HARRISBURG, N.C.  —Reports this week indicate that American Le Mans Series’ officials are working to create a compromise that will keep not only the R10 turbo diesels, but also the Porsche RS Spyders and their Acura counterparts in the Don Panoz-owned championship for 2008.
Although all three have indicated they will be back, they have done so with strings attached, those strings not necessarily being mutually inclusive.
At issue are rule changes by Le Mans, from whom the ALMS leases its technical regulations, which will add 50 kilograms in weight to the LMP2 category. The added weight would make the LMP2 Porsches and Acuras uncompetitive with their LMP1 opposition in terms of outright victories.
In 2007 the LMP1 category Audis found themselves on the losing end of that equation for seven straight events to the Penske team Porsche RS Spyders, before coming back to narrowly beat the DHL-backed racers in the final two rounds.
In Audi’s announcement about its future plans, it made clear that it would only return to the ALMS if it “respected” the 2008 Le Mans scriptures and added the weight to the LMP2 class participants.
On the other hand, Porsche representatives this fall have said that if the ALMS were to add the weight, they would withdraw from the Panoz title chase. And, while the Acura camp has been silent on the controversy, it is believed that it, like Porsche, has been reconsidering its ALMS future, although in Acura’s case, there is the complicating factor that it may eventually decide to upgrade to LMP1.
With just more than a month to go before the ALMS gets down to business with its January Sebring winter-test session, there has not been an official response regarding the shape of its rules package for the upcoming year. However, while attending a Porsche function a week and a half ago, series president Scott Atherton indicated that he and his No. 2 man, IMSA chieftain Rim Mayer, are looking hard at a possible compromise that will at least leave all concerned satisfied, if not entirely happy.
As Atherton put it, “In a perfect world we would not change anything, given what happened last year. However, we don’t live in a perfect world, and we are under a great deal of pressure.”
Asked if that meant compromise, Atherton answered in the affirmative. However, when pressed on specifics, he refused further comment.