Endurance Truck Race Format: Positive Outcome of Feasibility Study
Following consultations with and requested by ETRA, the promoter of the Goodyear FIA European Truck Racing Championship, the FIA, with the participation of the championship’s official tyre supplier Goodyear, have conducted a successful feasibility study of endurance race formats for truck racing.
A group of FIA experts assessed the steps and technical requirements necessary to run races over longer-durations than the current 30 minutes. The outcome turned out to be positive and proved, that adaptations of the currently used specification of trucks for the needs of endurance formats are minimal.
The study has been conducted due to the fact, that endurance racing shares several similarities with the demands faced by commercial trucks used in the road haulage industry. This includes factors such as fuel efficiency, material longevity and tyre management.
Some of the prestigious venues of endurance racing such as Le Mans or Nürburgring are currently on the Goodyear FIA ETRC calendar, however the endurance format will be an entirely new and separate project.
"The prospect of running a separate long-distance project with our racing trucks is very exciting,” said ETRA managing director Georg Fuchs. “We have confidence in the concept, and we have to explore opportunities and whether there is a demand for such a format.
We all know the prestigious endurance car races, which are a true test for man and machine. To have trucks there would indeed be an incredible spectacle. Subject to the approval of the next FIA World Motorsport Council to continue efforts in this direction, there is still a lot of work to do and many details to be clarified to potentially have race trucks run in a 24-hour event.
We are delighted though that in general this joint project of ETRA and the FIA seems feasible.”
Further details on the potential evolution of truck race formats are to be revealed in due course.
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