The Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Advance Auto Parts will run as scheduled on March 20, 2021. The 69th Annual 12-Hour Classic is scheduled to take the green flag at 10:30 a.m. that day with the best sports car drivers and teams in the world attempting to add a coveted Sebring title to their resumes.
The FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) announced Friday its decision to host its 2021 opening round in Europe given the global pandemic. However, all IMSA series — including the premier WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the Michelin Pilot Challenge and the Porsche Carrera Cup North America — remain on the Sebring schedule. A full track schedule will be released soon, and spectator gates will open on Wednesday, March 17.
The 2021 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Advance Auto Parts will be ExxonMobil‘s 27th year as the primary sponsor of the 12-Hour classis, and it will be Mobil 1‘s 20th anniversary as title sponsor.
With the race moving back to its traditional March date, Sebring International Raceway is set to stage its second Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring race in the span of four months. In November, after many years of trying, Mazda captured its first Sebring title with drivers Jonathon Bomarito, Harry Tincknell and Indianapolis 500 champion Ryan Hunter-Reay combining for the win. For the first time ever, an IMSA championship battle also was settled at Sebring with Ricky Taylor and Helio Castroneves taking top honors. It was the second championship for Taylor (2017), and almost amazingly, the first in any racing series for 25-year veteran and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Castroneves.
A field of nearly 50 cars in five classes is expected for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in March, and large fields are also expected for the Alan Jay Automotive Network 120 IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge race, and the Porsche Carrera Cup North America, which will run two races at Sebring. Sebring fans will have the opportunity to be the first to witness the North American debut of Porsche‘s globally recognized premier single-make series.
In total, race cars representing 18 different manufacturers and more than 30 different models will race at Sebring in March. IMSA racing represents more manufactures and car models than any other form or motorsport in the world, giving fans an opportunity to cheer on their favorite manufacturer and driver in nearly every race.
The 12-Hour Sebring event in November was successful on virtually every front, and similar operations are in place for March activities. While some aspects of the four-day event will not yet be entirely back to normal, the unique nature of the more than 400-acre facility allows fans and competitors alike to enjoy Sebring in a fashion close to what many have experienced since 1952.
“We are grateful to the amazing Sebring fans who attended the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in November for conducting themselves in an orderly and responsible fashion so that we can take the next step in returning Sebring and all of motorsports to normal operations,” said Wayne Estes, Sebring‘s president and general manager. “For most fans and competitors in November it was as if not much had changed at Sebring, and the few inconveniences the pandemic has caused did not eliminate the opportunity to have a typical Sebring good time.
“Certainly, the on-track piece of the weekend has improved, with new teams and driver combinations debuting in 2021. If anything, the competition may be better than ever. The new Porsche Carrera Cup North America series will bring two sprint races to the weekend and the Alan Jay Automotive Network 120 and IMSA Prototype Challenge races are always exciting.”
Tickets Now on sale
Reduced-price-tickets for up to four-days of activities are currently available at www.sebringraceway.com. General admission tickets, car and RV parking as well as reserved trackside RV parking is still available. Fans can take their Sebring experience to the next level by taking advantage of Club Sebring and Celebrity Cruises Luxury Lounge. Each of these VIP options provide unlimited beverages, meals on Friday and Saturday, upgraded parking and both air-conditioned and open-air spaces. Both provide excellent views of the track and have multiple television and timing and scoring monitors.
Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Advance Auto Parts
Twice voted North America‘s No. 1 motorsports event by USA Today (2019 and 2020), the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring is on virtually every driver‘s list of events to win and nearly every fan‘s list to witness in person. Sebring‘s extremely passionate fan base is by itself one of the main attractions of the event, and despite slightly smaller-than-normal crowds, the enthusiasm of Sebring‘s most faithful provide more than enough excitement.
The premier class Daytona Prototype International (DPi) cars have seen much change with drivers, teams, sponsors and manufacturers shifting during the off season. At least one new team has joined the GTLM ranks — the No. 79 WeatherTech Porsche 911-RSR. They will join two Corvette C8.Rs and two BMW M8 GTEs in the top production class. Two additional prototype classes — Le Man Prototype 2 (LMP2) and Le Man Prototype 3 (LMP3) will race as part of the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours, with as many as 10 cars expected in LMP2 and six in LMP3. The GT Daytona (GTD) class will again be the largest in the field with as many as 20 entries. The preliminary entry list or the Rolex 24 At Daytona includes 50 entries, and typically Sebring can expect a similar-sized field.
Alan Jay Automotive Network 120
The Alan Jay Automotive Network 120 for the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series will be a two-hour sprint race featuring a diverse group of cars and drivers including Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, Aston Martin, McLaren and others competing in Grand Sports (GS) and Touring Car (TC) classes.
Porsche Carrera Cup North America
After more than 30 years in the making, the Porsche Carrera Cup North America will make its debut at Sebring with a full field of Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race cars. While Porsche Motorsport North America manages the single-driver series, IMSA acts as the official sanctioning body and as such will manage all inspection and on-track activity of the series.