GT World Series Final 2023 - Manufacturers Cup stats/results (Tire changes, driver changes, lap times etc.)

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I documented some stats and the results for today's Manufacturers Cup for research purposes and anyone curious about this year's final. I have found myself wondering about some of the stats and cars used for these events so I figured I would share what I documented.

Qualifier Time Trial - Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya No Chicane

One nominated driver per team competed in the Qualifier Race and that driver has a * next to their name below. The Qualifier Time Trial was done before the race for a single lap time that determined the grid position for the Qualifier race. The time trial was not broadcast on YouTube.

1. Toyota - GR Supra Racing Concept '18
R. Kobayashi
A. Carrazza
C. Lopez *

2. Subaru - BRZ GT300 '21
K. Drumont
R. Sternberg
T. Miyazono *

3. BMW - M6 GT3 Sprint Model '16
T. Labouteley
C. Roach
S. Suzuki *

4. Nissan - GT-R Nismo GT3 '18
M. Hafidi
R. Kokuburn
M. Estevez *

5. McLaren - 650S GT3 '15
K. Konstantinou
D. Parker
K. Mizuno *

6. Genesis - X GR3
Y. Sasaki
D. Heldt
N. Romero *

7. Honda - NSX Gr.3
V. Gallo
S. Nabetani
J. Pessoa *

8. Mercedes - AMG - GT3 '20
B. Beauvois
T. Yamanaka
L. Bonelli *

9. Porsche - 911 RSR (991) '17
J. Serrano
A. Inostroza *

10. Renault - Sport R.S.01 GT3 '16
A. Mosso
G. Barbara
A. Lopez *

11. Lamborghini - Lamborghini Huracan GT3 '15
Y. Kodaka
R. Haywood
W. Murdoch *

12. Mazda - RX-Vision GT3 Concept Stealth Model
R. Heck
P. Urra
H. Okumoto *

Qualifier Race - - Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya No Chicane

No tire strategy or pitting is required. Here are the race details and results for the grid position for the final.

Results: The biggest movement was Lamborghini moving up from 11th to finish 6th. The top 4 grid order did not change. Announcers mentioned that the Subaru is not as fast in a straight line but is very agile in the corners. They said the Toyota is a rocket in a straight line.



Grand Final - Nürburgring 24h
The format is 3 drivers each were required to drive a stint in the race no longer than 3 or more laps. Since they are doing 5 laps on Nordschleife it is max 2 laps per driver. Porche is a man down so they will have a driver finish with 3 laps total driven but they still are limited to the rule of no more than 2 laps before pitting. Tire selection is determined by the drivers based on weather, but they can only choose between Racing Medium, Intermediate, or Heavy Wet. Tire change at the time of driver change is not mandatory. This race determined the results of the World Finals. Here are the race details.

Results of Fan voting winner prediction in-game:
Subaru 28.2%
Toyota 26.5%
Porsche 11.4%

18 yr. old Calen Roach from the USA competed in his first World Series event.

• C. Roach "The BMW struggles greatly in the rain, so we're hoping that it won't rain. If it does, it'll just be another big challenge for us."
• A. Inostroza "We have more pressure because we are only two drivers. You have to do everything really, really good. A small mistake can cost your team."
• V. Gallo "The Manufacturers Cup is my favorite championship. Having the multi-branded races makes it more magnificent, and unique compared to any other race."
• S. Suzuki "I'm a fast driver in the straights and flying laps, so if I can pull that out in the actual races I think I can make an impact."

Race started with it having just rained so it was quite wet. But the rain stopped shortly after the start.

Jimmy Broadbent explained tips about Nordschleife:


Grand Final Race Intro:


Grand Final Race Start:




Pitting and Tire/Driver changes by team.​

1. Toyota - GR Supra Racing Concept '18
Start on IM tires - R. Kobayashi
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - R. Kokoburn
End of lap 3 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - A. Carazza

2. Subaru - BRZ GT300 '21
Start on IM tires - T. Miyazono
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - R. Sternberg
End of lap 3 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel - K. Drumont

3. BMW - M6 GT3 Sprint Model '16
Start on IM tires - T. Labouteley
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - C. Roach
End of lap 3 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel - S. Suzuki

4. Nissan - GT-R Nismo GT3 '18
Start on IM tires - M. Hafidi
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - R. Kokuburn
End of lap 4 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - M. Estevez

5. Genesis - X GR3
Start on IM tires - Y. Sasaki
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - N. Romero
End of lap 4 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - D. Heldt

6. Lamborghini - Lamborghini Huracan GT3 '15
Start on IM tires - R. Haywood
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - Y. Kodaka
End of lap 4 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - W. Murdoch

7. McLaren - 650S GT3 '15
Start on IM tires - D. Parker
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - K. Mizuno
End of lap 3 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel - K. Konstantinou

8. Renault - Sport R.S.01 GT3 '16
Start on IM tires - G. Barbara
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - A. Mosso
End of lap 4 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - A. Lopez

9. Porsche - 911 RSR (991) '17
Start on IM tires - J. Serrano
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - A. Inostroza
End of lap 4 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - J. Serrano

10. Mazda - RX-Vision GT3 Concept Stealth Model
Start on IM tires - R. Heck
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - H. Okumoto
End of lap 3 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - P. Urra

11. Mercedes - AMG - GT3 '20
Start on IM tires - T. Yamanaka
End of lap 2 - switch to RM tires. No refuel. - L. Bonelli
End of lap 4 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - B. Beauvois

12. Honda - NSX Gr.3
Start on IM tires - V. Gallo
End of lap 2 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - S. Nabetani
End of lap 4 - stayed on RM tires. No refuel. - J. Pessoa

Lap 1
​

• R. Haywood from Lamborghini was first to go off track into a wall on Lap 1 near the Foxhole and Adenau Forest. He had improved from 6th to 3rd just before that crash. He dropped to 9th at that point and advanced back up to 3rd by the end of Lap 1.
• R. Kobayashi spun off coming out of the Carousel and it took him to the back of the pack when he was leading the race. He advanced back up to 7th by the end of lap 1.
• A penalty for G. Barbara at Renault took him from 6th to 11th in lap 1.

Lap 2
​

• Very tight race throughout lap 2 and gap times were so small that one of the announcers commented on the snake of cars looking like AI they were so close.
• R. Haywood from Lamborghini lead the race for the entire Nordschleife and gave up the lead spot to M. Hafidi from Nissan on the last turn of the lap.
• After 2 laps McLaren was in last place with the most fuel. Is that because of the car itself or K. Mizuno's shifting technique?

Lap 3
​

• Y. Kodaka from Lamborghini was rammed in the rear by N. Romero from Genesis in the first hairpin and went from 2nd to 7th. Genesis received a 1-second penalty from the incident which on replay looks like it should have been more. The penalty took Genesis from P2 to P5 at the end of the lap. Going into Nordshchleife Lamborghini had dropped to 10th.
• R. Sternberg from Subaru fishtailed coming out of Great Oaks and dropped from 3rd to 10th.

Lap 4
​

• Because only 5 teams decided to pit at the end of lap 3, this lap is where it opened the biggest gaps of the race yet.
• R. Kokoburn had by far the best drive of the day. Even though he started his drive in P1, it was at a time when everyone had to pit after lap 2 and did so with less than a 1-second gap. When he passed off to his teammate at the end of lap 4 he improved that gap between 1st and 2nd place to almost 8 seconds. That gap turned out to be crucial for his teammate to hold off 2nd place.

Lap 5
​

S. Suzuki from BMW was attempting to overtake J. Pessoa from Honda for a podium finish with Mazda just behind in P5 right before the final turn. BMW collided with Honda and both spun off track. This incident was a gift to D. Heldt who was in P6 but ended up with a first-time podium finish for Genesis.

Final thoughts
​

• The top 3 teams predicted for the in-game credit giveaway accounted for 66% of the votes and they finished 5th, 6th and 7th.
• J. Pessoa gets the worst heartbreak of the day as he was so close to that 3rd place finish and it was unavoidable how S. Suzuki took him out. Don't know how the final result still allowed BMW to finish before Honda and their final position wasn't penalized. Not that it matters as I doubt there is a difference between 4th and 12th for this race.
• M. Estevez luckily held on for the win for Nissan because it was getting tense with B. Beauvois closing the gap in just one lap from nearly 8 seconds down to 1.7 seconds when they crossed the finish line. Since the end of the race was at night, he had to be more nervous than he had ever been seeing those headlights that weren't there at the start of the lap. Holding on to any gap in a World Championship race on this track is a huge accomplishment though. This was Nissan's first win at the Manufacturers Cup.
• Mercedes-AMG should walk away with a moral victory after starting the race in P11 and finishing 2nd. All 3 of their drivers improved their position and B. Beauvois almost pulled out the most stunning lap of his life. Had this been a 6-lap race they likely would have won.