The 2024 World Endurance Championship will be contested over eight rounds and features four new venues, beginning with the official prologue in Qatar in February.
Lusail International Circuit (Qatar), Imola (Italy), Circuit of the Americas (United States) and Sao Paulo are new or returning additions to the series as it enters its 12th year.
Named after Qatar’s National Day, the Qatar 1812km race launches the competition into action on March 2. The race at Lusail International Circuit is expected to take no more than 10 hours.
Monza is the noticeable absentee on the 2024 calendar, replaced by the 6 Hours of Imola on April 21. The 6 Hours of Spa -Francorchamps follows as Round 3 on May 11, while the 24 Hours of Le Mans keeps its traditional June slot on the 15th and 16th.
The 6 Hours of Sao Paulo returns to the calendar for the first time since 2014 and will be held on July 14, ahead of ‘Lone Star Le Mans’ at Circuit of the Americas on September 1.
The 6 Hours of Fuji is the penultimate round of the 2024 competition on September 15, with the 8 Hours of Bahrain concluding the season on November 2.
“The 2024 FIA WEC calendar is a mix of traditional motorsport venues and key markets that are important for our manufacturers, key stakeholders and partners,” says Frédéric Lequien, CEO of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
“It is always a challenge finding the right balance, but with four new venues, two of which are completely new to the WEC, as well as four well-established races, we have created a good mix of old and new. Eight races across five different regions will also bring our series to an even greater audience, as well as building momentum throughout the year. Today’s announcement is yet again another indication of WEC’s very bright future.”
The grid in 2024 will also continue to evolve as customer Hypercars continue to be delivered, as well as the likes of Lamborghini, BMW and Alpine entering the category.
The LMP2 class is an unfortunate casualty of the growing grid for the full WEC, however, they will have slots available on the grid for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Henceforth, the World Endurance Championship will now be restricted to Hypercars and LMGT3 machinery.
2024 WEC Calendar
24/25 February | Official Prologue (Qatar) |
2 March | Qatar 1812km |
21 April | 6 Hours of Imola |
11 May | 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps |
15/16 June | 24 Hours of Le Mans |
14 July | 6 Hours of Sao Paulo |
1 September | Lone Star Le Mans |
15 September | 6 Hours of Fuji |
2 November | 8 Hours of Bahrain |
Header Image: Planet F1