Creventic and WSC have joined forces to hold a long-distance 500-lap endurance race for TCR cars at Spa-Francorchamps later this year.

The TCR Spa 500 will be held on Oct. 4-6 and is a joint effort between Creventic, which already runs a 12-hour race at the Belgian circuit, and WSC, the entity behind the TCR platform.

At a distance of 500 laps, the race is expected to last for over 24 hours, with the winning TCR car at the 12 Hours of Spa last year having completed 221 laps.

A total of 511 laps were completed in the Total 24 Hours of Spa last year, meanwhile, but with the GT3 cars lapping Spa around 15 seconds quicker than TCR cars.

“The growth of the category has been the success story in international motorsport for the past years,” WSC chairman Marcello Lotti commented.

“The idea of an international endurance race, exclusively reserved for TCR cars, is the icing on the cake.”

Creventic’s Gerrie Willems added: “We are proud that we can revive the long heritage of touring car endurance racing at Spa-Francorchamps.”

The race has come after “extensive discussions” with TCR manufacturers which wanted a flagship, high-profile TCR-only endurance race to showcase the category.

A minimum of 40 entries are targeted, and a working group with manufacturers will be created in order for the organizers to work closely with brands.

A brand activation center will be installed inside the paddock, allowing manufacturers to showcase their cars and maximize race-to-road marketing opportunities.