MOORESVILLE, N.C. — During a recent phone chat with Jeff Gordon, we discussed Hendrick Motorsports’ plans for a Garage 56 effort for the 2023 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Gordon said he will be heavily involved in the project and plans to attend this year’s race to gather as much experience and information as possible.
According to Gordon, the car will be based on a current Next Gen NASCAR Cup Series machine but will be different in many ways. For example, the Hendrick Garage 56 car will have a hybrid V-8 powerplant of some sort, and it will have to have a significantly larger fuel tank.
When I asked about a door for driver changes, Gordon said this is another area where numerous options are being considered. Obviously, going in and out of the window like a traditional NASCAR driver does is out of the question for a twice-around-the-clock endurance race. There is a roof hatch that could be used, but Gordon believes this would be cumbersome. Ultimately, he is pushing for a door to be built into the car.
Another challenge is making sure the car is able to maintain the required speed set by the FIA and IMSA so that the Hendrick Garage 56 machine will be able to run at a pace similar to the GT class entries.
Surprisingly, one of the biggest challenges is finding drivers. Gordon pointed out the drivers need to be familiar with endurance driving, preferably with Le Mans experience as well as experience behind the wheel of a NASCAR Cup Series car. The drivers also have to be comfortable with the idea that they are really not racing for the victory.
Don’t be surprised if Gordon’s name is one of those above the car’s door on race day. Being one of the drivers for the Hendrick Garage 56 program is a challenge the four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion is open to. He will definitely be involved in the testing and development of the car.
• We ran into former Indy car driver Kevin Cogan at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. When asked how he has been, Cogan admitted he has been dealing with a bad hip. It’s the lingering result from a crash at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but not the infamous opening-lap crash in 1982. Cogan said he has gone through numerous surgeries trying to rectify the situation.
• The Long Beach Grand Prix is an incredibly popular event. The massive crowd for this year’s race weekend, which returned to its traditional mid-April date, proved the 47-year-old event hasn’t lost any of its popularity with race fans.
• The Long Beach race weekend included the HMSA Vintage IMSA Prototype series. Former Porsche factory driver Patrick Long swept the two races in the beautiful Leyton House-liveried Porsche 962.
The field was full of spectacular cars, including both of the era dominant AAR Toyota Eagle MKllls that were originally built at the nearby shops of Dan Gurney and his All American Racers.
Mazda, which also has headquarters in Southern California, was well represented with three different four-rotor powered machines screaming through the Long Beach streets, much to the delight of race fans.
One of the most beautiful machines in action was the Jaguar XJR10 owned and driven by McLaren Racing’s head man, Zak Brown. Brown wheeled the Castrol-liveried machine to a second-place finish in race No. 2 on Sunday morning.
• We are very fortunate here at SPEED SPORT to have an amazing lineup of award-winning journalists who cover the world for us so we can bring you all of the news and stories from every corner of the globe.
One writer who has literally covered every square inch of the planet for SPEED SPORT is Dan Knutson, who has been our outstanding F-1 correspondent since 1982.
Dan has decided it is time to turn in his hard card. Please read his final column and learn how he got started in motorsports journalism on page 44 of this issue.
Thanks, Dan, for the many years of dedication and tremendous reporting. As Chris Economaki would say, take a bow!
• A very cool tribute for our good friend and colleague Bob Jenkins is in the works. Talented artist Pamela Bliss has been commissioned to paint a mural of Bob in his Liberty, Ind., hometown. A Go Fund Me has been set up to help cover the cost of the project. Contributions are welcome at gofund.me/fc14d2cf.