ITC Launches North American Endurance Challenge

The Intercontinental Trophy Cup (ITC) has announced a brand-new championship, as the Indianapolis-based organization made public at the Performance Racing Industry show (PRI) its plans to launch the North American Endurance Challenge Series (NAECS) in 2014.

Staging races with a three hour endurance format for production-based and tube frame GT cars, the 2014 NAECS championship will feature seven rounds of competition in its debut season.

So long as the entries retain the manufacturer’s silhouette, and utilizes unibody or tube frame platform, any type of GT car will be permitted to compete in the series with any variation of that same manufacturer’s driveline within the last 10 years of the manufacturer’s production date.

“With more than two decades of experience in pro racing, and a proven organization behind me, the timing is right for us to move forward with the NAECS,” said Intercontinental Trophy Cup founder Dougie Livingston.

“This rules package will inspire innovation, but will also keep a conscious mind to the ever rising costs of motorsports. From New Orleans Motorsport Park to Sebring International Raceway, we will be racing at some outstanding venues all year long.

“We will utilize a qualifying structure that will create class placement, giving teams and drivers the chance to build and drive to their fullest potential in both experience and financial capabilities.”

Participating NAECS teams will be broken up into four different groups based on qualifying times and the NAECS will utilize a 108% rule to ensure consistent lap times.

“Our goal is to eliminate disparity between sanctioning rules and allow teams and drivers to experience their full potential while exploring new and creative ways to find speed,” said Livingston.

“The NAECS will enforce safety rules as well as regulations to prevent class manipulation, working to give a wide range of competitive entries the opportunity to race against meaningful competition.”

The NAECS races will run in conjunction with the ITC’s current Spec Porsche Cayman series with each weekend set to feature two separate race events. The wide range of available machinery for the NAECS and the reasonable cost of entry provides the promise of healthy and competitive fields.

To register for the NAECS, please visit www.TrophyCupRacing.com for more information. A complete rules package for the series will be released on January 15.

2014 ITC Schedule:
March 21-23 — New Orleans Motorsports Park
April 11-13 — Homestead-Miami Speedway
May 16-18 — New Jersey Motorsport Park
July 3-5 — Lime Rock Park
September 12-14 — Monticello Motor Club
September 26-28 — Watkins Glen International
October 10-12 — Sebring International Raceway