This year’s Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta marks the beginning of a significant change in American sports car racing. It’s the last time that the race will be a part of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS), after fifteen years. Starting in 2014, the ALMS and Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car series will be rolled into a single American sports-car racing series, to be called the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.
Have no fear, the Petit Le Mans isn’t going anywhere. The race, traditionally the final race of the season, will remain on the TUDOR Championship calendar. The Petit Le Mans is a 1000-mile race, lasting 394 laps of Road Atlanta or ten hours, whichever comes first.
Fans will be able to catch this year’s historic Petit Le Mans on FOX Sports, as the network’s Sports 2 channel will carry the race from 11-noon on October 19. Pre-race events will comprise much of this coverage, followed by the green flag at 11:30am. Coverage resumes from 2:30 till 6:30, then switches to FOX Sports 1 from 6:30 to 8. The race’s conclusion will appear on Fox Sports 2 starting at 8. Fans who have the FOX Sports Go app on their phones or other devices will be able to catch the entire race live.
On Sunday, October 20, a three-hour highlight reel will be broadcast from 4-7 pm.
The Petit Le Mans started in 1998 as an endurance race modeled after the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and was one of the original events of the ALMS series, so it’s fitting that it will be a part of TUDOR’s first season as well. The event has been popular, if less grueling than the 24-hour original. The 1000-mile format means that the lead cars have almost always managed to finish, barring rain or other full-race delays.
