Anyone who has started in the GT3 pack behind a big field of GTP and LMP2 prototypes knows the chaos of traditional multiclass rolling starts: a single pace car leads the entire combined grid, slower classes rely on an informal gap left by the class leader, and a single overall green flag triggers an accordion pileup before the back of the pack even reaches the final corner.
To eliminate that bottleneck ahead of upcoming endurance events, iRacing has launched a public iTested series to validate its new Multiple Pace Cars multiclass starting procedure under live race conditions.
How Independent Class Pace Cars Work on Track
Running popular IMSA combinations—putting GTP, LMP2, and GT3 machines together at circuits like Watkins Glen—the new system assigns a separate, physical pace car to the front of each individual car class.
Instead of relying on the LMP2 and GT3 polesitters to manually sandbag on the pace lap, each class rolls off the grid behind its own safety car with a calculated, automated time gap.
When the GTP pace car pulls in and the overall leaders take the green, LMP2 and GT3 remain under pace control until their own class safety car clears the pit entry and triggers their dedicated green flag.
Zero iRating Risk and an Exclusive iTested Award
To encourage packed splits during the test window, iRacing configured the iTested sessions so that incident points still count toward your Safety Rating (SR) to keep driving clean, while temporarily exempting the races from affecting your iRating (iR). Drivers who complete a test session also unlock the rare iTested Award badge on their iRacing profile.
