Following a season-opening race in Qatar that ran with out interruption from security automobiles, there’s widespread expectation that Imola’s tight and undulating nature could conspire to supply incidents that the open, flowing nature of the Losail Worldwide Circuit helped negate.
Imola, which has changed Monza because the host of Italy’s WEC spherical for 2024 on what is anticipated to be a one-off foundation throughout renovation works on the house of the Italian Grand Prix, options tall kerbs that GT3 automobiles can assault aggressively, whereas the Hypercars are suggested to make use of extra warning.
This issue, and the significance afforded to mechanical grip quite than aerodynamics because of Imola’s greater proportion of gradual corners than in Qatar, means cornering speeds are extra evenly matched between the 2 courses than traditional. Overtaking might be tough, and the comparatively slim observe and grass/gravel beds lining its perimeter will punish any passing makes an attempt not executed accurately.
WRT BMW driver Rene Rast informed Autosport: “Qatar is lots wider, there’s extra run-off. If one thing goes improper, we now have run-off, right here you solely have gravel.
“Everyone needs to be conscious, the GT but additionally the Hypercars, we now have to respect one another. For positive it’s going to be tight and we are going to see in all probability a bit extra contact than in Qatar.”
Toyota driver Nyck de Vries defined that he was “fairly amazed at how aggressive the racing was” in Qatar and prompt that threat administration might be essential on Imola’s tight confines, not least as a result of there’s a excessive probability of rain for the race.
“That is nearly the other of what you’ve versus Qatar – that was very high-speed, very flat, lengthy observe, a variety of house,” the Dutchman informed Autosport.
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“Though the character of that format didn’t make overtaking essentially straightforward, right here there isn’t any house and there’s a lot of kerb utilization which is totally different than Qatar.
“It’s necessary to be affected person and to complete, as a result of I do anticipate that we’ll have fairly an eventful race. Doubtlessly the climate is taking part in into that as nicely.”
Problem in passing
Projections that overtaking automobiles of comparable efficiency might be powerful at Imola might be present in all corners of the paddock on Friday. Giuliano Salvi, Ferrari race and take a look at staff supervisor, supplied up an astute comparability when describing the challenges of multi-class racing on the Emilia Romagna observe, which most not too long ago hosted multi-class sportscar racing sanctioned by the Vehicle Membership de l’Ouest as a part of the European Le Mans Sequence in 2022.
“I heard somebody calling it the Monaco of endurance, and I feel that may be a very exact definition,” he stated.
“It won’t be the observe with essentially the most overtakes within the calendar just because it’s fairly slim,” agreed Laurens Vanthoor, a part of Porsche’s Qatar-winning line-up. “Then once more, there’s not so many high-speed corners so that you don’t lose a lot aero.”
Gasoline consumption and tyre technique are key tenets of endurance racing that often mitigate the importance of qualifying, because the minimal six-hour length of WEC racing sometimes permits groups that may eke the most effective efficiency out of their tyres over a double stint to make up for beginning out of place. However Salvi believes the combat to get into Saturday night’s Hyperpole session will tackle a particular significance in Imola, as these beginning close to the entrance will doubtless be gentler on their tools.
“It will likely be a really tense race, however not solely the race but additionally qualifying,” he added. “Qualifying might be crucial, to start out on the entrance might be actually essential.”
#46 Group WRT BMW M4 LMGT3: Ahmad Al Harthy, Valentino Rossi, Maxime Martin
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This is applicable not solely to tyres, but additionally brakes.
“It’s one of many hardest tracks typically on brakes,” famous Lamborghini’s Mirko Bortolotti. “When you can have a extra environment friendly brake part, protecting your brakes alive for a very long time, possibly that may also be one thing that may [help] by way of the race run.”
The T-word
The place tyres have been a key buzzword in Qatar, visitors has taken up that mantle in Imola. Most anticipate that for the Hypercar race, the GT automobiles may have a key function to play in creating alternatives.
Bortolotti noticed: “You may get caught in a improper spot or possibly take a improper determination on passing a GT automotive, you find yourself on the improper line and that may open up alternatives for overtakes.”
“Probably the most overtakes might be finished after visitors or in visitors,” stated Vanthoor. “GT visitors administration will play a really massive function, additionally staying out of hassle in these circumstances.”
BMW driver Sheldon van der Linde anticipates that the congestion “goes to be very tough to navigate by way of”.
“When you can keep out of hassle, keep out of the gravel, in the long run that’s the goal right here,” he informed Autosport.
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“If you may make it to the final two hours with none injury in your automotive, you deserve a trophy for that alone!”
“Typically you need to take dangers,” stated Rast, “which generally is an excessive amount of and also you contact a GT automotive after which it spins off the observe or sticks within the gravel and there’s a full-course yellow. I anticipate extra digital security automobiles, we anticipate a bit extra chaos. It’s going to be difficult.”
Two-way road
This verdict is shared by GT3 drivers. TF Sport Corvette’s second follow pace-setter Charlie Eastwood identified that the stop-start nature of the circuit means shedding a place right into a nook and being held up by a Hypercar that’s unable to sort out the kerbs with the identical vigour might be notably expensive. As such, compliance from the GT3 drivers can’t be assumed into the braking zones.
“When you get on high of [traffic management] it’s price a lot extra lap time,” he informed Autosport. “It was as difficult as I anticipated [in practice]. A few instances into the Flip 14-15 tight chicane [Variante Alta], I’d go to defend they usually’re attempting to ship it across the exterior on the brakes.
“The writing is on the wall that it’s going to be a super-tough race. And never just for the GTs, it’s in all probability even more durable and extra time-consuming for the Hypercar, but it surely makes it really very attention-grabbing.”
“The braking factors for the GT3s and the Hypercars are pretty comparable,” mirrored Eastwood’s BMW rival Augusto Farfus.
“After all, the method pace is far greater and it may be very tough for them. They may use us as a possibility to realize locations probably on their competitors and we are able to use them as nicely to realize locations on our competitors.
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“Particularly in these phases the place there might be a practice of Hypercars coming by, that’s the time the place they are going to wish to be opportunistic towards their very own competitors, this can be a time after we will be additionally opportunistic. Subsequently, the prospect for contact, the prospect for incidents will get greater.
“It’s not going to be a simple race right here, particularly for the observe format.”
Appropriate for WEC?
Opinions on the observe’s suitability for the WEC are combined. Talking previous to follow on Thursday, Peugeot driver Paul di Resta informed Autosport: “I don’t suppose it fits the present automobiles, the steadiness of delta between the 2 totally different courses isn’t that massive. I feel it’s too small.
“We ought to be on larger tracks like Spa, like Le Mans, like Qatar was. There’s in all probability different tracks on the market that may have been higher.
“Possibly it can show me improper on Sunday. However I simply suppose it’s unnecessarily tight for such a giant grid.”
However there’s loads of optimism too. Eastwood welcomed the brand new kerbs that he says “add much more character” to the observe, whereas Imola race debutant Alex Lynn was effusive in his reward too.
The Cadillac driver stated: “It is mint, I prefer it. It is good to be a observe the place you possibly can really feel the presence of the followers, the tifosi. It is an amazing, old-school circuit. It will likely be powerful in visitors, however that simply provides a little bit of spice.”
#2 Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-Sequence.R: Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn
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“It’s good to have a little bit of a combination, I feel we can’t go to the brand new period of parking heaps each weekend both,” reasoned Vanthoor. “That is one thing fully totally different and really old-school, a special method.
“In the long run it’s the identical problem for all of us. The one who will get out of that state of affairs greatest may have the benefit.”