Update with a statement from BMW of North America: “The IMSA Technical Committee has informed us that BMW M Motorsport will be stripped of the manufacturer points earned at Daytona in both the GTD and GTD PRO classes and fined $25,000US due to allegedly “exceeding the performance window.”
“We at BMW of North America and BMW M Motorsport are furious by this action, as we assure you that we, as well as our customer racing teams, have been completely open and transparent with IMSA about our performance during the Roar and Rolex 24. We did not cheat the BoP process and do not deserve this extremely harsh penalty. Furthermore, the performance of our cars, now in their third season of IMSA racing, are completely known entities.”
“They should be one of the baseline benchmarks for the GTD and GTD-Pro fields. Our performance at Daytona should absolutely not be in question. From our perspective, there was fair and sporting competition on the track, with in the end, three manufacturers on the podium. We at BMW NA and BMW M Motorsport will investigate the topic in detail and continue to have serious discussions with IMSA about this penalty assessment.”
In a significant ruling after the 24 hours of Daytona, Ferrari and BMW have been stripped of all their manufacturers’ points in both the GTD Pro and GTD categories of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the Michelin Endurance Cup. This decision comes in the wake of findings that both manufacturers exceeded the expected performance levels during the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Paul Miller Racing, representing the North American BMW M Motorsport team, started from twelfth in the GTD PRO category, but showcased an impressive comeback in their #1 BMW M4 GT3 to secured a commendable third place on the podium. Risi Competizione’s Ferrari 296 GT3, numbered 62, clinched victory in the GTD Pro category. Ferrari also achieved significant success in the GTD category, with AF Corse and Conquest Racing finishing second and third, respectively.
The action was taken after it was determined that the performance of both brands’ vehicles at the Daytona race went beyond what was anticipated by the new Balance of Performance (BoP) system implemented by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). This system requires manufacturers to declare their expected performance parameters ahead of races to maintain competitive parity across the field.
As a result, both manufacturers have been fined $25,000 USD each and have had all points earned at Daytona removed from the championship standings. For Ferrari, this means a deduction of 350 points in GTD Pro and 320 in GTD for the season, along with 15 and 14 points respectively in the Endurance Cup. BMW faces a similar fate, with 300 points removed in GTD Pro and 250 in GTD, plus 15 points in GTD Pro and nine in GTD in the Endurance Cup standings. The teams and drivers associated with the implicated vehicles have not been penalized. Their positions in the race results remain unchanged.
[Source: Sportscar365]
