Nuts & Bolts: Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge

This weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, a 2.238-mile, 11-turn natural road course, the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge will compete on April 30 while the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is scheduled for May 1, 2016.

Of interest to race fans are some of the details about the tires the racers will be using, here is the information from Continental on the weekends events.

TIRE SETS:
WeatherTech Championship -P teams will be allowed 10 sets of tires (including dry and wet tires), PC 7 sets, and GTD teams will receive 7 sets.
There is no set limit for the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge.

WHICH TIRE ARE THEY USING:
**Continental Tire has designated, Blacks, as the dry tire to be raced at Sebring. If teams move to wet tires, the P and GTD classes will move to, Blacks, while the PC class will move to, Golds.
P Blacks – this tire compound is used at Sebring, Long Beach, Mazda Raceway, Detroit,
Road America, COTA, and Road Atlanta.
Delta Wing Blacks – because it’s the only car on this configuration, it will race on, Blacks, year round.
PC Blacks - this tire compound is used at Sebring, Long Beach, Mazda Raceway, Detroit,
Road America, Lime Rock, COTA, and Road Atlanta.
GTD Blacks – this tire compound is used at Sebring, Mazda Raceway, Detroit,
Road America, Lime Rock, VIR, COTA, and Road Atlanta.
CTSCC This tire compound will be used at all tracks this year.

PIT WINDOW:
A fuel stint for the P class is approximately 40 minutes.

TRACK CHARACTERISTICS:
The actual track configuration of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is fairly “easy” on the tires. However, the sand, dirt and wind combine to make for a slippery surface that can create grip issues as a run wears on. Typically cars will have maximum grip on new tires but on older tires, cars will start to slide around a bit. The track is also sensitive to temperature change so it’s important to keep heat in the tires as well as keeping them cleaned off for re-starts.