Chevrolet Grand Prix

The Chevrolet Grand Prix is an annual IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race held every July at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada. The race originated in 1975 and is currently a two hour and forty minute race in order to fit the event into a television-friendly package. Previous editions of the Grand Prix were part of the World Sportscar Championship, the American Le Mans Series and the IMSA GT Championship.

History

In 1961 the first international professional sportscar races at Mosport Park took place with the inaugural Players 200 in June won by Stirling Moss and the first Canadian Grand Prix won by Peter Ryan in September as part of the Canadian Sportscar Championship. In 1966 the Grand Prix became part of the inaugural Can-Am Series season before becoming a Formula One Grand Prix in 1967. The Mosport Can-Am races continued to be part of the Can-Am series through to its demise in 1986 with the track hosting more Can-Am races than any other facility.

In 1975, the International Motor Sports Association sportscars visited the track for the first time when it’s Camel GT Challenge raced during the Labatt's Blue 5000 Weekend sharing the weekend schedule with the SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship. The inaugural 100 mile IMSA race was won by Hurley Haywood in a Porsche 911 classic, Porsche Carrera.

The race was included as part of the World Sports Car Championship on six occasions, for the first time in 1976 World Sportscar Championship season, 1976 and for the final time as the 1985 1000 km of Mosport, 1985 Mosport 1000 which also marked the final FIA List of FIA events, World Championship event to be held at the facility.

From 1989 through 1992, IMSA returned to headline GT only races in May and June for their GTO and GTU classes. With the launch of the new World Sports Cars category in 1995, Sports prototype, prototypes returned to the track for the first time in a decade for the Chrysler Mosport 500.

In August of 1999 Grand Prix of Mosport, 1999, the American Le Mans Series made its first appearance at the track as the new headline IMSA sanctioned series for the renamed Grand Prix of Mosport weekend.

The series reintroduced factory backed Le Mans Prototype, prototypes designed for the high speeds of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Prototypes from Audi R8 (LMP), Audi, BMW V12 LMR, BMW, Cadillac Northstar LMP, Cadillac, Panoz LMP-1 Roadster-S, Panoz, Porsche RS Spyder, Porsche and Acura ARX-01, Acura led to the highest speeds ever recorded at the track. The 2008 Grand Prix of Mosport included the fastest ever lap at the circuit taken by Rinaldo Capello during qualifying in an Audi R10 TDI with a time of 1:04.094.

Mosport was one of List of American Le Mans Series circuits, four tracks that would appear on the American Le Mans Series schedule every year for the next fifteen years of the series existence.

In 2014 SportsCar Grand Prix, 2014, the Grand Prix continued as part of the new IMSA SportsCar Championship, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship following the merger of the American Le Mans Series and the Grand-Am Road Racing, Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series.

In 2020 and 2021, the Grand Prix was not held for the first time in a quarter of a century due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Covid-19 pandemic.

Winners

See also

*Chevrolet Silverado 250
*Clarington 200, Mosport 200
*Mosport Can-Am
*Mosport Trans-Am
*Canadian Grand Prix
*1967 Canadian motorcycle Grand Prix, Canadian Motorcycle Grand Prix
*Honda Indy Toronto, Telegraph Trophy 200 / Molson Diamond Indy

References

External links

United SportsCar Championship official siteUltimate Racing History Mosport archive

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Grand Prix of Mosport,
Sports car races
Sport in Ontario
Clarington
Auto races in Canada
1975 establishments in Ontario
Recurring sporting events established in 1975
Tourist attractions in the Regional Municipality of Durham