2023 IMSA Calendar

22nd August 2022

Ben Miles

2023 is a big year for a lot of areas of motorsport. For IMSA that is no different, as the reintroduction of the iconic GTP name heralds the arrival of LMDh and LMH machinery in the top class of the US’s flagship sportscar series.

But as everything changes in terms of the cars racing, the tracks they race at will be very similar to the ones they used in 2022. The season reduces by one round and one new race is added to the schedule.

What new tracks will IMSA race on in 2023?

Just the one, and it’s not totally new to the series. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway returned to top level US sportscar racing for the first time since the very first season of the current IMSA championship in 2014. Before that the last top level sportscar race at the Brickyard was Grand-Am in 2012.

In 2023 the “Battle On The Bricks” will be a two-hour-and-forty-minute race held on 17^th September, and the penultimate round of the championship.

What tracks are not returning to IMSA in 2023?

Two tracks drop away from the calendar, Detroit and Mid-Ohio. The latter has been on the calendar since 2018, as well as being a stalwart of sportscar racing in IMSA’s former life, and its rollercoaster of a lap has been a welcome addition. Sadly IMSA has now deemed that its facilities are no longer good enough to host a round.

Detroit’s departure is a little more nuanced. That round is a partnership with the IndyCar Championship, and that race will switch from The Raceway on Belle Isle in order to move back into downtown Detroit. While this is understood to have played a part, the bigger issue facing IMSA is that the round is on the same weekend as the Le Mans 24 Hours test day. This hasn’t been ideal in the past, but with a huge number of LMDh cars now looking to participate in both IMSA and Le Mans, it became difficult to clash.

What races are in the Endurance Cup?

The same four races also form part of the Michelin Endurance Cup, as well as the central IMSA Sportscar Championship. The Rolex 24 at Daytona, The 12 Hours of Sebring, the Six Hours of the Glen at Watkins Glen and Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta.