actually have to drive at more than 80%, The jag explodes before the drop of the green flag, and the M3 is plagued by weird issues the whole race.

-Charlie

I'd say that's a pretty good assessment.

I can't wait for Saturday - pretty good field lined up.

[noodlexyz]

I've got to go shopping for redbull and vodka! Im getting excited already!

-Ryan

[satakal]

these radio guys are... British.

http://sidepodcast.com/2010/06/09/li...ce-qualifying/
http://www.radiolemans.com/
http://www.lemans.org/en/courses/24h...rect-2010.html

I'm stoked about the factory fights.

Also started following @radiolemans and @MidwkMotorsport.

I'll be at Buttonwillow this weekend checking the Twitter when not doing more important things.

[bigrojo37]

Maybe someone can answer this question regarding the Gentilozzi Jaguar, but how did they manage to get into the race this year? from what i understand, that car has had a very dissapointing season?

[Charlie]

Maybe someone can answer this question regarding the Gentilozzi Jaguar, but how did they manage to get into the race this year? from what i understand, that car has had a very dissapointing season?

It's Le Mans, it's an invite process, not based on any real merit.

It's also Jaguar's 75th aniversary, and if you happen to notice, there's a lot of Jaguar themed livery and pace cars, ads, etc.

Aka, $$$ talks.

-Charlie

[JETninja]

It's Le Mans, it's an invite process, not based on any real merit.

It's also Jaguar's 75th aniversary, and if you happen to notice, there's a lot of Jaguar themed livery and pace cars, ads, etc.

Aka, $$$ talks.

-Charlie

Partially correct.

The Winner of each class of the following get an auto-invite:

1. LMS series
2. ALMS series
3. Petit Lemans

If its the same team for more then one, then it flows down to next team.

I think something has been worked out with the Asian series as well, past winner of Lemans probably. Then invites go to Teams of merit or interest. There is a huge Jag fan base in Europe, it's the 75th so they were an easy pick. And at least its been actually passing cars this year, I saw it in person at Long Beach and Laguna Seca, they are making progress.

[bigrojo37]

Partially correct.

The Winner of each class of the following get an auto-invite:

1. LMS series
2. ALMS series
3. Petit Lemans

If its the same team for more then one, then it flows down to next team.

I think something has been worked out with the Asian series as well, past winner of Lemans probably. Then invites go to Teams of merit or interest. There is a huge Jag fan base in Europe, it's the 75th so they were an easy pick. And at least its been actually passing cars this year, I saw it in person at Long Beach and Laguna Seca, they are making progress.

I knew certain series winners get the invite and other teams have to apply for an entry spot. That being said, i find it pretty crazy that one of the crappiest teams were allowed in, lets be serious, the Genti Jag is AWFUL. I guess in this case money talked. This car will not make it past 2 hours.

[JETninja]

I knew certain series winners get the invite and other teams have to apply for an entry spot. That being said, i find it pretty crazy that one of the crappiest teams were allowed in, lets be serious, the Genti Jag is AWFUL. I guess in this case money talked. This car will not make it past 2 hours.

Well, it did finish the 6hr race at Laguna, I was there and froze my ass off! LOL!. I did have issues, like it did yesterday. Lost a Clutch first time out, then an engine IIRC. (You only get two per week per ACO rules) But all teams have to start from somewhere, and while corporate bucks are behind them, the team has its roots in Paul's tube chassis Trans-Am series, so its a steep learning curve. At least they are trying, and good chance they'll do better then the Asian Lambo!

[noodlexyz]

No real surprise about who's on pole and in second, third, and fourth! Audi have got to be holding something in reserve. P2 will be awesome to watch, ARX-01c fight to the death! Too bad about the other AF Corsa car though.

-Ryan

[JETninja]

Risi moves to the back - rear wing infraction. Failed scrutineering.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/84309

Corvette front row in GT2. Also on Autosport, Theissen says BMW is not interested in building a LMP-1 car....bummer!

And Charlie, how many ALMS events you been to this year? I've seen the Corvettes up close, they have been driving 100% as are all the top GT2 cars, its a war in that class...

[Charlie]

And Charlie, how many ALMS events you been to this year? I've seen the Corvettes up close, they have been driving 100% as are all the top GT2 cars, its a war in that class...

I watched them play keystone cops at sebring and that's been about it. The ALMS broadcasts this year have been dreadful.

-Charlie