
Why GTE's future is a conundrum with no easy answers
The convergence between the World Endurance Championship and IMSA over LMDh regulations offers a bright future for sportscar racing, but the imminent demise of IMSA's GT Le Mans class creates wider issues to which no catch-all solution exists
Announced on Friday, IMSA's decision to replace the ailing GT Le Mans category with a new 'GTD Pro' class for GT3 cars came as no surprise. What was once a thriving arena for manufacturer competition is now down to a single full-time works entrant in the form of Corvette following the exits of Ford, Porsche and BMW (except for the Michelin Endurance Cup).
Yes, a third full-time car in the form of WeatherTech Racing's customer Porsche 911 RSR-19 was scrambled to at least prevent Corvette from merely having to race itself outside of the long-distance races, but the situation was clearly untenable. And IMSA deserves credit for taking a proactive approach instead of allowing GTLM to wither completely.
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