2009B Season Preview

2009A Observations

The story that was 2009A saw a few stars rising to the top of the league. Some youngbloods, a few old timers. Even amongst the teams there was a rising and falling. Scuderia DeLoyer, a formidable team to be sure, fell a few places down the team ladder while M-Sport Racing, the new kid on the block, rose to claim a coveted spot among the top three.  Antares once again proved they were the king of the hill and claimed the title as number one team in GMWC.  If the race for the championship was the main plot, one of the subplots in this drama was a technical one. 

In 2009A, more teams/drivers opted to go with the helotek driveline than at any other point in GMWC history.  Does this prove the strength of the driveline? Only time will tell as the story of 2009B is written over the course of the season. Each race will have it's own unique story to tell. Those stories will comprise the great mosaic that is GMWC.  Future generations will tell the stories of what we've done around community fires all the while dancing like a bunch of crazed peyote induced natives praying to the gods for a great day of sport.  This is the reason we race.  It's the reason 2009B will prove to be one of the greatest of all time.  So spike your fuel, attach some illegal movable wing, tip your glasses, pass the peace pipe. We're in for the season of a lifetime.

2009B Season Preview

The big story of the 2009B season is the new grid-gp formula.  Teams were restricted to a budget of 8 points, with certain areas of development and focus costing differing amounts of points.  Teams could spend all 8 points up front, or reserve some points for a single update after the second cup.  Most teams spent the full 8 points, with one team opting to defer all spending until the update, and a couple others reserving some lesser amount of budget.

Most teams also went with turbo engines, and the few non-turbo teams are rumored to be developing their own turbo packages for the update.  Has the GMWC entered a turbo-era?

The new season also brings a new look.  Part of the new formula is wider and shorter cars.  This has driven the development of lots of new shapes, although a couple teams have instead chosen to adapt their tried and true aerodynamic approach.  All of the newly developed shapes also sport new liveries.

After a non-points showcase event at Jacarepagua, the season starts at a new venue for the league: Shanghai.  Shanghai is a large Tilke designed track and should be a big challenge for the teams to come to terms with in their new cars.

Teams

	Antares Sim Racing The Antares design effort was one of the more thorough and collaborative projects among the teams and has resulted in a balanced approach.
2009A Score	105
2009B Budget Spent	8
Drivers	Celso, MikeR, Doug, Bill, Sammy, Abe(?)
Engine	custom turbo, 483-531 kW
Chassis	level 2 aero, gp suspension, carbon brakes, mclaren88 carshape

	Rusyn Performance Dynamics Rusyn is one of only three teams to hold back any budget for the mid season update, opting to deploy minimal upgrades at the start of the season.  One thing to watch with Rusyn is if they can scrape together enough points to stay in the championship running early on.
2009A Score	87
2009B Budget Spent	2
Drivers	Tom, Stephan, AJ, Moe, Jeremi, Scott
Engine	custom standard, 485 kW
Chassis	basic aero, gp suspension, carbon brakes, ferrari88 carshape

	M-Sport Racing M-Sport has by far the most advanced chassis, choosing to develop the aerodynamics more than any other team.   Their advanced materials and nanotech brakes only help to improve the chassis beyond the norm.  Can their standard based engine keep up with the turbo invasion over a whole season?
2009A Score	77
2009B Budget Spent	8
Drivers	MattL, Brian, TomC, Alex
Engine	custom standard, 511 kW
Chassis	level 3 aero, kpi suspension, nanotech brakes, gmwc99 carshape

	SUPEROO The unfortunate news for Superoo is the loss of one of their drivers, Scott, which adds to the challenge of moving up among the teams.   With the respect to the car, Superoo has chosen a well balanced approach much like Antares.
2009A Score	57
2009B Budget Spent	8
Drivers	Josh, Todd
Engine	custom turbo, 470-517 kW
Chassis	level 1 aero, kpi suspension, carbon brakes, ferrari91 carshape

	Scuderia DeLoyer SDL is one of the three teams reserving some development for the mid season update, although a mere 1 point.  As with Antares and SUPEROO, SDL is chosing a balanced development plan in their bid to recapture past glory.  SDL's biggest hurdle is the temporary absence of their star driver, C, who is on an extended all-paid vacation in a secure environment.
2009A Score	55
2009B Budget Spent	7
Drivers	Dennis, C, Stuart
Engine	custom turbo, 474-521 kW
Chassis	level 2 aero, gp suspension, carbon brakes, gmwc99 carshape

	RAC Racing RAC has one of the more interesting cars since focused heavily on their engine drivability without sacrificing too much in their chassis except for one key component: brakes.  Among the highly developed cars, RAC is the only team to remain on steel brakes, and this could prove to be a thing to watch over the season.
2009A Score	49
2009B Budget Spent	8
Drivers	Chris, Brandon, Carl, Tim
Engine	custom turbo, 451-496 kW
Chassis	level 1 aero, kpi suspension, steel brakes, minardi91 carshape

	De La Rosa There is not much to say about DLR yet, as they have taken the bold path of reserving all upgrade deployment for the mid season update, so their campaign starts on a basic car.  They could be a very interesting car to watch after the update as they will have better information on tradeoffs than any other team had.
2009A Score	5
2009B Budget Spent	0
Drivers	Gregg, MikeS
Engine	standard engine, 459 kW
Chassis	basic aero, gp suspension, steel brakes, benetton88 carshape