Bill Oursler on Parking Cars
So, who really is the ultimate customer for the American Le Mans Series?
That is the question now facing ALMS officials in the wake of Audi’s decision
to race only at Sebring in North America for 2009. If you talk to those inside
the Don Panoz owned championship, you here phrases such as “we’re better
off than most folks,” and “We’re not worried as much as the others because
we do have other manufacturers coming in.”
True enough, perhaps, but other than the commitment of Honda’s Acura
brand to run in the ALMS’ headlining LMP2 division, the rest of the top level
prototype entrants will be privateers, and we all know how they do against
factory-backed competition. Now, it is true that there are a reasonable
number of those private teams who pledged themselves to LMP1 for the
coming year. Yet, it must be asked whether or not the ALMS can sustain its
audience if what that audience is watching is the Acura ARX prototypes
beating up on their “little guy” opposition.
In years past, other sanctioning bodies have had to deal with the dilemma of
balancing the interests of its participants with its own self interest in getting
the public attention it needs to survive and prosper. This is relevant because
one possible solution to any apathy generated by the solo factory presence in
LMP1 for 2009 is to simply do what television does on a regular basis when
there’s a problem with a show a network doesn’t want to cancel: put the
program on hiatus, and wait for a better time to air it. So why not follow that
example on place LMP1 into hibernation for the coming season and make
LMP2 the premier prototype category instead?
The is precedent for this in the past, that being the kind of decision which
was made by the FIA after Alfa Romeo quit Formula One following the 1951
season after being challenged by Ferrari. The world governing body in the light
of Alfa’s departure and the prospect of having Ferrari go unchallenged for
1952, switched its World Championship from Formula One to Formula Two
until its new 2.5-liter F-1 regulations came into effect in 1954. As this
columnist has noted so often in the past, whatever motorsport might have
been in previous times, today it is in the entertainment business, and one
strongly suspects that many in the ALMS’ audience will tune out a
championship most probably dominated by a largely unchallenged Acura at
the head of LMP1.
But what about LMP2, you say? After all, hasn’t Porsche closed down its
own LMP2 program, and hasn’t Acura all but abandoned the division in its
move up the ladder in class? The answer to both queries is yes. However, a
closer look reveals that those moves are not irreversible in the short term, at
least. Consider for a moment the fact that Acura’s intentions to race in LMP1
would only be postponed, this giving them the leisure of being able to stretch
out their development budget for the program in a time when economics are
tight, while still being able to utilize their existing ARX-01bs without having to
do too much updating.
Similarly, it wouldn’t be beyond reason to persuade Porsche to release a
portion if not all of its RS Spyder fleet that currently resides under dust covers
at its Weissach technical center in Germany. The options about who might
actually campaign the cars are many, but clearly, Roger Penske could be
switched back from the Rolex Sports Car tour, or even do the ALMS in
addition to the Grand Am championship, if Porsche wanted to go that route.
Another option would be to go back to Rob Dyson and do a deal with him,
something that might hold some interest for the New York State resident if
LMP1 were to be taking a nap throughout 2009.
Moreover, the attractiveness of having a straight fight between Acura and
Porsche is that the ALMS would not have to worry about complying with the
changes laid down by the ACO intended to reduce the LMP2 category’s
competitiveness vs. LMP1 because there would be no LMP1 to compete
against. Indeed, the reduced performance could be an enhancement to
promote interest from prospective participants because of a potential drop in
maintenance costs.
So, in conclusion, would the ALMS’ public be more interested in a possible
Acura-Porsche confrontation, or would that public be willing to accept a year
of domination by the Japanese brand while waiting for the rumored Porsche
LMP1 hybrid to make what some predict will be an appearance in 2010? And,
on the other hand, if the answer is yes to the former, rather than the latter
path, can the ALMS sell the idea to its competitors, and avoid the fate of
other sanctioning organizations which did suffer when they forgot their
audience and put their participants first. These are not easy times, and there
are no easy answers, but, one hopes that the ALMS looks at all its options
before choosing the status quo.
Bill Oursler
December 2008
|
