2008 Rolex Sports Car Series
The 2008 Rolex Sports Car Series season was the ninth season of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16. The 14-race championship for Daytona Prototypes and 13-race championship for Grand Touring cars began January 26, 2008 and concluded on September 20, 2008. New Jersey Motorsports Park replaced Iowa Speedway. At 15 races, it was the longest Rolex Sports Car Series season.
Chip Ganassi Racing drivers Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas won the DP drivers' championship, with Riley and Pontiac won the chassis and engine manufacturers' championships, respectively. In the GT class, Kelly Collins and Paul Edwards won the drivers' championship and brought Pontiac the manufacturers' championship.
Schedule
All 200 or events have a maximum time limit of 2 hours and 45 minutes. 2008 season marked New Jersey Motorsports Park's Rolex Sports Car Series debut.Rnd | Race | Class | Length/Duration | Circuit | Date |
1 | ![]() | DP/GT | 24 Hours | Daytona International Speedway | January 26 January 27 |
2 | ![]() | DP/GT | Homestead-Miami Speedway | March 29 | |
3 | ![]() | DP/GT | Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez | April 19 | |
4 | ![]() | DP/GT | Virginia International Raceway | April 27 | |
5 | ![]() | DP/GT | Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca | May 17 | |
6 | ![]() | GT | Lime Rock Park | May 26 | |
7 | ![]() | DP/GT | 6 Hours | Watkins Glen International | June 7 |
8 | ![]() | DP/GT | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course | June 21 | |
9 | ![]() | DP/GT | Daytona International Speedway | July 3 | |
10 | ![]() | DP/GT | Barber Motorsports Park | July 20 | |
11 | ![]() | DP/GT | Circuit Gilles Villeneuve | August 1 | |
12 | ![]() | DP | Watkins Glen International | August 8 | |
13 | ![]() | DP | Infineon Raceway | August 23 | |
14 | ![]() | DP/GT | New Jersey Motorsports Park | August 31 | |
15 | ![]() | DP/GT | Miller Motorsports Park | September 20 |
Television
- All races will be shown in the United States and Canada on Speed Channel with the exception of the first 90 minutes of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, which will be shown on Fox.
- The Rolex 24 at Daytona will be broadcast in high-definition for the first time ever.
- The series will also be broadcast to Europe, Latin America, and South America by SportKlub and Speed Latin America.
- The ESPN Family of Networks will broadcast one-hour highlight shows to other countries not receiving full broadcasts.
Changes
Rules
- For 2008 all participants will use Pirelli P-Zero racing tires until the end of 2010 season before Pirelli return to Formula One in 2011.
- A driver must now drive at least 30 minutes in a race to receive championship points.
- Safety car pit lane procedure has changed:
- *DP cars pit on first lap after pit lane opens
- *GT cars pit on second lap after pit lane opens
Competition Adjustments
- May 27, 2008:
- *Corvette prep 2 w/ solid axle minimum weight reduced to.
- *Pontiac GTO and GXP.R minimum weight increased to. w/ solid axle or. w/ DP transaxle
- *Pontiac GTO and GXP.R maximum rear weight percentage reduced from 51% to 49%
- June 17, 2008:
- *Porsche 911 minimum ride height decreased from to
Season Results
Rnd | Circuit | DP Winning Team | GT Winning Team |
Rnd | Circuit | DP Winning Drivers | GT Winning Drivers |
1 | Daytona ' | ![]() | ![]() |
1 | Daytona ' | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
2 | Homestead Miami | ![]() | ![]() |
2 | Homestead Miami | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
3 | Hermanos Rodriguez | ![]() | ![]() |
3 | Hermanos Rodriguez | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
4 | Virginia | ![]() | ![]() |
4 | Virginia | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
5 | Laguna Seca | ![]() | ![]() |
5 | Laguna Seca | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
6 | Lime Rock | no race | ![]() |
6 | Lime Rock | no race | ![]() ![]() |
7 | Watkins Glen | ![]() | ![]() |
7 | Watkins Glen | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
8 | Mid-Ohio | ![]() | ![]() |
8 | Mid-Ohio | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
9 | Daytona | ![]() | ![]() |
9 | Daytona | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
10 | Barber | ![]() | ![]() |
10 | Barber | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
11 | Gilles Villeneuve | ![]() | ![]() |
11 | Gilles Villeneuve | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
12 | Watkins Glen | ![]() | no race |
12 | Watkins Glen | ![]() ![]() | no race |
13 | Infineon | ![]() | no race |
13 | Infineon | ![]() ![]() | no race |
14 | New Jersey | ![]() | ![]() |
14 | New Jersey | ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() |
15 | Miller | ![]() | ![]() |
15 | Miller | ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Driver standings
DP
GT
†: Did not complete 30 minutes of driving, and was not awarded points- Tiebreakers: Driver with the highest number of superior finishes is ranked higher
Manufacturer Standings