Foosh

My view is that BOP hits everyone sooner or later. I think the Ford GT got screwed a lot worse. It's hard to argue that BOP has been unfair to the C7R recently since they've won back-to-back manufacturer championships and more than anyone else.

Every single manufacturer in GTLM feels they've been screwed by BOP, which probably means it's working as intended. The more you win, the more they're going to dial you back.

Thunder22

Last year BoP wasn't as big of a factor as prior years, and they won manufacturer because the cars are incredibly reliable, rarely did a mechanical issue cause a DNF (crashes on the other hand...).

They were "BoP'd" at Watkins Glen, COTA and Petit Le mans last year.

Just my opinion.

Thunder22

The Fords weren't reliable. Neither were the Ferraris.

"the more you win the more you get dialed back" is exactly why BoP sucks *****. Imagine if they made Mercedes run at 90% power in F1 so that McLaren could catch up? Holy crap.

The strongest should win, if you're not able to win without handicapping the strongest, you should work harder to go faster.

Foosh

Actually, the BOP "penalties" C7R received happened much earlier in the season than those races (before COTA) and stayed the same most of the season. They actually got a little back (larger throttle body) later in the season. I was at COTA, and had a conversation w/ the crew chief of #3. He wasn't complaining at all, and thought the rules reasonable.

It was BMW receiving the most help as they were completely non-competitive early in the season. At COTA, they suddenly qualified on the pole, and ran near the front of the pack the rest of the season. Ford GT had it's boost dialed way back after winning LeMans in 2016, and ran that way throughout the 2017 season including 2017 LeMans where their lap times were way down. Had they been allowed to continue at 2016 LeMans boost levels, it's pretty clear they would have dominated.

The Fords were very reliable by LeMans 2016, but were wrecked out many times in 2017. I do agree that the Corvette Racing Team is by far the most experienced and makes fewer mistakes than anyone else. They always make the most of what they have, and that's their credo.

I don't think Corvette fans would like the result, if the rules allowed the strongest to go as fast as they are capable of. The ME FI cars would run away with it.

Thunder22

All of the turbo cars had their boost regulated on every race. NA cars had their intake and refueling restrictor regulated. Last year was one of the few years that Corvette didn't have weight penalties, and when they do get weight penalties I think that hurts them more than the other restrictions as it has more of an impact on the handling setup. (I could be wrong, I'm just an armchair racing fan)

https://competitors.imsa.com/102016/...ical-bulletins

DGA3

I looked at the IMSA schedule and Corvette Racing will be competing at my home track, Mid-Ohio, on the weekend of May 5-6.

I will definitely be there!

Thunder22

Are you sure about that with Ford being reliable? Didn't they have issues at Daytona and Sebring last year? They finished but well back in the pack, and wasn't it because they had mechanical issues that had to be fixed?

trivette

I'm a huge fan also. Have attended Sebring, stay up all night watching Le Mans, and attend the WeatherTech series at Road America every August. My diecast collection will now need to grow with the new Jake logo for '18. At RA crew chief Dan Binks always holds a charity auction for race used items. I've been fortunate to win some including a pit board from Le Mans in 2016. I had the drivers and Doug Fehan sign it. I also bought one of the C7.R car covers and had the drivers and Doug sign it as well. Can't wait for the first green flag!

Foosh

Actually, the changes after LeMans 2016 and before COTA 2017 were the only really big ones recently. Yes, minor tweaks were made here and there, but by COTA the cars were so even in terms of lap times, no major adjustments were necessary.

You're referring back to C6R days in your reference to weight penalties. That happened because they were very dominant. Of course, their only competition was Aston Martin, and there were no other serious competitors in the class. GTLM was near death because of no competition.

GTLM is finally healthy again BECAUSE of BOP, and is a major reason there are now 5 fairly competitive manufacturers involved. The Corvettes won a lot of races over the years because they had no competition.

Thunder22

ME and FI aren't the issue, it's NA vs turbo.

Foosh

FI (forced induction) is "turbo."

Thunder22

I never know with you, FI could have been fuel injection and i didn't want to call you out for being a dope I'm trying to be more tolerant this year

that being said, we all know that the chevy engine can put out a lot more HP and torgue than it runs in IMSA, so if BoP were eliminated and the turbo boys were allowed to run amok, the NA guys would too, they wouldn't stay at their current HP and torque.

trivette

I agree that BOP can be frustrating but it has allowed the continuation (and growth) of GTLM. If Ford's comeback win at Le Mans wouldn't have been so orchestrated they probably wouldn't have received the negative feedback and harsher penalties for the next season. Virtually all the columns/publications ripped their advantages. I also recall watching at RA a few years ago when it was only the #3 and #4 Corvettes in the class, racing themselves. You knew that scenario wouldn't last long! The crashes that take competitors out seem to affect all the teams at some point and are unfortunate. Really frustrating when they seem to be poor choices by some drivers that lead to them, but in the heat of competition and the need to make a quick decision I can understand how it happens. Flagrant/retaliatory moves, however, need to have the appropriate penalties assigned to keep things in control.

Foosh

You're confusing last year w/ 2016. In 2017, they finished 1st, 2nd, and 4th at Daytona, Ferrari was 3rd. Daytona 2016 was their very first race, and the first few were races rocky as one might expect with a new car. Obviously, by June 2016 @ Lemans they had everything ironed out finishing 1,2, and 4 at the 24. That level of dominance led to a major BOP boost restriction before the next IMSA race, and allowed the C7R to go on an win the manufacturer's championship that year.

Ford's 2017 problems were not mechanical. BOP turned the boost way down.

NA can't do much more because of FIA/IMSA restrictions on engine displacement. All racing series have them, and it has nothing to do w/ BOP. FI has a lot more room to grow because they can do more with less displacement. That's where BOP comes in and dials them back

Thunder22

You're assuming current rules.

Foosh

And now that FIA/IMSA, as well as most international racing has become environmentally sensitive, future rules will almost certainly eliminate V8s. We're sure as hell not going to see larger displacement NA engines in FIA/IMSA.

The days of the C7R configuration are numbered, and this could well be it's last year.

Thunder22

Yup, I jumped back to 2016. See how easy to admit when you're wrong? You should try it sometime

One of my favorite quotes: I thought that I was wrong once, but I was mistaken

Foosh

I do it all the time, and I research before I speak. You should try that some time.

Thunder22

hahaha, stop it, you're killing me lol


And I did research, IMSA had 2016 up as the most recent, and not 2017, which I missed.

sunsalem

Ditto that.

Very true.

Thanx for the great pics showing what's really under the skin of a true racing Corvette.

First of all, THANK YOU for posting those great pictures of Corvette Racing over the years...excellent eye-candy.
Secondly, these 2 threads in the Autocross forum are NOT for "advanced members" only in the slightest...they are for anyone interested in these 2 race series.
Corvette Racing:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...rs-please.html

F1 chat:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...at-thread.html
I'm for anything that generates more interest in Corvette Racing.
Whatever form it takes, I'm for.
Carry on...