There was a race today at Homestead - it was a Rolex race. I only caught bits and pieces of it. But when I started watching it a Cadilac CTS was leading in front of a BMW which was in front of the GT3!!! What's that all about? They've changed the classes and this was the GS class - whatever that is. Anyone know what the GS class consists of?

BTW, by the end, Porsche had taken the lead, but it appears this is the first race in the last 6 that a Porsche has won.....

 

That was a Grand Am Cup race. The GS class you were watching consist of converted street cars with limited mods. The 996's you saw running were all 996 Carrera 2's... the GT3 Cup cars run the SGS class in the Grand Am Rolex series along with the GT3RS's in GT and the premier DP class.

 

I bet he's relieved to know the Caddy sedan was only whopping up on the regular 911!

 

phew!

 

in some strange way.......that still sounds pretty sad.

 

The CTS v-spec has the 5.7L V8 400hp/390tq engine from the Z06 Vette, this will easily outpower the 3.4 & 3.6 L flat sixes from Porsche on the high speed ovals. I would expect the Pcars to do better on a proper road corse with lots of turns as opposed to a high speed roval type course that they have at Homestead.

 

Yep, I was being sarcastic in that it's still pathetic!

 

Wait a second guys. Racing doesn't tell you which car is better. Racing tells you which driver is better, and which car has the most favorable rules package at the present time.

The rules makers do their best to equalize the cars. But, on any given weekend, one car will have a slight advantage in terms of either the HP or weight, or a few other variables. If one car is "too successful" they will add weight, reduce HP or take away something else that the car previously had. Right now, the Caddy has a favorable rules package. Not to mention the fact that I think the Caddy currently has some factory backing whereas the 911 Carrera does not.

Further, the guy driving the Caddy was probably Terry Borcheller, who earlier this year won every race in a 911 Carrera. The Caddy guys paid him more, so he moved over there.

Lastly, GAC racing is endurance racing. You don't go ***** out from the drop of the flag. You pace yourself so the car, and those friggin hoosiers that last about half an hour at speed, don't go off on you.

What is pathetic is the way in which the rules makers will go out of their way to try to make every car equal by making it possible to reduce the weight of a Caddy to that of a 911, and penalizing those cars that are too successful. The 911s won the championship last year and some other cars have been made more competitive this year through the rules process.

P.S. I race Grand Am Cup now and then... It's fun, but the race results don't tell you anything whatsoever about which street car is the best. It's kind of like wrestling. The race outcome isn't fixed, but the rules are. And they do their best to make sure that the better car is sufficciently handicappted so that it can't win more than a few races a year. Otherwise, the Caddy guys would be whining "that's no faaiiir. They're car is ligghhter than ourrrs." "They've got more powwwer thannn weee doooo. "