The FIA GT3 European Championship was a sports car racing series organized by the Stéphane Ratel Organisation (SRO) and regulated by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). It was a championship derived from the international FIA GT1 World Championship, but meant to provide competition for more amateur racers in closer to production cars. The series used extensive performance balancing and handicap weights to make cars more equal.
The Chevrolet Corvette C6.R is a grand tourer racing car built by Pratt & Miller and Chevrolet for competition in endurance racing. It is a replacement for the Corvette C5-R racing car, applying the body style of the new C6 generation Chevrolet Corvette as well as improvements to increase the speed and reliability on the track. Since its debut in 2005, it has continued on from the previous dominance of the C5-R in its racing class with multiple American Le Mans Series championships and race wins in the Le Mans Series, FIA GT Championship, and 24 Hours of Le Mans. There are two main versions of the Corvette C6.R: the GT1 version which has 590 HP, carbon ceramic brakes and aggressive aerodynamics, and the GT2 version which has 470 HP, iron brakes and relatively stock aerodynamics with respect to the road car. By 2012 the C6.R GT1 was retired from competition while the GT2 version continues to race around the world.
The FIA GT1 World Championship was a world championship sports car racing series developed by the SRO Group and regulated by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), held from 2010 to 2012. It featured multiple grand tourer race cars based on production road cars and conforming with the GT1 (2010–2011) and GT3 (2012) regulations competing in one-hour races on multiple continents. All cars were performance balanced with weight and restrictor adjustments to artificially equalise their performance. Championships were awarded each season for drivers and teams.
The 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship was the inaugural FIA GT1 World Championship, a motor racing competition reserved for FIA GT1 cars. The championship was a replacement for the FIA GT Championship which had been held annually from 1997 to 2009. It was the first sports car racing series to be sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) as a World Championship since the demise of the World Sportscar Championship at the end of the 1992 season.
The 2010 RAC Tourist Trophy was an auto race held at the Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire, Great Britain from 30 April–2 May. The event, the second round of the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship season, was among the first to use the revised 5.900 km (3.666 mi) Arena layout of the Silverstone Circuit that was completed in early 2010. The GT1 series was part of the larger Silverstone Supercar 2010 event, sharing the weekend with the FIA GT3 European Championship, GT4 European Cup, and the British Formula 3 Championship. The Championship race also served to award an annual champion for RAC Tourist Trophy, awarded by the Royal Automobile Club.
The 2010 FIA GT1 Paul Ricard round was an auto racing event held at the Paul Ricard HTTT, Le Castellet, France on 2–4 June. The Paul Ricard event was the fourth round of the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship season. The 5.81 km (3.61 mi) circuit had previously been utilized by the FIA as a test circuit for all manufacturers as part of FIA GT1's balance of performance, and was also used by the FIA GT Championship in 2009. Support series for the event include the FIA GT3 European Championship, the GT4 European Cup, and the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo.
The 2010 FIA GT1 Spa-Francorchamps round was an auto racing event held at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Spa, Belgium on 29–31 July. The Spa event was the fifth round of the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship season. The FIA GT1 round was not the feature race of the weekend as it was a support series for the Spa 24 Hours along with the Cooper Tires British F3, and the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo.
The 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season was the second season of the SRO Group's FIA GT1 World Championship, an auto racing series for grand tourer cars complying with Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) GT1 regulations. The championship comprised two titles: GT1 World Champion for Drivers and GT1 World Champion for Teams. Five of the six manufacturers represented in the 2010 championship returned for the second season, however Maserati was not represented and 2010 Teams World Champions Vitaphone Racing Team did not defend their title.
The 2010 FIA GT1 Algarve round was an auto race held at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, Portimão, Portugal on 17–19 September 2010. Serving as the seventh round of the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship season, the FIA GT1 race served as part of the larger Portimão Supercar event and was joined by the FIA GT3 European Championship, GT4 European Cup, and Superleague Formula. The former FIA GT Championship previously raced at the Algarve circuit in 2009.
The 2011 FIA GT3 European Championship season was the sixth season of the FIA GT3 European Championship. The season commenced on May 8 at Algarve and ended on October 16 at Zandvoort. The season featured six double-header rounds, with each race lasting for a duration of 60 minutes. Most of the events were support races to the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Abu Dhabi round was an auto racing event held at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Taking place over 25–26 March 2011, Abu Dhabi was the opening round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It is the second consecutive year that FIA GT1 has opened its season in Abu Dhabi, although the 2011 event will be held on a shorter 4.730 km (2.939 mi) layout of the Yas Marina Circuit. Marc Hennerici is the only returning driver who won during the event last season, while Corvette and Ford both are defending victors. The event is also unique on the FIA GT1 calendar as it is the only one held over a two-day period rather than the normal three; Qualifying is held following Practice on Friday while the Qualifying Race and Championship race are both held on Saturday. The weekend is shared with a trio of local racing series: The UAE Sportscar series, the Cytech UAE GT series, and the Total UAE Touring Cars series.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Zolder round is an auto racing event held at the Circuit Zolder in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium. Taking place over 8–10 April 2011, the Zolder event will be the second round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It is the first time the series has visited Zolder, replacing the previous Belgian round at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, although the FIA GT Championship previously utilized Zolder in 2009. The race weekend is shared with rounds of the Belcar Endurance Championship and the Belgian Touring Car Series.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Sachsenring round is an auto racing event held at the Sachsenring, Saxony, Germany on 13–15 May, and will be the fourth round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It is the FIA GT1 World Championship's first race held at the 3.7 km (2.3 mi) Sachsenring, as the circuit replaces the Nürburgring as the German round for the series. The event will be supported by the German ADAC Masters Weekend, featuring the ADAC GT Masters, ATS Formel 3 Cup, ADAC Formel Masters, and ADAC Procar Series, as well as the German Mini Challenge.
The 2011 RAC Tourist Trophy was an auto racing event held at the Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone, England on 3–5 June, and was the fifth round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It was the FIA GT1 World Championship's second race held at the 5.901 km (3.667 mi) Silverstone, although it is the first international racing series to use the brand new pit complex which was being built at the time of last years race. The event was supported by the FIA GT3 European Championship, GT4 European Cup and Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Navarra round was an auto racing event held at the Circuito de Navarra, Los Arcos, Spain on 1–3 July, and was the sixth round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It was the FIA GT1 World Championship's second race held at the 3.933 km (2.444 mi) Navarra. The event was supported by the FIA GT3 European Championship and MINI Challenge España.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Paul Ricard round is an auto racing event held at the Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet, France on 15–17 July, and was the seventh round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It was the FIA GT1 World Championship's second race held at the 5.842 km (3.630 mi) Paul Ricard. The event was supported by the FIA GT3 European Championship, Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo and British Formula 3 Championship.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Beijing round was an auto racing event held at the Goldenport Park Circuit, Beijing, China on 8–10 September, and was the ninth round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It was the FIA GT1 World Championship's second race held in China, a week after the Ordos round as well as at the 3.30 km (2.05 mi) Goldenport Park. This was a stand-alone event with no support races.
The 2011 FIA GT1 San Luis round was an auto racing event held at the Potrero de los Funes Circuit, San Luis, Argentina on 4–6 November, and was the final round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It was the FIA GT1 World Championship's second race held in Argentina, a week after the 2010 San Luis round at the 6.270 km (3.896 mi) circuit. This event was supported by the TC 2000 Championship, Fiat Linea Competizione and the Argentine Formula Renault Championship.
The 2012 FIA GT1 World Championship was the third and final season of the SRO Group's FIA GT1 World Championship, an auto racing series for grand tourer cars. The 2012 championship, which opened to GT3 Series Grand Touring cars, featured two titles awarded to the highest scoring competitors over the course of the season: the GT1 World Championship for Drivers and the GT1 World Championship for Teams. The series underwent regulation changes in 2012 with GT3 cars replacing the GT1 category vehicles used in the previous two seasons of the World Championship. Hexis AMR, now under the title Hexis Racing, returned as the defending Teams' World Champions, while German drivers Michael Krumm and Lucas Luhr didn't return to the series to defend their Drivers' World Championships.
