Ferrari returns to ALMS GT2 class:

The long awaited official word of Risi Competizione confirming their return to the American Le Mans Series with the Ferrari F430 GT certainly sets the ALMS apart from the rest as being the choice sports car racing series in North America.

We may hope that top American and long time Risi driver Anthony Lazzaro will be selected to partner Ralf Kelleners once again.

New ALMS manufacturer involvement not only from Ferrari but Lexus, BMW and new models from Audi in the form of the R10 diesel and the full time return of Porsche with Team Penske running the new Spyder.

http://www.americanlemans.com/News/Article.aspx?NewsID=1746

BHW

 

Very good news.

 

Great. Hopefully they will race the 599 in GT1 as well.

 

Great news. I'll definitely be at Laguna Seca when the series stops by.

 

Awesome!

 

Any chance they'll actually be on the pace this season? The 360s were outclassed by the 911s and Panozes (should that be Pani?) last year.

 

Will Risi be ready by Sebring?

 

Suspect they will be. I had a chat with them this morning and they are busy getting ready for Sebring.
Ciao,
John

 

The 360's were given some unrealistic restrictions with which to run. If you get a good picture of the intake restrictors, look at them closely. They are only about haf the diameter of the stock cars. With larger intakes the cars were better performers but they were hit with the restrictors before the season began. Ralf and Anthony wanted to run a manual gearbox but they were again restricted to the paddles and you know how many problems were encountered the first season of them in competition. If they had been allowed to run the manuals they would have finished better. Before being told of the restrictions, they had tested at Daytona and pulled about 1.5 to 2 seconds better lap times. Over the 24 hours or 12 at Sebring this would make a world of difference.

Hopefully the 430 will be allowed to compete more openly. And if Mr. Risi pairs up Anthony and Ralf again it could be good. They were surprisingly consistent in spite of the restrictions placed on the 360.

I had the opportunity to work with them from 2000 thru 2003 and had quite a good time. Sure there were some disappointments but overall it was a safisfying time.

 

the 360 had the same restrictors as the 911, warent they, if thay hadnt why. the engines are the same size 3.6 l

 

From what I read the restrictors had a greater effect of taking away hp on the 5-valve 360 than the 4-valve 911.

Anyway I'm happy that a Ferrari is back with Risi in ALMS this year.

 

What has to be realized is anytime Porsche gets involved with a series (any series) they come to the game with advantages written into the rules which straightaway gives them a competitive edge.

The F430 GT is supposed to be a much more race worthy car than the 360 GT and Risi has been competitive with the heavilly regulated 360 GT in the past indicates that if the car is reliable, will be on par with the Porsches.

The MC12 is a dead issue in ALMS. The car was controversial from the start, banned outright by the ACO over homogulation rules and other infactions, the car was so restricted with ballast that it could never be competitive in the form it took under IMSA regulations where they ran but could not score points. Thus, what was the point?

Great to have Ferrari back in ALMS once again and gives added emphasis to attend Sebring this year.

BHW

 

One thing it did was to give folks in the US a chance to see an MC12 that they would not have otherwise had unless they attended races in Europe where the cars run. We had the opportunity to see that car up "close and personal" on a couple occasions. Thank you Guiseppi for making that possible.

Carol

 

There are 5 times as many Porsches as Ferraris, and some of the Porsches are VERY fast. I think Ferrari will have a difficult time, but I would prefer ANYONE to beat Porsche

 

It would have been great to see the MC12 run in the ALMS without restrictions but the way they had the deal set up to run the entry to begin with, practically took it out of contention from the beginning.

If someone at SpeedTV would wake up and aire the FIA GT races where the MC12 is able to run, it would make for great viewing.

Seeing it run here though got depressing as it would run right with the Corvettes and Saleens in the corners but just didnt have the breath to finish them off at the end of the straights. Must have been very frustrating for
the drivers.

BHW

 

The ALMS website indicated that Risi will be bringing tow F430 GT's to the 12 hours.
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Here is the quote from the artical by Mr. Risi:

"Team owner Giuseppe Risi said one Ferrari will campaign the entire season, including the season-opening Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. A second car will compete at multiple races including the Lone Star Grand Prix to be staged in Houston, the team's home base, on May 12. Both cars will run on Michelin tires."

As you can see, there will be only one (1) Ferrari 430 GT at Sebring.

 

Just quoting the ALMS website. Really not important how many cars they run, as long as one of them makes a respectable showing. Right?

 

The ALMS series for 2006 has a lot of promise...quality teams of real GT cars and new prototypes from Audi and Lola (and perhaps Creation and Zytek).

I recently heard ALMS President Scott Atherton say he equates ALMS to Nordstrom's whilst comparing NASCAR to Walmart...and one could add to that by slotting Grand Am in as equating to Target.

The underlying message is that the ALMS is on track to have its best season yet.

Cheers

 

The qoute that I posted was from ALMS. I was just confirming the number of 430 GT's that would be at Sebring. Did not mean to step on any toes.

Have a great day and we will all have a GREAT ALMS SEASON.

God Bless

 

This is all good news. Last years field at Infinion was a bit thin compared to previous years. It will be great to hear/see the Ferrari's again and the Porsche too.