Sprint Challenge Rolls Into 2023 With New Look, Attraction

Porsche Sprint Challenge North America is poised for one of its most successful seasons yet as the program approaches its first event of the year.

The Porsche one-make series returns with its duo of championships – Porsche Sprint Challenge North America by Yokohama (PSCNA) in its third season of competition and Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West by Yokohama (PSCUW) in its second season for teams preferring a West Coast race schedule.

While the series maintains much of its structure going into 2023, it also introduces a handful of new elements to both championships.

Most notably, PSCNA and PSCUW will upgrade from three classes to five this season – 992 GT3 Cup Pro/AM, 992 GT3 Cup Am, 991 GT3 Cup, Cayman GT4 Clubsport Pro/Am and Cayman GT4 Clubsport Am.

For both championships, 992 GT3 Cup entries will compete in respective Porsche models from 2021–2023, with drivers aged 16 to 49 racing in the Pro/Am class and drivers 50 and older in the Am class.

The same structure applies to Cayman GT4 Clubsport entries with respective Porsche models from 2019–2021, albeit with the Pro/Am minimum age requirement set at 15.

The 991 GT3 Cup class is reserved for all competitors driving Porsche 991 GT3 Cup race cars of the 991.2 generation (model years from 2017–2020).

The new-for-2023 championship structure highlights one of the most appealing aspects of this Porsche Motorsport Pyramid series, with drivers having the ability to advance amongst models and classes as their development continues.

Two champions from 2022 – Aiden Kenny and Laura Ely – will do just that this year. After winning last year’s North American Cayman GT4 Clubsport title, Kenny will join the 992 GT3 Cup Pro/Am field, while Ely moves to the 992 GT3 Cup Am field after clinching last year’s 991 GT3 Cup title.

Additionally, multiple drivers are ready to invest in season-long commitments for 2023 after an initial introduction last season.

Zachary Vanier contested only two races in 2022, including one win, in the 991 GT3 Cup class and will join the 992 GT3 Cup Pro/Am field full-time this season.

Former PSCUW competitor Kayden Kelly will do the same after a promising series introduction with just four 991 GT3 Cup starts last year.

In total, more than 40 season-long entries are confirmed across both championships for the upcoming season.

The North American championship will kick off its calendar in less than one month’s time at Sebring International Raceway on March 24–26, while Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch – an exclusive motorsports country club located one hour west of Las Vegas – hosts the first doubleheader weekend for USA West on the 2.76-mile Charleston Peak racetrack, scheduled for April 21–23.

Additionally, both championships will join select events this season featuring some of North America’s premier motorsports series.

IndyCar – which welcomed its first Porsche Sprint Challenge event in 2022 – increases its alliance with the series for three weekends in 2023, starting with PSCNA at Barber Motorsports Park and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, followed by PSCUW at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

While only PSCNA’s GT3 Cup classes will run at Mid-Ohio during the IndyCar weekend, Cayman GT4 Clubsport competitors will get their turn in the spotlight with NASCAR one week later.

After a total of seven event weekends for PSCNA and five for PSCUW, both championships will conclude their seasons at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on October 6–8 during the SRO-sanctioned Indianapolis 8 Hour.

Full calendars for the North American and USA West championships are listed below, and all events will broadcast live on FloRacing.com and the series’ YouTube channel.

Follow along with Porsche Sprint Challenge action throughout the season at www.porschesprint.com, and on social media using the hashtags #PorscheSCNA and #PSCNA for the North American championship and #PorscheSCUW and #PSCUW for USA West.

2023 Porsche Sprint Challenge North America Schedule:
March 24–26: Sebring International Raceway
April 28–30: Barber Motorsports Park (with IndyCar)
June 2–4: Virginia International Raceway
June 30–July 2: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (with IndyCar)*
July 7–9: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (with NASCAR)**
Aug. 11–13: Road America
Aug. 25–27: Circuit of The Americas
Oct. 6–8: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (with SRO)
*GT3 Cup-Only
**Cayman GT4 Clubsport-Only

2023: Porsche Sprint Challenge USA West Schedule:
April 21–23: Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch
June 16–18: Sonoma Raceway
July 14–16: Utah Motorsports Campus
August 25–27: Circuit of The Americas
Sept. 8–10: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca (with IndyCar)
Oct. 6–8: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (with SRO)