The World Sportscar Championship was the world series run for sports car racing by the FIA from 1953 to 1992. The championship evolved from a small collection of the most important sportscar, endurance, and road racing events in Europe and North America with dozens of gentleman drivers at the grid, to a professional racing series where the world's largest automakers spent millions of dollars per year. The official name of the series changed throughout the years, however it has generally been known as the World Sportscar Championship from its inception in 1953. The World Sportscar Championship was, with the Formula One World Championship, one of the two major world championships in circuit motor racing. In 2012 the World Sportscar Championship was revived and renamed as the World Endurance Championship. Races The most famous event was the 24 Hours of Le Mans which was the part of the championship in every season except of the 1956, 1975–79 and 1989–90 seasons. The 24 Hours of Daytona followed near-continuous inclusion on the World Sportscar Championship. In 1982, the race was dropped as the series attempted to cut costs by both keeping teams in Europe and running shorter race. Among others, the following races also counted towards the championships in certain years: Mille Miglia 1953–57 1000 km Nürburgring 1953– RAC Tourist Trophy 1953–64 12 Hours of Sebring 1953– Carrera Panamericana 1953–54 Targa Florio 1955–73 1000 km Monza 1963–2008 1000 km Spa 1963– 12 Hours of Reims 1964–65 1000 km Buenos Aires 1954–72 1000 km Zeltweg 1966–76 1000 km Fuji 1983–88 Norisring 200 Miles 1984–88 Watkins Glen 6 Hours 1968–71, 1973–80 History 1953 to 1961 In the early years, now legendary races such as the Mille Miglia, Carrera Panamericana and Targa Florio were part of the calendar, alongside the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 12 Hours of Sebring, the Tourist Trophy and Nurburgring 1000 km. Manufacturers such as Ferrari, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and Aston Martin fielded entries, often featuring professional racing drivers with experience in Formula One, but the majority of the fields were made up of gentleman drivers (privateers) in the likes of Nardis and Bandinis. Cars were split into Sports Car and GT (production car) categories and were further divided into engine displacement classes. The Ferrari and Maserati works teams were fierce competitors throughout much of the decade, but although Maserati cars won many races the make never managed to clinch the