Grand-Am announces 2009 schedule
The 2009 schedule will feature 13 weekends of competition, all of them combined events for the Daytona Prototype and GT classes. The Rolex Series will return to all of its 2008 venues with the exception of Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. The series will feature three endurance races in addition to 10 sprint events of approximately 250 miles. Once again, the Rolex Series will run twice with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
The season will begin and end in Florida. The 10th season of Grand-Am Road Racing competition gets underway Jan. 24-25 at Daytona International Speedway with the 47th running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, America's Race of Champions. The Rolex Series champions will be crowned Oct. 10 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, in a weekend also feature the final event of the IndyCar Series.
Competitors will return once again to Mexico City, where the Rolex Series will run as the feature event at historic Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. The date is yet to be determined, with the distance tentatively set at 1,000 kilometers or six hours.
The other major alterations to the schedule are moving the New Jersey Motorsports Park event from Labor Day to May 3, and changing the race at Miller Motorsports Park from seven hours to 250 miles.
Following the Mexico City race, the Rolex Series returns to Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Va., for the April 26 Bosch 250, then travels to Millville, N.J. for the May 3 Supercar Life 250 at Thunderbolt Raceway in the only back-to-back weekends on the schedule.
The series travels to Monterey, Calif., for the May 17 event at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen will be Saturday, June 6, at Watkins Glen International, and will be followed by the June 20 EMCO Gears Classic at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
The Rolex Series will share Daytona International Speedway with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Thursday, July 3, with the Brumos Porsche 250 running under the lights. The seventh annual Porsche 250 presented by Bradley Arant will be held July 19 at Barber Motorsports Park, and will be followed by another combination race with the Sprint Cup Series, the Saturday, Aug. 8, race at Watkins Glen International.
The Rolex Series competes in its second international event of the season Aug. 30 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal. It then races Sept. 20 at Miller Motorsports Park near Salt Lake City, Utah, prior to ending the campaign in metropolitan Miami.
Grand-Am will announce its television package to televise all of its 2009 races in the near future.
Date Track Location Distance
Jan. 24-25 Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, Fla. 24 hours
TBD Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez Mexico City, Mexico 1000 kilometers
April 26 Virginia International Raceway Alton, Va. 250 miles
May 3 New Jersey Motorsports Park Millville, N.J. 250 miles
May 17 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Monterey, Calif. 250 miles
June 6 Watkins Glen International Watkins Glen, N.Y. 6 hours
June 20 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Lexington, Ohio 250 miles
July 3 Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, Fla. 250 miles
July 19 Barber Motorsports Park Leeds, Ala. 250 miles
Aug. 8 Watkins Glen International Watkins Glen, N.Y. 200 miles
Aug. 30 Circuit Gilles Villeneuve Montreal, Quebec 250 miles
Sept. 20 Miller Motorsports Park Tooele, Utah 250 miles
Oct. 10 Homestead-Miami Speedway Homestead, Fla. 250 miles