IMSA announced Tuesday a shakeup in management that will see former IndyCar and sports car team manager Geoff Carter join the organization and longtime IMSA employee Scot Elkins part ways.
Carter, who had served the last three years as competition director in Pirelli World Challenge, joins IMSA as its new TUDOR United SportsCar Championship Series Manager. He begins his new job on Wednesday.
The motorsports veteran will relocate to IMSA headquarters in Daytona Beach, Fla., and will also serve as a member of IMSA’s newly formed Technical Committee.
The committee also will include IMSA Technical Director Scott Raymond, TUDOR Championship Senior Technical Manager Charlie Cook and Continental Tire Challenge Senior Technical Manager Jeff Mishtawy alongside select members of the IMSA senior management team.
For Carter, the new role will encompass serving the competitor interest in the paddock and bringing those thoughts and insights gleaned back to the office.
“To me, it’s the culmination of 25 years of working my way up the food chain in the racing business,” he told Sportscar365. “It’s been an evolution from a front end mechanic to being a series manager of a top-notch professional sports car series like the TUDOR Championship.”
With the merger process now fully completed and the IMSA brass working diligently to continue the TUDOR Championship’s growth in its second season, Carter said the hardest part of the job is almost entirely out of the way.
“For me the dust has settled in the first year of competition,” he said. “Coming in now occurs as things have settled down, as the AoP is much closer now. It was a tremendous task to merge the two platforms in the Prototype class.
“What really excites me is to get back to the endurance part of my sports car love, to be a part of a series that I’ve enjoyed and loved. You watch these legendary races as a little kid, from the [Rolex] 24, to Sebring which I’ve won before, the Six Hours at the Glen. And now I’m part of it.”
Elkins, who joined the previous incarnation of IMSA in 2008, had also served as COO of the American Le Mans Series.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at IMSA and have many fond memories from the ALMS and TUDOR Championships,” Elkins said. “I will truly miss the day-to-day involvement but the many friendships I have made over the years will continue.
“Perhaps there is an opportunity to continue being involved – it would be an honor to be able to consult on selected projects.
“I still have a lot of passion for IMSA and the many initiatives with which I was involved, but we’ll have to see what develops. It’s been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Elkins was recently appointed Race Director for the Mazda Road to Indy Pro Mazda and USF2000 series and is expected to take on other motorsports-related projects as part of his new consulting firm.
His role within IMSA will be replaced by a newly established technical committee, consisting of Scott Raymond, Charlie Cook, Jeff Mishtawy and newly appointed TUDOR Championship Series Manager Geoff Carter.
“Scot has been an extremely valuable member of the IMSA management team for many years,” said IMSA President and COO Scott Atherton. “He gets and deserves credit for a long list of accomplishments and successes – from the ALMS and most recently the TUDOR Championship.
“He has elected to pursue other interests within the motorsports industry and we wish him well in his new endeavors.”
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