By Justin Melillo
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — IMSA, in conjunction with iRacing, the Virtual Competition Organisation (VCO), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Grid Finder, Michelin, and Thrustmaster presents the 2024 IMSA Esports Global Championship. Four high-profile events are scheduled over the course of the next three months for this third iteration of the series.
Forty-eight teams, each car with two drivers sharing the seat, are set to compete amongst two classes of competition for the upcoming season. Eight teams earned entry into the series through the four VCO Grand Slam iRacing Special Events. The other 40 teams were decided upon through Time Attack qualifiers. The first race of the new season is this Sunday at virtual Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
The Cars:
The Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class includes:
- Acura ARX-06 GTP
- BMW M Hybrid V8 GTP
- Cadillac V-Series.R GTP
- Porsche 963 GTP
The Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) class includes:
- BMW M4 GT3
- Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R
- Ferrari 296 GT3
- Ford Mustang GT3
- Lamborghini Huracan EVO GT3
- McLaren 720S GT3 EVO
- Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO
- Porsche 911 GT3 R
All 12 cars will compete using virtual Michelin tires.
Entry List:
Forty-eight full-time teams are due to compete, 16 in the GTP class and the other 32 in GTD. Each of the 12 cars available (four GTP, eight GTD) will be balanced with four teams competing for each. The organizers of the event, through presenting sponsor Michelin, also reserves the ability to award an additional “wild card” entry on a per-round basis.
The Schedule:
Three of the four tracks from the 2023 season return for 2024. Indianapolis Motor Speedway – last on the schedule in 2022 – makes its return, swapping with Watkins Glen, the track that replaced it last year. The season will once again start at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta and end at Daytona International Speedway, the opposite of how it is on the real-world calendar.
- Sunday, Nov. 24: Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta | AMD 240
- Sunday, Dec. 8: Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Thrustmaster 240
- Sunday, Jan. 5: Sebring International Raceway | Grid Finder 240
- Sunday, Jan. 12: Daytona International Speedway | Michelin 240
Each race event will start at 19:00 GMT (2 p.m. ET) and will run for two hours and 40 minutes in length.
Last Season:
The second year of the IMSA Esports Global Championship saw two iRacing Esport powerhouse teams claim respective class titles. In the GTP category, Coanda Esports outlasted teams like Team Redline, Williams Esports, and URANO eSports to claim the title at season’s end, winning it all despite not winning one of the four races. Team Redline was victorious still in the GTD category, winning in the final race at Daytona to cap off the season and defeat their rivals at Apex Racing Team.
In the opening round at Road Atlanta in the 2023 season, the #90 URANO eSports Datagroup team took the GTP class victory while the #101 Mercedes-AMG ART entry took the GTD class.
Track Facts:
Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta is a 2.54-mile, 12-turn course located in Braselton, Georgia, just 35 miles north of Atlanta. Known for hosting many sports car races, including the popular Motul Petit Le Mans – the season finale for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – Road Atlanta is filled with elevation changes, technical sections and can be a challenge to any professional racer. Opened in 1970, the current day Grand Prix circuit layout has been in use since 1998.
IMSA Esports Global Championship AMD 240 | Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta
Each race of the IMSA Esports Global Championship will be broadcast live on IMSA’s and iRacing’s YouTube, Facebook and Twitch social media channels with the Countdown to Green presented by Traxion.GG pre-race show beginning at 1:45 p.m. ET (18:45 GMT).
For more information on the IMSA Esports Global Championship, visit iracing.com/imsa-esports.
For more information about the Virtual Competition Organisation (VCO), visit vco-esports.com.
For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit iracing.com.