DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Anticipation and excitement are already building for the 2026 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship leading into the final sanctioned on-track activity of 2025.
The three-day IMSA-sanctioned test at Daytona International Speedway from November 14-16 will give a first glimpse at the 2026 WeatherTech Championship field.
The two prototype classes and two GT classes get two days apiece, with an overlap on Saturday, November 15 where all cars run. Friday features two Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) and Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) sessions apiece, with Sunday running two Grand Touring Daytona Pro (GTD PRO) and Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) sessions each.
Thirty-eight cars (11 GTP, 10 LMP2, 9 GTD PRO, 8 GTD) are entered for the test, which is not mandatory for 2026 Rolex 24 At Daytona and Roar Before the Rolex 24 participants.
Grand Touring Prototype
All 11 GTP cars entered for the full WeatherTech Championship season are in attendance for this test. That includes three Porsche 963 cars (two from Porsche Penske Motorsport, one from JDC-Miller MotorSports), three Cadillac V-Series.Rs (two from Wayne Taylor Racing, one from Cadillac Whelen), two Acura ARX-06s from Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb-Agajanian, two BMW M Hybrid V8s from new team BMW M Team WRT and a single Aston Martin Valkyrie from Aston Martin THOR Team.
Some of the extra names anticipated or potentially due to test next week include Connor Zilisch and Colton Herta in the No. 31 Whelen and 40 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac V-Series.Rs, Scott McLaughlin and Josef Newgarden across the two Nos. 6 and 7 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963s, and some of the previously announced Michelin Endurance Cup drivers for Acura Meyer Shank Racing in the Nos. 60 and 93 Acura ARX-06 cars (Scott Dixon, A.J. Allmendinger, Alex Palou and Kakunoshin “Kaku” Ohta).
BMW M Team WRT has a number of familiar BMW drivers split across its two cars, including three of four IMSA full-season drivers from 2025 and additional endurance extras Kevin Magnussen, Robin Frijns and Rene Rast.
Of note, several GTP manufacturers intend to run evo updates – or “jokers” – at this test as permitted by the regulations for manufacturers to make several updates over the lifespan of the cars. It is at the manufacturer’s discretion what to publicly identify.
Le Mans Prototype 2
Ten of the 12 full-season WeatherTech Championship LMP2 cars will make the trip to Daytona for this test, with Era Motorsport and Team Tonis the only two not present. United Autosports USA has a refreshed lineup in its No. 2 ORECA LMP2 07, and new entrants Bryan Herta Autosport with PR1/Mathiasen also have a new-look lineup in its No. 52 ORECA. Intersport Racing, the other new team, is also set to test.
Grand Touring Daytona Pro
There are four new things on display in GTD PRO among the nine cars entered.
First up is the one new car debuting at this test, Pfaff Motorsports’ No. 9 Lamborghini Temerario GT3. The Steve Bortolotti-led team will work on the testing and development of the new car, slated to replace the Huracán GT3 Evo2 starting at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.
Next up is Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing being entered to test the No. 59 RLL Team McLaren McLaren 720S GT3 EVO, as RLL’s 17-year relationship with BMW ended after the 2025 Motul Petit Le Mans.
Also new is Winward Racing’s trip into GTD PRO for the first time with the team’s second Mercedes-AMG GT3, the No. 48 car, joining its championship-winning No. 57 GTD entry.
Fourth but not to be overlooked is Manthey’s entry into the class with its No. 911 Porsche 911 GT3 R, one of several anticipated 992.2 models to bring Porsche’s latest GT3 evolution into play.
Beyond those four new elements, two Ford Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3s and single cars from Paul Miller Racing (No. 1 BMW M4 GT3 EVO), Vasser Sullivan Racing (No. 14 Lexus RC F GT3) and 75 Express (No. 75 Mercedes-AMG GT3) complete the runners.
Grand Touring Daytona
Just eight cars are on tap to test in GTD, far fewer than the 14 full-season and 19 announced for the Michelin Endurance Cup. Of those eight cars, they’re represented by seven manufacturers with two Porsches running alongside a single Lexus, Ford, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Lamborghini and Mercedes-AMG apiece.
There are three new items to watch for beyond what’s already been referenced in GTD PRO. The first is an Evo package debuting on the No. 21 Af Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO, an update for the Michelin Endurance Cup-winning GTD entry in 2025.
Second is the debut of the Myers Riley Motorsports No. 16 Ford Mustang GT3 for its first running.
Third is RS1’s new Porsche 911 GT3 R (992), the No. 28 entry for the team that won this year’s Michelin Pilot Challenge Grand Sport (GS) title.
