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Virtual Motorpix

Blog site for Virtual Motorpix with interesting articles on racing, motor sports and cars

If the Audi withdrawal was a splash

November 4, 2016 by: Virtual Motorpix | 1 Comment

Audi R18 e-tron quattro, Audi Sport Team Joest, 24 Heures Du Mans , 19/06/2016,
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, Head of Audi Motorsport, ponders the future of his team as he leans over the pit wall during the 24 Heures Du Mans (19 June 2016)

If the Audi withdrawal was a splash…there’s a Tsunami coming

Much has been written of the future of the six Audi WEC drivers after the announcement by Audi to withdraw from WEC at the end of the 2016 season, less so though about the fate of the army of dedicated technicians and support infrastructure.

#7, Audi R18 e-tron quattro, Audi Sport Team Joest, Andre Lotterer, FIA WEC 6 Hours of Bahrain, 21/11/2015
Andre Lotterer after the Bahrain race 21 November 2015

The decision by Audi to withdraw from the WEC has in effect significantly reduced VAG’s involvement in motorsport, apart from DTM and Formula E. VW announced this week that it is to withdraw from WRC, and while Porsche’s involvement in LMP1 beyond 2017 is still on the cards, it is by no means a foregone conclusion in the minds of some enthusiasts.

#2, Porsche 919 Hybrid, Team Porsche, drivers: Romain Dumas, Neel Jani, Marc Lieb, on the grid before race at Le Mans 24H 2016
2016 Le Mans winners Romain Dumas, Neel Jani and Marc Lieb in the #2 Porsche 919 Hybrid

Porsche are scheduled to launch a new GTE Pro car in 2017, but there is as yet no certainty that Porsche will run in the GTE Am class as they have no Pro racer from 2016 to hand down to the private teams. With VAG’s financial woes a worrying factor for the foreseeable future, could we see in 2018 the return to privately run ‘factory’ teams as in 2016? This together, with the GTE Am car in 2018, could provide an income stream for Porsche which should keep the suits and the corporate image consultants at VAG happy. It would after all see Porsche keeping its toe in the motorsport water, as it did on and off through the 1990s and 2000s.

#77, Porsche 911 RSR (2016), Dempsey Proton Racing, driven by Richard Lietz, Michael Christensen, FIA WEC 6 Hours of Nurburgring, 22/07/2016, FP2
The #77 Dempsey Proton Racing Porsche 911 RSR (2016) driven by Richard Lietz and Michael Christensen during 6 Hours of Nurburgring (22/07/2016). This car was a works supported private entry

The WEC landscape will be a very different place in 2017, with no more sea of Audi red, and no more hospitality ‘towns’ in the paddocks and prime viewing sites around Le Mans. But how will the four-ring circus of Audi be received in the Formula E paddock, and how will Chase Carey receive Audi. I wonder if he will be as accommodating as the WEC and ACO have been? If Audi can rid themselves of their self-inflicted mantle of shame they are wearing, maybe they can propel Formula E to the stardom that their fan base enjoyed in the glory days of endurance racing.

Formula E 2016 / 2017 Pre Season Testing, 23/08/2016,
The ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport Formula E car puts in some laps during pre season testing at Donington Park on 23 August 2016

How will Formula 1 (both Formula 1 and Formula E are owned by Liberty Media) react to the new kid on the block? Will Audi be content with being just another team on the Formula E grid after being perceived as THE team in endurance racing? I think there will be friction. Will Bernie and Chase be a push over? Personally I don’t see the Formula E landscape turning red just yet.

#4, CLM P101 AER, Team By Kolles, driven by Simon Trummer, Pierre Kaffer, Oliver Webb, 24 Heures Du Mans Test Day, 05/06/2016,
The ByKolles #4 CLM P101 AER driven here by Simon Trummer, Pierre Kaffer and Oliver Webb during the 2016 24 Heures Du Mans Test Day on 5 June 2016

So what about endurance racing in 2018? Porsche, Toyota and ByKolles will make up the total LMP1 grid, which accounts for five cars. BMW is scheduled to bring at least two cars to GTE Pro and Porsche could have two GTE Am cars in 2018. There could be an introduction of LMP3 cars and more Gentleman drivers, but is that not a backwards move? The grid could look healthy on a numbers basis, but not necessarily on a quality basis.

Formula E 2016 / 2017 Pre Season Testing, 23/08/2016,
The Jaguar Formula E car during pre season testing at Donington Park on 23 August 2016

To avoid a doomsday scenario, the WEC series really needs LMP1 for the box office, but who is in the wings ready to join the battle?

  • Bentley – nope, they are VAG and the suits say no.
  • Ferrari – maybe but they are strong in GTE which is good for sales but I doubt they have the funds for LMP1.
  • Ford – doubtful as their GTE Pro entry hasn’t been the easy journey they had hoped for, I doubt they have the appetite for LMP1.
  • Honda – Formula 1 isn’t happening for them, so why would they venture into LMP1.
  • Mercedes – definitely not, they don’t take DTM seriously and all of their budget goes to F1, so they won’t fund LMP1.
  • Nissan – unless something very special and secretive is going on I doubt very much if they will try again.
  • Jaguar – they are committed to Formula E.
  • Peugeot – possibly the strongest candidate if the noises from the ACO and WEC are to be believed, but by the time they get to the grid they could be the only LMP1 car there.
#67, Ford GT, Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK, driven by Marino Franchitti, Andy Priaulx, Harry Tincknell, FIA WEC 6 Hours of Nurburgring, 22/07/2016, FP2
Seen here in action during the 6 Hours of Nurburgring in July 2016 is the #67 Ford GT driven by Marino Franchitti, Andy Priaulx and Harry Tincknell

The ACO and WEC have some soul searching to do, they need to think long and hard about the future of endurance racing and find a way of surviving the Tsunami.

STOP PRESS

Just before going to press, Toyota responded saying that the Audi announcement would have no effect on Toyota’s commitment to WEC. “We are working on the finalisation of the 2018 regulations to start the car development for that season as soon as possible. We expect to continue our WEC participation beyond 2018,” a Toyota spokesman said.

#6, Toyota TS050 Hybrid, Toyota Gazoo Racing, drivers: Stephane Sarrazin, Michael Conway, Kamul Kobayashi, Le Mans 24H, 2016
The #6 Toyota TS050 Hybrid of Stephane Sarrazin, Michael Conway and Kamul Kobayashi rounds Arnage during practice for the 2016 Le Mans 24-Hours

Similarly, Porsche responded: “For Porsche, the Board’s commitment remains, and we will compete in the entire 2017 WEC season as planned. So far, Porsche has derived a huge benefit in terms of knowledge and innovation from the LMP1 programme for our production cars. Also, we don’t talk solely about the WEC here, we have a special interest in Le Mans. This 24-hour race is the crown jewels of worldwide motor racing, and Porsche has a unique relationship with it.”

#2, Porsche 919 Hybrid, Team Porsche, drivers: Romain Dumas, Neel Jani, Marc Lieb, at Le Mans 24H, Tuesday, 18 June 2016
The #2 Porsche 919 Hybrid driven by Romain Dumas, Neel Jani and Marc Lieb is pushed out of the pitlane and onto the grid ahead of the start of the 2016 Le Mans 24-Hours

Regarding the 2018 season, the Porsche spokesman went on to say, “The regulations for the next generation of LMP1 cars for 2018 will be technically extremely demanding, and offer such great technical freedom that Porsche believes it will gain further ground breaking innovations from them. But also, it is clear, that only four cars in the top LMP1 category isn’t ideal. Together with the WEC and the ACO the situation needs to be evaluated. This is going to happen within the coming days. We want to strengthen and support the WEC, because we believe in this fantastic platform to develop and show the potential of future hybrid drive trains.”

Written by: John Mountney
Images by: John Mountney & Glen Smale

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Categories: Automotive Photography, Car Racing, Featured Articles Tags: Audi, Ferrari, Ford, Jaguar, Porsche, Toyota, WEC

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