Officials from IMSA and the SRO Motorsports Group are set to collaborate on Balance of Performance testing of all FIA GT3 models at Daytona International Speedway in December 2026.
Each year, all GT3 cars undergo testing by SRO at Circuit Paul Ricard in France. During the test sessions, the cars are driven by independent, SRO-nominated professional drivers to establish BoP parameters. The Rolex 24 At Daytona, meanwhile, has averaged more than 35 GT3 cars in the five years since IMSA adopted the formula for the GTD and GTD Pro classes in 2022.
This December, each GT3 manufacturer will be required to supply a car for dedicated test sessions at Daytona International Speedway, which will be instrumental in establishing the BoP for the season-opening 24-hour race in January.
“We traditionally see one of the largest gatherings of GT3 race cars in the world each year in the Rolex 24 At Daytona,” said John Doonan, IMSA President.
“The global importance of this event coupled new car models and with the unique characteristics of the Daytona International Speedway road course layout were key factors into our decision to add this test to our plans for this December.
“We’re looking forward to collaborating with our partners at SRO to administer this test with an eye toward ensuring competitive balance for the 2027 Rolex 24.”
Stéphane Ratel, SRO Motorsports Group Founder and CEO added: “The opportunity to collaborate with IMSA and its Balance of Performance testing at Daytona will prove mutually beneficial to both parties. We want to work closer with IMSA. We started a GT4 series together and now we are helping to work with BoP.
“Sharing the data and experience of our respective technical departments makes perfect sense and is something we are very pleased to be part of.
“I’ve no doubt the similar pre-season testing SRO has conducted for more than 15 years will assist IMSA’s Rolex 24 preparations, but there are also things we can learn and apply to what is an inherently complex process.
“To be clear, SRO will not do the BoP for IMSA, it’s an exchange of information. We are also interested to understand what they are doing with torque sensors.”
Image courtesy of Jack Webster
