Racing Starts at HSR's Debut Barber Meeting
The second of three all-new events on the 2019 Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) schedule takes place this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park where HSR makes its venue debut on the pristine 2.38-mile road course with three full days of historic and vintage racing at the HSR Barber Historics, May 17 - 19.
The HSR Barber debut follows March's season-opening HSR Spring Fling, which was an all-new event weekend at Sebring International Raceway. Next month brings the inaugural HSR Ridge Runner Rally, June 23 - 28, an already sold-out road rally for HSR members throughout the Southeast.
This weekend's HSR Barber Historics is the current order of business, however, and is highlighted by a full slate of five feature races. The ample lineup includes two B.R.M. Chronographes Enduro Challenges, Friday's weekend-opening SascoSports International/American Challenge sprint and Sunday's HSR Global GT and HSR Classic RS Cup races.
In addition to the feature races, the HSR Barber Historics is anchored by WeatherTech Sprint races for all run groups in a Saturday/Sunday doubleheader format. The first round of WeatherTech Sprints starts Saturday at 12:20 p.m. CDT with Sunday's final run of races split in two segments at 9:30 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. CDT.
Another highlight is the return of vintage single-seat race cars to the HSR spotlight with Formula Junior as the Featured Run Group of the HSR Barber Historics. Twin Formula Junior feature races will be held as part of the WeatherTech Sprint schedules Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's Formula Junior feature starts at 12:50 p.m. CDT while Sunday's finale kicks-off the day's WeatherTech Sprint races at 9:30 a.m. CDT.
The one-hour B.R.M. Enduro Challenges are home to specific and period-matching groups of race cars. Saturday afternoon's Vintage and GT Classic (GTC) race is scheduled to start at 2:50 p.m. CDT while Sunday's race for Historic, Prototype and GT Modern (GTM) cars kicks-off the final day of competition at the HSR Barber Historics with an 8 a.m. CDT green flag.
A longtime favorite of HSR competitors, the Sasco Sports International/American Challenge is a production-car showcase of big-bore American-made iron racing head-to-head with top sports cars from Europe and beyond. The flat-out sprint has competitors racing for the overall win in addition to top-three honors in the International, American and all-Porsche classes. The first race of the HSR Barber Historics weekend, the Sasco Sports sprint starts Friday at 4:45 p.m. CDT.
The popular HSR Global GT and HSR Classic RS Cup series share the track in a dual-feature sprint race that will bring the curtain down on the inaugural HSR Barber Historics weekend Sunday at 2:15 p.m. CDT.
Global GT is home to a variety of contemporary but recently retired GT racing machines while the Classic RS Cup rekindles the thrill of the original 1970's International Race of Champions (IROC) Porsche series, featuring only Porsche 911 Carrera RS/RSR/IROC and closely related models from that era.
Joining July's 15th Sommet des Légendes at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant in Quebec, Canada, the HSR Barber Historics is the first of 2019's two partner events with the Historic Motor Sports Association (HMSA). The HSR Barber Historics also shares the track this weekend with the Blue Marble Cocktails Radical Cup North America series that adds to the full schedule of on-track action with three feature races of its own.
