IMSA President John Doonan says the North American sanctioning body would “proudly welcome” Genesis – Hyundai’s premium brand – to the IMSA WeatherTech GTP category in the future, following the brand’s announcement yesterday that it will join the top class of endurance racing with an LMDh prototype.
“All of us at IMSA are so thrilled that Genesis shared their plans to join the top category of endurance sports car racing,” he said in reaction to the news.
“We’re eagerly anticipating more information from Genesis as details of their program become available, and we will proudly welcome them to the growing Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) category grid across the entire IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
“To add another brand to the ranks of GTP is so special for our sport and most importantly for our fans. The commitment of so many manufacturers to the LMDh technical platform is a strong validation of where sports car racing is positioned and where we continue to head into the future.”
At present Genesis has not shared a firm outline of its LMDh plans, it is “too early” according to the brand to share the car’s development timeline and additional information on where the car will race.
Genesis committing to the ruleset is nevertheless hugely positive news, which has been received positively by a number of key players in both the IMSA and WEC paddocks over the past 24 hours.
Speaking with DSC this morning, Toyota Gazoo Racing team director Rob Leupen said the Japanese manufacturer would relish the potential to compete against it in sportscar racing – as it currently does in the WRC – in the future.
“We have already been competing against Hyundai in WRC, and if they get the spots on the grid, which hopefully they will, then it’s good to have them. They are a company that is technology-driven, which is good, they are a competitor we would be very happy with,” he commented.
“They will need time, like we did when we started against Audi, to get experience. But I am sure they will come with a good chassis and be well prepared.”
Olivier Jansonnie, Peugeot’s technical director, also spoke about the reveal to reporters at Fuji yesterday. Peugeot too views Genesis’ ambition as a positive.
“What you see is huge competition and the level is rising. It’s hard but interesting and challenging for us,” he said.
“It’s good that the championship is still attracting manufacturers and is still attractive in terms of image. The choice we made to be here with Peugeot is shared by other manufacturers, so it’s positive.”
Image courtesy of IMSA
