Doonan: GT3 Cars to Run in IMSA Spec for Joint SRO BoP Test

Photo: Jake Galstad/IMSA

GT3 cars taking part in the first-ever joint IMSA/SRO Balance of Performance test in December will run to IMSA specification according to John Doonan.

Announced earlier this summer, the collaborative test, scheduled for Dec. 12-13 at Daytona International Speedway, will see the technical departments from both organizations work together for the first time.

However, with WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT3-spec cars running with torque sensors and on Michelin tires, and SRO’s GT3 series not utilizing torque sensors and sporting Pirelli tires, there had been questions which configuration the cars would be in.

Speaking with Sportscar365 last weekend at Road America, Doonan indicated the cars would be in GTD Pro/GTD spec.

“Obviously we’re preparing for the Rolex 24, so the cars will run in IMSA regulations,” he said. “SRO is helping us; they’ve got a great process. Their engineers will be with our engineers.

“Coming out of it, my hope is that we gather another book of data that we can definitely use and we’ll have the ultimate final decision in BoP but maybe with some additional inputs that could help us all.”

Doonan said the format of the BoP test will mimic what SRO has done for its test at Paul Ricard that’s typically held every February or March, where one car from each GT3 manufacturer will be required to be present.

“There will be drivers that are contracted that are not affiliated with an OEM, drive all the cars, gather data in a very strict format of tire sets, when we use new tires, old tires, one-stint old tires, chassis settings, camber, caster, ride hight, wing settings, full range of traction control, all the different engine maps, to gather another book of data, to help start the season with another data set to help us get as tight as we can on BoP,” he said.

“Second is for an OEM that’s launching a new car, it gives them a tremendous opportunity, after having a chance to do this test. Hopefully that puts them, as a new car, or even an Evo, in a similar window.

“Our hope is that this controlled type of environment gives us a chance to get everybody as close as we can into the performance window.

“We’re excited about it. They’re excited about it. They might learn some things. They don’t use torque sensors, we do.

“We’re going to learn from each other. Maybe they have some comparison data that can help us, even though it’s on a different tire, with track sensitivities and different things like that.

“I hope it gives encouragement to the OEMs that we’re taking this extra step to make sure that we can do everything we can to have the tightest competition.”

Expanding on the partnership for the test with SRO, Doonan said: “It’s really terrific.

“We reached out to Stephane. We obviously have a license for GT4 and work with them on making sure there’s no date conflicts.

“We reached out to him to say, ‘What could we do to collaborate around a similar format of what they’ve done at Paul Ricard for years, I think north of 20 years, in advance of Daytona.

“For many years, and still to this day, he doesn’t allow any new cars to run at Bathurst that haven’t run for a full season.

“From his perspective he said, ‘Hey, maybe we’ll learn some things that could change that dynamic.

“For us, we start out with arguably the crown jewel of the sport globally and a huge part of the WeatherTech Championship.

“He absolutely agreed that we’re going to try and collaborate with his team, Claude [Surmont, SRO technical director], our technical team and do a test at Daytona in a very similar format to what they’ve done.”

Doonan stressed there will be no changes to IMSA’s BoP protocols, such as introducing in-weekend adjustments, a method that SRO heavily relies on.

“Traditionally we haven’t been in a program where we change BoP during a weekend and I wouldn’t see that changing,” he said.

“That’s not a reflection on them. But maybe because the cars, outside the tires, all the same, maybe we can learn some things to help each other help the sport.”

Sportscar365 has reached out to SRO Motorsports Group for comment but has yet to receive a statement after attempts through multiple parties.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John