The California 8 Hours was a sports car endurance race held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, United States from 2017 to 2019 as part of the Intercontinental GT Challenge.[1]

California 8 Hours
Intercontinental GT Challenge
VenueWeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca
First race2017
Last race2019
Duration8 Hours
Most wins (driver)Kelvin van der Linde (2)
Most wins (manufacturer)Audi (2)

The inaugural edition was open to GT3 and GT4 cars. TCR Touring Cars were added for 2018.[2]

For the first two years, the California 8 Hours served as the season finale of the Intercontinental GT Challenge. In 2019, the date was brought forward to fill the second race of the season. The event was replaced as the American leg of IGTC by the newly created Indianapolis 8 Hours event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the 2020 Intercontinental GT Challenge.[3]

Over the three editions of the event, it was broadcast in part on television by CBS Sports Network, and streamed live across the internet.[4][5][6]

Winners

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Year Drivers Vehicle Entrant Laps Ref
2017   Pierre Kaffer
  Kelvin van der Linde
  Markus Winkelhock
Audi R8 LMS   Audi Sport Team Magnus 314 [7]
2018   Christopher Haase
  Kelvin van der Linde
  Christopher Mies
Audi R8 LMS   Audi Sport Team Land 306 [8]
2019   Nick Foster
  Miguel Molina
  Tim Slade
Ferrari 488 GT3   HubAuto Corsa 327 [9]

Multiple winners

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By driver

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Wins Driver Years
2   Kelvin van der Linde 2017, 2018

By manufacturer

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Wins Manufacturer Years
2   Audi 2017, 2018

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Karis, Tony. "Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca preps for California 8 Hours, the longest race in track history". Monterey Herald. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  2. ^ James, Richard S. (October 25, 2018). "Double the grid, double the spectacle at California 8 Hours". Racer. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  3. ^ Coch, Mat (26 July 2019). "Indianapolis joins Bathurst on IGTC calendar". Speedcafe. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
  4. ^ Kish, Ryan (March 30, 2019). "California 8H: Pre-Race Notes". DailySportsCar. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  5. ^ "CBS Sports Network to Broadcast California 8H". SportsCar365. September 22, 2017. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  6. ^ "Stream the California 8 Hours live". Racer. October 28, 2018. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  7. ^ "8 h California 2017". Racing Sports Cars. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  8. ^ "California 8 Hours 2018". Racing Sports Cars. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  9. ^ "California 8 Hours 2019". Racing Sports Cars. Retrieved October 22, 2021.