2010 American Le Mans Series
The 2010 American Le Mans Series season was the 40th overall season for the IMSA GT Championship, and the twelfth as the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón. It was also the first season in which the ALMS used a revised structure for its four classes, as well as the first year in a three-year sponsorship deal with Patrón. The season began with the 12 Hours of Sebring on March 20 and ended with the Petit Le Mans on October 2, completing nine total races.
The senior class, LMP, the new combination class of the old LMP1 and LMP2 classes, saw defending LMP1 champions Patrón Highcroft Racing with defending champion driver David Brabham and new teammate Simon Pagenaud took a 23-point victory in their Honda over Porsche driver Klaus Graf. The other carry over category GT Flying Lizard Motorsports Porsche duo of Patrick Long and Jörg Bergmeister successfully defended their class championship over Risi Competizione Ferrari driver Gianmaria Bruni. There was no GT1 category left in the series.
In the two spec-racer classes Scott Tucker of Level 5 Motorsports was the dominant driver in the LMP Challenge class, winning five of the nine races in the class' first full season. After debuting for half of the 2009 season, the new GT Challenge class saw the Black Swan Racing Porsche of Jeroen Bleekemolen and Tim Pappas claim the class victory.
Schedule
The 2010 American Le Mans Series season features nine events, dropping the St. Petersburg round from 2009. Laguna Seca will no longer end the season but is instead moved to May and has been extended from four hours to six hours; this will allow the Petit Le Mans to conclude the season. The Utah Grand Prix at Miller Motorsports Park has also had its date pushed back to July due to the move by Laguna Seca. The Petit Le Mans will also form part of the inaugural Intercontinental Le Mans Cup for LMP1s.| Rnd | Race | Length | Circuit | Location | Date |
| – | American Le Mans Series Winter Test | Sebring International Raceway | Sebring, Florida | February 22–23 | |
| 1 | 58th Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring | 12 Hours | Sebring International Raceway | Sebring, Florida | March 20 |
| 2 | American Le Mans Series at Long Beach | 1 Hour 40 Minutes | Long Beach street circuit | Long Beach, California | April 17 |
| 3 | American Le Mans Series Monterey | 6 Hours | Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca | Monterey, California | May 22 |
| 4 | Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix | 2 Hours 45 Minutes | Miller Motorsports Park | Tooele, Utah | July 10 |
| 5 | American Le Mans Northeast Grand Prix | 2 Hours 45 Minutes | Lime Rock Park | Lakeville, Connecticut | July 24 |
| 6 | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Challenge | 2 Hours 45 Minutes | Mid-Ohio | Lexington, Ohio | August 7 |
| 7 | American Le Mans Series powered by eStar | 2 Hours 45 Minutes | Road America | Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin | August 22 |
| 8 | Grand Prix of Mosport | 2 Hours 45 Minutes | Mosport International Raceway | Bowmanville, Ontario | August 29 |
| 9 | 13th Annual Petit Le Mans | or 10 Hours | Road Atlanta | Braselton, Georgia | October 2 |
Regulation changes
Introduced on August 16, 2009, IMSA announced a new class structure for the 2010 season in order to address costs. Several previous classes will be retained, while some new classes will be added. Le Mans Prototypes, which previously ran in the LMP1 and LMP2 categories, will be combined into a single LMP category for much of the season. IMSA will modify the LMP1 and LMP2 rules through performance balancing in order to allow the two to compete equally in the new single category. However, the 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans endurance races will not use this unified class, instead reverting to the 2009 regulations as used by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The championship points payout for these two events have yet to be determined by IMSA.A new Le Mans Prototype category will be established as a feeder system for young or amateur drivers. This category, known as Le Mans Prototype Challenge, will borrow from the Formula Le Mans Cup series in Europe by utilizing a spec racing format. All teams will use Oreca FLM09 chassis, Chevrolet production V8s, and other standardized equipment. Along with the European Le Mans Series' Formula Le Mans, the ALMS LMPC makes up as its own class in the races throughout the season rather than racing as a support series.
With a lack of competitors in the former GT1 category, GT2 has been renamed to just GT and will be the premiere category for grand tourers in ALMS in 2010. The ALMS Challenge category, first established in 2009, will be expanded in 2010 and renamed as GT Challenge. The category will race for the full season for the first time. Porsche 911 GT3s from racing series other than the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge will also be accepted for the first time.
Season results
Note that the Sebring and Petit Le Mans events will be held under ACO regulations requiring the LMP class to be split amongst LMP1 and LMP2. The overall race winner, regardless of their LMP category, is listed here.Class winners in the Petit Le Mans receive an automatic entry to the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans.
| Rnd | Circuit | LMP Winning Team | LMPC Winning Team | GT Winning Team | GTC Winning Team | Results |
| Rnd | Circuit | LMP Winning Drivers | LMPC Winning Drivers | GT Winning Drivers | GTC Winning Drivers | Results |
| 1 | Sebring |  #07 Team Peugeot Total |  #55 Level 5 Motorsports | #62 Risi Competizione | #81 Alex Job Racing | Results |
| 1 | Sebring |  Marc Gené Alexander Wurz Anthony Davidson | Scott Tucker Christophe Bouchut Mark Wilkins |  Jaime Melo Gianmaria Bruni Pierre Kaffer | Butch Leitzinger Leh Keen Juan González | Results |
| 2 | Long Beach | #1 Patrón Highcroft Racing | #99 Green Earth Team Gunnar | #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports | #81 Alex Job Racing | Results |
| 2 | Long Beach |  David Brabham Simon Pagenaud | Gunnar Jeannette Elton Julian | Patrick Long Jörg Bergmeister | Butch Leitzinger Juan González | Results |
| 3 | Laguna Seca | #1 Patrón Highcroft Racing | #55 Level 5 Motorsports | #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports | #54 Black Swan Racing | Results |
| 3 | Laguna Seca | David Brabham Simon Pagenaud Marino Franchitti | Scott Tucker Christophe Bouchut Mark Wilkins | Patrick Long Jörg Bergmeister | Tim Pappas Jeroen Bleekemolen Sebastiaan Bleekemolen | Results |
| 4 | Miller | #1 Patrón Highcroft Racing | #55 Level 5 Motorsports | #62 Risi Competizione | #54 Black Swan Racing | Results |
| 4 | Miller | David Brabham Simon Pagenaud | Scott Tucker Christophe Bouchut | Jaime Melo Gianmaria Bruni | Tim Pappas Jeroen Bleekemolen | Results |
| 5 | Lime Rock | #6 Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | #99 Green Earth Team Gunnar | #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports | #63 TRG | Results |
| 5 | Lime Rock | Greg Pickett Klaus Graf | Gunnar Jeannette Elton Julian | Jörg Bergmeister Patrick Long | Henri Richard Andy Lally | Results |
| 6 | Mid-Ohio | #16 Dyson Racing | #55 Level 5 Motorsports | #62 Risi Competizione | #54 Black Swan Racing | Results |
| 6 | Mid-Ohio | Chris Dyson Guy Smith | Scott Tucker Christophe Bouchut | Jaime Melo Gianmaria Bruni | Tim Pappas Jeroen Bleekemolen | Results |
| 7 | Road America | #8 Drayson Racing | #99 Green Earth Team Gunnar | #90 BMW Rahal Letterman Racing | #54 Black Swan Racing | Results |
| 7 | Road America | Paul Drayson Jonny Cocker | Gunnar Jeannette Elton Julian | Dirk Müller Joey Hand | Tim Pappas Jeroen Bleekemolen | Results |
| 8 | Mosport | #6 Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | #99 Green Earth Team Gunnar | #45 Flying Lizard Motorsports | #88 Velox Motorsports | Results |
| 8 | Mosport | Romain Dumas Klaus Graf | Gunnar Jeannette Elton Julian | Patrick Long Jörg Bergmeister | Shane Lewis Lawson Aschenbach | Results |
| 9 | Road Atlanta | #08 Team Peugeot Total | #95 Level 5 Motorsports | #4 Corvette Racing | #63 TRG | Results |
| 9 | Road Atlanta | Franck Montagny Stéphane Sarrazin Pedro Lamy | Scott Tucker Burt Frisselle Marco Werner | Oliver Gavin Jan Magnussen Emmanuel Collard | Henri Richard Duncan Ende Andy Lally | Results |
Championships
Points were awarded to the top ten cars and drivers which complete at least 70% of their class winner's distance. Teams with multiple entries only score the points of their highest finishing entry in each race. Drivers were required to drive a minimum of 45 minutes to earn points, except for the Long Beach event which required only 30 minutes.Starting with the Utah race, drivers are required to complete a particular amount of the minimum number of laps in order to earn points. The number of laps vary depending on the course size.
Team championships
Teams with full season entries are awarded points in the team championships. Teams which participated in a partial season or on a race-by-race basis are not included in these championships.As long as they compete full season and comply with ACO regulations, the top LMP1, LMP2 and GT team at the end of the season receive an automatic entry to the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans.
LMP standings
Although combined into a single LMP class for seven events, the LMP1 and LMP2 category rules are utilized for the Sebring and Petit Le Mans races. The individual results and points for LMP1 and LMP2 are combined into the overall LMP standings.| Pos | Team | Class | Chassis | Engine | SEB | LBH | LGA | MIL | LRP | MDO | ROA | MOS | ATL | Total |
| 1 | Patrón Highcroft Racing | LMP2 | HPD ARX-01C | HPD AL7R 3.4 L V8 | 26 | 20 | 25 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 30 | 182 |
| 2 | Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | LMP2 | Porsche RS Spyder Evo | Porsche MR6 3.4 L V8 | 30 | 16 | 21 | 13 | 20 | 16 | 20 | 26 | 162 | |
| 3 | Drayson Racing | LMP1 | Lola B09/60 | Judd GV5.5 S2 5.5 L V10 | 30 | 8 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 10 | 26 | 110 | |
| 4 | Dyson Racing Team | LMP2 | Lola B09/86 | Mazda MZR-R 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 23 | 13 | 18 | 6 | 0 | 20 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 98 |
| 5 | Intersport Racing | LMP1 | Lola B06/10 | AER P32T 4.0 L Turbo V8 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 69 | ||
| 6 | Autocon Motorsports | LMP1 | Lola B06/10 | AER P32T 4.0 L Turbo V8 | 10 | 15 | 8 | 0 | 13 | 8 | 13 | 0 | 67 |
LMPC standings
All teams utilize the Oreca FLM09 chassis with Chevrolet LS3 engine.| Pos | Team | SEB | LBH | LGA | MIL | LRP | MDO | ROA | MOS | ATL | Total |
| 1 | Level 5 Motorsports | 30 | 16 | 25 | 20 | 13 | 20 | 13 | 16 | 30 | 183 |
| 2 | Green Earth Team Gunnar | 26 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 20 | 13 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 169 |
| 3 | Genoa Racing | 23 | 13 | 21 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 13 | 18 | 104 | |
| 4 | Intersport Racing | 18 | 10 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 26 | 95 |
| 5 | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | 0 | 0 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 8 | 23 | 92 | |
| 6 | Performance Tech | 20 | 8 | 28 |
GT standings
GTC standings
All teams utilize variations of the Porsche 997 GT3 Cup.| Pos | Team | SEB | LBH | LGA | MIL | LRP | MDO | ROA | MOS | ATL | Total |
| 1 | Black Swan Racing | 3 | 25 | 20 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 26 | 146 | |
| 2 | Alex Job Racing | 30 | 20 | 18 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 129 |
| 3 | Velox Motorsports | 18 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 13 | 8 | 13 | 20 | 23 | 126 |
| 4 | TRG | 16 | 2 | 21 | 16 | 20 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 30 | 119 |
| 5 | WERKS II Racing | 20 | 6 | 8 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 81 | |||
| 6 | GMG Racing | 14 | 16 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 16 | 0 | 60 | ||
| 7 | Orbit Racing | 8 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 57 | ||
| 8 | 911 Design | 0 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 20 | 43 |
Driver championships
Drivers who participated in races but failed to score points over the course of the season are not listed.LMP standings
Although combined into a single LMP class for seven events, the LMP1 and LMP2 category rules are utilized for the Sebring and Petit Le Mans races. The individual results and points for LMP1 and LMP2 are combined into the overall LMP standings.| Pos | Driver | Team | SEB | LBH | LGA | MIL | LRP | MDO | ROA | MOS | ATL | Total |
| 1= | David Brabham | Patrón Highcroft Racing | 26 | 20 | 25 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 30 | 182 |
| 1= | Simon Pagenaud | Patrón Highcroft Racing | 26 | 20 | 25 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 30 | 182 |
| 2 | Klaus Graf | Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | 30 | 16 | 21 | 13 | 20 | 16 | 20 | 26 | 162 | |
| 3 | Jonny Cocker | Drayson Racing | 30 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 10 | 26 | 110 |
| 4 | Chris Dyson | Dyson Racing Team | 23 | 13 | 18 | 6 | 0 | 20 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 98 |
| 5 | Paul Drayson | Drayson Racing | 30 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 10 | 26 | 94 | |
| 6 | Guy Smith | Dyson Racing Team | 23 | 13 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 92 |
| 7 | Marino Franchitti | Patrón Highcroft Racing | 26 | 25 | 30 | 81 | ||||||
| 8 | Greg Pickett | Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | 30 | 16 | 13 | 20 | 79 | |||||
| 9 | Sascha Maassen | Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | 30 | 21 | 26 | 77 | ||||||
| 10 | Clint Field | Intersport Racing | 6 | 0 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 69 | |
| 11 | Jon Field | Intersport Racing | 6 | 0 | 10 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 59 | |
| 12 | Emanuele Pirro | Drayson Racing | 30 | 0 | 16 | 46 | ||||||
| 13 | Bryan Willman | Autocon Motorsports | 15 | 8 | 13 | 8 | 0 | 44 | ||||
| 14 |  Andy Meyrick | Dyson Racing Team | 23 | 18 | 0 | 41 | ||||||
| 15 | Ben Devlin | Intersport Racing | 30 | 30 | ||||||||
| 16 | Tony Burgess | Autocon Motorsports | 0 | 8 | 8 | 13 | 0 | 29 | ||||
| 17 | Lucas Luhr | Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | 26 | 26 | ||||||||
| 18 | Tomy Drissi | Autocon Motorsports | 10 | 13 | 23 | |||||||
| 19 | Johnny Mowlem | Autocon Motorsports | 8 | 13 | 21 | |||||||
| 20 | Romain Dumas | Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | 20 | 20 | ||||||||
| 21 | Timo Bernhard | Muscle Milk Team Cytosport | 16 | 16 | ||||||||
| 22 | Pierre Ehret | Autocon Motorsports | 15 | 15 | ||||||||
| 23 | Ken Davis | Autocon Motorsports | 10 | 10 |
LMPC standings
Drivers in the LMPC category are allowed to drive for more than one car during an event. If a driver is in each car for a minimum of two hours each, he is allowed to score the points from whichever car he chooses.| Pos | Driver | Team | SEB | LBH | LGA | MIL | LRP | MDO | ROA | MOS | ATL | Total |
| 1 | Scott Tucker | Level 5 Motorsports | 30 | 16 | 25 | 20 | 13 | 20 | 13 | 16 | 30 | 183 |
| 2 | Gunnar Jeannette | Green Earth Team Gunnar | 26 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 20 | 13 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 169 |
| 3 | Elton Julian | Green Earth Team Gunnar | 26 | 20 | 18 | 20 | 13 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 153 | |
| 4 | Christophe Bouchut | Level 5 Motorsports | 30 | 16 | 25 | 20 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 16 | 20 | 147 |
| 5 | Kyle Marcelli | Performance Tech | 20 | 8 | 101 | |||||||
| 5 | Kyle Marcelli | Genoa Racing | 21 | 101 | ||||||||
| 5 | Kyle Marcelli | Intersport Racing | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 26 | 101 | |||
| 6 | Christian Zugel | Green Earth Team Gunnar | 26 | 18 | 16 | 0 | 89 | |||||
| 6 | Christian Zugel | Genoa Racing | 10 | 6 | 0 | 13 | 89 | |||||
| 7 | Andy Wallace | Genoa Racing | 23 | 77 | ||||||||
| 7 | Andy Wallace | Level 5 Motorsports | 0 | 10 | 13 | 8 | 13 | 10 | 77 | |||
| 8 | Mark Wilkins | Level 5 Motorsports | 30 | 25 | 20 | 75 | ||||||
| 9= | Ricardo González | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | 16 | 16 | 8 | 23 | 63 | |||||
| 9= | Luis Díaz | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | 16 | 16 | 8 | 23 | 63 | |||||
| 10 | David Ducote | Intersport Racing | 18 | 15 | 26 | 59 | ||||||
| 11 | Tom Sutherland | Genoa Racing | 23 | 13 | 21 | 57 | ||||||
| 12 | Brian Wong | Intersport Racing | 18 | 10 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 53 | |||
| 13 | Alex Figge | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | 13 | 16 | 47 | |||||||
| 13 | Alex Figge | Genoa Racing | 18 | 47 | ||||||||
| 14 | Mitch Pagerey | Intersport Racing | 18 | 10 | 15 | 43 | ||||||
| 15 | Chapman Ducote | Intersport Racing | 10 | 6 | 26 | 42 | ||||||
| 16 | Frankie Montecalvo | Genoa Racing | 6 | 13 | 18 | 37 | ||||||
| 17 | J. R. Hildebrand | Genoa Racing | 23 | 13 | 36 | |||||||
| 18= | Marco Werner | Level 5 Motorsports | 30 | 30 | ||||||||
| 18= | Burt Frisselle | Level 5 Motorsports | 30 | 30 | ||||||||
| 19 | Ryan Lewis | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | 23 | 23 | ||||||||
| 20= | Joel Feinberg | Primetime-Braille Battery Race Group | 20 | 20 | ||||||||
| 20= | Tom Weickardt | Primetime-Braille Battery Race Group | 20 | 20 | ||||||||
| 21 | Eric Lux | Genoa Racing | 18 | 37 | ||||||||
| 22 | Tom Papadopoulos | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | 0 | 0 | 16 | 16 | ||||||
| 23 | Max Hyatt | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | 13 | 13 | ||||||||
| 24 | Tom Sedivy | Genoa Racing | 10 | 10 | ||||||||
| 25 | Gerardo Bonilla | Performance Tech | 8 | 8 |
GT standings
GTC standings
Team changes
- Scott Sharp has created a new racing team, Extreme Speed Motorsports, for the 2010 season, and will be entering two Ferrari F430s in the GT class.
- Rahal Letterman Racing have re-signed Bill Auberlen, Joey Hand, Tommy Milner and Dirk Müller for 2010.
- Acura confirmed in November 2009 that they would return for the 2010 season with Highcroft Racing.
- Simon Pagenaud will be joining Highcroft Racing for 2010. In addition, Marino Franchitti will join David Brabham and Pagenaud for three events at Sebring, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and Petit Le Mans.
- AutoCon Motorsports have signed Pierre Ehret to drive their LMP Lola at Sebring, Petit Le Mans, and Laguna Seca. They also confirmed that regular drivers Bryan Willman and Tony Burgess will return for 2010, although former lead driver Chris McMurry has retired.
- Intersport Racing has announced its LMPC lineup consists of Patrón GT3 Challenge drivers Mitch Pagery and Brian Wong.
- 2010 marked the withdrawal of the Dodge Viper from the series.