Doonan gives explanation of why IMSA established ‘BoP conduct’ rule

IMSA President John Doonan provided insight on why the sanctioning body decided to institute a new rule that silences members of the paddock related to publicly criticizing Balance of Performance (BoP).

During a media scrum on Saturday morning ahead of the 64th Running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, Doonan was asked by Motorsport.com the thought process behind the rule.

“I’ll talk about BoP and try to get ahead of it for everybody,” Doonan said. “It’s a necessary part of our sport. We have 18 auto manufacturers racing in this sport with all the different platforms and all the different powertrains and all the different aero.

“It’s incredibly important in order to produce the incredible show that we want to have BoP. It’s a necessary part of it. I actually love our BoP meetings. People may say that I need to go see my doctor, but the bottom line is that’s the product that we’re putting forth. So we have a very clear process.

“We’ve worked really hard with the manufacturers to have a great understanding and a great line of communication on how, you know, BoP should work. And present at the end of the race a level playing field where everyone’s fighting. Everyone has a chance.

“That is our ultimate goal at IMSA. And I know that I think is what the manufacturers want. It’s what I wanted when I was on the manufacturer’s side. In order to have a good process, you need communication. I think that communication should remain with us. There’s, you know, we’re all in the business.

“We’re all in the business of growing the sport, not tearing it down. And I think our sport of endurance sports car racing is tricky enough to understand that, you know, we want to educate people what BoP is and how that works.

“So it’s incumbent on us to communicate that more. But in short, we just shouldn’t be airing out our issues in public. That’s the goal.”

The rule was introduced earlier this month, listed as Article 2.2.3. (“Conduct and Communications”) in the Sporting Regulations now states: “Manufacturers, Competitors, Drivers, Constructors, and any persons or entities associated with their entries must not attempt to influence the establishment of the Balance of Performance (BoP) or make any public comments regarding the BoP process, methodology, data, or outcomes, including but not limited to statements made through traditional media, digital media, or social media platforms.

• i. The determination of whether any conduct or communication constitutes a violation of the above, regardless of intent, shall be made exclusively at IMSA’s sole discretion.
• ii. Any infringement may be penalized by IMSA Officials at any time before, during, or after an IMSA Competition.”

Doonan confirmed the rule follows a similar one created by the FIA World Endurance Championship on purpose.

“So we obviously have our strategic alliance with the ACO (Automobile Club de l’Ouest), Pierre (Fillon, ACO President), and his team. And we looked at that and adjusted it in the same manner. But the intent is the same.

“We’re not trying to prevent anybody from talking to the media. Of course, we wanted to tell the story. The fact that you all are here is really important for us. But that’s all. That’s all we want to do.”

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— The Motorsport.com Team