SCCA Announces 2015 Majors Schedule, Moves to Five Conferences

The calendar for the 2015 SCCA U.S. Majors Tour was recently released, with an announcement that the country will be divided into five Conferences for the 2015 season. The total number of events will remain the same in 2015 despite the Conference expansion, with select events counting for points in two Conferences.
 
The schedule divides what was previously the Eastern Conference into the Northeast Conference and the Southeast Conference, while the Mid-States, Northern and Western Conference remain intact.
 
“We’ve vowed from the beginning to adjust the U.S. Majors Tour to fit the needs of the competitors,” Lisa Noble, SCCA President/CEO, said. “We’ve done that for 2015, making the travel distance for the highly populated East coast manageable yet keeping the number of events the same, supporting our initiative to cluster competition.
 
“Even with the split, the Northeast and Southeast Conferences remain among the largest in competitor population size, and the schedule for the rest of the country is one we consider to be the best in the three years of the Majors Tour. Every effort has been made to accommodate the drivers in each Conference, and hit the tracks that racers have traditionally supported and pointed to as worthy of a Majors event.”
 
The 2015 season opens with back-to-back weekends in the Southeast, beginning with Homestead-Miami Speedway, Jan. 9-11, followed by Sebring International Raceway, Jan. 16-18.
 
The Western Conference opens Jan. 16-18 at Auto Club Speedway, with the Mid-States following in early March with the first dual-Conference event at NOLA Motorsports Park. NOLA will count for points in both the Mid-States and the Southeast Conferences.
 
The Conferences based in the snow belt open later, with the Northeast sharing its opener with the Southeast in a dual event at VIRginia International Raceway in April, and the Northern Conference opening May 2-3 at Blackhawk Farms.
 
Included on the Northern Conference schedule is the 60th running of the WeatherTech Chicago Region June Sprints, June 12-14, at Road America.
 
In addition to NOLA and VIR, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and the new 2.9-mile circuit at Pittsburgh International Race Complex (Northeast and Northern) will be dual-Conference race weekends.
 
Two additional Mid-States Conference events will be added to the schedule at a later date.
 
Conference Championships will continue to count the best eight of 12 races, with points for each race to the scheduled Conference. Dual Conference events will score points for a driver in each Conference, but count only once in the Nationwide points and for participation credit.
 
Series registration for the 2015 season will open on October 15. At that time, drivers will once again be able to renew their 2014 number in one Conference, with new drivers eligible to register for a number and other benefits at this time as well. More information is forthcoming on the Majors Series Registration. More information on the Sports Car Club of America and the U.S. Majors Tour can be found at www.scca.com.
Adam Sinclair