Lime Rock Returns as Headline Pilot Challenge Round in 2027

Photo: Jake Galstad/IMSA

Lime Rock Park will return to IMSA’s schedule next year, with a headline Michelin Pilot Challenge round confirmed.

Announced on Thursday as part of the 2027 calendars for both the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and Pilot Challenge, the 1.5-mile Connecticut bullring will host a two-hour race, the FCP Euro Northeast Grand Prix on Sept. 23-25.

It will take the place of Pilot Challenge’s traditional visit to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca and will mark the second headline race on its calendar, joining the four-hour contest at Mid-Ohio in June.

IMSA-sanctioned competition has not visited Lime Rock since 2023 when the WeatherTech Championship ran a GT-only race alongside a 1 hour and 40-minute Pilot Challenge TCR contest.

The 2022 edition was the last time the full Pilot Challenge grid was at Lime Rock.

“The loyal fans at Lime Rock Park have been hungry for a return of IMSA competition and we are thrilled to bring it to them in the fall of 2027,” said IMSA President John Doonan.

“This race will give the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge another well-deserved opportunity in the spotlight and will undoubtedly be a highlight of what we expect will be another highly competitive season in 2027.”

VP Racing SportsCar Challenge will join Pilot Challenge on the weekend along with a to-be-announced IMSA-sanctioned single-make series according to Doonan.

The swap of Laguna for the fan-favorite Lime Rock venue is the only change in the Pilot Challenge schedule, with Daytona International Speedway again serving as the season opener and first of two four-hour endurance races on the calendar.

It will be followed by the traditional two-hour round at Sebring International Raceway, and will now see a nearly three-month gap until the third race of the season at Mid-Ohio, due to the omission of Laguna Seca.

With Laguna, nor Long Beach featuring on the 2027 calendar, Pilot Challenge effectively turns into an East Coast series, with no races west of the Mississippi River, which is expected to offer teams further costs savings.

Mid-Ohio will remain the second other four-hour enduro on the calendar.

2027 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Schedule:
Jan. 22-24 — Roar Before Rolex 24
Jan. 28-29 — Daytona International Speedway
March 17-19 — Sebring International Raceway
June 11-13 — Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
June 24-26 — Watkins Glen International
July 9-10 — Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
July 29-31 — Road America
Aug. 20-21 — Virginia International Raceway
Sept. 17-18 — Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Sept. 23-25 — Lime Rock Park
Oct. 6-8 — Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John