[h=2]The Captain's Return[/h] Wednesday, 25 October 2017


By Marshall Pruett


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When Acura called on Roger Penske's legendary team to run its 2018 DPi program, it was a return to the Captain's roots.

Honda's reasoning for returning to the top level of North American prototype racing through its Acura brand is an honest reflection of its enduring self image.
"We're a racing company that also sells cars," says Honda Performance Development CEO Art St. Cyr.
The echoes of Soichiro Honda can be heard when HPD's towering leader speaks to the passion that fuels its business. Considering its active involvement in the Verizon IndyCar Series, the IMSA WeatherTech Championship's GT Daytona category, Pirelli World Challenge, Global Rallycross and USF4, as well as extensive grassroots support with the SCCA and NASA, the need to commission an expensive, multi-year IMSA Prototype effort merely reconfirms its racing-centric culture.
"We have a rich history in prototypes with Acura, starting in 2007 when we won the [LMP2 class] first time out at Sebring," St. Cyr continues, as he attempts to explain the delightful compulsion that birthed the new ARX-05. "And when the world turned upside down in '08 with the recession, we didn't want to get out, so we continued with customer programs, won more championships, won the LMP2 class at Le Mans, and kept looking for the timing to be right to get back in as a manufacturer. IMSA's DPi rules gave us that chance."
Finding a Daytona Prototype international dance partner to take on the likes of Cadillac, Mazda and Nissan was the next step for Acura and HPD. And a legendary team got the nod.
"This was a six-, seven-, eight-month discussion," says Roger Penske, whose decades of success and countless championships should arouse fear in IMSA's paddock. "It wasn't something overnight."
Familiarity certainly helped as the Captain and HPD came to terms. Team Penske's Honda-powered Indy cars won many races and titles, but there's also the niggling fact that since 2012, Team Penske and Chevy have been Honda's arch nemesis in open-wheel racing.
"Because of our [past] relationship with Honda, they've seen our performances," Penske continues. "Art says, 'I don't like you on Sunday for two hours [in IndyCar].' I said, 'you're going to love us when we go to the races with this car.' I think it's a perfect marriage for us."
The last piece of the puzzle arrived in the shape of ORECA, the French racecar constructor responsible for the 2017 Le Mans-winning 07 LMP2 chassis. Within the complex array of intra program responsibilities, Team Penske president Tim Cindric says the final choice of Hugues de Chaunac's firm was down to HPD.
"We felt Acura should take the lead on the engine, and the chassis homologation," he explains. "We're the ones empowered to compete on race weekends, with areas of expertise on chassis setup to make them perform. From the car standpoint, we were a sounding board, but ultimately, it was Acura's responsibility to feel out the various suppliers."
Once connected with HPD and Acura's road-car division designers, 07 underwent its transformation into the ARX-05.
"The two main topics were the engine installation and the aero with the Acura bodywork styling," says ORECA technical director David Floury. "We did many exercises working with Acura to create the brand identity, while also making our targets for downforce and drag.
"Then it was time for the motor, and this twin-turbo V6 [HPD's 3.5-liter AR35TT, based on the production J35 series] has been in prototypes before, so it was not a big challenge to fit it in the 07 and make the cooling work as we wanted. The package we came up with, together with Acura and HPD, is advanced, but also uncomplicated. This is always the preference."

 

 

Montoya hitting his stride in DPi

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By: Marshall Pruett 4 hours ago


As the owner of two wins on the trot with Acura Team Penske co-driver Dane Cameron, Juan Pablo Montoya is finding the success, and the groove he’d been searching for, in IMSA’s WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The veteran of IndyCar, Formula 1, and NASCAR made the full-time switch to sports cars in 2018 when Penske brought Acura into the DPi category with its ARX-05 prototypes, and after visiting the podium a number of times since his debut, back-to-back victories have the Colombian in a new frame of mind.

After placing fifth in the championship last year, he and Cameron hold second in the standings as IMSA moves into the latter half of the season this weekend at Watkins Glen (Sunday, 9:30 a.m ET on the IMSA and the NBC Sports apps, and 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN). The 1999 CART IndyCar champion and two-time Indy 500 winner is locked in a solid fight for the DPi title and, if the team’s recent fortunes continue, adding another championship is well within the scope of possibilities.

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“I think we’ve done a really good job,” he said of Acura Team Penske’s efforts that also have the sister entry for Ricky Taylor and Helio Castroneves in third. “I think the results are overdue. Last year, we led a lot of laps and could never really complete the job and it was really frustrating, so to know that we can actually get it done and remember how we get it done…

“I feel we’re competitive and I feel we’re in a good place. It’s not easy where we stand, but I’m excited for the rest of the season. There’s some good racetracks going for us. Just need to make sure we keep the nose clean and we keep executing.”

Cameron (left) and Montoya have formed an ideal partnership this year. Image by Richard Dole/LAT


Winless in 2018, the duo of JPM and Cameron have been quite effective in their second year together behind the wheel of Acura’s twin-turbo V6-powered prototype. The greatest change in fortunes comes from the teammates working harder on a shared chassis setup that no longer favors one handling preference over the other.

“We found a few things in the setup to benefit me personally probably the most, and I think that made a big difference,” Montoya said. “[Finding] the mid-corner front grip, to be honest. I think that [what] you could call my Achilles heel is the amount of understeer you get in the middle of a corner. And Dane is the opposite. He’s more comfortable with more understeer.

“So we go to a corner where he was getting more and more comfortable and finding more speed [and] my life was starting to get more and more miserable. But everybody in the team, [race engineer Jonathan Duiguid] and all the guys worked really hard and I think we’re in a really good place right now.

“I think we’re solid, we’re strong. I think we both do a really good job. Even from last year I think we were so bummed — I think our strategy and a few things could never really get it executed. This year things seem to be clicking, so I think it’s great.”

With his 44th birthday arriving in September, Montoya could view his current stint with Acura Team Penske in IMSA as the swansong to a long and distinguished career. Fortunately for his fans, retirement in the near future is not a consideration.

Montoya calls IMSA’s DPi Prototypes “probably the most fun cars I’ve driven since the Formula 1 cars.” Image by LAT


“I think [IMSA is] amazing. I love it,” he said. “For me the schedule is very good. It fits really well my needs at this point, with my kids racing, and I’ve got a few people that I look after, but at the same time I still want to drive the car. I still want to kick everybody’s ass when I’m in the car and be quicker than anybody. I really do love it. The cars in my opinion are probably the most fun cars I’ve driven since the Formula 1 cars.”

Outside of the cockpit, Montoya says he would love to step into Formula 1’s race control booth and serve as a guest driver steward. Asked if he could deal with the massive backlash former F1 driver Emanuele Pirro received after penalizing Sebastian Vettel at the Canadian Grand Prix, the cutthroat JPM indicated he would relish the opportunity to drop the hammer when needed.

“I’m surprised they’ve never invited me to do it, honestly,” he admitted. “I really couldn’t care [about driver’s feelings]. If you’re a steward and you care what people think, you’re in trouble. It’s not about pleasing people. It’s about getting the job done and whatever’s right and whatever’s wrong.”




Acura Team Penske, Juan Pablo Montoya, IMSA, WeatherTech Sportscar Championship