Trans-Am Confirms Schedule For 52nd Season
MIAMI, Fla. – The Trans-Am Race Company has unveiled the Trans-Am Championship presented by Pirelli schedule for its 52nd anniversary season, with the vast majority of the 2017 venues returning.
“The 2018 schedule will once more see Trans-Am visit iconic tracks with partners dedicated to growing and creating accessible, fan-friendly racing,” said John Clagett, president of The Trans-Am Race Company. “We’re proud to continue our partnership with SVRA to that effort, while including showcase weekends at Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Mid-Ohio, Road America, and Watkins Glen.
“At the same time the 2018 schedule was crafted to reduce the time teams spend on the road,” continued Clagett. “We’ve reduced the number of events by two based on competitor feedback, but we’ve also focused on how we cut back the time commitment for each weekend. Our goal is a three-day event wherever possible, including load-in and test day. Over the course of the season, it should save teams over two weeks at the track in comparison to 2017.”
Trans-Am will split the field on two occasions next year to maintain an 11-race championship for all competitors, with the TA2 class heading to Detroit’s Belle Isle Park, June 1-3 for a doubleheader weekend, the 3-Dimensional Services Motor City Showcase and Showdown, at the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear.
Likewise, the TA, TA3 and TA4 classes will tackle the Pittsburgh Int’l Race Complex on Aug. 3-5, while creating a new Trans-Am tradition as the series makes its debut at the circuit.
“We wanted to make this schedule as competitor friendly as possible while retaining our reach and platform,” said Clagett. “Over the course of the year we listened to feedback from our competitors, our stakeholders, and our partners. We took all of that information and used it to guide our decision-making in crafting this schedule. We’re very pleased with the result.”
Trans-Am will offer up two new dates for its annual visits to Road Atlanta and Homestead-Miami Speedway, partnering with the Sportscar Vintage Racing Ass’n at Road Atlanta to create a new weekend March 29-31, while joining with the Formula & Automobile Racing Association (FARA) at Homestead-Miami on April 13-15.
New for next year will be the addition of the Trans-Am Southern and Northern Cups, two regional groupings of Trans-Am competitions designed to reward competitors and teams that tackle certain segments of the Trans-Am schedule but do not undertake a full season commitment. Competitors who undertake a full season will not be eligible.
“We wanted to give competitors who only run a portion of our schedule the opportunity to compete for honors of their own. The Winner’s Circle is typically owned by the teams and drivers running the entire championship,” said Clagett. “We think this new Divisional Program – which is essentially designed for the teams that focus on SCCA Club and Trans-Am races within their geographic region – will re-incentivize competitors than run a partial season, and their participation is important, and ultimately to everyone’s benefit.”
In addition to its national championship, Trans-Am will also hold its Trans-Am West Coast Championship presented by Pirelli for the second consecutive season. To expose that base to the primary championship, the two schedules will hold two events in conjunction— Indianapolis Motor Speedway on June 17 and Circuit of The Americas on Nov. 3.
2018 Trans-Am Championship Schedule
March 2-4 – Sebring Int’l Raceway – Sebring, Fla.
March 29-31 – Road Atlanta – Braselton, Ga.
April 13-15 – Homestead-Miami Speedway – Homestead, Fla.
June 1-3 – Raceway at Belle Isle Park – Detroit, Mich.
June 15-17 – Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course – Indianapolis, Ind.
Aug. 3-5 – Pittsburgh Int’l Race Complex – Wampum, Pa.
Aug. 9-11 – Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course – Lexington, Ohio
Aug. 23-25 – Road America – Elkhart Lake, Wis.
Sept. 7-9 – Watkins Glen Int’l – Watkins Glen, N.Y.
Sept. 21-23 – Virginia Int’l Raceway – Alton, Va.
Nov. 1-3 – Circuit of the Americas – Austin, Texas
Nov. 9-10 – Daytona Int’l Speedway – Daytona Beach, Fla.
2018 Trans-Am West Coast Championship Schedule
April 27-29 – Auto Club Speedway – Fontana, Calif.
June 1-3 – Sonoma Raceway – Sonoma, Calif.
June 15-17 – Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course – Indianapolis, Ind.
July 27-29 – Portland Int’l Raceway – Portland, Ore.
Nov. 1-3 – Circuit of the Americas – Austin, Texas
Source : speedsport.com
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