Arrival of LM P3 and modification of qualifications in IMSA in 2021

The traditional State of the Sport, a major conference usually revealing future developments in the major American endurance series, will offer several new features to the championship IMSA for the 2021 campaign.

First of all, it is the arrival of the LM P3 category which is worth noting. The prototypes will be admitted to six races in the coming season and will strengthen a field already made up of DPi, LM P2, GTLM and GTD.

The new generation cars arriving in 2021-2022 will obviously be there afterwards, just like the previous updated models. Note that the categorization of the crews remains subject to evaluation, one with an Am Bronze pilot and a Pro pilot classified Silver or Gold.

The other option would be an Am Bronze or Silver driver under the age of 25 during the 2021 season, as well as a Pro Gold or Silver driver over the age of 25 on the day of the first meeting of the 2021 championship. Platinum drivers are prohibited in LM P3.

In LM P2, a Bronze driver will still be mandatory in the crew, but can now be associated with a maximum of one Platinum driver.

Qualifications and points system changed

The IMSA sporting regulations will also be reviewed and corrected since the qualifying format will be modified for LM P2, LM P3 and GTD. The session will be split into two parts, one per driver, the first being entrusted to the Am driver, with new tires, who will determine the starting position of the car.

After a driver and tire change, the second crew member will perform their qualifying portion for championship points, as the points system will be changed in 2021 and will also reward qualifying.

Indeed, this phase will now bring points for the ranking in 2021, with 35 units awarded to the author of the best time, 32 for the second… up to 30th position. The points at the end of the races will also be changed since the winner will now collect 350 points (ten times more than this season), 320 for the second… and this up to 30th position.

The State of Sport has also revealed a first provisional calendar which you can discover below: