Month Of May Has Honda Driver Katherine Legge Involved In A Major Balancing Act

British born driver Katherine Legge will be pulling double duty in the month of May driving in her season commitment in sportscars for Gradient Racing with an added task of taking on the 2023 "Greatest Spectacle In Racing" with Rahal Letterman Lanigan at IMS. Here Katherine attends a luncheon at the Acura Grand Prix Of Long Beach with AJ Foyt Racing's Santino Ferrucci looking on. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2023)

Month Of May Has Honda Driver Katherine Legge Involved In A Major Balancing Act

During a  ZOOM Call with the members of the Motorsports Press, Katherine Legge, co-driver with Sheena Monk of the No. 66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3, was captured leaving her orientation meetings with Rahal Letterman Lanigan (RLL) engineers at the new RLL home facility located in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was preparing to drive a fourth car for the team, powered by Honda engines, to run in the 107th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.

Next weekend she will be in the Monterey Bay area to drive in the WeatherTech Championship's fourth race of the IMSA sportscar season - Motul Course de Monterey Powered By Hyundai N at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. A race that is scheduled to be run for 2 hours and 40 minutes on the famed 2.238 mile, 11 turn road course challenge this Sunday, May 14, 2023.

In the course of a ZOOM Call that included fellow GTD Class racer Trent Hindman, co-driver of the No. 77 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R, and GTP Class racers GTP Class Ricky Taylor, co-driver of the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 Connor De Phillippi, co-driver of the No. 25 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8, 

Katherine Legge ZOOM Call Intro Walk From RLL Indianapolis

Katherine shared just how many differences and changes to her life as a driver, brand representative, and team member across the two major North American racing series and sanctioning bodies. 

Not too much of a tall order for the Guildford, Surrey, England born racer who last ran in her third attempt of the INDY 500 about one decade ago. Said Katherine of this other driving duty for this month of May, "Racing at Indy with an INDY 500-winning team and with Honda is an amazing opportunity and one I am very grateful for and intend to make the most of."

Motorsports Journal was able to ask questions of the gathered drivers and we pick up the IMSA WeatherTech Championship initiated ZOOM Call at 21:20 of a 47:00 minute session.

The first question had to do with the track dynamic differences in racing with the new GTP Class hybrid cars on the track - what were the recognized differences?

Some of the most interesting information that Ms. Legge shared was the differences in the button location of communications and pitstops on the steering wheels of the WeatherTech Championship GTD Class Acura sportscar and the Dallara DW12 Honda-Powered NTT INDYCAR - they are in the completely reversed positions - this will be fun.

Since the advent of AI and its use in crafting the responses to questions posed in articles, ChatGPT (no, not GTP) was used to find out what this tool had to produce on the following set-up query:

WeatherTech Sportscar Championship GTP and GTD Class cars release from pitlane for the first practice session at the 48th Acura Grand Prix Of Long Beach. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2023) 

BEGIN 

User - from the text placed at the description of the posted ZOOM Call Video

Motul Course de Monterey Powered By Hyundai N Driver Preview Interview 

The fourth race of the season and the last race that will feature professional race cars on the worn pavement surface that gave the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca some of its personality. Many drivers observed that the low-grip nature of the track surface had the track be one that favored drivers over the technical set-up of the race car, a little like racing go-karts as opposed to working a race as though it was a video game.

In this ZOOM Call interview session, drivers from the new GTP Class and the GTD Class share their thoughts before the race weekend - May 12-14, 2023.

GTP Class

Ricky Taylor, co-driver of the No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06

Connor De Phillippi, co-driver of the No. 25 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8

GTD Class

Katherine Legge, co-driver of the No. 66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3

Trent Hindman, co-driver of the No. 77 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R

These select drivers answer questions from the press to preview the upcoming Motul Course de Monterey Powered By Hyundai N at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, May 12-14, 2023. NBC’s live coverage of the 2h40m race begins at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday.

ChatGPT

Press: What are your thoughts on the upcoming race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, particularly with it being the last race featuring professional race cars on the current track surface?

Ricky Taylor: Laguna Seca is always a special track for me, and it's sad to see the current track surface go. But I'm looking forward to making the most of the last opportunity to race on it with the Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06. The low-grip surface can be a challenge, but it also provides an opportunity for drivers to shine, so it should be an exciting race.

Connor De Phillippi: It's definitely going to be bittersweet racing on the old track surface for the last time, but I'm excited to see how our BMW M Hybrid V8 performs on it. Laguna Seca is a classic circuit, and it always provides a unique challenge, so I'm looking forward to the weekend.

Katherine Legge: I'm thrilled to be racing at Laguna Seca again, and it's always a special track for me. It's a shame to see the current surface go, but I'm excited to see what the future holds. As for the race itself, the low-grip nature of the track can be tricky, but the Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 should be up to the challenge.

Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R as it swings through Turn2 on the way to the Fountain Turn at the Long Beach Grand Prix temporary street course during the 48th Acura Grand Prix Of Long Beach. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2023)

Trent Hindman: I always enjoy racing at Laguna Seca, and I'm looking forward to the weekend. The Porsche 911 GT3 R is well-suited to the track, and I'm confident that we'll be competitive. The low-grip surface can be a challenge, but it's one that we're ready to tackle.

Press: What do you think are the strengths of your race car for this track?

Ricky Taylor: The Konica Minolta Acura ARX-06 has great handling, which should be a big advantage on the low-grip surface. We also have a strong engine, so we should be able to make up any ground we lose in the corners on the straights.

Connor De Phillippi: The BMW M Hybrid V8 has excellent traction and stability, which should serve us well at Laguna Seca. We also have a lot of power, so we should be able to make up time on the straights.

Katherine Legge: The Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 has great balance and stability, which should be a big asset on the low-grip surface. We also have a lot of experience racing at Laguna Seca, so we should be able to use that to our advantage.

Trent Hindman: The Porsche 911 GT3 R is well-suited to the technical demands of Laguna Seca. We have great handling and braking, which should allow us to make up time in the corners. We also have a strong engine, which should help us on the straights.

Press: How do you plan to approach this race, and what are your goals for the weekend?

Ricky Taylor: Our goal is always to win, and we'll be pushing hard to make that happen. But we also need to be smart and make sure we maximize our points haul. It's a long season, and every point counts, so we need to be consistent.

Connor De Phillippi: Our goal is to have a strong weekend and be in the mix for the win. We'll be looking to qualify well and put ourselves in a good position for the race. But we also need to be mindful of the championship and make sure we score as many points as possible.

Katherine Legge: Our goal is to be competitive and fight for the win. We know we have a strong car and a great team, so we're confident that we can be in the mix

ENDS

So, there it is ... a recorded questions & answers report via a posted ZOOM Call Video and a faked up set of responses via Artificial Intelligence - all most informative and interesting but one would be smart to listen to actual answers to actual questions posed in the embedded video above. 

Ahhhhhh, the analog life. Can not run merit-based racing competitions without it - no shortcuts here.

,,, notes from The EDJE

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TAGS: ZOOM Call, Artificial Intelligence, Motul Course de Monterey Powered By Hyundai N, Honda Acura, BMW, Porsche, WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, The EDJE