– HSR President John Doonan Presents the First HSR “State of The Sport” Friday Evening at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta to a Large and Enthusiastic Gathering of HSR Members, Competitors and Stakeholders
– Mission Foods Expands HSR Partnership Relationship to Include New Mission GT Challenge for Production-Based and GT Modern (GTM) Cars
– HSR Run Groups Categorized by New and “Era and Genre Descriptive” Series Names to Enhance the Competitor and Race Fan Experience and the History of the Sport
– Vintage Racers for Rescues Powered by Sasco Named Official Charity of HSR
– 2026 Schedule Review, HSR IMSA Classic at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, HSR NASCAR Classic and Peter Auto Collaboration at the Le Mans Classic and the HSR Classic 24 Presented by Mission Foods Welcoming Sixties Endurance and Much More All Discussed and Detailed in a Full and Fun Evening Also Featuring Mission Foods Taco Night
BRASELTON, Georgia (September 26, 2025) – The inaugural Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) “State of the Sport” presentation was held Friday night at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta where HSR President John Doonan welcomed a large and enthusiastic gathering of HSR Members, Competitors and Stakeholders to a short but comprehensive program on HSR’s stability, strong growth and firm focus on the future.
The high-energy evening featured several significant announcements, including the expansion of HSR partner Mission Foods’ support to include the new HSR Mission GT Challenge for production-based and GT Modern (GTM) cars. The Mission GT Challenge, which will feature twin sprint races and an enduro on every HSR race weekend, incorporates HSR’s existing Group 9, Group 10 and Group 11 categories, which will be known going forward as Mission GT Challenge.
The new name is part of another announcement Doonan made that will see all of HSR’s current Run Groups aligned and rebranded with “era and genre descriptive” names to enhance the experience and history of the sport for competitors and race fans alike at HSR events.
Along with Mission GT Challenge (Groups 9/10/11), the new naming conventions include HSR Vintage Cup (Groups 2/3), HSR Legacy Racers (Groups 5/7), HSR Grand Prix Classics (Group 4) and HSR Historic Trophy (Groups 6/8). The new identities align with the current renamed series groupings already in competition, which includes HSR NASCAR Classic presented by Goodyear (Formerly Group 8) and the HSR Prototype Challenge presented by Michelin (Formerly Group 6).
The new additions, specifically through Mission GT Challenge and HSR Prototype Challenge presented by Michelin, bolster HSR’s endurance race offerings, which remain anchored by the long-running HSR B.R.M Chronographes Endurance Challenge series and the new HSR Classic Endurance Championship presented by Mission Foods. This weekend’s HSR Fall Historics at MRRA co-headlines with the inaugural running of HSR Classic Road Atlanta 10 Hour presented by Mission Foods, the third round of this year’s HSR Classic Endurance series. At the same time, the traditional twin B.R.M Chronographes Endurance races are a primary part of the Fall Historics schedule on Saturday morning and early Sunday afternoon.
A highlight of the evening was the announcement that the already paddock-favorite philanthropic cause, Vintage Racers for the Rescue powered by Sasco, has been named the Official Charity of HSR. Robyn Handy and her husband Dave Handy are already among the most recognizable people in the HSR paddock, but that isn’t just because of their successful competition prep shop and racing tire dealership business Sasco Sports. The Handys share a love and passion for animals that is as strong as their connection to motorsports, and they are unified in the belief that all four-legged friends deserve a forever home.
The Handys began fostering hundreds of dogs each year in 2013 and three years later formed Vintage Racers for the Rescue powered by Sasco to further support the cause. The organization became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2019, and today VRR is one of the most actively supported charities in the paddock. Now, with the direct support and networking ability of HSR, the future is even brighter for VRR and the thousands of furry friends they have and will help in the years to come.
Doonan opened the evening with a review of 2025’s success stories and the vast achievements to date, not the least of which is the regular addition of HSR “Family Reunion” socials on every race weekend. The Fall Historics/Classic 10 Hour reunion provided the backdrop for the State of the Sport program Friday evening and included the always popular Taco Night, which features the support of and fine products from Mission Foods.
A recap of the recently announced 2026 HSR schedule review quickly centered on the unprecedented “across the Atlantic” exchange between Peter Auto and HSR that brings 1960’s era classic sports cars to the HSR Daytona Classic 24 Hour presented by Mission Foods and takes HSR’s NASCAR Classic presented by Goodyear series to the Le Mans Classic weekend. The first part of the high-speed exchange will see HSR’s growing NASCAR Classic presented by Goodyear travel to France next Fourth of July as a featured part of the Le Mans Classic weekend. The NASCAR Classic race in France will be the first overseas HSR race in the organization’s nearly 50-year history.
Later in 2026, a special Peter Auto grid of cars from its Sixties’ Endurance series for pre-1963 sports cars and pre-1966 GT cars will step into the American spotlight at the HSR Daytona Classic 24 Hour presented by Mission Foods, November 11 – 15. The occasion offers a wonderful opportunity to admire all icons of the world championship at the time.
The 2026 schedule begins in January with the second annual running of the HSR IMSA Classic, a tribute race introduced this year showcasing the legendary sports cars that have raced in the Rolex 24 At Daytona for more than 60 years. The IMSA Classic takes to the spotlight at the 64th running of the Rolex 24, January 21 – 24, on the 3.56-mile Daytona road course.
All authentic and period-correct sports cars between the years of 1990 and 2010 with a verifiable Rolex 24 history will be eligible to apply for entry in the 2026 HSR IMSA Classic, with the eventual field of 20 determined by a selection committee.
The HSR Fall Historics and HSR Classic Road Atlanta 10 Hour presented by Mission Foods weekend continues through Sunday. Tickets are available at www.
About HSR: Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) is the premier vintage and historic racing series in North America. It was formed in the mid-1970s with an inaugural event at Road Atlanta and became a part of International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) in 2022. There was one goal then and it remains true today: to celebrate and enjoy the racing cars from the past. As a “time machine” of sights and sounds, HSR provides a venue for competitors and spectators alike to share in the wonderful history and excitement created by the cars that competed at race tracks around the world. HSR currently sanctions eight vintage and historic racing events at some of the world’s most renowned race tracks, including Daytona International Speedway, Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, Sebring International Raceway, Watkins Glen International and more. The complete schedule and full event information can be found on HSR’s website at www.HSRRace.com. Look for the HSR Channel on YouTube and follow HSR on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/HSRrace/,on Twitter X @HSR_race and on Instagram @HistoricSportscarRacing.
