WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
| WeatherTech SportsCar Championship | |
|---|---|
 2016 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship | |
 | |
| Category | Sports car racing |
| Country or region |  United States |
| Inaugural season | 2014 |
| Prototype Classes | Prototype (P), Prototype Challenge (PC) |
| GT Classes | GT Le Mans (GTLM), GT Daytona (GTD) |
| Current Drivers' champion/s | P: Dane Cameron Eric Curran PC:  Alex Popow Renger van der ZandeGTLM:  Oliver Gavin Tommy MilnerGTD:  Alessandro Balzan Christina Nielsen |
| Current Teams' champion | P: Action Express Racing PC: Starworks MotorsportGTLM: Corvette RacingGTD: Scuderia Corsa |
| Current Makes' champion | P: Chevrolet GTLM: ChevroletGTD:  Audi |
| Official website | www |
The WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada and organized by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). It is a result of a merger between two existing North American sports car racing series, the American Le Mans Series and Rolex Sports Car Series. The initial United SportsCar Championship name of the series was announced on March 14, 2013,[1] while Rolex SA signed their Tudor brand to a title sponsorship deal.[2] WeatherTech later signed a deal to take over title sponsorship of the series starting in 2016, rebranding the series.[3]
The inaugural 2014 season began with the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona on January 25–26 and ended with the Petit Le Mans on October 4. João Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi with Action Express Racing claimed both the drivers' and team championships. Chevrolet won the manufacturer's championship.
History
On September 5, 2012 it was announced that the Grand-Am Road Racing sanctioning body would be merging with the Braselton based International Motor Sports Association, and as such both bodies would be merging their premiere sports car series, the Rolex Sports Car Series and American Le Mans Series respectively, with plans to debut in 2014. On November 20, 2012 the merger committee announced that SME Branding were selected to develop the name, logo and identity of the new series.[4]
On January 8, 2013, the two series' announced a preliminary class structure for the new merged series. Grand-Am's Daytona Prototype category and IMSA's P2 would combine into a single prototype class, with allowances for the unique DeltaWing to also compete in the new class. The Le Mans Prototype Challenge class of single spec cars from the American Le Mans Series would continue as is, although the cars will switch to Grand-Am's Continental Tires.[5] The GT class of the American Le Mans Series would remain unchanged, while Grand-Am's GT class will form another GT class, and be combined with the American Le Mans GTC category.[6] The only category of cars not represented in the new series is the American Le Mans Series' P1 category.
The reveal date for the new series was March 14, 2013 at the Chateau Élan Hotel and Conference Center at Sebring International Raceway, two days before the 12 Hours of Sebring. American Le Mans CEO Scott Atherton announced the new sanctioning body would remain IMSA while Ed Bennett revealed the new titles for the series' five classes. SME Branding Senior Partner Ed O'Hara then announced the new United SportsCar Racing title and logo, a name submitted through a contest won by Louis Satterlee of Florida, a racer in the Florida Karting Championship Series.[7]
On August 9, 2013 Fox Sports 1 announced it had signed a TV contract with IMSA to televise the entire USCC season between 2014 and 2018.[8]
Later, on September 12, 2013, Tudor was announced as the title sponsor for the series, which was named the United SportsCar Championship. On August 8, 2015, WeatherTech was announced as the new entitlement sponsor for the series, renaming the series to the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, starting with the 2016 season.[9]
Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series
Originally based on a Canadian series before being acquired by Grand-Am, the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (originally known as Grand-Am Cup) is a production-based touring car series. The series is split into two classes known as Grand Sport (GS), intended for large capacity GT-style cars, and Street Tuner (ST), consisting of smaller sedans and coupes, some of which are front-wheel drive. The IMSA Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge until 2013 supported some Rolex Series races but also headlined some of its own dates. This series continued with the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship after the merger and is somewhat comparable to the old Trans Am Series.
Class structure
There are four different classes in the United SportsCar Championship series, featuring two sports prototype categories and two grand tourer classes:
- Prototype (P): the flagship class. Originally combined Grand-Am's Daytona Prototype with the American Le Mans Series P2 prototypes and the DeltaWing, all built to 2014 specifications. In 2017 the class will feature new Daytona Prototype international and LMP2 cars.
- Prototype Challenge (PC): a spec class carried over directly from the American Le Mans Series, featuring Le Mans Prototype Challenge cars built by Oreca with engines supplied by Chevrolet and tires from Continental.
- GT Le Mans (GTLM): a continuation of the ALMS GT class, consisting of cars matching the Automobile Club de l'Ouest's GTE specification.
- GT Daytona (GTD): a class that combined the Grand-Am GT & GX classes with the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars from the ALMS GTC class. Starting in the 2016 season the class adopted full FIA GT3 specifications.
Some races may only use selected classes of cars, for example: Any class car may be permitted entry into the Rolex 24, while at the Grand Prix of Long Beach only the Prototype (P) and GT Le Mans (GTLM) will be entered.
Circuits
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Champions
IMSA Championship
Drivers
| Season | Prototype | Prototype Challenge | GTLM | GTD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 |  João Barbosa Christian Fittipaldi |
Jon Bennett Colin Braun |
 Kuno Wittmer |
Dane Cameron |
| 2015 | João Barbosa Christian Fittipaldi |
Jon Bennett Colin Braun |
 Patrick Pilet |
Townsend Bell Bill Sweedler |
| 2016 | Dane Cameron Eric Curran |
Alex Popow Renger van der Zande |
Oliver Gavin Tommy Milner |
Alessandro Balzan Christina Nielsen |
Teams
| Season | Prototype | Prototype Challenge | GTLM | GTD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #5 Action Express Racing |
#54 CORE Autosport |
#93 SRT Motorsports |
#94 Turner Motorsport |
| 2015 | #5 Action Express Racing |
#54 CORE Autosport |
#911 Porsche North America |
#63 Scuderia Corsa |
| 2016 | #31 Action Express Racing |
#8 Starworks Motorsport |
#4 Corvette Racing |
#63 Scuderia Corsa |
Manufacturers
|
Tires
|
North American Endurance Cup (NAEC)
Drivers
| Season | Prototype | Prototype Challenge | GTLM | GTD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | João Barbosa Christian Fittipaldi |
Jon Bennett Colin Braun James Gue |
Michael Christensen Patrick Long |
Townsend Bell Bill Sweedler |
| 2015 | João Barbosa Christian Fittipaldi |
Mike Guasch Tom Kimber-Smith Andrew Palmer |
 Antonio García Jan Magnussen |
Al Carter Cameron Lawrence |
| 2016 | João Barbosa Christian Fittipaldi |
Robert Alon José Gutiérrez Tom Kimber-Smith |
Oliver Gavin Tommy Milner |
Alessandro Balzan Christina Nielsen |
Teams
| Season | Prototype | Prototype Challenge | GTLM | GTD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #5 Action Express Racing |
#54 CORE Autosport |
#912 Porsche North America |
#555 AIM Autosport |
| 2015 | #5 Action Express Racing |
#52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports |
#3 Corvette Racing |
#93 Riley Motorsports |
| 2016 | #5 Action Express Racing |
#52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports |
#4 Corvette Racing |
#44 Magnus Racing |
Manufacturers
| Season | Prototype | GTLM | GTD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Chevrolet |
Porsche |
Ferrari |
| 2015 | Chevrolet |
Chevrolet |
Porsche |
| 2016 |  Honda |
Chevrolet |
Audi |
References
- ↑ "United SportsCar Racing To Debut In 2014". American Le Mans Series. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
- ↑ "Tudor Named Title Sponsor". Sportscar 365. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 12 September 2013.
- ↑ DiZinno, Tony (8 August 2015). "WeatherTech Named New Title Sponsor of IMSA SportsCar". Sportscar365. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
- ↑ "SME Branding Selected To Develop Identity for GRAND-AM, ALMS Merger". Retrieved 14 March 2013.
- ↑ "ALMS: Continental Named New Spec PC Tire". ALMS Communications. 1 March 2013. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
- ↑ "GRAND-AM, ALMS Announce 2014 Class Structure". Retrieved 14 March 2013.
- ↑ "LOUIS SATTERLEE - 2012 FLORIDA KARTING CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES REVIEW". Karting News Worldwide. 7 July 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
- ↑ "FOX to air United SportsCar Racing". Fox Sports 1. 9 August 2013. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
- ↑ "WeatherTech Joins IMSA In Multiyear Partnership". IMSA. 8 August 2015. Retrieved 9 August 2015.