The highlights for those interested:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fV_9CcaeOM
2003 BMW M3 CSL (sold) / 2008 Porsche 911 GT3 RS / 2013 MINI John Cooper Works GP / 2014 BMW Alpina D3 biturbo Touring
Thanks everyone! Finally a win! Man, that was a really difficult race. The conditions were atrocious. We took a risk at the start and switched to full wet and modified the setup of the car on the departing grid. It proved the right choice. Shanghai is very peculiar, very abbrasive tarmac but low grip, dry or wet. My last stint was tough, on slicks, the racing line was dry but the rest was greasy, the slightest mistake was an immediate punishment.
The 458 was excellent during the race, we struggled the whole of Friday to find the right setup but on Sunday it was perfect. It's a joy to drive, I love it as much as I loathed the 458 Speciale street car.
Bahrein in three weeks, I like that track and the 458 is good there. Shanghai is technically very difficult and not very interesting. We can still clinch the world title mathematically but with a 19 points deficit we're gonna need luck.
Thanks for sharing your insights, great to get first hand feedback on world-class racing... Congrats again on the win, mighty achievement in such conditions. As for the spectators WEC again proved to offer the best racing to watch.
Fingers crossed for Bahrain!
2003 BMW M3 CSL (sold) / 2008 Porsche 911 GT3 RS / 2013 MINI John Cooper Works GP / 2014 BMW Alpina D3 biturbo Touring
tso:WAY:I like this photo from Shanghai very much.
Would love to give this beast a go, and see how fast (slow....) I would be compared to you Futch
Compared to some extreme road cars, it's not very fast in a straight line, it "only" has 475hp, but in corners it's just phenomenal, the gearbox is fantastic, in the right conditions it's a joy to drive.
I know, but it is in the corners it is getting fun and where you need to show what you are made of, both in terms of getting the line right and the max speed. Most of us can push the accelerator in a straight line (I am not talking about the skills needed in a top fuel dragster).
Chapeau for the results this year Futch
Cornering is where the pros separated from the amateurs. I see it first hand early. Not hard to mash the throttle to go super fast, but takes lots of skills to balance the car at the edge of traction on corners, they seesaw the steering wheel to find grip, while us mortals go slow enough around that the steering doesn't move haha.