The World Endurance Championship’s initial Balance Of Performance specs for the GTE class have been announced in advance of the series’ season-opener at Spa-Francorchamps in May. The BMW M8 GTE, run by BMW Team MTEK in WEC, will begin the season at 1,255 kg, up 35 kg from its Sebring weight, and will have turbo boost reduced from Sebring levels throughout the rev range.
Apples-to-apples comparisons to other marques from Sebring to Spa are not possible, as WEC weights are set based on performance in the series’ late-2017 races, with the exception of new cars to the series like the M8 GTE and the Aston Martin Vantage GTE, which has been set at 1,263 kg for Spa.
Given BMW Team RLL’s performance at Sebring, where Car #25, driven by Bill Auberlen, Connor De Phillippi, and Alexander Sims, finished second in class, and Jesse Krohn in car #24 set the fastest GTLM lap, it is possible that IMSA will make Balance Of Performance adjustments to the M8 GTE before the Long Beach race on April 14. —Brian Morgan