Photo: Brian Cleary/SRO
SRO America has outlined plans to hold a Pirelli GT4 America endurance race that’s earmarked for the Circuit of The Americas event in 2024.
The two-driver sprint series, consisting of dual 60-minute races over each weekend, is set to feature its first-ever long-distance race as a points-paying round next year.
The race length, among other elements, have yet to be determined according to SRO America President and CEO Greg Gill.
“About a year ago we [started] talking about it,” he told Sportscar365. “We talked about it with Sebring, that we’d be coming up with something there that would work on a festival concept.
“We’ve had discussions over the last 12 months. We want to get more serious about it because the teams have been mentioning it.
“So we’ve been surveying the entire paddock and ask what their interests are.
“We see a majority of people that want to do it. When we gave them venue choices, COTA was a predominant one and they liked the idea of what we do with the [Indianapolis] 8 Hour, finishing into the evening.
“It would be something special and a way to continue to grow GT4.”
While already attracting 30-plus car grids on each weekend, Gill believes the addition of an endurance race would add to GT4 America’s strong profile.
“We’ve got good input from the teams and we have some great sporting regulation information from what we’re doing successfully in British GT in that class and some areas,” he explained.
“We’re going to see what works for our teams to bring that information back to them.
“I believe no later than the Indy 8 Hour [in October], hopefully sooner than that, we’ll be able to share with the whole paddock of what it will look like for next year.”
Gill wouldn’t be drawn to the exact race length, which is understood to still be under discussion.
“We have several [options],” he said. “We’re going to work out what’s going to be best for the teams at this point in time.”
When asked if it would be longer than two hours and shorter than six, Gill said: “I think you’ll see a reasonable amount of time.”
Flying Lizard Motorsports program manager Darren Law believes a three-hour race would serve as a good fit.
“The only thing we have to be careful about is that it’s going to add some cost,” Law told Sportscar365. “You’ve got more fuel, you’ve got the rigs, more tires, more crew.
“We need to be careful that we don’t have too much of that and keep the costs in a reasonable spot.”
Law, however, said he thinks the concept of a GT4 enduro would be a “fun thing” for competitors in the series.
“I’m not opposed to it,” he said. “I think the drivers are in favor of it.
“The issue for me is the fueling and things like that. How are they going to handle it? I believe they’re going to require — I don’t know for sure — refueling rigs.
“We’re in a good position because we already run them. But I don’t know if that’s going to catch anyone out or not.
“As long as it’s thought out and planned properly, then I think it would be a fun thing.”
The Heart of Racing team principal Ian James, meanwhile, is taking a wait-and-see approach.
“I’ll hold judgement until I know the format and fueling and what’s going on with all that stuff,” James told Sportscar365.
“We’re OK because we have all that equipment but I’m sure there’s a lot of teams that don’t.
“I like the longer races. It’s a good chance for GT4 to have the opportunity to do that. If it’s structured right, then I’m all for it.”
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