Anyone who complained about getting more racing from the current era of WEC is out of their damn minds. Race was brilliant. Andlauer repeatedly overtaking people at Eau Rouge was *chef's kiss*.
You are very true, but thinking about the less passionate fans who just want to watch for 6 hours, I propose a compromise: the clock keeps ticking during red flag periods, but only half the time counted there is counted. That sounds confusing, but basically, if a 6 hour race is stopped at 3 hours and the repairs take 2 hours, the restart would run for 2 hours. Or if a 6 hour race is stopped at 1 hour and the repairs take 1 hour, the restart would take 4.5 hours
I was there at Spa, this weekend, and I'll never ever forget it. It's a privilige to be able to witness a WEC race in this era, and certainly one at Spa. Thank you for your brilliant review of the race. Spot on.
I'm pissed that Ferrari got the kick in the butt at Spa but rules are rules. And the WEC races lately has been an absolute banger. I just love this era of WEC, may long it lives. Also, I am torn between wanting Ferrari to win Le Mans again this year or Porsche getting their 20th Le Mans win. Or maybe going curveball and see Peugeot win. I really don't know what I want but pretty sure I'll enjoy tuning in to Le Mans 24 this year.
Agreed and those rules mean you sometimes luck out of a race. It will probably happen to all the teams at least once in a season, so I don't really see a problem here. But Ferrari fans seem to have inherited that conspiracy thinking that has ruled Ferrari for so long: F1 is unfair because all other teams are based in Britain, so obviously they conspire against "poor, little Ferrari".
Looking at this Spa race , even LeMans will be rigged in favour of Porsche (joking ), yes rules are rules you say?? if red flag took away 1h & 47 minutes of racing , the SC did the same, you didn't see Race Control adding that hour to the race time to make an even 6 hours of racing, decision was borderline abiding to the rules, but Race Contorl just pick & choose when and who to make stick to the rules, if i'm not mistaken For example there was an investigation for not following Race Control directions(black&orange flag) for car number 99 , no penalty was given to the Porsche when it's in the rules that failing to follow Race Control instruction or ignoring an exposed flag should automatically result in a penalty. Ferrari was robbed
I’ve been there almost 10 years in a row now. Each year it is getting busier and busier. I expected it was going to be extra busy this year so I went quit a bit earlier. I arrived at 11 am. Had only 5 minutes of traffic. Although I really like the new ‘golden’ era. I don’t like how many live audiences it attracts. LoL btw It was amazing to see how many people were just there for Rossi #46.
Between LMU and Forza, the thing I've learned playing with those Hypercars are, they are much longer than you think and it's super easy to forget that when making an overtake
Hi Aiden, thank you again for great content! I was at Spa this weekend. One thing I would like to add is that the organizers on saturday might have been influenced by a large amount of spectators missing the race start. Because a massive traffic jam blocked spectator cars from entering the parking lot. I waited in my car for 2 hours and 40 minutes. The row of cars was so long that it blocked the highway near the town of Stavelot. Felt like nobody was ready for so many cars turning up.
This was my first time at a WEC race at the track, and it was one of the best days of my life. The cars were extremely loud (unlike at the Nürburgring where I usually go to), the racing action was amazing and the weather was awesome. The only two things I'd criticize would be the lack of video walls around the track as well as the lack of (active) speakers. It took a while until we realized they would actually restart the race and many people already left the track
i agree that there werent enough video walls, luckily enough time in the 6 hours to see every corner of the track and come across a screen once in a while, i believe there were only 6 screens at the whole track!
Been watching Le Man since 2013 and this year is easily the most I've been hype(r)d for. Last years was fantastic but I cant wait to see that start formation and all those cars on the grid
It was good because it was the longest 6 hour race of all time, ever. I'm a recent convert. Will be watching WEC for racing action & F1 only if I need to cure my insomnia...
Ironically it actually wasn't 6 hours long. They needed another three minutes, as indicated by the winners race time which was only 5 hours and 57 minutes
@noneyobidness3253 lolll Green is my go-to, with the default amber being a close second. I’m a software dev and a comp sci nerd in general, so ominous neon green terminal text will always hold a special place in my heart 😌 and in my burnt retinas
WEC and IMSA are crushing it. sooooooo goooooood. I want Porsche to win Le Mans but this looks like more of a championship year for them. Cadilac and BMW will be the cars to watch at Le Mans.
You think? I'd love to see it but Cadillac and CG are like divorced parents still living together and BMW are still in development and have no track data for Le Mans. The M4 is definitely a chance in GT3 though.
The more I get, the more I realise. I don't like formula 1. I like racing. And you're helping me realise that. Thank you for opening my eyes to a world where there's so much to see.
@@paulreilly3904 my comment was about the fact that Freitas decision was designed to give Porsche an easy win in both categories Hypercars and LMGT ; as i wrote in some previous comment if red flag time was added back to give us, the fans, a full race,why Freitas didn't add back the hour of safety car? that hour was no race; a slow queue of cars behind the SC isn't racing, i wanted that hour added too, why didn't they add that back?? , because with 2 hours and 44 minutes the cars forced to double stop for fuel would've had the time to recover the gap, that's why.
@@mauriziocardile499. Thanks Maurizio, that's absolutely fair comment. These decisions have a great effect on the race, but I think you'd agree that fans were glad to have the time back, one way or another. Best wishes from the UK.
Thanks Aidan, with the WEC proper coverage being absolute krap, and the usual RUclips channels being below par, its good to get some clarity around the WEC from you, thanks much appreciated. Yes, this WEC season is very interesting, and if you can park the BOP, and it would be great if you could do a pre/post event analysis similar to this fantastic episode, don't sweat the footage, we've already seen it, but your understanding would be appreciated. best regards
YEEEEEAAAAAH I love me some WEC content! Also one of the most Bonkers Races ever. Loved every second of it (except for the last Iron Dames Pitstop, they had the pace, but they did not have the luck)
@Bonksticker If you're curious on how close Rossi move to F1 is, I recommend looking for Motorsport Magazine article written by Mat Oxley, 'The moment Valentino Rossi turned down F1 and why'. 'Scuderia Ferrari famously courted Rossi a few years ago, committing him to a serious testing programme in 2005/2006 that was expected to take him full-time into F1. '
It’s like Rosberg at Monaco in I think 2014 the infamous we’re not friends interview. I do think if you cause a flag your best lap gets deleted like in indycar
I didn't know such a rule existed either, lucky this is my first season of WEC so I just rolled with it. It's similar to Formula E's added laps when there's a safety car, brought in after the nightmare of everyone running out of energy in Valencia. I thought it was simply taking advantage of the conditions, the commentators speculated that this maybe wouldn't have happened in a wet race, because it would be darker earlier, Le Mans being the circuit set up for darkness, etc. Wah Wah, get over yourselves, tifosi. A friendly reminder that this isn't just a British problem. Still learning, endurance is so different to anything I've seen. After doing the long slog of Le Mans last year, just because I'd never seen it before, I hope to have a better understanding this year. Insert quip about Alpine having more points than in F1 here. It was bumper for me. Watched this race live, recorded IndyCar and streamed highlights of Formula E, whilst also trying to keep up with the World Seniors Snooker - congratulations Igor Figuereido! - and Eurovision: Total War.
There was a similar situation at Sebring 2 years ago, but that race couldn’t continue… because a hurricane was speeding its way towards the track (thanks Florida!) But here’s the ironic thing: The race wasn’t resumed not because the drivers didn’t want to drive, in fact all the drivers wanted to continue, instead it was because of a local US safety law to protect the marshalls. If there’s no marshalls, then there’s no race. And to be fair, that’s the beauty of endurance racing: When it gets dark, turn the lights on. 😂 Plus, even though Le Mans is “made for the dark” most of the track is in total darkness because it’s on French public roads. Whereas it’s only the circuit sections that are really brightly illuminated.
I know the argument against the BoP in Hypercar is that "It just exists so the LMDh cars don't get absolutely humiliated by the *actual* LMH cars" ... and in theory I agree, I suppose. The issue is that what's happened in WEC recently is a golden age of racing, some of the best I've seen, and it's very hard for me to get on board with changing something when the results of are this good currently. Would Hypercar be more "pure" to the performance of the cars etc with BoP gone? Certainly. But also... I prefer to watch 6 hours of good racing even if there is an element of handicap to make that happen.
A bunch of fans at spa being left to watch a stopped race for a couple hours and then not restarting would be terrible. Good thing no racing series would ever let this happen.
WEC is making a huge mistake in not coming back to Silverstone. That was always a cracking weekend and I'd have it back on the calendar in a heartbeat.
Imagine complaining about the race going the actual race distance. Sounds about Ferrari. Anyway, my biggest takeaway was that BMW’s hypercar program is an absolute bust.
There's two other things that should be considered. 1.) Had the race been called, only half points would've been awarded. The red flag had came out with over 1:15, or before 75% of the race time completed. 2.) Countback would've scored the Cadillac in fourth. I shouldn't have to explain why _that_ would've been controversial.
Spa WEC is my annual trip to the Ardennes. This year's event was brilliant - perfect weather, fantastic race. Ferrari's sporting director should have read the rulebook more closely - the Stewards were perfectly entitled to extend the finish time - we had the double bonus of a full 6 hours racing,, AND a British team winning!!
Spa is an awesome track. Was always my favourite to watch as a kid and to play on the PlayStation. It’s fast, it’s tricky in certain areas, and the scenery is beautiful. There are a few first corners in motor racing more strange than that first hairpin. Also, the amount of times I lost my front wing in the bus stop while playing on the PlayStation. LOL.
As a massive WEC fan, I loved how they went back to racing but I do think they need to change the restart procedure if this happens again. I think everyone should be given the chance to refuel after they start back behind the SC and everyone rejoins the SC queue so that cars that pitted before the red flag have the advantage but anyone caught out by the red flag doesnt lose a minute. Imo I dont think Ferrari would have won the race even if they were able to rejoin the back of the SC queue. Illot was pulling on the Ferraris the whole last 100 minutes, with the only time he lost time was because of the shorter Ferrari stop.
It was the right decision, especially for the fans. There are other comments about traffic problems getting into the track which caused people to miss the start. Combine that with disappointment of going home unfulfilled If the race had been terminated without a green flag finish and a good number of people would not have returned next year.
virtual energy is the amount of fuel they are allowed to use in one stint (they measure fuel in energy for some reason). For instance, let's assume one car can use 78 kg of fuel per stint, that is 100 percent. Theh may physically have an extra buffer kg of fuel, so the fuel tank is 1 + 78 kg of fuel, but teams aren't allowed to use the full physical capacity of the fuel tank. Let's assume the car has 2 kg (=2.56 %) of fuel left when entering the pit box, the team is only allowed to pit 97.44 % (=76 kg) of fuel max.
They don't measure the fuel in energy - they measure the energy in energy... Motive power is provided by burning fuel and use of electrical power - but not at the same time. So if they use some electrical power (cutting back on fuel burn) that's still energy. The energy is used so that it's the combination of fuel and electrical power. Because the - hybrid - electrical power is generated while on track, it's deducted from the total theoretical fuel energy (and therefore, capacity). This prevents bespoke - costly - hybrid systems being developed which could massively increase one car's fuel range, thus requiring fewer fuel stops. It's an artifice, and in many ways the complete antithesis of endurance racing! However.... we saw what happened in costs when unrestricted hybrid and engine development were both allowed; so the rules are configured to keep costs under control, as well as BoP - without the need to repeat the horrendous mistake that the ACO in GTE and SRO made at Spa 24h a few years back, of mandatory stint-lengths.
I’m a die-hard Tifoso and have no issues with either the qualifying penalty decision or the race-timing decision. Both were entirely fair and straight forward as per the rules. “The racing gods giveth, and the racing gods taketh away.” Hopefully dealing with the strategy situation at Imola and the issues at Spa mean the team are well practiced and mentally agile for whatever Le Mans throws at us 👍
Excellent point about value for money. Imagine paying for a ticket or to watch a 6 hour race and the course is damaged and you only see a couple of hours of of racing action. Definitely the right call to give everyone a full race timing.
I actually watched an entire WEC race. Can’t justify the length of these things in my schedule but dang I’m glad I stuck. Can’t help wonder how amazing an F1 length race with these cars would be.
@@AidanMillwardI believe part of the Obsidian team worked on the original games, I think Josh Sawyer was story guy for a cancelled Fallout from just before Bethesda bought them?
I wanted to see a Ferrari win and I think they were good value for it - but extending the race was the right decision. WEC is a growing category and needs to keep growing it's fanbase and offering. Rewarding the patience and attendance of fans at the track and those who paid to watch the race (of which I was one following online) was the correct decision. I remember watching the infamous 6 car US Grand Prix back in the day and the damage that did to the F1 brand in the US market (and is still a meme today nearly 20 years on from that race). While this wouldn't have been so dramatic had the race been concluded with an approx. 1.5hr red flag and safety car period, it was the right call for the fans. The fans got to see more great racing and got their money's worth. Think of the new fans who were watching their first WEC race, they would likely feel valued as fans and may want to now watch further WEC races. Ferrari may feel a bit aggrieved that extending the race cost them a win (or more than 1 car getting onto the podium) but the same could be said for the Iron Dames who had something like a 40 second lead after the first stint before the safety car brought the field back together or the Iron Lynx team who had to pit on the final lap costing them the win or any other team caught out. Who knows, maybe if there was another safety car or incident in the final hour or so of the race, Ferrari may have been back in a position to challenge for the win. The reality is endurance racing requires luck and good fortune and while the top 2 cars may not have been among the leaders for most of the race, they were the beneficiaries of circumstances. That has always been a factor in racing and what makes it unpredictable and exciting. Keep the faith my fellow Tifosi brethren, Ferrari arguably should have won both Imola and Spa, they are building and have strong race pace. If they continue this form, and continue to learn and gather more experience, then we will surely see a Ferrari win soon - who knows, maybe it will be at the biggest race of them all next time out! For now, let's just enjoy this incredible WEC era.
Imo, anyone complaining about Ferrari being robbed has little room to talk, when you could ABSOLUTELY argue that the 100th year LeMans win they got was not really fair to Toyota, with the sudden rules and BOP stuff. This is how racing works - and in this case if the rules already said so... GGs.
I honestly don't understand why there are any entrants or spectators with BOP being part of the picture. On the upside, it's humbling to have to accept being completely baffled, so that's at least a personal benefit. All I can imagine is that close racing is all that matters to spectators but the manufacturers have no clear way of winning in what is essentially a poker game.
Manufacturers build their cars knowing it's a BoP series, so they design their cars to have a high degree of flexibility and adaptability to the different BoP standards. Then it's up to the teams running their cars to get the setup right for a given BoP set. Although I tend to think that manufacturers have had a rough time trying to acomodate for the 1030-1090*kg (*originally it was 1080kg but last year Toyota was so far ahead of the competition that they needed to increase that limit) min weight spread, and once you reach that 1065kg bracket it's tough to get the tires in the optimal operational window.
My guy bop is everywhere in sportscar racing that’s like the whole point . That’s why you can have Porsche race Ferraris and Lamborghinis in GT and it’s the exact same story in Hypercar now. The goal is to make a fast car no matter the bop. Bop is only weight and power but there’s way more things you can tune and update on a race car it’s all about optimization and that’s why Porsche are nailing it so far. It’s not a question of luck it’s how you can operate the car in the best conditions no matter the circumstances
the problem here is not that we got more racing (that was a great decision imo), it's why did they wait until the last second to announce the extension when it was abundantly clear that the barrier repair was gonna take longer than they expected?, they could have easily taken the decision 1 hour into the red flag, hopefully they'll tweak that for clarity, but the biggest issue that nobody is mentioning is that those armco barriers are obsolete with the speeds the cars are now traveling and how long it takes to replace them
I think they handled the situation just fine. And I was at the track and had far less information then everyone that was watching the TV broadcast. In the end, they needed to restore a Grade 1 level of safety and that should take all the time it needs. Darkness wouldn´t have been a great issue anyways. So take the time and make the call when you know you can make it. And no, the barriers are not obsolete, they did exaclty what they´re designed to do. They kept drivers, marshals and spectators safe. And nobody should be surprised, that they break when something impacts them with 200kph+. That´s actually what they are designed to do. What made that repair so lenghty, was the fact that both levels broke. So the horizontal and vertical level. At the horizontal level one post was badly twisted which needed a total replacement. Without that unlucky circumstance, it could have been made much faster. But remember, all the guys that were there are unpaid and the true heroes of our sport. And I think everyone involved did a great job.
They're not obsolete. You can't fit tyre barriers the length of the circuit due to space. Who's going to pay for metre-thick concrete perimeter fencing? You? So asking for everything to be changed just to suit you, that's the mark of a Karen.
They needed to fix the barriers first and foremost, then also get approval from the local council, track owners etc to keep racing so could only say once they were going back racing once all of that was figured out
Although like to add When Earl Bamber wanting to pass 99 Porsche The Porsche does a block as well hitting the back side of the Porsche He is aware of the BMW GT3 car
To be fair - and this is very course and uni dependent of course - but some lecturers really aren’t meant to be teachers. 🤦♂️ Plus, if you’re responsible, consistent and independent, you can catch up and get a solid grade. Will you be top of the class? Probably not. Are you trying to be? Probably not. Besides, all the best people get 2:1s anyway. 😎
That fallout reference... god damn it, i feel seen Sidenote: totally glad 92 porsche took P2 in LMGT3, a bit of national bias, because manthey pure RX is racing under lithuanian flag 🇱🇹
Are people seriously complaining that we got 1 hr and a half of extra racing that we should’ve gotten anyway just because Ferrari was in the lead? That’s an entire Grand Prix… grow up.
But this rule need to be used consistently. Interresting fact: in F1 there are no rules Safety Car should come ahead of first place, they can come out to any position, it's just they used it that way and everybody expects it for the next instances
Motorsport fans : F1 is boring because the same car always wins Also motorsport fans : WEC is unfair because the same car never wins FIA : we stopped listening to all this ☝️ a lifetime ago
To be fair the 6 Porsche has been in with a chance of victory at every round of the WEC so far, so it's possible that it could have been 3 out of 3 wins.
@@Xiphactinus To be fair, is it really Porsche’s fault if they can actually pull off a factory program and two customer programs? 😅 It’s a great advert for Porsche Customer Service in all honesty.
I don’t know what side of the whole should the race have been extended thing to be on, but I do think that now that it has happened once, it should happen for the remainder of the season.
It was exactly the correct decision to reset the clock! If a red flag happens with 10 minutes to go then calling the result is fair enough but with 1 hour 40 minutes? That’s not a valid 6 hour race and Ferrari couldn’t really say they’d won a six hour race!
Ferrari fans have got to remember thst the massive hit on the Bop to Toyota at last years LM, virtually ensured a Ferrari victory. Refuelling just before a safety car or red flag is just the luck of the draw. Pleased to see a Jota win, love the gold livery. Off to LM on 6 June for 12 wonderful days, csnt wait.😋
Caddy are 2 for 2 in monster crashes, and the drivers walked out just fine. Pipo at Sebring trying to climb the wall and Earl Bamber at Spa. Hopefully, Cadillac are done with mega crashes this season, because a car that beautiful does not deserve the luck the teams getting with massive shunts
From what I've heard, the Cadillac is only really comfortable when driven at the ragged edge of control. It kinda reminds me of the SR-71 in a way, the Blackbird was tricky fly at anything that wasn't Mach Jesus, and midair refueling was an absolute nightmare, with the KC-135 tankers practically redlining the engines while the SR-71 was just barely above stall speed and actively leaking fuel.
I would even argue that Ferrari would have been gifted the win by the race direction if they decided to not continue the race despite the rules and the track conditions allowing it to do so.
The thing that winds me up about the BOP is that, fine... a car that has been successful gets more weight and a touch less power for the sake of grid competitiveness and "the show", but a car that is unproven and has had a mediocre to poor previous performance? I'm seriously hoping that Peugeot get a leg up for their home race just like Ferrari did at Imola. They're not allowing them to attempt to compete. It's not completely balanced and it seems to favour a couple of teams. I'm a long time endurance fan but this seems too frustrating for me. Anyone else find this?
I watched this race and I saw Ferrari do Ferrari does special in Formula One but elsewhere like the WEC they screwed up their strategy game and got beat because they messed up
This seems to be happening a lot now when someone's not happy with results......change the rules....... no, that's not the way to satisfy a dummy spitter in every race....it is ruining motorsport. Let's get back to basic, get out there and race, sometimes the unplanned happens and can't be helped.
I think it's a bit misleading to say that Ferrari "took a BoP hit" after Imola. As far as I know BoP is not the same thing as success ballast and it's not a reactionary measure, or a penalty.
Anyone who complained about getting more racing from the current era of WEC is out of their damn minds. Race was brilliant. Andlauer repeatedly overtaking people at Eau Rouge was *chef's kiss*.
You are very true, but thinking about the less passionate fans who just want to watch for 6 hours, I propose a compromise: the clock keeps ticking during red flag periods, but only half the time counted there is counted. That sounds confusing, but basically, if a 6 hour race is stopped at 3 hours and the repairs take 2 hours, the restart would run for 2 hours. Or if a 6 hour race is stopped at 1 hour and the repairs take 1 hour, the restart would take 4.5 hours
Andlauer saw his gold rating and took it personally.
The Iron Dames were awesome to watch as well. Their battle with the 59 McLaren was great.
@@pedroneves4465Yeah the Iron Dames were defo doing their thing shame about their pit stop
That’s what i was saying what race fan wants the racing to end early but quite a few ferrari fans on twitter were
I was at the track, The decision was the best they ever made
The atmosphere came over on tv. Must have been fab to be there!
So many fans at Spa
@@RANDOMZBOSSMAN188.180 to be exact
@@Mishima505that's still insane for a non-F1 event even after hearing it on Saturday.
@@Mishima505 Great numbers I might have to go next year I know prices will be reasonable and London isn’t far from Spa haha
The cheers that emanated from the main grandstand when it was announced there would be a restart over the remaining race time was something to behold…
Loving this Era of WEC so far, Can’t wait for Le Mans
Me too. I am going to stay awake for the whole race as well.
Current F1 is bit of mess and this is the replacement
I was there at Spa, this weekend, and I'll never ever forget it. It's a privilige to be able to witness a WEC race in this era, and certainly one at Spa. Thank you for your brilliant review of the race. Spot on.
the history of jota racing would make a hell of a video
Look for”Journey to Le Mans”, the 2014 film narrated by Patrick Stewart.
I'm pissed that Ferrari got the kick in the butt at Spa but rules are rules. And the WEC races lately has been an absolute banger. I just love this era of WEC, may long it lives.
Also, I am torn between wanting Ferrari to win Le Mans again this year or Porsche getting their 20th Le Mans win. Or maybe going curveball and see Peugeot win. I really don't know what I want but pretty sure I'll enjoy tuning in to Le Mans 24 this year.
Agreed and those rules mean you sometimes luck out of a race. It will probably happen to all the teams at least once in a season, so I don't really see a problem here.
But Ferrari fans seem to have inherited that conspiracy thinking that has ruled Ferrari for so long: F1 is unfair because all other teams are based in Britain, so obviously they conspire against "poor, little Ferrari".
Luck really deserted them the last few races, it all shape up to be a Ferrari win at le mans again 🎉
Looking at this Spa race , even LeMans will be rigged in favour of Porsche (joking ), yes rules are rules you say?? if red flag took away 1h & 47 minutes of racing , the SC did the same, you didn't see Race Control adding that hour to the race time to make an even 6 hours of racing, decision was borderline abiding to the rules, but Race Contorl just pick & choose when and who to make stick to the rules, if i'm not mistaken For example there was an investigation for not following Race Control directions(black&orange flag) for car number 99 , no penalty was given to the Porsche when it's in the rules that failing to follow Race Control instruction or ignoring an exposed flag should automatically result in a penalty. Ferrari was robbed
@@mauriziocardile499 was the first 14 words a joke or not?
I was at Spa spend 3 hours in a traffic jam for parking and missed the start.
But i had a blast.
I’ve been there almost 10 years in a row now. Each year it is getting busier and busier. I expected it was going to be extra busy this year so I went quit a bit earlier. I arrived at 11 am. Had only 5 minutes of traffic. Although I really like the new ‘golden’ era. I don’t like how many live audiences it attracts. LoL btw It was amazing to see how many people were just there for Rossi #46.
Between LMU and Forza, the thing I've learned playing with those Hypercars are, they are much longer than you think and it's super easy to forget that when making an overtake
I can’t get me head round em on LMU 😩
Hi Aiden, thank you again for great content!
I was at Spa this weekend. One thing I would like to add is that the organizers on saturday might have been influenced by a large amount of spectators missing the race start. Because a massive traffic jam blocked spectator cars from entering the parking lot. I waited in my car for 2 hours and 40 minutes. The row of cars was so long that it blocked the highway near the town of Stavelot. Felt like nobody was ready for so many cars turning up.
That is a VERY good point.
This was my first time at a WEC race at the track, and it was one of the best days of my life. The cars were extremely loud (unlike at the Nürburgring where I usually go to), the racing action was amazing and the weather was awesome. The only two things I'd criticize would be the lack of video walls around the track as well as the lack of (active) speakers. It took a while until we realized they would actually restart the race and many people already left the track
The cars are noise restricted at the Nurburgring I believe whereas in WEC they can run unrestricted
@@lucatownsendracingwhy do they have to be noise restricted?
@@fa1509 because of local regulations to save the environment I believe
@fa1509 I believe it is because the Nordschleife is considered a public road so the regulations are a bit stricter
i agree that there werent enough video walls, luckily enough time in the 6 hours to see every corner of the track and come across a screen once in a while, i believe there were only 6 screens at the whole track!
Been watching Le Man since 2013 and this year is easily the most I've been hype(r)d for. Last years was fantastic but I cant wait to see that start formation and all those cars on the grid
It was good because it was the longest 6 hour race of all time, ever.
I'm a recent convert. Will be watching WEC for racing action & F1 only if I need to cure my insomnia...
Ironically it actually wasn't 6 hours long. They needed another three minutes, as indicated by the winners race time which was only 5 hours and 57 minutes
@@reptongeekWould've made no difference, nobody was in a position to pass at the end anyway.
Playing New Vegas with a blue HUD deserves a trip to The Hague.
A one way trip to the NCR Correctional facility
Could be worse. You could win THE lottery only to get ambushed by Radscorpions.
You should see the colour I’m using in Fallout 4. 😏
@@AidanMillward ಠ_ಠ [Strong disliked that]
@noneyobidness3253 lolll Green is my go-to, with the default amber being a close second. I’m a software dev and a comp sci nerd in general, so ominous neon green terminal text will always hold a special place in my heart 😌 and in my burnt retinas
WEC and IMSA are crushing it. sooooooo goooooood.
I want Porsche to win Le Mans but this looks like more of a championship year for them.
Cadilac and BMW will be the cars to watch at Le Mans.
You think? I'd love to see it but Cadillac and CG are like divorced parents still living together and BMW are still in development and have no track data for Le Mans. The M4 is definitely a chance in GT3 though.
The more I get, the more I realise. I don't like formula 1. I like racing.
And you're helping me realise that. Thank you for opening my eyes to a world where there's so much to see.
Good for you, man! I'm glad more and more people have been making that transition
Welcome. WEC and IMSA are fun as heck. We all go for everyone and there only hard part is keeping track of all the manufacturers. 😄
KMag probably can't wait to get back to IMSA So he can, you know, race cars again... "Dad F1s kinda stupid, I want to go racing again" Jan: "Told ya"
@@ragereset2795 and drivers
This is my first season following WEC and I have thoroughly enjoyed it so far. Spa was the best race of the season
I was there. It was brilliant. Standing right at the fence on the Kemmel straight is one of the most exciting things I've ever done.
Whenever that clause is activated I'd like to see them allow refueling the parked up cars to something like 30%
why? that makes zero sense, because the same outcome would have happend if they had gone racing before running out of time in the red anyway
I went to see the race in imola irl, and yea wec currently is in a golden period and def my favourite series currently...
Eduardo Freitas and the stewards are heroes. 👍
are you a porsche fanboy i see
@@mauriziocardile499 I do like Porsche, but also Peugeot and Alpine and BMW. But the comment was about Eduardo Freitas
@@mauriziocardile499 And his team who I think are the best in the business.
@@paulreilly3904 my comment was about the fact that Freitas decision was designed to give Porsche an easy win in both categories Hypercars and LMGT ; as i wrote in some previous comment if red flag time was added back to give us, the fans, a full race,why Freitas didn't add back the hour of safety car? that hour was no race; a slow queue of cars behind the SC isn't racing, i wanted that hour added too, why didn't they add that back?? , because with 2 hours and 44 minutes the cars forced to double stop for fuel would've had the time to recover the gap, that's why.
@@mauriziocardile499. Thanks Maurizio, that's absolutely fair comment. These decisions have a great effect on the race, but I think you'd agree that fans were glad to have the time back, one way or another. Best wishes from the UK.
Thanks Aidan, with the WEC proper coverage being absolute krap, and the usual RUclips channels being below par, its good to get some clarity around the WEC from you, thanks much appreciated.
Yes, this WEC season is very interesting, and if you can park the BOP, and it would be great if you could do a pre/post event analysis similar to this fantastic episode, don't sweat the footage, we've already seen it, but your understanding would be appreciated.
best regards
As soon as I saw the clock reset to pre accident time and the energy graphic I knew jota or Penske would win as everyone else had to pit for fuel
YEEEEEAAAAAH I love me some WEC content!
Also one of the most Bonkers Races ever. Loved every second of it (except for the last Iron Dames Pitstop, they had the pace, but they did not have the luck)
And is nice to see Velention Rossi is doing well in WEC .Looks 2 or 4 wheels does not matter much for him .
He nearly made the move into f1 back in the day and when testing for Ferrari wasn't much slower than the michael so it's no surprise he's quick
@Bonksticker
If you're curious on how close Rossi move to F1 is, I recommend looking for Motorsport Magazine article written by Mat Oxley, 'The moment Valentino Rossi turned down F1 and why'.
'Scuderia Ferrari famously courted Rossi a few years ago, committing him to a serious testing programme in 2005/2006 that was expected to take him full-time into F1. '
Another top series to mention was International GT Open at Hockenheim the past weekend with a 31 cars strong GT3 field.
Race 3 of the F4 Spanish Championship being awarded to the driver who caused a red flag was a farce. Spa on the other hand was glorious.
That sounds like a 10,000iq move 🤣
It’s like Rosberg at Monaco in I think 2014 the infamous we’re not friends interview. I do think if you cause a flag your best lap gets deleted like in indycar
@@AidanMillward It very much was. He didn't spin off, he just drove off the track when he lost the lead.
I didn't know such a rule existed either, lucky this is my first season of WEC so I just rolled with it. It's similar to Formula E's added laps when there's a safety car, brought in after the nightmare of everyone running out of energy in Valencia. I thought it was simply taking advantage of the conditions, the commentators speculated that this maybe wouldn't have happened in a wet race, because it would be darker earlier, Le Mans being the circuit set up for darkness, etc. Wah Wah, get over yourselves, tifosi. A friendly reminder that this isn't just a British problem.
Still learning, endurance is so different to anything I've seen. After doing the long slog of Le Mans last year, just because I'd never seen it before, I hope to have a better understanding this year. Insert quip about Alpine having more points than in F1 here.
It was bumper for me. Watched this race live, recorded IndyCar and streamed highlights of Formula E, whilst also trying to keep up with the World Seniors Snooker - congratulations Igor Figuereido! - and Eurovision: Total War.
There was a similar situation at Sebring 2 years ago, but that race couldn’t continue… because a hurricane was speeding its way towards the track (thanks Florida!)
But here’s the ironic thing: The race wasn’t resumed not because the drivers didn’t want to drive, in fact all the drivers wanted to continue, instead it was because of a local US safety law to protect the marshalls. If there’s no marshalls, then there’s no race.
And to be fair, that’s the beauty of endurance racing: When it gets dark, turn the lights on. 😂 Plus, even though Le Mans is “made for the dark” most of the track is in total darkness because it’s on French public roads. Whereas it’s only the circuit sections that are really brightly illuminated.
Believe it or not there was a Spa WEC race this past decade which saw sun, rain and snow/sleet over the course of the same event lmao
I know the argument against the BoP in Hypercar is that "It just exists so the LMDh cars don't get absolutely humiliated by the *actual* LMH cars" ... and in theory I agree, I suppose. The issue is that what's happened in WEC recently is a golden age of racing, some of the best I've seen, and it's very hard for me to get on board with changing something when the results of are this good currently.
Would Hypercar be more "pure" to the performance of the cars etc with BoP gone? Certainly. But also... I prefer to watch 6 hours of good racing even if there is an element of handicap to make that happen.
I like how these videos give notice that they are finished, allowing you to click onto another video, saving data, etc.
WRC was on this weekend too
Cheers from the Pacific West Coast of Canada.
A bunch of fans at spa being left to watch a stopped race for a couple hours and then not restarting would be terrible. Good thing no racing series would ever let this happen.
WEC is making a huge mistake in not coming back to Silverstone. That was always a cracking weekend and I'd have it back on the calendar in a heartbeat.
The ACO and Silverstone didn't see eye to eye on promotion, then Brexit made the decision even simpler.
Apparently, it was by the book, so I'm ok with it. I'm pretty happy a privateer won.
Imagine complaining about the race going the actual race distance. Sounds about Ferrari. Anyway, my biggest takeaway was that BMW’s hypercar program is an absolute bust.
Lost interest pre hypercar. Now I can't get enough of it. Should help the championship grow.
There's two other things that should be considered.
1.) Had the race been called, only half points would've been awarded. The red flag had came out with over 1:15, or before 75% of the race time completed.
2.) Countback would've scored the Cadillac in fourth. I shouldn't have to explain why _that_ would've been controversial.
That same Lexus was causing issues for the hyper cars at Imola too.
Even as a Ferrari fan I think the decision was right, especially for the fans at the track💪🏻
Just imagine the NRG as fuel. Nothing more than that.
The fuel capacity is part of bop, that's why it's measured as energy.
Spa WEC is my annual trip to the Ardennes. This year's event was brilliant - perfect weather, fantastic race. Ferrari's sporting director should have read the rulebook more closely - the Stewards were perfectly entitled to extend the finish time - we had the double bonus of a full 6 hours racing,, AND a British team winning!!
Glad all drivers involved in Earl bambers crash are alright. Was a scary one
Spa is an awesome track. Was always my favourite to watch as a kid and to play on the PlayStation. It’s fast, it’s tricky in certain areas, and the scenery is beautiful. There are a few first corners in motor racing more strange than that first hairpin. Also, the amount of times I lost my front wing in the bus stop while playing on the PlayStation. LOL.
I’m glad this has BOP as it makes it so we have no clue who might win it makes the races so enjoyable to watch
I am really enjoying the hyper car generation more than the lmp1 monsters.
Le Mans is going to be lit 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
As a massive WEC fan, I loved how they went back to racing but I do think they need to change the restart procedure if this happens again. I think everyone should be given the chance to refuel after they start back behind the SC and everyone rejoins the SC queue so that cars that pitted before the red flag have the advantage but anyone caught out by the red flag doesnt lose a minute.
Imo I dont think Ferrari would have won the race even if they were able to rejoin the back of the SC queue. Illot was pulling on the Ferraris the whole last 100 minutes, with the only time he lost time was because of the shorter Ferrari stop.
It was the right decision, especially for the fans. There are other comments about traffic problems getting into the track which caused people to miss the start. Combine that with disappointment of going home unfulfilled If the race had been terminated without a green flag finish and a good number of people would not have returned next year.
virtual energy is the amount of fuel they are allowed to use in one stint (they measure fuel in energy for some reason). For instance, let's assume one car can use 78 kg of fuel per stint, that is 100 percent. Theh may physically have an extra buffer kg of fuel, so the fuel tank is 1 + 78 kg of fuel, but teams aren't allowed to use the full physical capacity of the fuel tank. Let's assume the car has 2 kg (=2.56 %) of fuel left when entering the pit box, the team is only allowed to pit 97.44 % (=76 kg) of fuel max.
I think it's called that because it's the total of fuel and hybrid deploy allowed
I didn’t understand a word of that, so I’ll just smile and nod.
They don't measure the fuel in energy - they measure the energy in energy... Motive power is provided by burning fuel and use of electrical power - but not at the same time.
So if they use some electrical power (cutting back on fuel burn) that's still energy. The energy is used so that it's the combination of fuel and electrical power.
Because the - hybrid - electrical power is generated while on track, it's deducted from the total theoretical fuel energy (and therefore, capacity).
This prevents bespoke - costly - hybrid systems being developed which could massively increase one car's fuel range, thus requiring fewer fuel stops.
It's an artifice, and in many ways the complete antithesis of endurance racing! However.... we saw what happened in costs when unrestricted hybrid and engine development were both allowed; so the rules are configured to keep costs under control, as well as BoP - without the need to repeat the horrendous mistake that the ACO in GTE and SRO made at Spa 24h a few years back, of mandatory stint-lengths.
I’m a die-hard Tifoso and have no issues with either the qualifying penalty decision or the race-timing decision. Both were entirely fair and straight forward as per the rules.
“The racing gods giveth, and the racing gods taketh away.”
Hopefully dealing with the strategy situation at Imola and the issues at Spa mean the team are well practiced and mentally agile for whatever Le Mans throws at us 👍
I checked the Le Mans entry list today... it's bonkers!! Probably even better than last year.
Shame there won't be a Garage 56 entry :(
Great video. 👍 I wonder if they will ease up on the B.O.P. for Peugeot for Le Mans?
Awesome race
Big win for wec
Excellent point about value for money. Imagine paying for a ticket or to watch a 6 hour race and the course is damaged and you only see a couple of hours of of racing action. Definitely the right call to give everyone a full race timing.
I actually watched an entire WEC race. Can’t justify the length of these things in my schedule but dang I’m glad I stuck. Can’t help wonder how amazing an F1 length race with these cars would be.
We are back in the golden age of Endurance boyz!
I got there at 09:00 and it was already heavy queuing
6 big kaboose bots spamming ai generated crap.
At least it's positive comments rather than asking to click a link in bio...
@@AidanMillward true, true.
@@AidanMillward Those “positive feminine voices.” 😂😂😂
@@Nikelaos_Khristianos Careless whispers.
Le mans has the chance to be a classic this year
that lasts Legends race from Brands Hatch was mad and that finish....wow.
I did catch that one. Mental stuff and Owy was in bits.
I was meant to be at Brands yesterday but had to cancel last minute. Am gutted I missed it.
That’s funny, I just beat New Vegas for the first time a couple days ago. Bloody good game, never finished a fallout game before.
So well written, despite being made in a very short time by a bunch of people that never played 3, 2 or 1.
@@AidanMillwardI believe part of the Obsidian team worked on the original games, I think Josh Sawyer was story guy for a cancelled Fallout from just before Bethesda bought them?
Also if you let the teams know what the BOP strategy is then they might try to game the system in some way
I wanted to see a Ferrari win and I think they were good value for it - but extending the race was the right decision. WEC is a growing category and needs to keep growing it's fanbase and offering. Rewarding the patience and attendance of fans at the track and those who paid to watch the race (of which I was one following online) was the correct decision. I remember watching the infamous 6 car US Grand Prix back in the day and the damage that did to the F1 brand in the US market (and is still a meme today nearly 20 years on from that race). While this wouldn't have been so dramatic had the race been concluded with an approx. 1.5hr red flag and safety car period, it was the right call for the fans. The fans got to see more great racing and got their money's worth. Think of the new fans who were watching their first WEC race, they would likely feel valued as fans and may want to now watch further WEC races.
Ferrari may feel a bit aggrieved that extending the race cost them a win (or more than 1 car getting onto the podium) but the same could be said for the Iron Dames who had something like a 40 second lead after the first stint before the safety car brought the field back together or the Iron Lynx team who had to pit on the final lap costing them the win or any other team caught out. Who knows, maybe if there was another safety car or incident in the final hour or so of the race, Ferrari may have been back in a position to challenge for the win.
The reality is endurance racing requires luck and good fortune and while the top 2 cars may not have been among the leaders for most of the race, they were the beneficiaries of circumstances. That has always been a factor in racing and what makes it unpredictable and exciting.
Keep the faith my fellow Tifosi brethren, Ferrari arguably should have won both Imola and Spa, they are building and have strong race pace. If they continue this form, and continue to learn and gather more experience, then we will surely see a Ferrari win soon - who knows, maybe it will be at the biggest race of them all next time out! For now, let's just enjoy this incredible WEC era.
9:01 in F1 the race timer (2hours/305km) doesn't keep running under red flags, only the 3 hour timer
Endurance is much older than F1 and has its own rules. Your sport is an offshoot of ours.
I only saw the main points of the race but what I saw of it looked good.
I think the decision to extend was one of the best things i've seen in motorsport
great video
I was at spa, and what a great race!
Imo, anyone complaining about Ferrari being robbed has little room to talk, when you could ABSOLUTELY argue that the 100th year LeMans win they got was not really fair to Toyota, with the sudden rules and BOP stuff.
This is how racing works - and in this case if the rules already said so... GGs.
I honestly don't understand why there are any entrants or spectators with BOP being part of the picture. On the upside, it's humbling to have to accept being completely baffled, so that's at least a personal benefit. All I can imagine is that close racing is all that matters to spectators but the manufacturers have no clear way of winning in what is essentially a poker game.
Manufacturers build their cars knowing it's a BoP series, so they design their cars to have a high degree of flexibility and adaptability to the different BoP standards. Then it's up to the teams running their cars to get the setup right for a given BoP set. Although I tend to think that manufacturers have had a rough time trying to acomodate for the 1030-1090*kg (*originally it was 1080kg but last year Toyota was so far ahead of the competition that they needed to increase that limit) min weight spread, and once you reach that 1065kg bracket it's tough to get the tires in the optimal operational window.
My guy bop is everywhere in sportscar racing that’s like the whole point . That’s why you can have Porsche race Ferraris and Lamborghinis in GT and it’s the exact same story in Hypercar now. The goal is to make a fast car no matter the bop. Bop is only weight and power but there’s way more things you can tune and update on a race car it’s all about optimization and that’s why Porsche are nailing it so far. It’s not a question of luck it’s how you can operate the car in the best conditions no matter the circumstances
the problem here is not that we got more racing (that was a great decision imo), it's why did they wait until the last second to announce the extension when it was abundantly clear that the barrier repair was gonna take longer than they expected?, they could have easily taken the decision 1 hour into the red flag, hopefully they'll tweak that for clarity, but the biggest issue that nobody is mentioning is that those armco barriers are obsolete with the speeds the cars are now traveling and how long it takes to replace them
I would assume they wanted to know for a fact the barriers had been repaired before deciding on what to do next
I think they handled the situation just fine. And I was at the track and had far less information then everyone that was watching the TV broadcast. In the end, they needed to restore a Grade 1 level of safety and that should take all the time it needs. Darkness wouldn´t have been a great issue anyways. So take the time and make the call when you know you can make it.
And no, the barriers are not obsolete, they did exaclty what they´re designed to do. They kept drivers, marshals and spectators safe. And nobody should be surprised, that they break when something impacts them with 200kph+. That´s actually what they are designed to do. What made that repair so lenghty, was the fact that both levels broke. So the horizontal and vertical level. At the horizontal level one post was badly twisted which needed a total replacement. Without that unlucky circumstance, it could have been made much faster.
But remember, all the guys that were there are unpaid and the true heroes of our sport. And I think everyone involved did a great job.
They're not obsolete. You can't fit tyre barriers the length of the circuit due to space. Who's going to pay for metre-thick concrete perimeter fencing? You?
So asking for everything to be changed just to suit you, that's the mark of a Karen.
They needed to fix the barriers first and foremost, then also get approval from the local council, track owners etc to keep racing so could only say once they were going back racing once all of that was figured out
Although like to add When Earl Bamber wanting to pass 99 Porsche
The Porsche does a block as well hitting the back side of the Porsche
He is aware of the BMW GT3 car
0:55 mental health is no joke, i sometimes skip days at university because id much rather get a worse mark than my mental health deteriorating
To be fair - and this is very course and uni dependent of course - but some lecturers really aren’t meant to be teachers. 🤦♂️
Plus, if you’re responsible, consistent and independent, you can catch up and get a solid grade. Will you be top of the class? Probably not. Are you trying to be? Probably not. Besides, all the best people get 2:1s anyway. 😎
@@Nikelaos_Khristianos yeah mine is engineering so it's a bit full on at times
I was there. We went home about 20 minutes before the end because we didn't see how there would be a restart.
That fallout reference... god damn it, i feel seen
Sidenote: totally glad 92 porsche took P2 in LMGT3, a bit of national bias, because manthey pure RX is racing under lithuanian flag 🇱🇹
Gun Runners and the merchants at the 188 be like “oh god it’s you again…”
I’ve got like 3,000 5.56 rounds at this point.
oh god, don't remind me, its same for me & .308 rounds
Are people seriously complaining that we got 1 hr and a half of extra racing that we should’ve gotten anyway just because Ferrari was in the lead? That’s an entire Grand Prix… grow up.
Your a good man aido
The reasons made for BoP changes are made on FIA calculations, watch the episode from the Vanthoor brothers podcast with a FIA engineer
But this rule need to be used consistently.
Interresting fact: in F1 there are no rules Safety Car should come ahead of first place, they can come out to any position, it's just they used it that way and everybody expects it for the next instances
Motorsport fans : F1 is boring because the same car always wins
Also motorsport fans : WEC is unfair because the same car never wins
FIA : we stopped listening to all this ☝️ a lifetime ago
To be fair the 6 Porsche has been in with a chance of victory at every round of the WEC so far, so it's possible that it could have been 3 out of 3 wins.
@@Xiphactinus To be fair, is it really Porsche’s fault if they can actually pull off a factory program and two customer programs? 😅 It’s a great advert for Porsche Customer Service in all honesty.
@@Nikelaos_Khristianos not at all, I'm a Porsche supporter, just pointing it out.
I don’t know what side of the whole should the race have been extended thing to be on, but I do think that now that it has happened once, it should happen for the remainder of the season.
Shows up at next race 3 kilo over: "Yeah sorry the unlimited breadsticks were for real"
Sky F1: BOP is bad! Now lets watch Max win another Grand Prix.
Long-term WEC fans: BOP is great! I have no idea who is going to win.
did you meant to say 1m 44? seems a tiny bit off time wise
No, it reset to 1hr 44.
I expertly managed to fit WRC, MotoGP and WEC all in this weekend and it was cracking racing all round. Thank god F1 wasn't on as well!
It was exactly the correct decision to reset the clock! If a red flag happens with 10 minutes to go then calling the result is fair enough but with 1 hour 40 minutes? That’s not a valid 6 hour race and Ferrari couldn’t really say they’d won a six hour race!
Your commentary makes WEC sound way more exciting than F1 at the moment. I'll have to catch up.
Great content as always. Special points for the black country flag. Bostin!
I didn't know anyone was saying that they were robbed
This really is the new f1.
Nah, it’s the new Group C. 😁
I have to get to a wec race next year
Ferrari fans have got to remember thst the massive hit on the Bop to Toyota at last years LM, virtually ensured a Ferrari victory.
Refuelling just before a safety car or red flag is just the luck of the draw.
Pleased to see a Jota win, love the gold livery.
Off to LM on 6 June for 12 wonderful days, csnt wait.😋
Caddy are 2 for 2 in monster crashes, and the drivers walked out just fine. Pipo at Sebring trying to climb the wall and Earl Bamber at Spa. Hopefully, Cadillac are done with mega crashes this season, because a car that beautiful does not deserve the luck the teams getting with massive shunts
From what I've heard, the Cadillac is only really comfortable when driven at the ragged edge of control. It kinda reminds me of the SR-71 in a way, the Blackbird was tricky fly at anything that wasn't Mach Jesus, and midair refueling was an absolute nightmare, with the KC-135 tankers practically redlining the engines while the SR-71 was just barely above stall speed and actively leaking fuel.
Was watching from Oz 🦘
I thought it was a cracking race!
Experience counts, Toyota will be strong at Le Mans.
I would even argue that Ferrari would have been gifted the win by the race direction if they decided to not continue the race despite the rules and the track conditions allowing it to do so.
The thing that winds me up about the BOP is that, fine... a car that has been successful gets more weight and a touch less power for the sake of grid competitiveness and "the show", but a car that is unproven and has had a mediocre to poor previous performance? I'm seriously hoping that Peugeot get a leg up for their home race just like Ferrari did at Imola. They're not allowing them to attempt to compete. It's not completely balanced and it seems to favour a couple of teams. I'm a long time endurance fan but this seems too frustrating for me. Anyone else find this?
I watched this race and I saw Ferrari do Ferrari does special in Formula One but elsewhere like the WEC they screwed up their strategy game and got beat because they messed up
not sure about the thing you mentioned!
This seems to be happening a lot now when someone's not happy with results......change the rules....... no, that's not the way to satisfy a dummy spitter in every race....it is ruining motorsport. Let's get back to basic, get out there and race, sometimes the unplanned happens and can't be helped.
I think it's a bit misleading to say that Ferrari "took a BoP hit" after Imola. As far as I know BoP is not the same thing as success ballast and it's not a reactionary measure, or a penalty.