Grand-Am welcomes DTM’s U.S. plans, big blow to ALMS
DTM promoter the ITR confirmed on Friday that discussions were taking place with NASCAR – which also owns Grand-Am – about creating a series in America for the next-generation DTM cars. That news followed BMW confirming its participation in the DTM for 2012, which Bledsoe says adds to the appeal of creating a championship in the U.S. to run alongside Grand-Am's endurance races.
"We are proud to forge these new relationships with the many manufacturers choosing to embrace the DTM vision, and we look forward to welcoming these exciting cars to the USA," he said. "With these announcements, we can begin planning with our media partners, racetracks and teams. The addition of a DTM-style sprint race will increase the attraction for our fans."
ITR boss Hans Werner Aufrecht, who revealed the American plans earlier this weekend at Hockenheim, reiterated his satisfaction with how the DTM's future is progressing.
"This is more good news," Aufrecht said. "Internationalization has been our goal, in order to ensure that cars to DTM regulations can be used in more countries all over the world. We have had very constructive talks with the Grand-Am organization and we are very excited with this new partnership." Racer.com
[Editor's Note: With the sophisticated DTM cars now aligned with Grand-Am instead of ALMS, Grand-Am takes all the shine off of the ALMS GT Series, which until now had a superior GT series vs. Grand-Am's.]