Locations of the circuits scheduled to host a NASCAR Whelen Euro Series race in 2024
The 2024 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series was the sixteenth Racecar Euro Series season, and the twelfth under the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series branding. The season started on 13 April with the Valencia NASCAR Fest at Circuit Ricardo Tormo and finished on 13 October with the EuroNASCAR Finals at Circuit Zolder.
Vittorio Ghirelli was crowned as the 2024 champion after scoring seven wins and a record breaking eleven pole positions, including all seven pole position awards from the seven qualifying sessions.[1] Paul Jouffreau did not defend his EuroNASCAR 2 title after he moved to EuroNASCAR PRO full-time. Jouffreau's first full season in EuroNASCAR PRO saw him took two wins and finish second in the championship. Defending champion Gianmarco Ercoli was third with one race win, ahead of Liam Hezemans who finished fourth after scoring three race wins. Marc Goossens was fifth despite missing the round at Brands Hatch due to a schedule clash.
Martin Doubek became EuroNASCAR 2's first multiple-time champion by finishing sixth in the final race at Zolder.[2] The Czech driver took six wins, the most out of any driver in the division. Patrick Schober, Jouffreau's replacement at RDV Competition, was second after scoring two race wins. Thomas Krasonis and Thomas Toffel took a career-best third and fourth place finish in the standings despite not winning a race. Claudio Remigio Cappelli finished fifth after scoring three race wins in the Playoffs. Jack Davidson and Gil Linster both took a win each at Brands Hatch and Valencia, the former becoming the first British driver to win in EuroNASCAR.[3]
Reigning Teams champion RDV Competition successfully defended their title under the new Endurance Teams format, having taken three round wins in the season. Hendriks Motorsport was second with their #50 team while Marko Stipp Motorsport was third with the #46 team.
Teams and drivers
NASCAR Whelen Euro Series released a provisional 28-car entry list for the teams participating full-time on 2 April 2024.[4]
Pink background denotes drivers that will not score points in the division.
Notes
^ abThe entry is listed as EuroNASCAR Test Team on the entry list and the results, but is otherwise entered by Team FJ.
^ abThe team originally entered the season as The Club Motorsport. They undergo a rebrand before the Vallelunga round and will enter the championship under the Club Motorsport identity from Vallelunga onwards.
Confirmed changes
Drivers
On 30 October 2023, it was announced that reigning EuroNASCAR 2 champion Paul Jouffreau will be stepping up to the EuroNASCAR PRO division for the full season in 2024. Jouffreau competed part-time in EuroNASCAR PRO in 2023, winning two races and finishing ninth in the standings.[11]
On 2 December 2023, Dominique Schaak announced that he will be making his first full-season appearance in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. He is set to compete with Bremotion's #99 Chevrolet Camaro in EuroNASCAR 2, having previously made his series debut with the same team at Oschersleben last year.[58][60]
On 9 December 2023, Thomas Krasonis announced that he will be racing with Marko Stipp Motorsport in both classes for 2024. He raced in EuroNASCAR PRO only during the 2023 season.[34]
On 13 January 2024, it was revealed that Jack Davidson will be switching teams from Marko Stipp Motorsport to his family-owned team Lux Motorsport for the 2024 season. Lux is currently looking for a driver to accompany Davidson as his EuroNASCAR PRO teammate in the No. 21 team.[25]
On 29 January 2024, it was announced that Claudio Remigio Cappelli will be switching teams from Race Art Technology to Academy Motorsport, becoming the new EuroNASCAR 2 driver for Academy's No. 5 team.[43]
On 30 January 2024, CAAL Racing announced that Sven van Laere will be switching teams to the No. 54 Chevrolet Camaro for the 2024 season, replacing Alberto Naska who went on to race in other competitions.[52][53]
On 1 February 2024, reigning Legend Cars Italia champion Simone Giussani was announced to be the new EuroNASCAR 2 driver of Double V Racing for the 2024 season.[50] Giussani will replace Patrick Schober, who is switching teams to RDV Competition.[44][45]
On 3 February 2024, SpeedHouse Racing announced that Florian Richard, who finished runner-up in EuroNASCAR Club Challenge in 2023, will be promoted to EuroNASCAR 2 as the driver of the No. 33 Ford Mustang.[49]
On 14 February 2024, Marko Stipp Motorsport announced the signing of Victor Neumann, who will be making his full-season debut in 2024. Neumann will race the No. 47 Chevrolet Camaro on both EuroNASCAR PRO and EuroNASCAR 2.[35][36]
On 6 March 2024, 3F Racing announced that Ryan Vargas will be competing in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series in 2024. Vargas will be racing in the EuroNASCAR PRO class and is due to be partnered with several "guest drivers" that will be taking part in EuroNASCAR 2.[30][51]
On 9 March 2024, it was announced that Nick Strickler will be racing with Marko Stipp Motorsport for the full 2024 season in both EuroNASCAR PRO and EuroNASCAR 2. Strickler had previously raced with the team in the 2023 season finale round at Circuit Zolder.[37]
On 22 March 2024, Anthony Kumpen revealed to Autosport.be that he will be stepping back his efforts to a part-time season with a second PK Carsport entry in 2024, stating that he will be focusing his efforts on managing his son Henri-Constant's karting career. Kumpen also revealed that Vittorio Ghirelli has been signed as his replacement in the No. 24 team in 2024. Ghirelli had previously raced with PK in the 2019 season.[28]
On 3 April 2024, Bremotion announced the signing of young German talent Julien Rehberg as the EuroNASCAR 2 driver of the No. 77 team. Rehberg competed in the DMV BMW 318ti Cup for the 2023 racing season.[57]
On 4 April 2024, SpeedHouse Racing announced that Dani Briz will be joining the team as the replacement of Florian Richard in the Club Challenge seat of the No. 33 team. They also announced that Andreas Kuchelbacher, the inaugural Club Challenge champion, would also join the team in the division for the 2024 season.[62][63]
On 5 April 2024, it was announced that Patrick Lemarié will be returning to EuroNASCAR after a year of hiatus. Lemarié will continue to race with Academy Motorsport as the driver of the No. 1 Ford Mustang in EuroNASCAR PRO.[6]
On 6 April 2024, it was announced that 17-year old Finnish driver Veeti Rajala is planning to make his debut in the EuroNASCAR 2 division with Granducato Speed.[61]
On 7 April 2024, it was announced that Iran-born Dutchman Reza Sardeha, founder of websites such as ImHalal, Dan.com and Anyone.com, will be making his full-time debut in the series. Sardeha will race the No. 11 Team Bleekemolen car in both EuroNASCAR 2 and EuroNASCAR Club Challenge.[47]
Teams
On 13 January 2024, Lux Motorsport announced that they will be entering NASCAR Whelen Euro Series, fielding the No. 21 Chevrolet Camaro with sponsorship from GT Omega. Lux previously competed in Mini Challenge UK from 2019 to 2022.[25]
Team Bleekemolen will incorporate Race Planet, a driving experience company owned by the Bleekemolen family that has been sponsoring the team since their debut season in 2019, into their entry name. The team will be officially listed as Race Planet Team Bleekemolen for the season. Team Bleekemolen's No. 69 team is also set to be running the Toyota Camry body model instead of the Ford Mustang. In addition, they would also return to a four-car team with the addition of the No. 11 team.[17][4]
Academy Motorsport will run two Ford Mustang-bodied cars for the 2024 season, having used a combination of Ford and EuroNASCAR FJ 2020 bodies since 2021. There were initially plans for the No. 5 team to run the Chevrolet Camaro body, but pre-season testing reveals that both cars are set to race the Mustang body.[43][5]
SpeedHouse Racing will be bringing back the No. 33 team for the 2024 season. The No. 33 team didn't enter a single race in 2023 despite being listed in the season preliminary Entry List. The provisional Entry List for full-time teams would reveal plans for the French team to shut down the No. 40 team and rebrand the No. 64 team into the No. 33 team for 2024. Later on 7 April 2024, it was reported that the No. 64 team would still be running, albeit as a third entry that will not compete full-time.[4][15]
Marko Stipp Motorsport will be expanding into a three-car team with the addition of the No. 47 team for Victor Neumann. United Arab Emirates based investment company AIX Investment Group will sponsor the team for the 2024 season.[35][36][37]
The Club Motorsport's No. 65 team will be rebranded into the No. 43 team for the 2024 season, as revealed in an Instagram post that was made by their scheme designers Giaky Design Racing Graphics.[32]
On 6 March 2024, 3F Racing announced their plan to compete full-time in 2024, having previously taking part in a part-time campaign in 2023.[30][51]
On 22 March 2024, PK Carsport team manager Anthony Kumpen revealed that the team will be expanding into a two-car effort once more with the addition of a currently unnumbered part-time entry for himself.[28]
On 28 March 2024, Bremotion announced their intention to expand into a two-car team with the addition of the No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro for 2024. The second entry will make its debut in the second round at Vallelunga.[40][4]
The announcement of the provisional Entry List for full-time teams on 2 April 2024 revealed the following changes:[4]
Race Art Technology returns to a one-car entry by shutting down the No. 18 team.
CAAL Racing will downscale into a two-car team, retaining just the No. 54 and No. 88 teams while shutting down the No. 56 team.
Team Japan Needs24 is scheduled to make their full-time debut in 2024. The team initially planned to do so in 2023, but they only participated in the season opening round at Valencia while their car was borrowed by technical partner RDV Competition in EuroNASCAR Club Challenge for the season finale at Zolder.
Granducato Speed, an Italian team that took over the assets of Bulgarian Team, joins the series as a debutant.
On 11 September 2024, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series reports that Sven van Laere is retiring from active competition due to medical issues. Luli del Castello, who had previously competed with CAAL Racing in 2022, replaced him for the rest of the season.[55]
On 10 October 2024, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series organizers Team FJ announced that they will be entering a test car during the final round at Circuit Zolder. The car will be raced by Frédéric Gabillon in EuroNASCAR PRO and Arthur Roche in EuroNASCAR 2, but neither driver will be eligible to score championship points.[29]
Schedule
The provisional calendar for the 2024 season was announced on 11 October 2023.[69]
Raceway Venray returns to the schedule after a four-year absence. The 1/2-mile oval is set to host the fourth round of the season on 29–30 June. It was originally announced to be a doubleheader race, but a schedule update in February 2024 revealed that the round will only consist of one race per class similar to the 2019 event.[71][72]
NASCAR GP Italy and NASCAR GP UK swapped dates, with the round at Vallelunga now hosting the second round instead of the third.
EuroNASCAR's Playoffs will be expanded into a two-round format for the first time since 2019. The rounds at Oschersleben and Zolder will host the series' double-points paying rounds. Despite this, the driver's championship retains the system used in the previous three seasons where only the best 8 results from the first 10 races will count towards the final standings alongside all results from the double-points races.
Rule changes
On 31 January 2024, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series announced that the current generation of cars will be receiving a 2024 Evo package that will be put into use starting from the season opening round at Valencia. The Evo package were made to improve drivability and driver comfort, with the following changes being implemented.[73]
The front spindle has been modified to provide a better steering geometry angle.
A new three-point caliper brackets will be introduced to provide a stronger fitting for the brakes.
A new rear spring package is added to improve acceleration and traction on cornering.
A rally-inspired roof scoop made out of carbon fiber and a set of hood louvers will be introduced to improve cooling for both driver and the car. These changes were made to address concerns from series competitors after they encountered problems with excess heat being maintained inside the car during the 2023 NASCAR GP Italy at Vallelunga, which was highly affected by high summer temperatures in Italy.
A speed limiter system will be added to better control speeds on pit lane and during Full Course Yellow situations.
On 11 April 2024, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series announced the following changes to the sporting regulations:[74]
Race control now has the option to increase the race length by the number of laps completed under caution. A time limit will also be introduced, with EuroNASCAR PRO races being capped to 45 minutes + 1 lap while EuroNASCAR 2 races are capped to 40 minutes + 1 lap.
The Teams Championship is rebranded as the Endurance Teams Championship and will now classify teams based on aggregate results. Results in lap count and race time from each entry in all races during the weekend will be added and points will be awarded based on teams that completed the most total laps with the least time possible.
Teams are now guaranteed to do one warm-up lap, two flying laps and one cooldown lap in Superpole. As a result, the session length will now be adjusted based on how quick the participants completed the prerequisite laps.
Points are awarded to drivers and team using the current point system used in NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The driver that gained the most positions in a race will receive 4 bonus championship points. In addition, double points are awarded for the Playoff races.
For the EuroNASCAR PRO and EuroNASCAR 2 driver's championship, only the best 8 results from the first 9 races and the results from the Playoffs at Oschersleben and Zolder will count towards the final standings. For the Club Challenge championships, points are awarded per session and the results listed from each round in the standings are the combined results. For the Teams Championship, all points will be counted with no dropped scores.
EuroNASCAR PRO
(key) Bold - Pole position awarded by fastest qualifying time (in Race 1) or by previous race's fastest lap (in Race 2). Italics - Fastest lap. * – Most laps led. ^ – Most positions gained.
1 – Sebastiaan Bleekemolen and Thomas Toffel worst results were a disqualification, but neither driver can drop the disqualification from their final points count.
2 – Martin Doubek received 9 championship points despite being a non-starter.
3 – Thomas Dombrowski received 10 championship points despite being a non-starter.
4 – Victor Neumann and Thomas Dombrowski received 14 championship points despite being a non-starter.
5 – Martin Doubek and Sebastiaan Bleekemolen received 18 championship points despite being a non-starter.
EuroNASCAR 2
(key) Bold - Pole position awarded by fastest qualifying time (in Race 1) or by previous race's fastest lap (in Race 2). Italics - Fastest lap. * – Most laps led. ^ – Most positions gained.
^ abOnly the best 8 results from the first 9 races and the results from Playoffs were counted towards the Championship. Numbers without parentheses are championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.