- Shortened from 2007
- First 2 hour, 45 minute race of the season
Competition
- Ferrari vs. Porsche battle continues
- GT2 Aston-Martin, Ford Viper and Corvette 25kg lighter
- Flat, smooth track - new setups needed
- Heat, sand and dirt can hinder setup
- Lizards head to Le Mans end of May
"We're looking forward to being back at Miller. It's a beautiful facility, the last two years have really showed the potential of this track. This year, they shortened the course slightly, removing a few of the longer turns. I think this will be an ideal road course setup. We are back to our standard 2 hour and 45 minute race length, so this should be a 2 stop race for us.
Heading into this race, we continue to see the competition between Ferrari and Porsche heating up. Tafel is coming off of two strong wins at St. Pete and Long Beach, and is also adding a second car at this race. This is the Corsa Ferrari team's home track so we expect them to be a presence here, and of course, Risi will be pushing to come back from a challenging start this season. It's a tight championship race between the No. 71 Tafel Ferrari and the No. 45 and No. 46 Lizard Porsches right now - but it is still early in the season and anything can still happen at this point. The track suited the Ferraris well last year, but with the changes to the track layout and the improvements that Porsche made on the cars this year, we hope that advantage is less pronounced this year. In the rest of the GT2 field, IMSA regulations allow for the GT2 Aston Martin, Ford GT2 Viper and the Corvette to run 25 kg lighter, so that may help them."
Craig Watkins, Chief Engineer
"Miller is a new track and it is smooth and flat. It's significantly different than Sebring and the two street courses, which means a different setup for the Porsches. Aerodynamics are a big focus here - much more than at the street courses because the speeds are higher and the course is flat with few bumps. We've resolved some of the understeer problems that dogged us here last year so we should be able to put together a car that's neutral and can take advantage of the track.
They changed the course from 2007, removing some of the long turns which I think made the course unecessarily complex. As a result, this year's course will be a very high performance sports car circuit - fast swooping turns combined with tight turns and high speed areas.
One thing that's a unique challenge here is the heat and the sand. We had a lot of wind last year, especially in the afternoons, and the sand blowing across the track made it hard to get setup dialed in. "
Eric Ingraham, Team Manager and Strategist, No. 46 Porsche
"I can't tell you how happy we are to be back on our standard race schedule and 2 hour and 45 minute race! The street circuits are fun and great for the fans, but they are tough for us. This year at Miller, we're expecting some fast and tight racing. This is the first time here for Patrick Pilet: so far he's been quick to get acclimated to each track but of course learning a complex road circuit can take longer than learning a short street course. In the No. 44 Porsche, Darren Law will not arrive until race day, so Seth Neiman will have to do setup solo, which always makes things a bit more challenging.
After Miller, we head straight to Le Mans for the June 1st test and the race on June 14 and 15. We hope to have a strong showing here in Salt Lake -- having some strong momentum going into the Le Mans event always helps."