Sports Car Racing: The Method Behind The Madness, with Justin Di Benedetto
Waterloo (Ontario), April 7th, 2026. - For a first-time viewer, sports car racing can look like cars circling a track for hours on end. IMSA VP Racing Sportscar Challenge driver Justin Di Benedetto proves that there is so much more to racing than the roar of engines. From the multi-class racing aspect, the structure of the race weekends themselves and what goes on behind the visor.
"You're on track for two practice sessions, which make up 40 minutes each. You have a qualifying that's 15 minutes, and then you have two 45-minute races, so cumulatively the weekend. Is only a few hours," Di Benedetto said.
As Justin mentioned, an average race weekend in the IMSA VP Sportscar Challenge is made up of about 3 hours of track time over a 4-day span. With that much space and downtime in between each on-track session to succeed, “you have to love it," Justin says.
“I would have to say it comes down to the competition…. For me that’s the most rewarding thing.”
The competitive aspect of sportscar racing is one of the most enjoyable parts from a viewer perspective. When breaking it down, Justin shows us how the drivers can have some fun with it too. Recounting experiences from his stellar weekend at Daytona International Speedway in the Rolex ROAR before the 24, you can feel Justin’s excitement. (Read More about that race here.)
“I look back at Daytona this last year; you know, we came away with a third place in the first race and second place in the following race. We lost second place in the first race, and it's down to a mistake in turn one in the last lap. But in the race we had, a great battle with the other Porsche."
With all of the chaos that goes on during a typical race, Justin attributes his ability to stay calm under pressure to the art of being present and staying aware of your surroundings. “In many ways you have to manage the traffic," Justin says. Being aware of your own surroundings and staying focused on your race, although difficult, is the key to being successful in multiclass racing such as this.
“You can play some games a little bit for it to work to your advantage, you know. You can kind of slow them up a bit, maybe block the inside, and then maybe you're not compromised or you're compromised less, and then the faster car will go; it'll catch up to the car maybe you're chasing down, slows them down a bit. So there's an ebb and flow of managing the traffic."
Overall, although, yes, to a new viewer, sportscar racing can be difficult to understand, Justin’s experiences give us viewers a look into what goes into the average race weekend, showing us a more human side to racing and that there is a method behind the madness.
Listen to the interview!