imsa/sports

SEBRING, Florida (March 5, 2024) – Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) returns to Sebring International Raceway this weekend for a record-setting edition of the season-opening HSR Spring Fling, March 8 – 10. A full schedule of HSR vintage and historic endurance and sprint races has attracted a record event entry that is approaching 120 cars, the largest turnout since the Spring Fling was introduced as HSR’s annual opener in 2019.

The three-day HSR event is the largest vintage and historic race to take place at Sebring to date in 2024 and sets the stage for next weekend’s 72nd running of the IMSA Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on the legendary 3.74-mile Sebring International Raceway road course.

Dedicated to historic and vintage motorsport competition, HSR offers a variety of classes and run groups for sports cars and other road racing machines from the last 65 years. The weekend’s packed schedule of events includes four feature races and a full lineup of WeatherTech Sprint races for all run groups in a Saturday/Sunday doubleheader format.

Spring Fling racing action gets underway Friday afternoon with the always popular Sasco Sports International/American Challenge race at 3 p.m. EST. The Sasco Sports sprint features older production-based cars in a competitive mix including big-bore American iron like Camaros, Corvettes and Mustangs racing head-to-head with a variety of sports cars from Europe, including Porsches and BMWs, a Ferrari 308 GTB and a broad collection of British favorites, including Jaguars, an MGB, Lotus Elan, Elva Courier, Morgan 4/4 and a pair of Ginetta G4s. The flat-out Sasco Sports sprint has competitors racing for the overall win in addition to top-three honors in the International, American and Porsche classes.

Immediately following the Sasco Sports opener is the first B.R.M. Endurance Challenge race of the year to close out Friday’s schedule at 3:30 p.m. EST. The one-hour race, which includes a mandatory pit stop, is the first of two B.R.M. Endurance races on the weekend. Friday’s race features the Historic, Prototype and GT Modern (GTM) classes which are open to more modern racing machinery past its contemporary competition years. The race features everything from a 1976 Chevron B36 to a 2005 Audi R8 LMP to a 2012 Honda ARX-03b LMP in addition to several Daytona Prototype and Oreca FLM-09 LMPC cars and a typically strong lineup of Porsche Caymans and 996 and 997 “Cup” cars.

The weekend’s second B.R.M. Endurance race rolls off first thing Sunday morning at 8 a.m. EDT – remember the overnight “spring-ahead” time change – and features older cars in the Vintage and GT Classic (GTC) categories. The classic cars competing in this B.R.M. race include a pair of early 1960s Lotus 23b models, a Morgan 4/4 from the same era and full contingent of 1970s Porsche RSR, IROC and 914 entries that will battle with a 1969 Camaro and more contemporary BMWs that are still over two decades old.

The other event in the weekend’s quartet of HSR feature races is the HSR Global GT sprint that showcases modern but retired GT racing machines. The Global GT race is home to everything from a Oldsmobile Cutlass GT car, Ferrari 360s and a Callaway Corvette that will take on the usual strong entry of Porsche 996, 997 and Caymans as well as newer 991 and 991.2 models.

For detailed information on the HSR Spring Fling, including the competition schedule and entry lists, visit www.HSRRace.com. Please note that this year’s Spring Fling is a non-spectator event due to the extensive pre-race facility preparations and load-in schedule Sebring International Raceway requires to prepare for the 12 Hours of Sebring, which starts Wednesday, March 13.

About HSR: An International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) property, Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) was formed in the mid-1970s with an event at Road Atlanta. There was one goal then and it remains true today: to celebrate the race cars from the past. As a “time machine” of sights and sounds, HSR provides a venue for competitors and spectators alike to share in the wonderful history and excitement created by the cars that competed at race tracks around the world. HSR currently sanctions eight vintage and historic racing events at some of the world’s most renowned race tracks, including Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, Sebring International Raceway, Daytona International Speedway and more. The complete schedule and full event information can be found on HSR’s website at www.HSRRace.com. Look for the HSR Channel on YouTube and follow HSR on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/HSRrace/ and on Twitter and Instagram at @HSR_race.

Photos: HSR/Jessica Johnk