I see stories in my newsfeed about Corvette racing getting pole positions and the various races they participate in. Honestly I don't follow racing that closely nor do I know the various races and their importance. Give that, and this (http://www.highlandstoday.com/hi/spo...pots-20160712/), as far as for Corvette racing... Are we doing good?

 

IMSA Sports Car Racing Series has 4 classes P (Prototype) PC (Prototype Challenge) a spec class using Corvette Racing Motors GTLM (Factory backed program Lemans style spec "production" sports cars) and GTD (pro/am driven sports cars). Google IMSA and you can get an education and calendar of events.

 

Thanks but I wasn't really asking how I can learn more about the racing circuits - I was looking more for commentary from those in the know that could assess the situation and give us a idea of how the Corvette racing team is doing.

 

http://www.corvetteracing.com/ Has results back to 1999 posted on their site. IMSA and WEC has results for their series posted for the current year. You can also follow them on Twitter and Facebook. They were very competitive last week so are doing fine after the last "balance of performance" adjustment as the headline shows.

 

They are currently having their butts handed to them by the new Ford GT and the BMW M6. I'm sure a "balance of performance" will be issued again to even out the field.

 

The prototypes powered with Corvette engines are doing well. The GTLM cars did very well early in the season but the recent BoP adjustments have made the other brands more competitive. The C7Rs did well in Canada last weekend. I'm going to the race at VIR in August. It is great track with pit access to all spectators. Check it out:

http://www.etix.com/ticket/p/3284966...018.1468285201

There is also a separate forum for racing on this website.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...roadracing-23/

 

Going to Road America in a few weeks and can't wait!! Love that track and let's hope the Vette's have a good showing!

 

Let's see...a quick summary.

Since 1999 Corvette Racing, in partnership with Pratt and Miller (who builds the racecars, manages the team) have built a history of winning, both in the US and abroad. The rise of the team, have led to developments consistently which have made the street going Corvette, better and better ever since.

Currently, the C7R is in a battle for the driver, manufacturer and team championship of the weathertech racing series, as well as the Patron Endurance Cup. FordGT's started off weak, as the chassis was fairly new, but Ford chose a very proven team with Gannassi racing, to manage and build the cars.

In this series, with a myriad of different cars, powerplants, aero profiles, there needs to be what's called a "balance of performance". This is a system that varies the weight, hp output, refueling speeds to make a series of very different cars, theoretically equal come raceday. Therefore, it's down to the teams, drivers, reliabilty and strategy to win. Well...the BOP is always a source of controversy, as we see some advantages at times. That said, this year has had ups and downs for Corvette, where some races they are flat out not competitive, due to a BOP that's rendered their cars outperformed. Corvette still manages to win on pit strategy, reliability, etc though.

Overall, 2016 season is looking pretty good so far, but there is plenty of racing left to go.

If you haven't been to a race...well...you're just flat out missing the boat. Go to a race, get into the Corvette corral, be part of the action.

 

Corvette Racing is currently in the lead for the championship (that's good) but it will a tough battle to stay in the lead. They race against Ferrari, Porsche, Ford, and I think Aston Martin.

Try to remain disinterested in auto racing. If you get interested to the point of participating you'll end up spending your children's inheritance in an attempt to win trophies.

 

Oh, I forgot BMW also.

 

Actually, I think it's more fair to say that the C7 team did well early in the season because they have a reliable platform developed over years. The Ford GT being brand new, suffered a lot of reliability problems early, but has always been quicker from the beginning.

Since the Ford GT recently finished 1,3,and 4 (Ferrari was 2nd) in the GTLM class at the 24 Hours of LeMans, and all 4 entries finished the race, it would appear their reliability problems are behind them. The Ford GT also won the last race, and the C7R points lead has dwindled to nothing, w/ the GT likely to win this year's manufacturing championship.

 

LaMans showed where Corvette is today with Ford and Porsche.

 

Thanks for the update. BTW how would I get a ticket to go to the race? The one link I saw here was for Virginia - I live in LA now.

 

The Ford GT has been coming on strong and is a real candidate to win the championship this year. Lots of racing left, so anything could happen and the results could vary a lot. I'll just keep pulling for Team Corvette.

 

If you can't go to the race, watch it on Sunday's as all the WeatherTec series races are broadcast, usually on Fox Sports channel.

 

The Ford GT is not yet a real production car. I am very surprised at how it is allowed to compete in the GTLM class at all!!

 

Hmmm... I haven't watched broadcast TV since 2008! Long time chord cutter!

Besides, I'd like to go in person...

 

Check the IMSA schedule. Might be a race in CA later this year.

Sorry just checked. You missed the Long Beach race earlier this year.

 

You think there is a little favoritism being shown here? So do I.

After Le Mans, there was another BOP adjustment and Corvette was on the pole for the Mosport race. Corvette finished 2nd and third and lost to Ford on what was probably a strategy win on the part of Ford, but Corvette had the speed to win.

Now Porsche and Ferrari have to be crying foul since it seems they have been left behind performance wise. I don't really know how somebody can justify spending huge sums of money to build a fast car when some racing bureaucrat will cut the legs out from under you, unless a special 50th anniversary is coming up.

 

They had to get a special waiver, and all the other teams had to sign off on it. I don't have such a problem with them if they got everyone else to sign off. IMSA gave the a waiver to the Viper that won the championship with a normally-illegal engine, a couple years ago, then Viper quit on IMSA immediately following the race at Petit LeMans.

Where I have a problem is the BoP adjustments that LeMans made that killed us and Porsche and handed the race to Ford. Had we been able to run the GT's with the same restrictions we had in Test Day pre-qualifying, I think it would have been a more even race, though they may likely still have won with so many entries.

To answer the question, CR competes for the Title every year and I have been watching CR since 2001, and they've won or been in it every one of those years. Usually when we dont run well its a BoP issue, because all these cars are restricted somehow and the stewards don't always make the fairest adjustments.