2018 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
The 2018 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship was the 48th motor racing championship sanctioned by International Motor Sports Association . It was the fifth season of the United Sportscar Championship and third to be held under the name as the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. It began on 27 January with the 24 Hours of Daytona, and concluded on 13 October with the Petit Le Mans.
Series News
- 2018 was the final season Fox Sports televised the series, NBC Sports Group becomes the series' broadcaster, starting in 2019.
- 2018 was also the final season Continental Tire provided tires for competitors.
Classes
- Prototype
- GT Le Mans
- GT Daytona
Schedule
Race schedule
The 2018 schedule was released on 4 August 2017 and featured twelve rounds.Race | Length | Classes | Circuit | Location | Date | |
1 | Rolex 24 at Daytona | 24 hours | All | Daytona International Speedway | Daytona Beach, Florida | January 27-28 |
2 | Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring | 12 hours | All | Sebring International Raceway | Sebring, Florida | March 17 |
3 | BUBBA Burger Sports Car Grand Prix at Long Beach | 1 hour 40 minutes | P, GTLM | Long Beach Street Circuit | Long Beach, California | April 14 |
4 | Acura Sports Car Challenge at Mid-Ohio | 2 hours 40 minutes | All | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course | Lexington, Ohio | May 6 |
5 | Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix | 1 hour 40 minutes | P, GTD | The Raceway on Belle Isle | Detroit, Michigan | June 2 |
6 | Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen | 6 hours | All | Watkins Glen International | Watkins Glen, New York | July 1 |
7 | Mobil 1 SportsCar Grand Prix | 2 hours 40 minutes | All | Canadian Tire Motorsport Park | Bowmanville, Ontario | July 8 |
8 | Northeast Grand Prix | 2 hours 40 minutes | GTLM, GTD | Lime Rock Park | Lakeville, Connecticut | July 21 |
9 | Continental Tire Road Race Showcase | 2 hours 40 minutes | All | Road America | Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin | August 5 |
10 | Michelin GT Challenge at VIR | 2 hours 40 minutes | GTLM, GTD | Virginia International Raceway | Alton, Virginia | August 19 |
11 | Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix | 2 hours 40 minutes | All | WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca | Monterey, California | September 9 |
12 | Motul Petit Le Mans | 10 hours | All | Road Atlanta | Braselton, Georgia | October 13 |
Calendar changes
- The Circuit of the Americas was removed from the calendar, and replaced by a round at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
- The GTD was removed from Long Beach due to space limitations.
- A non-championship round was held at Sebring in November 2018 with IMSA's 2019 rules for the GTD class, along with LMP3, GS, and TCR classes in the secondary series. This will debut Michelin as the 2019 series specification tire supplier.
Entries
Prototype
The Prototype class is made up of LMP2 cars both in LMP2 trim, with the ACO specification Gibson V8 engine, and in Daytona Prototype International trim, where manufacturers are allowed to use their own engines and bodykits, designed to reflect the automaker's design language. Acura, Mazda, Cadillac, and Nissan will run chassis from the respective constructors featuring manufacturer-specific bodywork and engines.Team | Chassis | Engine | Drivers | Rounds | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 2 | Ryan Dalziel | 1–6, 9, 11–12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 2 | Scott Sharp | 1–6, 9, 11–12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 2 | Olivier Pla | 1–2, 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 2 | Norman Nato | 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 22 | Pipo Derani | All | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 22 | Johannes van Overbeek | 1–6, 9, 11–12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 22 | Nicolas Lapierre | 1–2, 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 22 | Ryan Dalziel | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tequila Patrón ESM | Nissan Onroak DPi | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 | 22 | Timo Bernhard | 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
GT Le MansGT DaytonaRace resultsBold indicates overall winner.
Championship standingsPoints systemsChampionship points are awarded in each class at the finish of each event. Points are awarded based on finishing positions as shown in the chart below.
;Drivers points Points are awarded in each class at the finish of each event. ;Team points Team points are calculated in exactly the same way as driver points, using the point distribution chart. Each car entered is considered its own "team" regardless if it is a single entry or part of a two-car team. ;Manufacturer points There are also a number of manufacturer championships which utilize the same season-long point distribution chart. The manufacturer championships recognized by IMSA are as follows: Each manufacturer receives finishing points for its highest finishing car in each class. The positions of subsequent finishing cars from the same manufacturer are not taken into consideration, and all other manufacturers move up in the order. ;North American Endurance Cup The points system for the North American Endurance Cup is different from the normal points system. Points are awarded on a 5-4-3-2 basis for drivers, teams and manufacturers. The first finishing position at each interval earns five points, four points for second position, three points for third, with two points awarded for fourth and each subsequent finishing position.
At Daytona, points are awarded at six hours, 12 hours, 18 hours and at the finish. At the Sebring, points are awarded at four hours, eight hours and at the finish. At Watkins Glen, points are awarded at three hours and at the finish. At Road Atlanta, points are awarded at four hours, eight hours and at the finish. Like the season-long team championship, North American Endurance Cup team points are awarded for each car and drivers get points in any car that they drive, in which they are entered for points. The manufacturer points go to the highest placed car from that manufacturer, just like the season-long manufacturer championship. For example: in any particular segment manufacturer A finishes 1st and 2nd and manufacturer B finishes 3rd. Manufacturer A only receives first-place points for that segment. Manufacturer B receives the second-place points. Drivers' championshipsPrototypeGT Le MansGT Daytona;Notes:
PrototypeGT Le MansGT Daytona;Notes:
PrototypeGT Le MansGT Daytona |