From the SRO Office Press release: SRO Motorsports Group introduces the Ultracar Sports Club | Official Site of Blancpain GT Series To provide the owners of very exclusive sportscars with the opportunity to drive their cars on legendary circuits and in the best possible environment, the SRO Motorsports Group has created the Ultracar Sports Club: two events with four track sessions of 30 minutes each will see these Ultracars enormous potential exploited to the fullest. A new generation of extremely fast sportscars has been unveiled almost simultaneously by four iconic brands: Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren and Porsche. The performances and price tags of these powerful machines go beyond the range of cars known as supercars. To name them, the specialised press has introduced a new category: Ultracars. And their DNA means that the most appropriate environment for them is a race circuit. However, previous experience with the GT1-category has shown that extensively race prepared Ultracars did not meet the teams budgets. SRO Motorsports Group feels that the fortunate owners of these exceptional Ultracars should be able to do more than valet park them in front of a palace. And there is no doubt that car aficionados worldwide would love to see these Ultracars in action. The Ultracar Sports Club, the first and only of its kind, will be reserved solely to Ultracars produced in the last 10 years. During two exclusive events in the context of the Blancpain Endurance Series round at Paul Ricard (20th-21st June) and the Blancpain Sprint Series round of Misano (3rd 4th October) the Ultracar owners can take to the track during four 30-minute sessions. There will be no timing, no classifications, but the Ultracars will be divided into two classes: homologated road cars on road tyres and non-homologated, track-prepared cars on slick tyres. Tyre fitting service and Pirelli products will be available on site, with the opportunity for other tyre manufacturers to supply models with an exclusive agreement (such as Michelin for Bugatti). Not only will the Members of the Club receive bespoke Ultracar Sports Club racing gear but the condensed 24-hour programme from lunchtime to lunchtime means that they can enjoy access to the dedicated Ultracar Village, including a high-level VIP hospitality service, and take a privileged look behind-the-scenes at the Blancpain GT Series. Non- Exhaustive List of Eligible Cars Homologated Road Cars Aston Martin One 77 Bugatti Veyron Bugatti Veyron Supersport Ferrari LaFerrari Koenigsegg Agera Koenigsegg Agera R Koenigsegg One:1 Lamborghini Reventon Lamborghini Reventon Roadster Lamborghini Veneno Lamborghini Veneno Roadster McLaren P1 Porsche 918 Spyder Pagani Huayra Non-homologated, Track Prepared Cars Ferrari Enzo FXX Ferrari 599 FXX Lamborghini Sesto Elemento Maserati MC12 Corsa McLaren P1 GTR Pagani Zonda R
it really is the perfect 'first step" into gentlemen racing series. I've wondered for a long time why that wasn't part of an ALMS/GrandAm weekend, in conjunction with Porsche/Ferrari and their single make series (Lambo too now). oh wait, US-based sports car racing executives have zero vision. that's why.
I tried telling anyone in the ALMS who would listen back in the GT-1 days that they need to open the category up to Supercars (or Ultracars) such as these when the category was dying. They all agreed, at least to my face, but their hands were tied by the ACO which for some reason has a real aversion to including these types of cars into their GT ranks. We all remember the Maserati MC-12 fiasco which nearly led to the ACO withdrawing its sanction of the ALMS unless the MC-12 was heavily restricted. Changing the GT-1 category to a Supercar formula (a-la the FIA GT of the mid and late 90s) would have had an electrifying effect on the series. But, instead, they decided to fold the category to only include GT-2 (now GTE Pro). But, this is racing, and sometimes logic is lost. Hopefully, SRO will create something awesome out of this. BHW
wait...as I read it, this was basically a track day experience integrated into a race weekend, not a supercar racing series. honestly I understand why from a manufacturer perspective they want to use the "entry level" volume cars like 911s, AM Vantage, 458, etc...that's what you sell...supercars would be fun to watch, but no ROI. also, you'd have them tripping over prototypes without massive BoP efforts to slow them down.
There is also a new series, alongside with the Ultra Sportscar Club, some kind of entry Level GT3 Racing. It's called the GT Sports Club SRO Motorsports Group introduces GT Sports Club, a new Series exclusively for Bronze drivers | Official Site of Blancpain GT Series I will take part in this new GT Sport Series with my recently purchased 458 GT3. It is perfect for me to step up from "simple" track days into real racing.
cool. is GT4 basically dead? there's a market for a "ladder system" for gentlemen drivers, it's sad that it's taken this long for someone to realize that and put a business model to it. Stephane Ratel needs to come run IMSA for a few years.
The best chance the SRO Group had to come run in the U.S. was in the mid-90s as he had an arrangement with Andy Evans to run a Lamborghini Diablo spec series for 1996 or 97. They made an announcement about the series at Sebring complete with a series Diablo along with attending sponsors and drivers. It would have been something on the order of a Challenge series but for whatever reason, it never materialized. The next thing we knew, Evans and Ratel made a deal to run FIA GT at Sebring and Laguna Seca in 1997 which was huge of course but soon after Evans was out, Panoz was in with a license from the ACO and that was that. As for this new deal, it must be imagined that SRO has in the back of its mind to make a real racing series out of it eventually. Hopefully this will materialize. BHW
I didn't realize SRO was behind that Diablo series! those cars were badass, too bad it didnt' work. I think making that a racing series would be a mistake. instead, treat it as a stepping stone for gentlemen drivers, who typically a) make a ton of money, b) buy an exotic, c) realize they have nowhere to go fast, d) start doing track days, e) trade exotic for lower-level prestige race car (Ferrari challenge, GT3 Cup, etc). instead of karting-formula ford-open wheel or GT ladder series for pros, the ladder series for amateurs/gentlemen drivers could be SRO branded exotic track days-single make sports cars-entry level endurance (Conti in US, Blancpain in ROW)-IMSA/WEC/etc. I'd love to hear Mike's thoughts on that concept (among others).
^^THIS^^ is how the sport is repopulated... Keep it "lapping." IF they want to go racing, they can step up. Most would like to be part of a weekend show, but if they were offered a place in the show, that would encourage even more participation. There are scads of entry-level pro cars (GT3 Cup/4XXChallenge/LBST) that are owned by people not particularly interested or driven towards racing them, but enjoy them as often as they can at track days/DE's around North America and the world. FAR more than cars that are actively campaigned in racing series... Great idea...
Seems like a promising idea. It may make me aspire to owning a supercar/ultracar, knowing that there are opportunities to actually use its capabilities. I wonder how the safety equipment aspect of these cars are going to be managed. For instance, will the homologated cars be required to have additional safety equipment or just run as-is with the driver wearing a helmet? Personally, I much prefer to track cars that are race-prepared - roll cage, belts, seat, etc.
Most Hypercars aren't really very good track day cars. Ever price a set of Veyron tires? How about carbon rotors that suck up a pebble? Rock chips? Overheated brakes? Overheated engines? Cost to repair an off? How about street seat belts/airbags? Personally I would never drive on a track without a HANS device at speeds above a non passing parade or in a car without a roll cage that can pass an FIA 90MPH fixed barrier crash or a 7X weight of the car roll over without intrusion. We're building a road car convertible to a real race car and back again if wished. It's designed for easy crash repair, and it's race engine can go flat out for 8K miles. Try going flat out for hours on end on a track in any of the cars on this list. If you want a safe track day car buy a GT3. You'll leave any hypercar far, far, behind on any race course. A used GT3 and spares will cost you less than a hard off in a hypercar on a track day. Note modular bolt together construction of ours. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgt7dlGEGmM
Yes, this is my point as well, Jim. My opinion is that the current homologated cars would still have to be properly prepped for track worthiness. Just to be on the positive side, I wonder if the Blancpain folks have the long term vision that such a venue would forge a category of dual-use, track-worthy ultracars. If so, then you may potentially have a larger market opportunity for your SCG car.
you guys are missing the point. it's not about the cars, it's about turning their owners into gentlemen racers (and monetizing that process).
gotcha. and I agree...any road car, even a supercar, needs some modifications to be a safe and effective track car (brake cooling and pads, engine cooling, harnesses, etc etc). perhaps that would be another revenue stream for the promoter-being able to do those modifications at the track, and then maybe switching back to road car use at the end of the event.
Track worthiness is a serious endeavor... A true road worth/track worthy car is a rare beast. Image Unavailable, Please Login
JG: Wouldn't having the aforementioned manufactures embolden their brand by building racing versions of their Supercars to compete in the mode McLaren did with the F-1 GTRs? Rather than these companies coming out with the next "Enzo Killer" for the pages of Motor Trend or Road & Track, wouldn't they better have their interests served in an actual racing environment? It seemed to have worked for McLaren with the F-1 GTR, Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR, Porsche GT-1, etc from the FIA GT days. BHW
I tried to get Porsche/McLaren/and Ferrari to do exactly that with 918/P1/La by getting them entry into the N24/24 Spa/ and other races if they would make a race version of their hypercars and I said if they did we'd return with our FIA Championship Hybrid P 4/5 C to race them but none accepted the challenge. LMP1 is where the big boys compete and the rest compete in GT where they can sell the most cars. Personally I don't see this changing as turning a hypercar into a real racer rather than a very controlled VIP customer track toy (FXX/P1GTR) is a LOT of work and risk for them especially if they don't win. If we can sell enough of ours we're seriously thinking of building and racing an SCG LMP1.
Thanks JG. The reluctance on the part of the ACO to allow Supercars (Hypercars) into the 24 Hours must be at the heart of matters. Sports car racing is an ever evolving deal though. We'll keep watching your progress and my offer is still good! BHW
Jim is correct. The idea of encouraging a bunch of super car owners to drive together at race speeds on a track is not a good idea. Irrespective of the track day practice, modern ferraris/etc are so incredibly fast, if you have an accident you can die. I stopped encouraging this a while ago in favor of cars with proper safety equipment. A properly prepared challenge car (or GT3) is faster, far safer, and much more fun. Most owners of these cars know this and if they want to play racer they have another, more proper machine for this. There is not a "supercar" built were this is a good idea. The new Glickenhaus will be the first.
The race series John runs for challenge cars is a much better alternative IMO. Even things like starter motors. When you come in and shut down if you haven't done a FULL cool down a hot start puts enormous strain on road starter motors. As we have to shut down when refueling at the N24 we run electric water pumps and fans to cool shut down engine and have two separate starter motors to switch between to make sure we have one at the end of the 24. Note how many cars have to be push started in the pits at the end of the race.
I suspected as much. Maintenance costs usually don't frighten people who can afford them in the first place. Now, can you explain why these hypercar still get built and why they still attract customers if they are inferior to GT cars a fraction of their prices?
