IMSA Unveils 2015 TUDOR United Sportscar Championship Schedule
Schedule includes 12 Total Events, 10 Races Per Class
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Aug. 10, 2014) – Building on the strengths of its inaugural TUDOR United SportsCar Championship schedule, the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) today announced an enhanced 12-event calendar for the 2015 TUDOR Championship season.
Each of the four TUDOR Championship classes will compete in 10 races.
The 2015 TUDOR Championship schedule includes one notable addition at the historic Lime Rock Park. The race at the Lakeville, Conn. circuit will be held on Saturday, July 25.
The season opens with the 53rd running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 24-25. The Rolex 24 also kicks off the Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup, which returns in 2015. It continues with the 63rd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh From Florida on March 21, followed by the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on June 28 and the season-ending Petit Le Mans Powered by Mazda on Oct. 3.
Continuing its commitment to include the most iconic and premium road courses in North America, the first TUDOR Championship visit to Lime Rock Park will feature a race for the Prototype Challenge (PC) and GT Daytona (GTD) classes.
“This is simply an outstanding and exciting schedule for sports car racing fans across North America,” said IMSA CEO Ed Bennett. “We wanted to further elevate what was an impressive TUDOR Championship schedule in 2014, and we accomplished that goal with the addition of Lime Rock Park by popular demand.
“Moving to 10 races per class addresses a desire and positive input voiced by many of our competitors. One of the most important components for all of our stakeholders is the fact that all 12 TUDOR Championship races will be televised on FOX Sports.”
Every TUDOR Championship class will compete simultaneously in the four Patrón Endurance Cup events, as well as two additional venues: Road America (Aug. 9) and Circuit of The Americas (Sept. 18).
The class format for 2015 events at Long Beach (April 18), Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca (May 3), Detroit Belle Isle (May 30) and Virginia International Raceway (Aug. 23) go unchanged from 2014. Long Beach will once again feature the Prototype (P) and GT Le Mans (GTLM) classes, while Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca will again include a pair of two-hour races – one for the P and GTLM class and one for PC and GTD.
The P and GTD classes will share the stage in the Motor City, while the unique doubleheader returns at VIR in 2015, featuring the GTLM and GTD classes battling it out in one race and the PC class headlining its own race.
Another notable revision to the 2015 schedule sees the PC class join P and GTLM at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada. PC replaces the GTD class, which competed at the facility this year.
“When we set out to create the inaugural TUDOR Championship schedule we wanted to have a calendar that featured the most iconic endurance races, historic road courses and major market street circuits in North America all on the same schedule,” said IMSA President and COO Scott Atherton. “We have confirmed all of those elements once again on the 2015 schedule, while also adding another noteworthy venue in Lime Rock Park. This is a schedule that we are confident will be embraced by the industry and sports car fans worldwide.”
The first IMSA-sanctioned activity for the 2015 TUDOR Championship will be the annual Roar Before The Rolex 24 test session at Daytona International Speedway on the weekend of Jan. 9-11.
Kansas Speedway and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which hosted TUDOR Championship events this year, will not be on the 2015 schedule.
2015 TUDOR UNITED SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
Date Event Classes
*Jan. 24-25 – Daytona International Speedway (ALL)
*March 21 – Sebring International Raceway (ALL)
April 18 – Long Beach Street Circuit (P/GTLM)
May 3 – Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca (P/GTLM and PC/GTD)
May 30 – Detroit Belle Isle (P/GTD)
*June 28 – Watkins Glen International (ALL)
July 12 – Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (P/PC/GTLM)
July 25 – Lime Rock Park (PC/GTD)
Aug. 9 – Road America (ALL)
Aug. 23 – Virginia International Raceway (PC/GTLM/GTD)
Sept. 19 – Circuit of The Americas (ALL)
*Oct. 3 – Road Atlanta (ALL)
* Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup Event
Sources: IMSA.com