Series officials of the newly renamed-for-2012 FIA World Endurance Championship unveiled both the new logo (LEFT) and the schedule in full Saturday at Zhuhai International Circuit, the final round of the 2011 Intercontinental Le Mans Cup season.
June 16-17's 80th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans highlights the eight-race schedule. It features three new additions from the 2011 ILMC (Brazil, Japan, Bahrain), with one major omission that doubles as a date clash.
Petit Le Mans will not be included in the 2012 WEC, with one of the three new rounds to take place at Bahrain. Both races are set to run the same day of Oct. 20. It's also worth noting the Australian V8 Supercars' Gold Coast 600, an unofficial racing “all-star” event the last several years, is scheduled for the same date.
The only joint round of the WEC with the American Le Mans Series is the opening round of both championships, the 60th running of the 12 Hours of Sebring.
The schedule as announced is below:
2012 World Endurance Championship*
March 17, 2012: Sebring 12 Hours (USA)
May 5, 2012: Spa-Francorchamps 6 Hours (B)
June 3, 2012: Le Mans 24-Hours test day (F)
June 16-17, 2012: 80th Le Mans 24 Hours (F)
August 25, 2012: Silverstone 6 Hours (GB)
September 16, 2012: Sao Paulo 6 Hours (BR)**
September 30, 2012: Mount Fuji 6 Hours (J)
October 20, 2012: Bahrain 6 Hours (BAH)
November 11 or 18, 2012: 6 Hours of TBA (CH)
*Calendar to be validated by FIA
**Race to be confirmed