Two GT3 events showed the R8's not doing well

[mngolfer]

Yesterday and today I watched the GT3 LMS races. In both races the Corvettes won first and second places. Porsche won third both times and BMW won fourth both times.

The R8 GT3 cars had a best finish of 9th. It was sad to watch them be lapped. They just do not have the horsepower.

[wedouglas]

What teams were racing them? I think that's more telling than the car itself. As for HP, aren't all car supposed to be made relatively equal and are limited in what they can be?

It's hard to believe they aren't competitive in GT3, yet did incredibly well in the 24h.

[gazza1]

If this is the GT3 series I am thinking of they were weight penalized this year due to there large success's last year.

This has had a substantial impact on the cars performance this year.

The R8 is one of the best and fastest out there but unfortunately has been nobbled this year.

[mngolfer]

You may be correct about the additional weight. There were five R8 teams running. The commentators commented on the fact they were surprised the Audi's did not perform up to expectations. They have gold, silver and bronze category drivers. They race for 50 or 60 minutes. I cannot remember the exact driving time.

[Bodhii]

Hey mngolfer, I don't know what races you are referring to. You should maybe add that kind of info to get better responses.

I do know that at this year's 24HR Nurburgring race held this last May, Audi R8's took ALL of the first FOUR places in qualifying, besting all of the Porsches, Corvettes, BMW's, etc. Only Le Mans is a bigger GT race than the 24 Nurburgring, and the R8's have not yet been entered into that race. The Audi R8's didn't win this year at the Ring due to very heavy number of accidents and break downs. But no one was faster. The same was true last year, where they also won P1 in qualifying. and 3 of the top 5 final race places.

Wedouglas is correct in the importance of which team it was that was racing. There is a 1st year American R8 GT racing team that's racing that horrible looking red,white and blue R8. Its two wealthy amateur American owners/ drivers put together this new team so they can race it all over Europe this year in their ugly R8. I would expect these guys to get lapped several times in every race. They are amateurs racers against pros. LOL! But I mean them no disrespect except for their car's paint job. They are living the DREAM and having fun!! BRAVO!

[mngolfer]

I could not remember the name of the course, but I found the details on Bing. It was the FIA GT3 European circuit. You can watch the race with this link.

http://gt3europe.com/

[Bodhii]

mngolfer, here is the official description of the race that you described. Hope this will return your smile for the Audi R8 LMS!

05/07/2010 Team Rosberg in the points at Le Castellet

One race weekend after Team Rosberg ( Audi R8 LMS) had clinched its first VICTORY in the FIA GT3 European Championship the squad based in Neustadt an der Weinstraße scored one point in round four at Le Castellet, France. Michael Ammermüller and Paolo Bonifacio were the best Audi team in the field in round one and finished tenth in the Audi R8 LMS. In round two Ammermüller and Bonifacio occupied 15th place after becoming entangled in a collision with another vehicle through no fault of their own while pitting.

"Due to the balance of performance rating we’re currently handicapped too heavily ( extra weight added), we’re lacking at least one second per lap to the competition,” commented team manager Peter Reinisch. "But at least we were the best Audi squad in the field in round one.”

For Kenneth Heyer and Bernd Herndhofer round one on Saturday ended early. "I was turned around by another vehicle in the chicane,” reported Kenneth Heyer. "When I was about to drive off again I spun and slid into a car that was parked alongside the track after an accident.” For Heyer and Herndlhofer the race was over due to a damaged suspension.

"A big thank you to the team that got our Audi R8 LMS ready to race again overnight. Since I didn’t get to drive in round one I tackled the second race with a bit more caution,” said Bernd Herndlhofer. When he turned the vehicle over to his team colleague Kenneth Heyer the squad received a drive-through penalty for having performed a pit stop too quickly. In the end the German-Austrian duo finished in 19th place.

Their team colleagues Michael Ammermüller and Paolo Bonifacio were in the points but then lost time while pitting when another vehicle hit the rear of their Audi R8 LMS. "That was not only a frustrating but also a dangerous situation,” commented team manager Peter Reinisch. "Luckily, the mechanics managed to jump out of the way in time. But the collision cost us important places.” Ammermüller and Bonifacio, who were running in position eight up to the driver change, finished the race merely in 15th place.

The next round of the FIA GT3 European Championship will be held in Portugal in mid-September. Prior to that event the fourth round of the ADAC GT Masters at Assen, the Netherlands, on 17 and 18 July will be on the agenda for Team Rosberg.

[harrison]

I didn't even begin to lose my smile...Yet. Hang in there Don.

[mngolfer]

I have not lost my smile. I did not know about the extra weight. The TV coverage did not show or discuss the accidents in the pits.

I have a friend with a Corvette. He calls to tell me how good Corvette's are every time they win. He is not very talkative when they do not win. I have found Corvette drivers at the HPDE events to be aggressive. Maybe I am just afraid to wreck my car. Next week I hope to post the video of last day of my three days at Blackhawk farms. It rained on the third day so I did not have my Hoosiers on. It was a blast.

[wedouglas]

Yeah, the cars are also handicapped. They forced them to add weight, and that's hurting the car. Clearly they took a dominant car and made it uncompetitive. I'm sure it will be contested.