Daytona Porsche dominance

Makes

1980 24 Hours of Daytona - The French ACO,organisers ofthe 24 Hours ofLe Mans,were moving to a fuel- consumption formula,but the American-based IMSA wanted an engine horsepower-to-weight formula to attract American fans. The two split and went their separate ways. Several new and unproven GT Prototype cars entered this edition of the 24 Hours but domination of the race rested with the 16 turbo-Porsche 935s. Owner/driver Reinhold Joest from Germany won, driving his own version of the 935, with his countrymen Rolf Stommelen and Volkert Merl. [...]

Sebring story

Tracks

Sebring is the home of America's oldest and most famous road racing track. Founded over a half century ago, Sebring International Raceway is the mecca of sports car racing, hosting the famous 12 Hours of Endurance Race every March. This race is attended by over 110,000 people each year -- including race teams, drivers, major vendors and race fans from all over the world. Thousands of local residents support this major community event by volunteering their time and expertise, which for many has become a deep local tradition involving second and third generations.[...]

WSC cars

Categories

With rising costs and factory teams walking away from the series which meant diminishing entries, IMSA introduced a new prototype category for in 1993 called World Sport Car (WSC). The WSC replaced the GTP and Lights closed-top cars for the following year. The WSC cars were open-top, flat-bottomed sports-prototypes with production engine as opposed to racing versions of production engines from GTP cars. The main goal of the WSC introduction was to reduce the costs and bring back the private teams to the tracks, which had been kind of slashed down by the factories.[...]

Audi 90 Quattro

Cars

The IMSA Audi 90 GTO was one of the wildest, most technologically advanced four-door race cars to ever hit the tracks. It was basically a 700bhp AWD Group B rally car engine-drive train package, mated to a space frame chassis, and draped with a carbon fiber silhouette body. The genesis of the Audi 90 GTO began with Audi's introduction of the now famous quattro system into the WRC in 1981. It seems a bit obvious by today's standards, but at the time, no one had successfully implemented an AWD system in rallying. [...]

Conte Racing

Teams

Phil Conte grew up in Brooklyn and spent the early part of his Life in California. He was the 'luckiest Man in the world', as he would put it. Everything he did just worked. He started an electrical manufacturing business, building high-voltage switch Gear. He got involved in 1975, while watching the Long Beach Grand Prix. He met with John Morton and told him he wanted to go Can Am racing. A few years after, when the series was in its second decline, he would jump on the Prototype opportunity. He was a sponsor for the Le Mans Mirage trip in 1982.[...]

Ferrari F40LM

Cars

By the late 1980's, GT racing was practically non-existent in Europe. Group B had been scrapped earlier in the decade and the World Manufacturers Championship was strictly the domain of Group C sportscars. This left only a handful of arenas where the F40 could prove itself. The first two LM's were sold to Jean Sage of Ferrari France who decided to campaign his cars in the IMSA GT series, the GTO class of which was dominated by highly modified Mercury Cougar XR7s, Nissan 300 ZXs and Chevy Camaros. [...]

John Gunn

Drivers

Johnnie Gunn first raced at VIR in April of 1967 in a Lotus 23 when he took top honors in G Sports Racing. A native of nearby Yanceyville, he had grown up with the track and attended the inaugural event in August of 1957 as a spectator. His racing career began while a student at the University of Miami in an Alfa Romeo that carried him to two SCCA divisional championships. He turned pro in 1968 by entering the SCCA Formula A Continental series and became a regular for the entire life of the championship.[...]

Porsche 944GTR

Cars

It could be christened : the less victorious Porsche ever built. However, it looked like it really could have been. Built in the manner Porsche always did it, even if it was the only Porsche ever to be conceived in the United States. With Porsche calendar being filled for 1986, the production car Racing in the US was getting hot, and no new GT car was lurching in the horizon. Al Holbert, then Head of Porsche Motorsport of North America, thought that it was clear that something had to get done to replace the then ageing Porsche 934s and 924s that were no more contenders for victory.[...]

Altec Lansing Porsche 914/6

Cars

In the mind's eye of Porsche racing enthusiasts, IMSA racing during the seventies conjures up images of bulging fendered RSRs and fire-belching 935s. Not without good reason, as 911 based racers dominated both the paddock and the podiums during the series' first decade. But those weren't the only racers wearing the shield that bears the rampant black stallion of Stuttgart. Competing in the GTU, for under 2.5-liter, class were a few 914/6s, including the black Altec Lansing #87 now in the hands of vintage racer Steve Schmidt. [...]

Ford Mustang MCA

Cars

Ford Motor Company withdrew from racing in late 1970 and by the early 1980s it was time to re-establish Ford's reputation in motor racing. This is when Michael Kranefuss was made director of the newly formed Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) with the task of Ford's re-entry into Motorsports using the Mustang Within the SVO group were marketing, finance, engineering and public relations people. Kranefuss along with Walter Hayes had several tasks at hand. Select a private race team and provide them with parts, technical backup, financial support and to expand the racing and high-performance street parts program known as Ford Motorsports.[...]