Revised Dates for Mid-Ohio, Laguna Seca, Petit Le Mans

Photo: Jake Galstad/IMSA

IMSA has made adjustments to its schedules for the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and Michelin Pilot Challenge seasons, amid an expected resumption of racing in the second half of the year.

Confirmed on Tuesday by the sanctioning body, the Acura Sports Car Grand Prix at Mid-Ohio, which was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, has been rescheduled for Sept. 25-27.

It was initially due to take place on May 1-3 until new protocols from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ruled out the event from occurring as planned.

The originally scheduled penultimate round of the WeatherTech Championship season at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, meanwhile, has been moved up by one week to Sept. 4-6 in order accommodate IMSA competitors taking part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which has been rescheduled for Sept. 19-20.

The revised Mid-Ohio date, however, now comes just one week after Le Mans and directly clashes with the rescheduled Nürburgring 24.

Finally, IMSA also confirmed a date change for the Motul Petit Le Mans, which will be moved back one week to Oct. 14-17.

It has been made to provide teams a “more balanced”  schedule, which sees the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring now conclude the season on Nov. 11-14, as previously announced.

No mention has been made on the Chevrolet Grand Prix of Detroit at Belle Isle, which is apparently still scheduled for May 30 as the next WeatherTech Championship round, despite uncertainty over the Penske Corporation-promoted event amid the State of Michigan’s recent ‘Stay-at-Home’ order.

The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach round, which has been officially canceled, is yet to be rescheduled although it’s understood IMSA is looking at options that include a potential double-header weekend on an existing event.

IMSA President John Doonan is due to speak with competitors this afternoon in a series of conference calls to provide an updated ‘State of the Series’ amid the evolving series of events.

2020 WeatherTech Championship Schedule (as of March 24):
Jan. 22-26 — Rolex 24 at Daytona
May 29-30 — Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix
June 25-28 — Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen
July 3-5 — Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
July 17-18 — Lime Rock Park
July 31 – Aug. 2 — Road America
Aug. 21-23 — Virginia International Raceway
Sept. 4-6 — WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca
Sept. 25-27 — Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Oct. 14-17 — Motul Petit Le Mans
Nov. 11-14 — Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring

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