IMSA, IndyCar to race at Detroit on separate weekends in 2021
The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will not be part of IndyCar’s Detroit Grand Prix weekend in 2021 but will instead race the Belle Isle track one week earlier.
Officials from IMSA and the Detroit Grand Prix today confirmed that the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will return to the Motor City’s 2.3-mile course on the weekend of June 4-5.
That’s one week earlier than the NTT IndyCar Series’ double-header which has shifted to what used to be the series’ weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, an event now moved to early May.
It will mark the first time in the history of the Detroit Grand Prix that the event will be hosted over the course of two weekends.
“It was unfortunate that we were not able to host the Detroit Grand Prix in 2020 due to COVID-19, but we are so excited to welcome fans back to Belle Isle with not one, but two great weekends of racing and family entertainment,” said Grand Prix chairman Bud Denker. “The first weekend in June will be a sports car celebration with the exotic cars of IMSA.
“We will continue the tradition of the Dual in Detroit IndyCar doubleheader the following weekend as we showcase Belle Isle, along with Detroit and Windsor, to a national audience. While the schedule will expand for next year’s event, it’s important to note that residents who visit Belle Isle Park frequently will have the same access as they have in the past.”
The event will include DPi and LMP2 classes competing for season-long WeatherTech Championship points, along with the GT Daytona class competing for WeatherTech Sprint Cup points.
“As the ‘Automotive Capital of the World,’ Detroit is an extremely important market to all of our automotive partners, so we are naturally thrilled to return in 2021,” said IMSA President John Doonan. “The WeatherTech Championship drivers, teams, manufacturers and partners will have the opportunity to stand in the spotlight as the headline event of the weekend and we know they will deliver an outstanding performance.”
2021 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship schedule
Test. Jan. 22-24, Roar before the 24
1. January 28-31, Rolex 24 at Daytona (DPi, LMP2, LMP3, GTLM, GTD)
2. March 17-20, 12 Hours of Sebring (DPi, LMP2, LMP3, GTLM, GTD)
3. April 16-17, Grand Prix of Long Beach (DPi, GTLM, GTD)
4. April 23-25, WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, (DPi, LMP2, GTLM, GTD)
5. May 14-16, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (DPi, LMP3, GTD)
6. June 4-6, Belle Isle, Detroit (DPi, LMP2, GTD)
7. June 24-27, Sahlens 6 Hours of Watkins Glen (DPi, LMP2, LMP3, GTLM, GTD)
8. July 2-4, Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, (DPi, LMP3, GTLM, GTD)
9. July 16-17, Lime Rock Park (GTLM, GTD)
10. August 6-8, Road America, (DPi, LMP2, LMP3, GTLM, GTD)
11. Aug. 20-22, VIRginia International Raceway (GTLM, GTD)
12. October 6-9, Motul Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, (DPi, LMP2, LMP3, GTLM, GTD)
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