The provisional schedule for the 2014 FIA World Endurance Championship was announced Friday at Circuit of The Americas.
Featuring the same eight rounds from this year’s globe-trotting sports car series, the season will again kick off at Silverstone in April followed by rounds at Spa, Le Mans, Sao Paulo, Circuit of The Americas, Fuji, Shanghai and Bahrain, which will end two weeks earlier than 2013.
Of note, there are no race date conflicts between the WEC and Tudor United SportsCar Championship for next year, although the USCC round in Detroit falls on the Le Mans Test Day weekend.
Stability is the key word according to series boss Gerard Neveu. The FIA WEC CEO admitted they had talks for a potential event at the Nurburgring or Monza, in place of Spa, but came to an agreement with the famed Belgian circuit for 2014.
“This calendar represents a further step to establishing the brand of the FIA World Endurance Championship in the country’s that we visit,” Neveu said. “It is important for the seven races outside of the 24 Hours of Le Mans to have a stable calendar so the fans know when and where the FIA WEC will be bringing the Spirit of Le Mans to a circuit near them.
“It also represents stability for our teams, sponsors and partners and it will allow us to be able to continue to build on the foundations that have been laid over the past two seasons.”
Additionally, an official pre-season test is scheduled for Paul Ricard on March 28-29. It will be mandatory for at least one car per team entered in the championship.
The schedule is subject to FIA approval, which is expected to come at the next World Council meeting in two weeks’ time.
2014 FIA World Endurance Championship
April 18-20 – Silverstone
May 9-10 – Spa-Francorchamps
June 1 – Le Mans Test Day
June 14-15 – 24 Hours of Le Mans
August 29-31 – Sao Paulo (TBC)
September 19-21 – Circuit of The Americas
October 10-12 – Fuji
October 31-November 1 – Shanghai
November 13-15 – Bahrain