PWC SprintX Championship On Track for 2016 Launch

Photo; EFFORT Racing

While there’s been little talk in recent months, WC Vision officials are still pushing ahead with plans for the launch of the SprintX Championship for next year.

The new standalone series, which will mirror the format of the Blancpain Sprint Series, will be run on select Pirelli World Challenge weekends and be eligible to GT3 machinery, as announced in May.

According to PWC Competition Director Marcus Haselgrove, a formal unveiling of the championship, complete with the 2016 schedule, will be made next month at SEMA.

“SprintX is going ahead,” Haselgrove told Sportscar365. “Details will be released at SEMA, so I can’t say anything right now.

“But I can say the acceptance of that, and the amount of people that want to do it already, it’s definitely a feature for the people that have run multiple car teams before.”

Haselgrove said they’ve received considerable interest in the series, which will feature 60-minute races with mandatory driver and tire changes.

“If you look at who our customers are with the multi-car teams, it’s very attractive for the Pro-Am and Am drivers,” he said. “Talks have gone on in the background for a couple of years now.

“One thing is for sure, SprintX will not have any refueling because that’s the opposite of what we’re trying to do.”

With the series being run to full GT3 specification, teams will be able to use the same cars used in the PWC GT/GT-A classes, although it appears most will be opting to bring an additional car on SprintX weekends.

“That’s up to them,” Haselgrove said. “The car is the same car. I would say the people that have made commitments that want to do this, they are looking at bringing an additional car or cars.”

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