Welcome, to a brand-new venue for the FIA World Endurance Championship, as the drivers and cars tackle the Algarve circuit in Portimao, Portugal, on the stunning Algarve course, for the first time ever. This race also (at long last) marks the debut of the new Glickenhaus Le Mans Hypercar, designed and built by American automotive designer and entrepreneur, Jim Glickenhaus. The Portimao track is 4.684 kilometers, (2.927 miles around). Pole position in qualifying went the way not of Toyota as expected, but of one of the other Hypercar entries, the Signatech Alpine. This is the #36 all-French crewed car in the hands of Nicolas Lapierre, Matthieu Vaxiviere, and Andre Negrao. Two Frenchmen, and a Brazilian, share the car.
Glickenhaus’ sole entry in this motor race is the #709 Glickenhaus
Racing Glickenhaus 007 LMH for Australia’s Ryan Briscoe, Romain Dumas of France
(a veteran of racing for Audi and Porsche in the prototype ranks), and
Englishman Richard Westbrook, a veteran of the Ford GT and Chevrolet Corvette
GT racing programs. In qualifying, the
new car experienced teething problems with the gearbox. So, it is a learning experience for
Glickenhaus today, a man with major ambitions, who wants to win Le Mans with
his own car, and an American team.
The visual spectactle of this course is stunning. We are ready for eight hours of racing as we
see the Glickenhaus on track. The car
has finally arrived. We’ve seen a lot
about this car. Great to see it in the
flesh and proving speed. It looks a
whole lot like one of the old Group C cars from the 1980s. You feel that this track could have been
built in the 1950s or ‘60s like the other legendary motor racing palaces of
Europe. Hypercar of course is the top
class, and we wait for the Le Mans Daytona Hypercar hybrids and we have GTE Pro
and Am.
This racetrack is incredible. It has 15 corners and is so incredibly old
school in it’s layout. Take a look at
track temperatures. They are hot,
anywhere from 34-50 degrees Celsius. Jim
Glickenhaus, in his hat, is stunned to be here.
This is an historic day. Jim
Glickenhaus and company designed and engineered the car. The approach here is taken for design from a
Porsche 917, Ferrari 512, or Lola T70.
Absolutely incredible. Glickenhaus
says the cars all have to look different, much like the ‘60s and ‘70s at Le
Mans, or even the ‘50s, they are and were all dream sports cars.
That is what Hypercar is all about. We await Porsche, Audi, Acura, Peugeot,
Ferrari, and maybe even General Motors.
The future of Hypercar is going to be amazing. BMW has also announced they will be here and
GM might as well come in. This is
fantastic for the world of sports car racing.
People of passion and vision are looking to the future of our
sport. We will see amazing grids in FIA
WEC and in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship, and the 24 Hours of Le
Mans! Yours truly cannot wait!
We look at the GTE Am field and those cars, we will talk
about as the race gets underway. Team
Project 1 with Egidio Perfetti are on pole in GTE Am. Alpine on pole. Nicolas Lapierre says it is better to start
out front. It was close. Eight hours is a long way and watch for
traffic through the blind corners here at Portimao. The tires will not be too much of a problem. Traffic management is going to be crucial. That is what we will see. Two completely different cars, between the
Alpine, and the Toyota, as well as the Glickenhaus. Can Alpine distance itself from the
Toyota’s?
It is the first pole for a French team, which is a surprise
because of the fact that the World Endurance Championship itself is
French. In GTE Pro, Ferrari will race
with two drivers. Porsche has three
drivers. Fred Makowiecki and Michael
Christensen are together in the trio and same for the next event we will see at
Monza in Italy. It is windy and hot at
Portimao. This is going to be a tough
race. Ben Hanely is set to go, chatting
to Juan Pablo Montoya. The Glickenhaus
team actually has an AER engine. Jan
Magnussen for High Class Racing is on pole in LMP2.
Kevin Magnussen won yesterday for Chip Ganassi Racing at
Belle Isle in Detroit, yesterday in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car
Championship. Inter Europol Competition
has found speed in LMP2, car #34. Jakub
Smiechowski sharing with Alex Brundle and Louis Deletraz. Phil Hanson, Wayne Boyd, and Paul di
Resta. Fabio Scherer is not here, as he
is recovering from the COVID-19 Coronavirus.
Racing Team Nederland were third in LMP2 with Job van Uitert, Frits van
Eerd, and Giedo van der Garde. Antonio
Felix Da Costa, Anthony Davidson, and Roberto Gonzalez have been running
well. The sister Jota entry, car #28, is
on LMP2 pole.
That is the Sean Gelael, Stoffel Vandoorne, Tom Blomqvist
car. Toyota #7 is third, having lost
their best lap due to track limits. Mike
Conway, Kamui Kobayashi, and Jose Maria Lopez.
Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley, and Kazuki Nakajima, are the drivers
in the team car, the Spa Francorchamps winning #8. Nicolas Lapierre will start the pole sitting
Alpine. Richard Westbrook is going to
start the Glickenhaus, a very bold, unique automobile. Glickenhaus was a filmmaker after investing
and gaining in the stock market.
We are going to also watch the GTE Pro and GTE Am classes
very closely. 32 cars will start. We have sunny skies for the race. Sunny and hot. This surface was repaved before the Formula 1
Grand Prix here at Portimao in 2020. The
engines have fired up. Edoardo Freitas,
Race Director, has been in motorsports for 30 years and is in his home country,
Portugal. Have a plan and execute. Green flag.
We’re onto the formation lap. The
Glickenhaus was a tad slow rolling away.
The tires are cold, and do so faster than a cup of tea.
Glickenhaus had gearbox issues in practice, but hopefully
not in the race. This is a short
lap. Monza, next time out, will be the
shortest lap. Everyone has to line up,
side by side as we get set for a start.
The Alpine will lead. The safety
car moves into pit lane. The lights
flash green and away we go! Good start
from Nicolas Lapieree and here comes the Toyota and the GT caers are closing on
the Glcikenahus already and around goes the #28 of Tom Blomqvist! He got tipped off the road. Porsche leads GTE Pro. It’s a struggle to get the tires up to
temperature. The LMP2 cars have started
well as Alex Brundle is moving up but not good for Jota.
Antonio Felix Da Costa has also started badly. We have a local yellow flag as well it
appears. Side by side stuff as Alex
Brundle moves around the High Class Racing car.
That is, oh, and he’s off the road.
It’s Jan Magnussen I think.
Nicolas Lapierre leads the motor race by 2.3 seconds. Elbows out in GTE Am as Christian Ried leads
Egidio Perfetti while the #777 D’Station Aston Martin of Tomonobu Fujii is
moving up, fast. Paul Dalla Lana in
Aston Martin #98 is chasing Manuela Gostner in the Iron Dames Ferrari 488
GTE.
Racing Team Nederland and Giedo van der Garde are moving up
and so is WRT with Robin Frijns at the controls. Phil Hanson has to make hay while the sun
shines, as he could get trapped behind Frijns and van der Garde. Kevin Estre leads LM GTE Pro over James
Calado. Porsche vs. Ferrari. Estre won the Nurburgring 24 Hours last
weekend. He blitzed everyone in GTE Pro
qualifying. Sebastien Buemi and the
Toyota’s are starting to come into their own.
The Hypercars are running in the 1:31 range with the LMP2’s
next. The Glickenhaus is quick, but
cannot overtake. Their game is to make
sure they execute a clean race and keep the car reliable. Look to the future. It is a brand new car and a brand new
team. 20 minutes of screaming through
the field and bish bash boshing everything won’t work. Francesco Castellaci is battling Tomonobu
Fujii who is also monstering Egidio Perfetti.
Fujii moves ‘round Perfetti and poor old Perfetti has had the door
slammed in his face.
Roberto Lacorte and Paul Dalla Lana move up as well. Quick lap times xtill coming in
Hypercar. Fujii and Castellaci are
Silver rated drivers. Most GTE Am cars
have started their Bronze rated drivers.
Fujii leads the motor race in GTE Am.
D’Station Racing is run by TF Sport in England. The same as Ben Keating’s #33 Aston. Fujii locks the brakes and poor old Christian
Ried is falling down the order like a stone!
Maybe the cooler track surface is paying dividends for the Aston
boys. Perfetti has sunk to sixth place
in class. Racing Team Nederland leads
Team WRT in LMP2. They are legends in GT
racing. But they are making a name for
themselves in prototypes.
Poor old Christian Ried is being completely mugged
here. Perfetti wants it and almost three
wide! Ben Keating decides discretion is
the better part of valor. Takeshi Kimura
in the Kessel Racing Ferrari is down the order.
Marcos Gomes, is starting the #98 Aston Martin, the Brazilian stock car
racing champ. This is a great battle in
GTE Am. The track here at Portimao is so
wide and is not a single groove circuit.
These guys are knackering their tires already with just four laps on the
board. Toyota #7 runs third. He passes Claudio Schiavoni and Mike
Wainwright. The Iron Lynx #60 Ferrari
and the #86 GR Racing Porsche.
4.9 seconds is the gap between first and third spot. Jose Maria Lopez can use the traffic to his
advantage to try and pass Sebastien Buemi as Nicolas Lapierre is leading this motor
race. Ben Keating is still trying to
move ‘round Christian Ried. Traffic is a
huge issue in the WEC and as we have seen, in the European Le Mans Series. The Alpine moves ahead of the Toyota. He has clear track ahead. Giedo van der Garde leads Robin Frijns in
LMP2. Dominique Bastien in the #88 Dempsey
Proton Am class Porsche 911 RSR is in the lane.
There could be an electrical issue on that car as the
passenger side door is open. Lapierre
leads now by five seconds in ten laps, leading over the Toyota’s. The Toyota’s will not have it all their own
way. Traffic will be a factor. Giedo van der Garde locks the brakes, and
Robin Frijns is closing in. There’s been
a spin for Norman Nato in the #70 RealTeam Racing LMP2 car. Nato is back on the button now. Frijns might try to tuck himself into the
corner tighter than Giedo van der Garde.
Some corners, you can pick a line.
Was Norman Nato assisted from behind?
Maybe it was an unintentional touch.
Nato sharing with Mathias Beche and Esteban Garcia.
Robin Frijns could not carry momentum and here comes Antonio
Felix Garcia. The GT cars are going
through the turns faster than the LMP2 car.
Francesco Castellaci is in his own fight, trying to take the GTE Am
lead. Frits van Eerd, the CEO of Jumbo
Supermarkets, he puts on race days for fans at Zandvoort in Holland. Antonio Felix Da Costa is making his escape
from his rivals. Portimao is a
spectacular racetrack. Absolutely
spectacular for sports cars, Formula 1, touring cars, you name it. Tom Blomqvist was knocked into a spin by his
teammate, Da Costa! Jeepers
creepers! That was nearly a pig’s
breakfast.
Aston Martin’s battle for second in GTE Am as Francesco
Castellaci leads in clas, after passing on the outside of Tomonobu Fujii. Fujii had his nose chopped off (figuratively
of course). Kevin Estre in the #92
Porsche, the star of qualifying in GTE Pro.
He is leading by four seconds over James Calado in the #51 AF Corse
Ferrari. Calado and Estre continue their
scrum and we will see more of that as time goes on. Beitske Visser has her hands full with Tom
Blomqvist and makes the move, splitting the two Aston Martin’s. The Norman Nato driven RealTeam car is back
on track now.
Traffic is huge. It
is just going to be a big part of this race today. Look at the delta between fastest lap and
average lap, as Nicolas Lapierre cpntinues to lead. His fastest lap 1:31.1, and slowest,
1:33.6. Tomonobu Fujii’s tires are
trashed. He has a puncture and heading
for the lane. There’s smoke coming from
the car. That tire is toasted. Seven and a half hours on the board. A long, long, long way to go. Refueling the car and now they are tackling
all four tires. Antonio Felix Da Costa
is third in LMP2 and he is two seconds down the road from the leaders in class.
Sweeping, dipping, diving, that is what this circuit here at
Portimao. The inside edge of the tire gets
pasted here as it’s dragged through the right-hand corners. Uphill on th inside of turn 13 is a good
overtaking spot. Egidio Perfetti goes
off the road and back on. Richard
Westbrook is moving up. They have to
finish and learn. Jim Glickenhaus, looking
on. Richard Westbrook, once again,
sharing with Ryan Briscoe and Romain Dumas.
Rear left tire pressure is too high for the Glickenhaus. Above two bars of pressure on tracks other
than Le Mans, is a nightmare for braking and wheelspin.
Adjust your brake bias forward. The Glickenhaus is not a hybrid powered
car. Francois Perrodo divebombs past Ben
Keating. Poor old Francois Perrodo had a
lockup into turn oje and is making his way back. Takeshi Kimura at Kessel Racing/Car Guy is
following Christian Ried. Kessel is
making their first race start outside of Le Mans. They have run at Le Mans and now are racing
in WEC, as well as having raced in Asian Le Mans Series, European Le Mans
Series, and Le Mans in the 24 hours itself.
We have a long, long way to go yet.
Nicolas Lapierre continues in the lead of the motor
race. Something is wrong with the radio
at Alpine because they can see him, they can talk to him, but they can’t hear
anything he says. Have a backup if the
radio fails. Use a pit board or
something. Flash your lights. Jose Maria Lopez is told to straighten off
the final corner and don’t hang onto a wider line with steering lock. V the corner in the hairpin and tighten the
corner.
Ben Keating has moved past Takeshi KLimura as Francois
Perrodo is warned for track limits. That
is the #83 AF Corse GTE Am car. Perrodo
of France sharing with Alessio Rovera of Italy, and Nicklas Nielsen of
Denmark. Toyota and Glickenhaus are
expected to go longer on fuel stints than is the Alpine. Tomonobu Fujii has moved around the #88
Porsche. There will be more GTE Am cars
coming for the next race at Monza in Italy.
Gianmaria Bruni is managing his tires in the sister #91
Porsche. He is oversteering and might
have a tire vibration. There’s clag,
pickup on the tires. Richard Westbrook
in the Glickenhaus has had the same issue.
Porsche have already had a cycle on their tires in qualifying and
Gianmaria Bruni has to give it up, allowing Daniel Serra to go by in the second
AF Corse Ferrari, car #52. Force the
other chap to be where you need him to be, to make the pass you want to.
Giedo van der Garde and Jose Maria Lopez, both have been
warned about track limits. Ditto for
Alex Brundle. Robin Frijns tries to move
in on Giedo van der Garde. Jota are in
the lead in LMP2. Racing Team Nederalnd
are fueling but not changing tires. Also,
in the lane it looks like WRT. We are
only 45 minutes into the motor race and Alpine in the lane from the lead. 31-32 laps for a regular fuel stint. Hypercar has a minimum fuel fill time to
adhere to as we saw with Toyota at Spa Francorchamps last time out, last
month.
Toyota #8 and Sebastien Buemi leads the motor race now. Alex Brundle stays in the Intereuropol
car. Jota #28 in the lane, and a new
driver into the car as Christian Ried has been warned for a third time about
track limits before he may have to serve a drive through penalty. Two tires, left side only, for the #28
car. Roberto Gonzalez is now into the
#38 car. A four tire change and Roberto
Gonzalez might just go in for a double stint.
Check that. Maybe a single stint
for tire strategy, working backwards from the end of the race to the beginning.
We have a 1-2-3-4 for Hypercar. Richard Westbrook has the Glickenhaus fourth,
but he will be lapped soon by the Toyota.
Something is flapping underneath the Glickenhaus. That’s odd.
Miro Konopka gets biffed by Takeshi Kimura. Three yellow cars all in one picture. Racing Team Nederland still lead in LMP2 over
WRT. United Autosport is up to third in
LMP2. We have four yellow cars in this
race. Ben Keating is closing on
Christian Ried for seventh and eighth in GTE Am. Whoa!
Ben Keating tags Christian Ried and Ried spins!
Porsche #91 in the lane.
That was a late call for fuel.
Front tires for the Porsche, and a full set of four tires. Porsche down and away. Both Jota cars are back on track with new
drivers. Tom Blomqvist has finished his
stint. The stewards are investigating
the GTE crash we just saw. Christian
Ried is back on the circuit. Poor old
Dempsey Proton, they are tail end Charlie’s in the actual race order. Toyota #7 of Jose Maria Lopez is in the lane
from second spot, trying to leapfrog their teammates. Alpine, where are they?
We have to see where the Alpine is. The pit lane is on the right hand side, and
now, Sebastien Buemi, let’s see, he is likely to have the advantage and now the
#7 is back on track. WRT lost time on
the pit stop with their fueling rig as the team Toyota pits, car #8, with 37
laps on the board. Sebastien Buemi stays
in the car. Alpine goes through and
retakes the lead. The Glickenhaus is
pitting. How will they deal with their
first WEC pit stop? Glickenhaus have
raced the Nurburgring 24 Hours for a number of years. Ryan Briscoe is next into the car.
Oh no! Francois
Perrodo has heavy right front damage from a mega iszed right front
puncture! Egad! Deary me.
That Ferrari needs to be repaired, and hopefully it is only tire and
bodywork. Ryan Briscoe at the wheel of
the Glickenhaus but is the last Hypercar and second to last running
prototype. This is a brand-new car
getting mileage. The #83 Ferrari is
being refueled but needs to be repaired in the garage, being wheeled in on the
dollies.
AF Corse will run the Ferrari hypercar that will be entered
in 2023. Their last car, the 333SP was a
barchetta, an open top roadster. The
last Ferrari factory car was entered at Le Mans in 1972. Will their Hypercar program allow for the
most awesome Ferrari ever? We shall
see. AF Corse should run LMH. Porsche #92 is in the lane now. Also in is Ferrari #51. Daniel Serra stopped a lap earlier. A driver change in the #92 but no driver
change in #51. Ferrari may just have a
third driver for Le Mans.
Will AF Corse have to fuel save? They will need a yellow, no doubt. Porsche #56 is in the lane of Egidio
Perfetti. The sister car for Team Project
1 will be repaired in time for the next race at Monza in Italy. Mike Wainwright hands over to Ben Barker in
the #86 GR Racing Porsche. They had a
disaster at Spa and did not start the motor race last time out. Anders Fjordbach at the wheel of the #20 High
Class Racing LMP2 car is being warned about track limits.
Porsche #91 in the lane.
That was a late call for fuel.
Front tires for the Porsche, and a full set of four tires. Porsche down and away. Both Jota cars are back on track with new
drivers. Tom Blomqvist has finished his
stint. The stewards are investigating
the GTE crash we just saw. Christian
Ried is back on the circuit. Poor old
Dempsey Proton, they are tail end Charlie’s in the actual race order. Toyota #7 of Jose Maria Lopez is in the lane
from second spot, trying to leapfrog their teammates. Alpine, where are they?
We have to see where the Alpine is. The pit lane is on the right hand side, and
now, Sebastien Buemi, let’s see, he is likely to have the advantage and now the
#7 is back on track. WRT lost time on
the pit stop with their fueling rig as the team Toyota pits, car #8, with 37
laps on the board. Sebastien Buemi stays
in the car. Alpine goes through and
retakes the lead. The Glickenhaus is
pitting. How will they deal with their
first WEC pit stop? Glickenhaus have
raced the Nurburgring 24 Hours for a number of years. Ryan Briscoe is next into the car.
Oh no! Francois
Perrodo has heavy right front damage from a mega iszed right front
puncture! Egad! Deary me.
That Ferrari needs to be repaired, and hopefully it is only tire and
bodywork. Ryan Briscoe at the wheel of
the Glickenhaus but is the last Hypercar and second to last running prototype. This is a brand-new car getting mileage. The #83 Ferrari is being refueled but needs
to be repaired in the garage, being wheeled in on the dollies.
AF Corse will run the Ferrari hypercar that will be entered
in 2023. Their last car, the 333SP was a
barchetta, an open top roadster. The
last Ferrari factory car was entered at Le Mans in 1972. Will their Hypercar program allow for the
most awesome Ferrari ever? We shall
see. AF Corse should run LMH. Porsche #92 is in the lane now. Also in is Ferrari #51. Daniel Serra stopped a lap earlier. A driver change in the #92 but no driver
change in #51. Ferrari may just have a
third driver for Le Mans.
Will AF Corse have to fuel save? They will need a yellow, no doubt. Porsche #56 is in the lane of Egidio
Perfetti. The sister car for Team
Project 1 will be repaired in time for the next race at Monza in Italy. Mike Wainwright hands over to Ben Barker in
the #86 GR Racing Porsche. They had a
disaster at Spa and did not start the motor race last time out. Anders Fjordbach at the wheel of the #20 High
Class Racing LMP2 car is being warned about track limits. Roberto Gonzalez is being chased Ben
Hanley. Be neat and precise through the
corners.
No comments:
Post a Comment