The 2017 IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge schedule will include the return of endurance races to the 10-race calendar, which was announced today by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) at Road America.
The 2017 Continental Tire Challenge season will open with a four-hour endurance race at Daytona International Speedway on Friday, January 27 as part of the 55th Rolex 24 At Daytona event weekend. Planning is underway for a second four-hour enduro to be held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on Saturday, September 23, during the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix powered by Mazda. Final confirmation is expected in the near future.
The four-hour races will be the first for the series since the 2009 season finale at VIRginia International Raceway, which also was a four-hour race. The remaining eight Continental Tire Challenge events in 2017 all will be two hours in duration. All races will include both the Grand Sport (GS) and Street Tuner (ST) classes.
“We expect that the addition of two endurance races to the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge in 2017 will be welcome news for series competitors and fans,” said IMSA President Scott Atherton. “Next year, we will begin the transition to GT4 technical specifications for the Grand Sport class ahead of full integration in 2018. As a result, we anticipate an intriguing and diverse mix of race cars in both the Grand Sport and Street Tuner classes at all 10 races next season.”
Sebring International Raceway hosts the Continental Tire Challenge for the fourth time on Friday, March 17, followed by Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas, which moves from a fall date into the spring in 2017 for a race on Saturday, May 6.
Rounds 4 and 5 of the Continental Tire Challenge will be the only events on back-to-back weekends in 2017. Watkins Glen International hosts the series on Saturday, July 1, ahead of the lone trek north of the border to Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada and Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Saturday, July 8.
Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Connecticut opens the second half of the season on Saturday, July 22. Road America in Elkhart Lake is next on Saturday, August 5 as part of the Continental Tire Road Race Showcase, with the annual visit to VIRginia International Raceway in Danville, Virginia set for Saturday, August 26.
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca marks the penultimate round of the 2017 season with the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix presented by Mazda on Saturday, September 23 ahead of the season finale at Road Atlanta during the prestigious Petit Le Mans weekend on Friday, October 6.
In addition to the 10-race schedule, IMSA also confirmed participation for the Continental Tire Challenge in the annual season-opening Roar Before The Rolex 24 test at Daytona International Speedway on January 6-8, 2017.
Every Continental Tire Challenge race in 2017 again will be streamed live on IMSA.tv, with tape-delayed television coverage on FOX Sports. The complete television schedule will be released at a later date.
2017 IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge Schedule
Date Venue / Location Duration
Jan. 27 Daytona International Speedway – Daytona Beach, Florida 4 Hours
March 17 Sebring International Raceway – Sebring, Florida 2 Hours
May 6 Circuit of The Americas – Austin, Texas 2 Hours
July 1 Watkins Glen International – Watkins Glen, New York 2 Hours
July 8 Canadian Tire Motorsport Park – Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada 2 Hours
July 22 Lime Rock Park – Lakeville, Connecticut 2 Hours
Aug. 4-6 Road America – Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin 2 Hours
Aug. 26 VIRginia International Raceway – Danville, Virginia 2 Hours
Sept. 23 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca – Monterey, California 4 Hours*
Oct. 6 Road Atlanta – Braselton, Georgia 2 Hours
* – Subject to final confirmation
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.
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