Doonan: “Not Exactly Sure If We Can Continue To Pull Off A Super Sebring”

When the FIA World Endurance Championship first announced its own standalone race at Sebring International Raceway for 2019, there were pockets of apprehension and scepticism within the hardcore sports car racing community.

The 12 Hours of Sebring, sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), had been successful as a stand-alone crown jewel of endurance racing for nearly 70 years. Would the love that thousands of Sebring regulars bring to the 12 Hours carry over to this new event, without taking away from the long-established classic?

The answer so far, at least if this third edition of “Super Sebring” was an indicator, is overwhelmingly positive. The vast expanses of Sebring International Raceway’s infield campgrounds, grandstands, and other viewing areas were filled with invested and enthusiastic spectators from all walks of life during Friday’s WEC 1000 Miles of Sebring, and Saturday’s 12 Hours of Sebring – where new cars from WEC’s upstart Le Mans Hypercar category and IMSA’s brand new LMDh prototype category took centre stage.

IMSA President, John Doonan, is one of the many people in Sebring who has been thrilled with how successful the Super Sebring double-header has been in its third year, the event returning after the WEC didn’t travel stateside for two years as a result of the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

But the future of IMSA and WEC’s combined presence at Sebring is far from certain, according to Doonan. When DSC spoke with the IMSA President on Thursday, he said that at least from his side, he is, “not just exactly sure if we can continue to pull off a Super Sebring, given timing.

“When it comes to events, there’s a lot that comes into play. There are TV schedules,” Doonan continues, “there’s a new announcement that the WEC made relative to their season opener in a different part of the world.”

This is in reference to the new six-year deal between the WEC and Losail International Circuit in Qatar to host not only the opening round of the championship – but also the pre-season “Prologue” test days, beginning in 2024.

“But their schedule is for them to announce, our schedule is for us to announce,” Doonan added.

The WEC’s current deal to host their annual North American round at Sebring ends after this year. It has been known for some time that Roger Penske wants to attract the series to race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the near future. There are also rumours that Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, could also make a shock return to the WEC calendar.

And there are also talks about how “Super Sebring” as we know it could change and evolve. Doonan has always been receptive to the idea of Le Mans Hypercars from the WEC entering the IMSA-sanctioned Sebring 12 Hours, and he didn’t even rule out the possibility of trying again with the 12 Hours being a single, unified IMSA and WEC race – one that would hopefully learn from the mistakes made in 2012.

“I think there’s been a lot of discussion,” Doonan said about the potential evolution of the series’ combined presence at Sebring.

“When Mr. Bill France established an event like the Rolex 24, his vision was the best of the best. And the same goes for this event.”

“The intention of the convergence of these two platforms [Le Mans Hypercar and LMDh] was to allow those types of brands to come over and compete. But in the end, it’s their announcement to make whether they want to come here and put on a performance in front of the North American market.

“I think that’s what all of us and the fans would love to see some day,” added Doonan. “So, certainly, it’s our intent to try to continue to do that.”

Equally invested in what the future holds for “Super Sebring” as we know it is the drivers who competed this weekend. Many of them, with track records of success at this great circuit, have been gushing with praise over the success of the IMSA/WEC joint event.

Antonio Garcia, the senior driver for Corvette Racing and a four-time Sebring 12 Hours class winner, said, “It’s good for the fans to have two races instead of one. The thing I wouldn’t ever change is the 12 Hour race itself.

“I feel I’m lucky enough to be in the ‘main event’, which is for me, still, the 12 Hours. But having the WEC here on the 1000 Miles or eight-hour race on Friday, I think is a plus for all the race fans here. And that’s why you get such big crowds here, [it’s] one of the best races of the year. So I think it can only get bigger and bigger.”

Nick Tandy of Porsche Penske Motorsports and driver of the new Porsche 963 LMDh, shared his views. “I think it’s been such a success – because you see the infields full, everybody’s following the sport online and on TV around the world. It’s still a massive draw of North American and global motorsport, this single weekend – which is something you can’t say a lot of about many different events that go on across the world,” remarked the three-time, back-to-back GT class winner at Sebring.

“If you had the 1000 Miles on one weekend, it would be a massive event. If you had the 12 Hours three months later, it would still be a massive event. But having the two together, it’s not something that happens anywhere else in the world. So it does make it super special.”

“I can obviously see reasons why it’s not great for certain factors within the two series and the sport,” Tandy admitted. “But from a fan perspective – and me looking at it as a fan, from that perspective – we need to look after the people that are watching this race. If there’s nobody watching, then we wouldn’t have a sport.”

And fellow Porsche-Penske driver Matt Campbell, reinforced his team-mate’s sentiments: “It’s very, very cool, having IMSA and WEC on the same weekend, which we never get to see,” said the Australian, who was a class winner in 2021. “It’s an extremely cool weekend. You know, the fans are so special here at Sebring – so I think it’s a really good place to have the doubleheader as well.”

IMSA President Doonan is still committed to working side-by-side with the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), the promoters of the FIA WEC and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with the goal of lifting the sport up together rather than being adversaries.

“There’s no doubt that we have a long-standing relationship with the ACO. We announced that extension a year ago at Le Mans – ten years on to our already strong relationship. Kicking off a platform with a joint set of regulations is another validation of that,” said Doonan. “And we continue to look at ways to grow the sport together.”

One thing that we know for certain is that the 12 Hours of Sebring, in its traditional March calendar slot, is going nowhere. It’s much too important – not just to the sport, but to the entire community of this otherwise quiet lakeside town in central Florida, and it will thrive and survive regardless if it’s a stand-alone main event or part of a doubleheader.

But this past weekend has shown once again that the Sebring circuit and both IMSA and the WEC are capable of delivering a memorable double-header with two major endurance races back-to-back. For many drivers, teams and fans, it would be a real shame if this turned out to be the last edition.