COTA to Replace Indianapolis on 2027 IGTC Calendar

Photo: Fabian Lagunas/SRO

Circuit of The Americas will replace Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the 2027 Intercontinental GT Challenge schedule, with the U.S. leg of the globe-trotting GT3 series moving to Texas.

Revealed on Friday during SRO Motorsports Group’s annual press conference, the Texas 8 Hour will serve as the second round of the campaign on May 7-9, following the traditional season-opening Megiuair’s Bathurst 12 Hour in mid February.

COTA will mark the third different venue that has hosted an American IGTC event following WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca (2017-19) and Indianapolis (2020-26), with the change largely due to an upcoming repave of The Brickyard that’s slated to occur in the fall of 2027 or 2028.

With no definitive timeline for the repave, which would prevent SRO from holding the race on its traditional date, series officials elected to proactively move the IGTC round to Austin, which has been SRO America’s most successful event to date.

“We are excited the bring the IGTC series to COTA in 2027,” SRO America President and CEO Greg Gill told Sportscar365. “We have an excellent relationship with the IMS team and their world class facility.

“But with their intention to repave in either 2027 or 2028 we knew we needed a stable home for the IGTC eight-hour race within our North American championship.

“Circuit of The Americas provides the perfect facility for this. So, we look forward to the Texas 8 Hour next year.”

SRO founder and CEO Stephane Ratel added: “Nothing can top Indianapolis in terms of history and we’ve had a wonderful six years with them.

“COTA is comfortably GT World Challenge America’s biggest event but also a modern-classic venue loved by drivers and teams, so it makes perfect sense for the 8 Hour to find a new home there.

“The recent growth of America’s GT3 grid makes this a very exciting addition to the Intercontinental schedule.”

The Nürburgring 24 will take place three weeks later in late May, followed by the 24 Hours of Spa, before ending the season with the Suzuka 1000km in early September, which will combine with SUPER GT GT300 class cars for the first time,  as part of an increased cooperation with GT Association.

SRO served as a sole promoter of the revival of the Suzuka enduro last year, which attracted 33 GT3 cars, but said the addition of GT300 machinery would bring more fans to the event.

Ratel said all cars will be on Pirelli tires, except for full-season SUPER GT GT300 class machinery, both FIA GT3 and nationally homologated, that will be under a new, yet-to-be-announced single tire brand in the domestic Japanese series next year.

The performance of both tires will be assessed simultaneously during dedicated test sessions in Europe and Japan next year before findings are applied to Suzuka’s Balance of Performance.

“Suzuka is also evolving into a race that will truly feature the best of Japan and the rest of the world, just like the 1000km has been in the past,” said Ratel.

“It remains one of Japan’s most historically significant motor races but still has room to grow, especially in terms of spectator attendance, which is now possible thanks to Super GT’s involvement.

“Joining forces also provides an opportunity to push the combined entry towards 50 cars.”

GTA President and CEO Masaaki Bandoh added: “We have great respect for the longstanding partnership we have built with SRO over many years, and we are delighted to take the next step together through the Suzuka 1000km.

“For Super GT and particularly the GT300 class, competing against top GT3 teams from around Japan, Asia and the rest of the world at Suzuka represents a tremendous opportunity to showcase the strength and appeal of our championship on the global stage.”

2027 Intercontinental GT Challenge Schedule:
Feb. 12-15 — Meguiar’s Bathurst 12 Hour
May 7-9 — Texas 8 Hour
May 27-30 — Nürburgring 24
June 24-27 — CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa
Sept. 4-5 — Suzuka 1000km

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