The 1,000 Miles of Sebring is a

sports car A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...

race that is held at the

Sebring International Raceway Sebring International Raceway is a road course auto racing facility in the southeastern United States, located near Sebring, Florida. Sebring Raceway is one of the oldest continuously operating race tracks in the U.S., its first race being run i ...

, on the site of the former

Hendricks Army Airfield Hendricks Army Airfield was a World War II United States Army Air Forces base located 6.6 miles east-southeast of Sebring, Florida. History Hendricks Army Airfield is a former United States Army Air Forces base. It was used during World War I ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Air Base, in Sebring,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. It was created for the FIA

World Endurance Championship World Endurance Championship may refer to: * FIA World Endurance Championship, an auto racing series held since 2012 * World Sportscar Championship, an auto racing series which used the title World Endurance Championship from 1981 to 1985 * Endura ...

, and was held for the first time on 15 March 2019 as the sixth round of the

2018–19 FIA World Endurance Championship The 2018–19 FIA World Endurance Championship was the seventh season of the FIA World Endurance Championship, an auto racing series co-organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). T ...

Race History

The FIA/ ACO announced a provisional schedule on 1 September 2017 that shifted the FIA World Endurance Championship calendar from a spring to autumn layout with the

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans (french: link=no, 24 Heures du Mans) is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the town of Le Mans, France. It is the world's oldest active Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance r ...

marque event held in the middle of the championship, and include two runnings of Le Mans. This "super season" of eight races spanned more than a year instead of the usual eight months. The shift allowed the following 2019–20 season to return to a shorter length by starting in the autumn and concluding at Le Mans in the summer. The Provisional Calendar saw a raft of changes, with several races dropped, but included a return to Sebring for the first time since 2012. In the provisional calendar issued, the race was originally planned to be run as a second 12-hour race after the IMSA Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring on the same weekend, and would start at midnight after the conclusion of the IMSA 12 hours. On 21 September 2017, the race became known as the 1,500 Miles of Sebring, to avoid confusion between the 2 events, at the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting in Paris. On 4 April 2018, it was announced that the race would become shortened to 1,000 Miles or 268 laps, have a time limit of 8 Hours, and would take place on 15 March instead, prior to the start of the 12 Hours of Sebring, rather than after the race. A new pit lane, on Ullman Straight before the finishing turn, would also be built for the race. The second race, originally scheduled for 20 March 2020, was cancelled as a result of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. On 11 March, minutes after

Donovan Mitchell Donovan Mitchell Jr. (born September 7, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Spida", he was drafted in the first round of the 2017 NBA draft wi ...

and

Rudy Gobert Rudy Gobert-Bourgarel ( ; born June 26, 1992) is a French professional basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He also represents the French national team in their international competitions. ...

returned a positive coronavirus test, causing the NBA to cancel the Utah Jazz at Oklahoma City Thunder match, the United States Department of State announced a suspension of travel by non-US citizens from Europe to the United States. Many of the drivers and team personnel were in Europe, and thus would be unable to travel to the United States for the race. The next day, the WEC announced the cancellation of the race. The 2020 race was also planned to include a time change in the schedule. Previously, the race had run from 4 p.m. to midnight, with the short duration between the 1,000 Mile race and 12 Hour race causing challenges for track and support personnel as well as drivers competing in both races. The change, which had the 1,000 Mile race scheduled from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m., ensured a 15-hour break between the WEC race and the 12 Hours of Sebring the following day. The race was again not held in 2021 as European restrictions were still in effect.

Winners

References List

External links

Sebring International Raceway Website

FIA WEC
-1000 Miles of Sebring {{Automobile endurance races FIA World Endurance Championship races Endurance motor racing