So the rumor is that SMAC is putting 25 lbs on the VVt car. I have copie and pasted my FB post here and added a little data chart
Jim
First off, this seems like a likely direction the SMAC is headed, but at this point it is just a rumor.. The problem with the system is by the time it is no longer a rumor, the damage is done and your opinion is moot. Most all of us, especially myself are very passionate about our racing. A bunch of A plus personalities all thrown together, no one wants any disadavantage, real or perceived. Many not winning now feel they are getting beat by either us cheating or the VVt cars being too dominant, often believing this and never looking within at their individual talent, strategy, dollars spent, quality of their cars etc, etc.. I will say with no doubt there are many drivers who would not win a well attended super tour event in the best car on the grid, but believe they can. That is a problem. Most all of us jump right to it must be the other guys, especially the front runners Thats rarely the case
After that, Rob Hines touched on it.. Stability Stability... and Stability!! Whats great about our class is you know you can build a car and if built and driven to its potential you can win. Its not T4, Bspec or ST classes where they hammer the winners and you have to build a new car. I dont believe anyone on the SMAC has any intentions of remotely changing that even if I disagree with this direction. If/when they make a change, IMO they need to leave the cars alone for the forseeable future after that or unless a serious outlier develops so no one is concerned they built/bought the wrong car.. Instability is bad for the class!
My opinions... SMAC/SCCA has been after the VVT and my cars in particular for 4 years plus and have found basically nothing, one cam reluctor out of spec, which made zero Hp and ironically the same car destroyed the field at the Runoffs and passed full tear down. So with that data, they had to assume the VVT cars, even ours when running are compliant. So they started looking at data and the whys. So the narrative( IMO inside and out the SMAC) has been "but the VVT wins too much' I have never understood that mentality. If the cars are classed correctly, I dont care who/what car wins. But no harm in them looking, but the impending hammer of the last three years IMO is also detrimental to the class. It keeps people on the sidelines afraid to make a decision and jump in. With that in mind I looked at the race wins of all HST races and the Runoffs from 2017 through COTA this year. The information is in next post.
From 17 forward I came up with 76 HST and Runoffs excluding the west coast events as there is little crossover... Here is what I came up with.. Of the 76 races Two drivers Jim Drago and Preston Pardus won 33 of them ( Jim 20 / Preston 13) The rest of entire class combined for 43.. The VVT cars won 50 races and the 99/00 car won 26 races.. If you pull Preston and I out of that data set .. The 99 wins far more. I feel fairly certain if Preston and I raced 99 cars from 2017 forward we would still win the same or similar amount of races. If we all agree there, I think it is fair to say... If that were the case, we would be talking about a smaller plate on the 99/00 and/or less weight on the VVT cars right now, not a weight penalty for the VVT. Should the effects of two drivers really skew the rules for the entire class? That is my honest opinion and main concern here. I think anyone looking at this with a common sense approach would have a hard time disputing that fact. The SMAC has literally hundred of hours looking at this, if they come up with definitive data to support such a change.. I am man enough to accept it, admit it and try it, but I would need to see something. This is so much like politics, all the people on the SMAC are good people and want the best for the class just as I do, even if we disagree in our opinions. In the big scheme of things.. I am not losing a race over 25 lbs regardless of what car I am in, It will be other factors that cause that. 25 lbs is within the noise.. But if not fully backed by definitive data, I dont want rewards weights either and nor do I think upsetting the current apple cart should be taken lightly.
Here is what I saw..
Total wins Jim Drago and Preston Pardus 33
Total wins everyone combined less Jim and Preston 43
Total ESR Wins 41
The rest of the others combined 35
99 wins- 26
VVt wins 50
VVT wins if you pull out Jim and Preston 18
Think about this, If Preston and I raced 99 cars from 2017-2022, we would be bringing the VVT weight back to 2400 or giving the 99 a smaller plate. It's important to know, Preston never won a race in a VVT car until after his first win which was in my ESR 99 rental car at the 17 Indy Runoffs! Had he not started a new VVT build at that point and just bought my 99.. We would never be having this discussion either.