As the 2017 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship approaches its halfway point with the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on July 2, IMSA once again will play a role in a special event shortly following the season.
Officials from IMSA and Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) today announced that IMSA will return as presenting sponsor of HSR’s 2017 Classic 24 Hour at Daytona, slated for Nov. 11-12 at Daytona International Speedway.
Debuting in 2014, the Classic 24 Hour at Daytona presented by IMSA will feature six groups of historic and vintage sports cars racing on the high banks and challenging turns of Daytona International Speedway’s 3.56-mile road course. The event weekend is set to take place on Nov. 9-12, 2017, with practice, qualifying and Daytona Historics HSR Sprint and Enduro races preceding the Classic 24 Hour, which starts at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, Nov. 11.
IMSA previously served as presenting sponsor for the event in 2015. The race shines a light on many vehicles from throughout IMSA’s own history with Daytona International Speedway, which dates to when some of the race cars featured in HSR’s Classic 24 Hour were the stars of the Rolex 24 At Daytona.
“Our long history is a source of great pride for all of us at IMSA,” said IMSA President Scott Atherton. “Over the years, IMSA races have featured some of the most impressive and recognizable race cars in the world that have left an indelible mark with race fans. It is an honor for IMSA to partner with HSR and lend its support for the Classic 24 Hour at Daytona presented by IMSA and we eagerly anticipate the opportunity to see many of these great race cars on the high banks once again this fall.”
With the alliance, HSR will receive additional marketing support from IMSA’s website, social media channels, and other resources leading up to the event, including “Throwback Thursday” features and other published content about the participating cars.
“It’s truly an honor to have IMSA return to the Classic 24 Hour at Daytona as our presenting sponsor for the third edition of what has quickly become one of the premier events on the international vintage and historic racing calendar,” said David Hinton, HSR president. “The Classic 24 Hour at Daytona presented by IMSA pays tribute to not only the famous 24-hour race at Daytona International Speedway but also celebrates the nearly 50-year history of IMSA. As the current and a past sanctioning body of the 24-hour race at Daytona, IMSA has been at the center of the race’s success and prestige at various important points in its half century of history.”
The returning support of IMSA for the 2017 Classic 24 Hour at Daytona takes on added significance with the legendary machines of the IMSA GTP era, and their international Group C counterparts, having been named the featured run group of this year’s race. The premier sports cars on the planet for the majority of the 1980s through the early 1990s, the GTP/Group C class will have the honor of starting the HSR Classic 24 Hour at Daytona presented by IMSA when the green flag waves at 1 p.m. ET on Nov. 11.
“The third edition of the Classic 24 Hour at Daytona presented by IMSA will have the legendary race cars of the IMSA GTP era and Group C as the featured run group. These amazing GTP machines represent what many considered the last century’s golden era of sports car racing, and we look forward to joining IMSA in paying tribute to the race cars that are such an important part of their history and motorsports DNA.”
