The headline category allows competitors to run for overall wins in the two-driver, 90-minute SprintX format. The series will race on top-tier road circuits throughout North American with six hours of track time per weekend.
The GT3 category also features exclusive media coverage with dedicated TV, live TV broadcasts and real-time live streams for the three classes, as well as the new GT Sports Club America division.
“The SRO has put together a fabulous GT3 platform throughout the world,” said Staci Langham, manager of GT business and team relations for GT World Challenge America. “We have continued that format in North America with some great racing. We expect the same in 2020. One of the biggest additions to the GT3 format this year is the new GT Sports Club class. With older GT3 cars and bronze-rated drivers. We have seen a lot of interest in the new division as well with the new GT2 cars. We are excited for this new division with the GT World Challenge America.”
Currently the most popular class with teams, drivers and manufacturers in the SRO America tour is the unique Pirelli GT4 America with both Sprint (one driver, 50-minute sprint races) and SprintX (two-drivers, 60-minute races with a pit stop required) groups.
Led by multi-time sports car champion Jack Baldwin (GT4 business class manager), the Pirelli GT4 America categories have attracted a variety of strong teams and race-winning competitors. Both the Sprint and SprintX series will host eight race weekends.
Such manufacturers as Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Ford, Ginetta, Maserati, McLaren, Mercedes-AMG, Porsche and SIN Car have battled wheel-to-wheel in both Sprint and SprintX divisions with Pro and Am classes in Sprint and Pro-Am and Am-Am groups in SprintX.
“We have been thrilled with the expansion of the GT4 fields the past few years,” said Gill. “Our class manager, Jack Baldwin, has done an outstanding job of working with the teams and manufacturers to produce some of the best sports car racing in the world. We expect the Sprint and SprintX classes to generate another great year of competition in 2020.”
With SRO America known mostly for exotic and expensive sports cars, the organization’s best competition might be in the very popular TC America (Touring Car) classifications, which features the TCR, TC and TCA classes.
Close to 50 entries are expected in the three TC America divisions. TC business class manager Jim Jordan has revived the Touring Car genre for SRO America by working with the international TCR group, as well as many of auto manufacturers.
In the TCR class (with 350- horsepower front-wheel-drive cars), the likes of Alfa Romeo, Audi, Honda, Hyundai and Volkswagen will compete in the TC America series, while cars from BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Mazda and Nissan will do battle in TC (300-horsepower cars) action.
The smallest (200-horsepower cars) of the TC America classes is the TCA grouping with Honda, Hyundai, Mazda, Mini and Toyota competing.
Despite the smallest displacement in the engine compartment, the TCA class typically has the wildest and most competitive racing in all of the SRO America categories.
“We have concentrated on expanding the TC classes with new machinery from the auto manufacturers,” said Jordan, a longtime auto industry executive. “Bringing in new Touring Cars from Honda, Hyundai, Mazda and others has given our competitors great equipment to campaign in recent years and we expect that trend to continue in 2020 and beyond.
“For the amateur racer who wants to go to the pro level, the TC classes are a perfect entry to that form of racing. You’ll see more people coming into TC America now.”