Sports car racing: Difference between revisions

 

==Types of cars==

 

===Sports prototype===

 

The highest level in sports car racing, these cars are purpose-built racing cars with enclosed wheels, and either open or closed cockpits. Ever since the [[World Sportscar Championship]] was conceived, there have been various regulations regarding bodywork, engine style and size, tyres and aerodynamics to which these cars must be built. Sports prototypes may be (and often are) one-of-a-kind machines, and need bear no relation to any road-going vehicle, although during the 1990s, some manufacturers exploited a loophole in the FIA and ACO rules. As a result, some cars racing in the GT category did pass as true sports prototypes, in turn leading to some road-going versions for homologation purposes. The Dauer-[[Porsche 962]]LM, [[Porsche 911 GT1]]-98, [[Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR|Mercedes CLK-GTR]] and [[Toyota GT-One]] were prime examples of prototypes masquerading as GTs.

[[Daytona Prototype]]s are a product of the [[Grand-Am Road Racing|Grand-Am]] [[Rolex Sports Car Series]], and offer a different interpretation of the prototype theme. DPs, as they are often called, are closed-cockpit, purpose-built racing machines which are less expensive and (deliberately) somewhat slower than Le Mans Prototypes, which were becoming dangerously quick on the Daytona oval and prohibitively expensive for smaller teams to run. Compared to the LMPs, DPs are severely limited in terms of approved technology; for instance, they are required to be constructed of steel tube frames with carbon-fibre skins, rather than being carbon-fibre monocoques, and must use production-based engines. In addition, contrary to their European counterparts who continuously alter and develop a vehicle to increase performance as a season progresses, DPs are restricted to their original conception of the car from the start of the season. For these reasons, the category being labeled as a "prototype" has occasionally been criticised as misleading and being more in line with traditional "spec" race series prevalent in the United States. The intention of the DP formula was to provide a class in which tight technical regulations encouraged close competition and where budget would be relatively unimportant. DP chassis are subject to a franchise-like approval system in which only approved constructors are eligible, with rules stability enforced for several years at a time, although this led in 2007 to established constructors like [[Lola Cars|Lola]] and [[Dallara]] entering the 2008 series by taking over the rights of existing constructors (Multimatic and Doran respectively).

 

[[File:Corvette Racing's Chevrolet Corvette C7R Marcel Fässler, Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner.jpg|alt=|thumb|No. 64 [[Chevrolet Corvette C7.R]] car running at the [[2019 24 Hours of Le Mans]]]]

Grand Touring (from the Italian ''[[Grand tourer|Gran Turismo]]'') racing is the most common form of sports car racing, and is found all over the world, in both international and national series. Historically, Grand Touring cars had to be in series production, but in 1976 the class was split into production-based [[Group 4 (racing)|Group 4 Grand Touring Cars]] and [[Group 5 (racing)|Group 5 Special Production Cars]], the latter of which were essentially pure-bred racing cars with production-lookalike bodies. GT racing gradually fell into abeyance in Europe in the 1980s and 1990s, with silhouette cars continuing to race in [[International Motor Sports Association|IMSA]] races in the USA. When GT racing revived after the collapse of the World Sports Car Championship at the end of 1992, the lead in defining rules was taken by the ACO. Under the ACO rules, Grand Touring cars are divided into two categories, Grand Touring 1 (GT1, formerly GT) and Grand Touring 2 (GT2, formerly N-GT). As the name of the class implies, the exterior of the car closely resembles that of the production version, while the internal fittings may differ greatly. GT2 cars are very similar to the FIA GT2 classification, and are considered 'pure' GT cars; that is production exotic cars with relatively few internal modifications for racing. The [[Porsche 911]] is currently the most popular car in the GT2 class. 2009 will be the last run of the GT1 class as a result of budgeting issues. GT1 teams are currently enlisting to run their cars in the GT2 class next year. The [[American Le Mans Series]] also runs a "GT-Challenge" class, which currently only uses [[Porsche 911 GT3]] Cups but will open to other cars next year. This category is designed for privateer and rookie teams as an easier way to enter the series.