My Pick's & The Finish

Rain and puddles for the finish. For the final 50ish minutes the safety cars were out, but they ducked into the pits just prior to the white flag. No safety car at the end, but this race effectively ended under safety due to the weather. Tons and tons of retirements everywhere.

LMP1:

I picked Factory Audi, Joest Audi, Peugeot, Pescarolo, Peugeot, Factory Audi, Pescarolo.

We ended up with Factory Audi, Peugeot, Pescarolo, and Rollcentre. Six cars did not finish, including two Audis, the Audi powered Swiss Spirit, and one Peugeot. The Pescarolos were the most reliable by far. All three LMP1 chassis finished. The LMP2 Kruse was the only Pesky chassis to go down.

LMP2:

I wanted Barazi Epsilon, Team Bruichladdich, and Kruse motorsports to do well.

Darwin reigned here. Two cars finished. The Binnie Motorsports #31 took the win, and the Barazi Epsilon #33 got out of the pits just seven and a half minutes before the end and took second. Nine cars dropped out.

GT1:

I picked Corvette, Aston, Aston, Vette, Aston, Saleen, Lamborghini.

Aston Martin finally took it though. Corvette, much faster in the wet, was closing quickly when the safety car came out and they finished second. The other factory Vette dropped out, but this race belonged to Aston Martin. Six cars entered, six cars finished. Saleen (below) finished fifth, which is a great finish, and their second car finished eighth. The Ferrari 550 finishing seventh. Great finishes for the Ferrari and Saleens. Only two cars dropped out, the JLOC Lamborghini and the 64 Corvette, making this the most reliable class by far.


GT2:

I figured on an ALMS finish: Risi, Lizard, Risi, IMSA.

We got the IMSA Porsche at the front of GT2 and ahead of all of the LMP2 cars! Risi took second. Autorlando Sport Porsche took third. AF Corse Ferrari took fourth. Then the LNT Panoz took fifth. And that's it. The cheapest and most reliable class had eight cars drop out.

My Favorite Moments:

1: Aston Martin.
2: The #2 Audi's wheel falling off at Indianapolis.
3: Oreca Saleens both finishing in fifth and eighth.
4: The Ferrari 550 finishing.
5: The surprising longevity of the Peugeots (below).
6: The rain.
7: A GT2 car finishing ahead of all the LMP2s.


My Least Favorite Moments:

1: Both Spykers dying.
2: The JLOC Lamborghini dropping out.
3: LMP2 becoming a clusterf**k and the time with an hour and a half left when there were no LMP2s on track due to repairs being performed on both the final cars.
4: The #7 Peugeot dropping out with an hour and a half.
5: The Flying Lizard dying.
6: The rain.
7: A GT2 car finishing ahead of all the LMP2s.

My 2007 Le Mans Best Performance Award:

goes to Rollcentre hands down. Rollcentre used an old Pescarolo chassis, and took fourth! This privateer team only has 6 full-time people: the owner drives the truck and the race car. They went up against three factory Audis, two Peugeots, and two Pescarolos and still finished fourth. Granted, that finish was a mix of skill and a huge dose of luck and reliability.


Photographs by: termietermite.

King John

At the six-lap Senior TT, King John took the win, his 13th. But he took it with the first ever 130mph lap.


When asked about his lap McGuinness gushed:

It was absolutely amazing, wasn't it? All week they have been talking about it, probably for months I have been talking about it, I knew it was definitely going to be on. The track was a bit dusty, there was a bit of oil at Sarah's and a bit of oil or fuel at Guthrie's and that took a few seconds, but I really went for it on the second lap. I really tried hard on the second lap. There was a bit of squally mist on the Mountain, which was a bit of a shock, but the track was in good shape on lap two and I thought if there is ever going to be a time to do a 130mph lap lap two was the time to do it, half a fuel load, the tyres, everything working brilliantly, grip on the track. I really pushed hard on lap two. I heard the Grandstand rear up and thought I might have done it, there was such a cheer, and at Quarterbridge and Braddan Bridge, all around the course on lap three. I think everyone appreciated I had done 130mph. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did! I remember sitting on the bank at Rhencullen when Steve Hislop did the first 120, now I have done the first 130. It is somethng special, I really enjoyed it.

I had a really good go over the Mountain, where I feel quite strong. I came in (to the pits) with a 10 second lead and went out with a 17 second lead I think, so I don't know what the boys do in the pits, they must have a magic wand or something, but they seem to be able to get me out a bit sooner than the other boys. It it testament to the team. The whole package for the last two years has been amazing. It is exactly the same bike I rode last year, so that bike has won the last four TTs in Superbike trim. I just hope they will let me keep it for my collection! It wasn't easy to win, on a big bike it is never easy. I was puffing and panting the first couple of laps, I'm not getting any younger! The next four laps I thoroughly enjoyed, I really, really enjoyed it. I kept the revs down a little bit, I didn't chase the bike too hard, I just concentrated all the way. I would really like to thank all the spectators, marshals, all the administrators, everyone involved in this Centenary TT, I think it has been sensational. Lets keep it going for another 100 years.

I cannot believe I have done it, I might just hang my leathers up now, let's see.

Photograph by towerbends.

+++

Unfortunately this comes with news of the death of Rookie Marc Ramsbotham and apparently two spectators at mile post 26 during the race. My sympathy goes out to the riders, fans, family, and friends involved. There are still two people in the hospital. This is the second incident this year for Ramsbotham. On Monday he fell at Water Works and was X-rayed at the hospital. It's uncertain whether that crash had anything to do with his fatal accident earlier today.

Spyker C8 Spyder GT2-R

Another beautiful car that did a short stint in ALMS. They have a closed- and an open-top version. They come complete from the factory but have never done too well in competition. They premiered at the 12 hours of Seabring in 2002 and crashed out. Since then reliability has been an issue.

This year they bought Midland F1 and sold a GT2-R to Speedy Racing Team. The Spyker Squadron cars and the Speedy Spyker are all in the FIA Le Mans Series. The cars this year are all closed top and they feature a wider intake still distinctively placed above the cockpit.

Race 1:

At the 1000KM of Monza, the Speedy Spyker took seventh in GT2, three laps back. Spyker Squadron only ran one car and it did not finish despite completing all but twenty-nine laps.

Race 2:

At the Valencia 1000KM Speedy took eighth, ten laps back. Squadron was in sixth with fifteen minutes left and lost all engine power, finishing ninth but stranded on the grass.

So they are definitely faster this year, right?

Le Mans Test: 3 June 2007

Both of the Spyker Squadron cars were a disappointing eight seconds off pace. We'll see how they do in qualifying. The two extra drivers necessary for the 24 hour race are the two drivers for Speedy (below). So all of Spyker's GT2 forces will be together and pushing this year and I hope one finishes well.


Why this post on Spyker? Because Spyker road cars are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen. For a company that's only been around since 1999, and only available for North American markets since 2005, racing two F1 cars, two GT2 cars, and helping a third GT2 car may be a bit too ambitious. By owning an F1 team their name is now household, but how long can they keep this up? It's not like they're winning. I wish them all the best though. Nulla tenaci invia est via - For the tenacious no road is impassable.

Photographs by Dan Trotter.net and termietermite.

44 Years Later:

Lambo Comes

I was there in 2005 when a Lamborghini Murciélago ran in ALMS. That car screamed. There's no other way to put it. It was pretty, it was too slow, but it was definitely distinctive. Now, 2007, three years after their 2004 factory racing debut, they are on top of the FIA GT heading into the non-championship Le Mans.

Race 1:

At Zhuhai, China, the #7 All-Inkl.com Murciélago took the win by 2.4 seconds over two close Corvettes.

Race 2:

At Silverstone the #7 took ninth. I wondered if their opening win was a lucky break.

Race 3:

On the street course through Bucarest, the #7 split a pair of Maserati MC12s to take second.

So the ACO has decided to run another Murciélago this year. They tried one last year but it didn't finish - if I remember right it broke out around hour eight or ten but I'm not sure. So which Lambo are they running?


The JLOC. The Japanese Lamborghini Owner's Club. It took Suzuka in 2006 Super GT. They raced successfully in the single marque Lambo series in the late 90s. I'm excited to see how well they do this year. Hopefully they'll last. I hope the All-Inkl.com #7 will get an invite next year.

Why an entire post on Lambo? Because this year the GT1 class is dull: five Corvettes, six Aston Martins, two Saleens, a single Ferrari, and a single Lamborghini. A little heavy on the British and American cars - all but two. With Maserati doing so well in FIA GT, taking the championship last year and close behind Lambo this year, it would be nice to see more Italian Marques on the track. Sure, we have five Ferraris in GT2, but come on, they rule that class right now. Plus, I like black cars. I like fast black cars. I want more Lamborghini in racing.

McGuinness Takes Bennetts Superbike TT

... and nobody is surprised. King John is one of the best TT riders ever and his winning the first race of the 100th year of the motorcycle Isle of Mann Tourist Trophy was expected.

Articles here and here.


Now that the races have finally started after a visibility delay that shut down Saturday's races, the TT has four more days to run.

Photograph by breganze981.