After Mazda adopted Nissan by the exit door on the finish of 2021, final season’s DPi class was contested solely between Cadillac and Acura groups, however the transfer to all new LMDh vehicles working spec hybrid methods for 2023 has attracted Porsche and BMW to affix the renamed GTP division.
All 4 producers have received a race this season, with Porsche’s 963 LMDh taking three victories, the Acura ARX-06 and Cadillac V-Sequence.R managing two apiece and BMW M Hybrid V8 breaking by at Watkins Glen.
Albuquerque and Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti team-mate Ricky Taylor enter subsequent month’s Petit Le Mans season finale three factors shy of the championship lead, regardless of having but to win a race this season.
They’re considered one of 4 crews cut up by simply 38 factors within the standings, with Motion Categorical Racing’s Cadillac of Pipo Derani and Alexander Sims main the way in which, the #6 Penske Porsche of Nick Tandy and Matthieu Jaminet trailing them by 5 factors and Staff RLL’s #25 BMW of Connor Connor De Phillippi and Nick Yelloly additionally within the combine with 385 factors nonetheless up for grabs.
Chatting with Autosport, 2021 and 2022 championship runner-up Albuquerque mentioned the shake-up had been refreshing after getting into weekends in direction of the top of the well-matured DPi laws that started in 2017 pretty assured of how the aggressive order would kind.
“That’s the curiosity and the way wild it’s within the first yr of a brand new regulation,” Albuquerque mentioned.
“So that you don’t know who will probably be aggressive, you don’t understand how aggressive you’ll be at every occasion and reliability [problems] can strike you at any time. And that’s what is going on to all of us.
#10: Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06, Acura ARX-06, GTP: Ricky Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque, Louis Deletraz
Photograph by: Michael L. Levitt / Motorsport Images
“We go to the final race of the yr nonetheless with reliability points being doable, knocking on the door and to take one of many title contenders for the championship. We’ve seen that BMW #24 in Indianapolis having [electrical] issues, so these issues occur.
“Particularly from a DPi season with Ricky that we knew precisely what to anticipate at every occasion; we knew we’d be aggressive in Daytona, we knew that we weren’t aggressive in any respect in Lengthy Seaside, however then we knew that we have been good in Laguna and in Watkins Glen.
“These stuff you will be predictive on how one can strike it. Now it’s a query mark.
“I feel it’s good. We have to go for the problem, the present, and that uncertainty of order, unpredictability, it’s good.”
Albuquerque added that he is uncertain of how the Acura will carry out within the decisive 10-hour race at Street Atlanta, the place he and Taylor will once more be joined by third driver Louis Deletraz, as “by now I feel we will count on an ideal outcomes from everyone”.
“We go now to Petit Le Mans not likely figuring out what who’s able to, precisely like once we have been doing on the winter testing,” the Portuguese mentioned.
“Every time you’re having a brand new regulation happening, there may be so many query marks that you just simply hold working arduous till you see the place the extent is. So I do prefer it.
“However on the finish of the day clearly you take pleasure in while you’re profitable and while you did an excellent automobile. And I actually assume that Acura did a tremendous automobile.”