Sports Car Briefs

The American Le Mans Series has given Porsche and Acura, among other LMP2-class teams, a performance break that should allow them to compete favorably with the more potent Audi R10s in at least some races this season.

The ALMS will not impose a 5 percent cut in engine air-restrictor size mandated by the Le Mans rulebook for LMP2 cars this year. That should ensure that Porsche’s RS Spyders and the Acura-engined Lolas and Courages will be competitive against the turbo-diesel Audis.

Le Mans reduced the power of the LMP2 cars to try to maintain a gap between LMP1 and its secondary prototype class. ALMS bosses determined that this was not appropriate for their series when four top-class prototypes are likely to contest the full season.

“We understand what Le Mans is trying to do, and we have no issue with that,” said Doug Robinson, executive director of IMSA, the ALMS sanctioning body, “but we saw that the competition we had between LMP1 and LMP2, especially at certain tracks in 2006, created extra excitement for the fans.

“Changing the rules would have meant we would have ended up with less competition. We again hope to be seeing the top LMP2s pressuring the LMP1s.”
Former ALMS LMP2-class champion Intersport Racing will compete in the LMP1 prototype division this year.

The team will campaign a Creation CA06H-Judd. At first glance, the move might seem odd, as Intersport will race head-to-head against the dominant factory Audi effort. But with a proliferation of factory-backed LMP2 programs from Acura, Porsche and Mazda, Intersport may find more overall success in LMP1.