- 26,259
- Houston, Texas, USA
- JMarine25
This is yet another "A vs. B" conversation. Hello, GT Planet.
The ALMS and Grand-Am are two different entities. Two entities with different directions in motorsport. If I am not mistaken, here are the respective websites:
http://www.americanlemans.com
The American Le Mans Series
http://www.grand-am.com
The Grand American Road Racing Association
Since 1999, the ALMS brings the thrill of European racing to American shores and has world-class drivers and cars to make the best racing series in America. It's probably the most successful purpose-built race car series in America. Often times when talking about racing, it's a bit overlooked. While I think the ELMS (European Le Mans Series) and the APLMS (Asia-Pacific Le Mans Series) weren't going to happen, America still has a wonderful series. Based on GT race cars and sexy LMPs and GTPs, the American Le Mans Series is not afraid to go racing and put on a show you just HAVE to love. These cars are so exotic, and American fans will get a chance to see some of that action without having to go across the Atlantic Ocean. Their races include 3 of the 4 "Grand Slam of Endurance Racing" top endurances in the world. Those include the Sebring 12hrs, the Petit Le Mans, and of course, the Le Mans 24 hrs. Truly spectacular.
Since 2000, the GARRA, or the Grand American Road Racing Association (or more commonly called "Grand-Am") features the best in sportscar racing in America. This series is founded on the legs of Bill France of (guess what other popular racing series). In 2000, the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona was my first that I seen on TV. I was impressed with the beautiful cars entered in this race, and not to mention the 70-something cars on hand. It was like Le Mans, but in America. Later on, the series kind of became more of a NASCAR series, but with sportscars. The powerful open-top racers gave way to the Daytona Prototype. I guess some would say that the Daytona Prototype is trying to build its own legacy off the heels of Le Mans. While the DPs are fairly new, some are stylish and some aren't. While they don't have as many priceless, exclusive race cars as the ALMS, it does pack its own brand of racing. Grand-Am does a good job making it's prescence felt in American racing. They have the Rolex 24 and the 6 Hours at the Glen. They even race a track that even I'll hand respect to over ALMS. The Circuit Le Mont-Tremblant (did I spell it right?) is a lovely circuit. And not to mention Barber Motorsports park, which I almost thought was a European circuit when I looked at it. So maybe Grand-Am has two exclusive tracks over the ALMS. But since the series was created by Bill France and he headed the oval business, "rovals" were raced on and could be stopped by rain. In fact, the 2001 race at Phoenix under the lights had a red flag during a rainy night there.
Both series have exclusivity. The ALMS has a lot to offer. It's literally the F1 of American racing. It is often overshadowed by other non-road racing, non-sportscar series. Some people don't realize that a series dominated by ovals and straightliners actually has a series that can actually compete with the world. Even "Motorsport Mundial" covers it, for God's sake!
And Grand-Am is a great way to show your stripes in American racing. If you can't compete with the pros, it's best to show your stuff American-style on American road courses and infield road courses on ovals.
Which series is better? In my view, I'm with the ALMS for the reasons specified. Grand-Am is good, but I'm more of a big timer in racing, so I'll let the LMPs and GTSes go at it ALMS style. No matter who wins in this thread, sportscar racing wins.
The ALMS and Grand-Am are two different entities. Two entities with different directions in motorsport. If I am not mistaken, here are the respective websites:
http://www.americanlemans.com
The American Le Mans Series
http://www.grand-am.com
The Grand American Road Racing Association
Since 1999, the ALMS brings the thrill of European racing to American shores and has world-class drivers and cars to make the best racing series in America. It's probably the most successful purpose-built race car series in America. Often times when talking about racing, it's a bit overlooked. While I think the ELMS (European Le Mans Series) and the APLMS (Asia-Pacific Le Mans Series) weren't going to happen, America still has a wonderful series. Based on GT race cars and sexy LMPs and GTPs, the American Le Mans Series is not afraid to go racing and put on a show you just HAVE to love. These cars are so exotic, and American fans will get a chance to see some of that action without having to go across the Atlantic Ocean. Their races include 3 of the 4 "Grand Slam of Endurance Racing" top endurances in the world. Those include the Sebring 12hrs, the Petit Le Mans, and of course, the Le Mans 24 hrs. Truly spectacular.
Since 2000, the GARRA, or the Grand American Road Racing Association (or more commonly called "Grand-Am") features the best in sportscar racing in America. This series is founded on the legs of Bill France of (guess what other popular racing series). In 2000, the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona was my first that I seen on TV. I was impressed with the beautiful cars entered in this race, and not to mention the 70-something cars on hand. It was like Le Mans, but in America. Later on, the series kind of became more of a NASCAR series, but with sportscars. The powerful open-top racers gave way to the Daytona Prototype. I guess some would say that the Daytona Prototype is trying to build its own legacy off the heels of Le Mans. While the DPs are fairly new, some are stylish and some aren't. While they don't have as many priceless, exclusive race cars as the ALMS, it does pack its own brand of racing. Grand-Am does a good job making it's prescence felt in American racing. They have the Rolex 24 and the 6 Hours at the Glen. They even race a track that even I'll hand respect to over ALMS. The Circuit Le Mont-Tremblant (did I spell it right?) is a lovely circuit. And not to mention Barber Motorsports park, which I almost thought was a European circuit when I looked at it. So maybe Grand-Am has two exclusive tracks over the ALMS. But since the series was created by Bill France and he headed the oval business, "rovals" were raced on and could be stopped by rain. In fact, the 2001 race at Phoenix under the lights had a red flag during a rainy night there.
Both series have exclusivity. The ALMS has a lot to offer. It's literally the F1 of American racing. It is often overshadowed by other non-road racing, non-sportscar series. Some people don't realize that a series dominated by ovals and straightliners actually has a series that can actually compete with the world. Even "Motorsport Mundial" covers it, for God's sake!
And Grand-Am is a great way to show your stripes in American racing. If you can't compete with the pros, it's best to show your stuff American-style on American road courses and infield road courses on ovals.
Which series is better? In my view, I'm with the ALMS for the reasons specified. Grand-Am is good, but I'm more of a big timer in racing, so I'll let the LMPs and GTSes go at it ALMS style. No matter who wins in this thread, sportscar racing wins.
