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BMW 320 Turbo : the flying brick

BMW had always been quite successful in GT racing. Beginning with the 2800CS, then the 3.0CSL, the Bavarian sedans had often been successful in the European Touring Car Championship, in DRM, and then in the IMSA Camel GT Championship. Following two mitigated seasons with the CSLs, BMW was concentrated its efforts on the World Manufacturer's Championship, with the Group 5 320. BMW North America decided to run a similar car in the IMSA Camel GT Championship. However, the preparation and the running of the car was handed to MacLaren North America. The car was debuted at Daytona in 1977 for the 24 Hour race and was fitted with a 2,0L Formula 2 engine. The car was driven by David Hobbs-Sam Posey and Ronnie Peterson. After qualifying in 19th position, the car did prove neither fast nor reliable. It retired after 235 laps, and was not a contender for victory at all. For the next race, the car was fitted with a 2,0L turbocharged engine. The car suffered from a lack of power at low speed, but could give more than 600hp at top-end. David Hobbs had to push it hard, and he really knew how to do it! Nicknamed the Flying Brick, it was damn fast! MacLaren had added cooling systems for both oil and water. New plugs and rings had been installed to handle the horsepower. The first race was yo be held at Road Atlanta in 1977. There, David Hobbs took the start from the back of the field to finish an impressive fourth overall. They had a misfire during practice leading to a short-circuit. The team had handled it in a magnificent way. It was a good start from that point. The next race at Laguna Seca was even more promising, with David Hobbs starting from the pole. For the race, David Hobbs led the first few laps but then was slowed by the plugs leading to a misfire. It led to a retirement. The next race, held at Mid America, was a failure, the car being the first to retire from the race. The injectors were the main problem for the car. The next race, held at Lime Rock, saw David Hobbs hold second place in the race behind Al Holbert's Chevrolet Monza. Unfortunately, a broken fuel line sidelined him three laps from the finish. The car again had a misfire! The next race was a turning point in the car's recognition as a true winner. David Hobbs won his first race of the season. He had to fight a big challenge from Danny Ongais. When the Hawaiian made a mistake, David Hobbs passed him and cruised to a well deserved victory. The next race, at Brainerd, could have been the same, but after leading the race when he switched for rain tyres before everyone, the car had to retire. The gearbox and the differential had suffered too much strain. Missing the next race held at Daytona, the team had decided to concentrate on the next event, at Sears Point. This proved to be the right decision, as David Hobbs led the race from start to finish to win by a 26s margin over Al Holbert. Pocono was quite different with Al Holbert's domination from the beginning. David Hobbs broke his differential. The next race was a special one, with a string of four Porsche 935s entered for star drivers such as Jacky Ickx, George Follmer, Peter Gregg and Jim Busby. David Hobbs was partnered by Eddie Cheever, but the car was again stopped by a misfire, again, an retired on lap 86. The car could run with the Porsche 935s, which was quite a satisfaction for the team.

David Hobbs and Eddie Cheever retired on lap 86, at Mid Ohio in 1977

Copyright Mark Windecker

The next race, at Road Atlanta proved more satisfactory with a new victory for David Hobbs. This time, he had to fight his way back to the lead after a bad start, and he won in an impressive manner. It was too the first time that Al Holbert was beaten at "his" track. David Hobbs completely blew his start and was seventh at the end of lap one. But he consistently made up his way back to the lead. It was probably the most convincing win of the year. At the Daytona Finale, David Hobbs started second but he did not last more than four laps. He had a tangle with a backmarker which led to an overheating, and a very early retirement. The 1977 season was finished and the season to come would bring several rules changes, and the main concern for the team was to know whether the car could keep up with the Porsche 935s, which were now allowed to run in the new GTX class. At Daytona, the BMW 320 Turbo qualified third overall, but the practice session was run under a wet track. The beginning of the race saw the car lead the race, but it never actually led one lap, because of the numerous lead changes amongst the leaders. Later in the race, David Hobbs spun and lost a few places, but he experienced then cooling problems that led the car to a retirement on lap forty seven. The next race was to be held at Sebring. There, the car proved particularly efficient, with David Hobbs shattering the previous lap record by twelve seconds! Even with the help of some specially qualifying tyres, it was quite fantastic and proved the car's efficiency. The second fastest car was two seconds slower, a Dick Barbour Porsche 935, driven by Rolf Stommelen! The beginning of the race was to confirm the little brick's domination, and the car led several laps. But it was soon plagued with fuel feed problems, and then the car had to undergo a very long pit stop for a fuel tank repair. It was over for the car.
For the next race, at Road Atlanta, David Hobbs had chassis #003 for that race.It was a different story, with Peter Gregg dominating the practice with his new Porsche 935, in the same way David Hobbs dominated Sebring. The race did not start too badly, and David Hobbs was fighting for a top five position. But he broke a wheel when he hit Don Whittington's Porsche 935, and retired.  At Laguna Seca, George Follmer dominated the race. David Hobbs had a great duel in the race, but it was only to settle for fourth.  Victory was not long to come for the new car as David Hobbs won the next race at Hallett. He was just ahead of John Paul, who drove a Greenwood Chevrolet Corvette.
Lime Rock was a bit different as Peter Gregg again won easily, and David Hobbs finished fifth. The next race, at Brainerd, seemed to bring the team some reasons to look forward to the race. The car was faster than everyone, but it lasted only three laps, and then the engine burned a piston. It was another disappointment. At Daytona, for the night Paul Revere race, it was yet another dnf in the race, when mechanical problems sidelined the car. The next race, at Sears Point, seemed to bring back some luck to the team. The car was again extremely fast in practice and, at the start, it was again John Paul who took the lead. Waiting for the right moment, he passed John Paul and then went on to win the race easily when the Corvette retired from the race. At Portland, it was quite different for the team as Peter Gregg dominated the practice sessions, and the race. David Hobbs had to fight hard against John Paul during the race, when his metering unit seized and it was another retirement.
At Mid Ohio, the race was exciting as David Hobbs, partnered by Tom Klausler, had a great fight with Milt Minter, who drove Cliff Kearns' Porsche 935. They were together until lap 37, when they pitted for fuel. David Hobbs was to be brought to the hospital, suffering from heat exhaustion. Tom Klausler then took the lead of the race but he was caught by a flying Bill Whittington, who took the lead, and later, the win. David Hobbs, who was back at the track, had taken the wheel of the car but a last unexpected pit stop due to an alternator repair settled the car for second place.

David Hobbs fighting against Milt Minter in the early stages of the Mid Ohio 1978 race. He would finish second, with Tom Klausler as his co-driver

Copyright Mark Windecker

At Road Atlanta, the car qualified three seconds faster than in april, but it was not the fastest car however. Doing well in the race, David Hobbs was fourth when he had a puncture. He resumed the race but had to retire later when his alternator failed. The Daytona Finale seemed to prove the car's improval, he was third but again, mechanical troubles forced the car to retire.
The 1978 season was relatively mitigated for the team, but as David Hobbs put it later, it seemed that BMW Germany did not bring a great support to the team. The arrival of the M1 was at stake, Jochen Neerpasch, head of BMW Motorsport, thinking that this future car would be a killer. Yet, BMW North America did not imply into a full racing program. Retrospectively, it seems that the car's potential was there and it could have been a real winner, would it have had more support.
The 1979 season would be the last one. Unlike the previous season, the team chose not to enter the enduros, concentrating on the shorter events. The first race was at Road Atlanta, where David Hobbs qualified second behind Peter Gregg. The race was again all Gregg, while David Hobbs seemed to settle for second when the rain again began to fall. David Hobbs then his battery went flat and he had to be content with a sixth overall. This race was the first one for Jim Busby's similar car. He had a great race when he passed car after car to finish second for the car's very first race! At Riverside, Jim Busby had a slightly different race when he lost his rear end after fifteen minutes. David Hobbs, co-driven by Manfred Winkelhock, lasted fifty five laps to retire with a shortage of rings. The next race was to be held at Laguna Seca, a course which had been favorable to the BMWs. David Hobbs and Jim Busby qualified third and fourth. Peter Gregg and Danny Ongais had a race of them but Peter Gregg once would be unbeatable. Danny Ongais was slowing with a sick turbo and the two BMWs were just behind him, Jim Busby leading David Hobbs. But Jim Busby would be in trouble with his crankshaft and then retire, leaving David Hobbs who charged hard at Danny Ongais. He finally passed him to finish second. Hallett was a track that seemed well suited to the BMWs as David Hobbs repeated his win from the previous year. As Peter Gregg led  the race, he was surprised by a spinning Preston Henn and collected a bit of his bodywork. David Hobbs was waiting for his time and he slipped by very cleverly to win "his" race. Once again, Jim Busby retired early in the race.
At Lime Rock, the rain was the main contender and Peter Gregg was again the winner. David Hobbs could not challenge the Porsche driver as he had to fight with a drowned windshield. He managed to finish second, despite some pit stops to wipe it clear. Brainerd had been disappointing the previous year when David Hobbs lasted only three laps. Again Peter Gregg dominated the race as he did many times in 1979. Behind him though, Danny Ongais kept second for a while but he had to pit with turbo troubles.  David Hobbs inherited the second place with Jim Busby just behind him. But Jim Busby would soon have an oil fire which would result again in a dnf. David Hobbs ended the race in a poor handling car, which made him be content with a second place finish. The next race, the Paul Revere 250 at Daytona, was to no avail for the team as it was a new retirement in the race, without being a threat to anyone. At Mid Ohio, David Hobbs was on the front row, again alongside Peter Gregg, who was partnered by long time fellow Hurley Haywood. He had Derek Bell as a co-driver and could hope to do well in such a race. Jim Busby debuted the new BMW M1 and would have a great race at his wheel. In fact, David Hobbs would hit a guard rail after eight laps, and lose five ones in the process.

David Hobbs and Derek Bell had a bad race in 1979. The car is seen in the pits during practice

Copyright Mark Windecker

The pair would finish ninth overall, in spite of this off course. The BMW M1 finished third overall, which was a fantastic result for such a car. Sears Point was a race to forget as the two cars retired from the race. David Hobbs was clearly second when he tangled with Bill Whittington, and retired. Jim Busby had qualified second, but did not last more than five laps. His car seemed to suffer from reliability problems. Portland again did not bring any luck to the bimmers as Peter Gregg again dominated the race. David Hobbs was alongside him but he would retire after four laps when his water pump belt let go. Jim Busby would have to pit for a tyre while in fifth place, he would finish seventh. The next race, the first ever Road America 500km, was a strange race but it was too a new, and the last BMW 320 Turbo win. The car did suffer from fuel pickup problems and had to stop every 17 laps. But the David Hobbs-Derek Bell duo managed to set a real good pace, and won over Charles Mendez-Paul Miller in a Porsche 935.
At Road Atlanta, Peter Gregg won again but he was lucky. Once again, David Hobbs managed to finish in a top position while Jim Busby had to retire when he collided with another car. A bad brake line was the cause for the retirement.
The last race ever for the BMW 320 Turbo was the Daytona Finale 1979. There, the MacLaren car was the only car entered. Jim Busby concentrated his effort on developing the M1 car. Unfortunately, this race would be over very soon, as a ventilated block, caused an early retirement after four laps. It would be the last time a BMW 320 Turbo would be seen in an IMSA race. The program would be over, as future plans were to develop the new flagship : the BMW M1.

1980 : domination of an Englishman, part 1

The 1980 season was to be the last season that was to be dominated by the Porsche 935s. It would not be the last season Porsche 935s would win, but they would find new opponents in the form of GTP cars. John Bishop was willing to encourage a new breed of race cars to run and win IMSA races.
The first event of the 1980 season was the 24 Hours of Daytona, which took place on February 2-3. Sixteen Porsche 935s were entered and your winner would undoubtedly be found in these entries. In fact, it seemed that it would be a Europe versus America duel. And it actually was. The usual US teams were there with Dick Barbour, Interscope Racing, Heimrath, Whittington Bros, TBird Swap Shop, Momo Corse, Bayside Disposal, Racing Associates, Townsend Racing for the usual US entries, and Joest Racing and JMS Racing had their own 935s, plus a single Lancia Beta Montecarlo for Carlo Facetti-Martino Finotto, a couple of BMW Marches for Jim Busby-Bruce Jenner-Rick Knoop and Patrick Neve-Mike Korten, a Ferrari 512BB for Pierre Dieudonné and owner Preston Henn. You could add the Carter Camaro and the beautiful Chevrolet Monza driven by Chris Cord-Jim Adams and you had about twenty five potential winners.
The GTO cars woild provide a big fight between the many Porsche Carreras, some Chevrolet Camaros, a BMW 3.0CSL, a very competitive Triuumph TR8, one very reliable Ferrari 365GTB4, some wild looking Chevrolet Corvettes and an interesting Pontiac Fire Am entered by Herb Adams, co-driven by former bike driver Kenny Roberts. The GTU class looked familiar with a bunch of Mazda RX7s fighting against some ageing Porsche 911s and 914s, a Datsun 280ZX and 240Z. A usual Lancia Stratos would be qualified too.
Don Whittington was to set the pole position in 1m44s110, he was trailed by Rolf Stommelen who was doing well with his 2,8L. Eight Porsche 935s were occupying the first eighth spot. Maurice Carter was next, followed by Chris Cord in his  Chevrolet Monza. The GTO category was led by Phil Currin, who unfortunately did not find any co-driver for the race, and would run solo! He was followed by Gerry Wellik Chevrolet Camaro and Jack Refenning Porsche 934. Walt Bohren was the fastest qualifier in GTU  with his Mazda RX7. The Datsun 280ZX was a surprise second, driven by Dick Davenport. 68 cars would take the green, as eight cars were allowed to start, having run under the 2m16s3 time limit.
The race would start with sixty seven cars, as the BMW 3.0CSL had pitted during the pace lap. This car would start after seven minutes or so. In fact, the number of cars would really be set to sixty seven as the Pontiac Fire Am would retire in the first lap with a broken engine. Don Whittington took the lead right from the start, Reinhold Joest was stuck to second place and could hold the yellow Porsche. He took the lead on lap thirteen. Gianpiero Moretti had stopped as soon as on the second lap and the Lancia was to pit to change a water line. Kenper Miller would hit the wall after a puncture, he would lose a lot of time for repairs. The refueling session began after forty seven minutes, John Fitzpatrick was the first one to stop for fuel. At the end of the first hour, the Whittington Bros were still in the lead, followed by the Joest Porsche. John Fitzpatrick was third, leading Peter Gregg-Hurley Haywood and Charles Mendez-Brian Redman-Paul Miller. Later, the leading car would be stopped by a puncture, and Rolf Stommelen would take the lead, followed by the John Fitzpatrick-Dick Barbour Porsche. The Chevrolet Monza driven by Chris Cord would lose the benefit of an excellent race, as it was seventh overall, and lose one hour in the pits for an engine swap. After three hours, it was Rolf Stommelen, John Fitzpatrick, Bill Whittington, Charles Mendez, Ted Field, Peter Gregg and Bob Akin. The GTO class was dominated by the Group 44 Triumph TR8 driven by Bob Tullius. Unfortunately, this car was to be affected by clutch problems. The pace car had to be appearing when Paul Miller hit the wall after avoiding a spinning Mazda. Bob Akin retired with a broken engine. The leading positions were not to change until the end of the sixth hour. The Interscope car, which was running fourth, would then stop to change its oil tank and lose one half hour. The Dick Barbour car was steadily closing on the leading car and, at the end of the seventh hour, the two leading cars were running together. Shortly after, the two cars would put up a thrilling show and would catch every spectator's attention. Switching positions two or three times per lap, it was no more an enduro, but a DRM sprint race! Manfred Schurti would be the first to be stopped to change his brake pads : he lost ten minutes. The Joest car was on the lead again. The Whittington Bros were again second, leading Peter Gregg uncompetitive 935, Manfred Schurti was then, leading the first GTO car which appeared to be the unbreakable Ferrari 365GTB4 driven by John Morton and Tony Adamowicz. Two Porsche Carreras were next. The Dick Barbour car would win one place after overtaking Peter Gregg's car, and John Paul-Al Holbert, driving their old 935, appeared on fifth position. At the halfway mark, no important change was to be noticed. The GTO class had seen some minor changes but the lead was now held by the 901 Shop Porsche 934 driven by Jack Refenning-Ray Mummery and Ren Tilton. Not for long, as the car would hit the wall and retire later in the night. The Dick Barbour car, driven by Manfred Schurti, would collide with a Porsche Carrera and retire too. The Joest car was now solidly in the lead, with a four lap advantage over the Whittingtons car. Third was the well driven 935 of John Paul-Al Holbert, which was very far away. Peter Gregg and Hurley Haywood were much farther, and had been stopped by an oil leak and a windshield change. Running strong, Bill and Don Whittington were steadily closing in on the leaders.

Don and Bill Whittington were running strong and closing in on the leaders when they had to retire with engine troubles

Copyright Dave Kutz

After seventeen hours, they were only one lap down the leading car. They would be stopped on the circuit with engine troubles. They would be later disqualified for pushing the car to the pits. The race was definitively set, with the Joest car well ahead of anybody. The Maurice Carter-Murray Edwards-Richard Valentine Chevrolet Camaro was now running well and would get from ninth position at the eighteen hour mark, to fourth position at the twenty first hour. Peter Gregg and Hurley Haywood would stop on the circuit too, and lose a huge amount of time with engine troubles too. They would have probably finished third, as the Interscope car was now running very slowly.

John Morton and Tony Adamowicz led the Ferrari 365GTB4 to a retirement in what was the car's last race

Photo courtesy Tony Adamowicz and Philippe Morinière

The Ferrari 365GTB4 retired from the race with a broken rear stub axle and the GTO class was won by the Terry Herman-Tony Garcia and Alberto Vadia Porsche Carrera. But the biggest surprise was to be brought by the winning GTU car : it was the Kegel Racing Porsche 914/6 driven by William Koll-Jim Cook and Greg LaCava. This car was a stunning fifth overall, and beat every GTO car! The overall win was of course taken by the Joest Racing car driven by Reinhold Joest-Volkert Merl and Rolf Stommelen. This car had a trouble free race and won by a thirty three laps margin. Happy people...
The next race, held at Sebring for the traditional 12 Hour race, was quite different. A strong seventy nine car field was led by John Fitzpatrick, who set a new qualifying record in the process. An impressive thirteen Porsche 935s would take the green but this time, no valuable opposition was to be seen. The usual BMW March entered by Jim Busby was here, and it was in eighth position on the grid. No Chevrolet Monza was to be seen on the Sebring circuit, but the Maurice Carter Chevrolet Camaro was here and willing to confirm its Daytona good result. A new car was here in the form of a Dome Toyota Celica. Powered by a L4 2,1L twin turbo enginen given for 560hp, it was driven by Nobuhide Sato and Tim Sharp. The remainder of the field was a strong GTO and GTU entry, with a lot of various cars.  The Triumph TR8 was here looking for a GTO victory. It would have to fight against a bunch of Porsche Carreras and some Chevrolet Corvettes and Camaros. The Pontiac Fire Am was there, as well as the BMW 3.0CSL, an AMX Spirit, a Buick Skylark and a Chevrolet Nova.
In GTU, many Mazda RX7s were facing as much Porsche 911s, a pair of Datsun 240Zs, an Alfa Romeo Alfetta, a Mazda RX2 and some Porsche 914s. The practice sessions were saddened by the death of Manuel Quintana, whose Porsche 911 spun on oil and flipped over.
The starting order was : John Fitzpatrick, Peter Gregg, Bill Whittington, Gianpiero Moretti, Bob Akin, Bob Garretson, Danny Ongais and Jim Busby. The early stages of the race saw a battle between John Fitzpatrick and the Bayside Porsche, driven by Peter Gregg. This car took the lead at the end of the third hour, and held it until lap 145, when it experienced transmission problems. But it was tight until then and the Dick Barbour car took the lead, they replaced their brake pads only after, when the Interscope car was closing in.

Danny Ongais and Ted Field finished second at the 12 Hours of Sebring

Copyright Dave Kutz

However, the Dick Barbour car was no match for its pursuers and it is finally with a three lap margin that they won the race. The Interscope car was second, and the Whittingtons were just behind, with John Paul, Al Holbert and Preston Henn fourth. In sixth place was the winning GTO car, which appeared to be the Triumph TR8 driven by Bob Tullius-Bill Adam. They defeated the best Carrera effort, the Tony Garcia-Albert Naon and Terry Herman, who retired during the sixth hour. Second place was the Luis Mendez-Jaime Rodriguez Porsche Carrera. In GTU, the Mazdas held their revenge after the Daytona outrage. Roger Mandeville-Jim Downing and Brad Frisselle were the drivers for the first ever GTU victory for a Japanese car at Sebring. The Dome Toyota Celica had a very short debut when retiring after only four laps, the engine billowing smoke.
The next race was held at Road Atlanta for the first sprint of the season. Two 30minutes races were scheduled. The field was crowded with Porsche K3s, and you normally should find the winner among these cars. The weather was in a tormented mood, and would play its part in the course of the event. John Fitzpatrick was the fastest in qualifying, but he was the first to retire in the race when he encountered a backmarker who put him off course. The track was increasingly drowned and, at the end, it was Bill Whittington who survived this turmoil. Hurley Haywood was second and Peter Gregg was third. The GTO class was to bring more action to the spectators as Dave Heinz, Ernesto Soto, Phil Currin, Bob Raub would swap the lead many times. It was finally Phil Currin in his Chevrolet Corvette who finally ended the race as the winner. The second race was to be cancelled due to the awful weather conditions.

John Fitzpatrick dominated the IMSA Camel GT series in 1980. Here at Sebring, which he won with owner Dick Barbour

Copyright Dave Kutz

Next race at Riverside was quite different as weather conditions were quite the opposite. A huge sixty car field was to bring plenty of racing action in a 5Hour race format. Once again, John Fitzpatrick had a race of his own. However, he was not on the pole, but it was only to bring a bit of thrill. Don Whittington started on the pole and followed by John Fitzpatrick. He would stay in that position for only two laps. Then John Fitzpatrick took the lead and carved in a multi lap lead at the end of the race. In fact, every contender to be were to blow relatively early in the race. It was a very positive race for the Dick Barbour Team, who brought its two cars to an unchallenged one-two at the end, Bob Garretson-Bobby Rahal. Third was the Bayside Disposal car with Hurley Haywood-Bruce Leven at the wheel. Roy Woods had entered a Chevrolet Monza powered by a V8 turbocharged engine given for almost 1000hp. The car was driven by George Follmer and Skeeter McKitterick. Starting from the 59th position, the car would show a great potential in the hands of George Follmer and would quickly climb up the standings. Unfortunaltely, the transmission would not last more than 82 laps and the car had to retire. But what a show! The GTO class went to the Porsche Carrera driven by Tony Garcia-Terry Herman, who finally won over the Triumph TR8 driven by Bob Tullius-Bill Adam. Next was another Porsche Carrera driven by Ernesto Soto and Pierre Honegger, who were four laps down. The GTU category seemed to be quite an easy race for the Electramotive Datsun 280ZX, which led the Mazda RX7 driven by Walt Bohren-Takashi Yorino by one lap after four hours. But the Mazda was suddenly engaged in a series of pit stops that dropped the car behind the other Datsun driven by Frank Carney and Dick Davenport. Suddenly, the leading Datsun would blow an engine, and the second Datsun took the lead. But the Mazda was much faster and would pass the Datsun. The race was gaining in momentum when the Walt Bohren retired suddenly. It was not finished though as the other Mazda RX7 driven by Brad Frisselle-Yoshimi Katayama was rapidly closing in on the leading car. They would pass the Datsun just four minutes before the chequered to earn a deserved GTU victory. Frank Carney and Dick Davenport were second and Roger Mandeville-Stu Fisher third on their Mazda RX7.

1980 : domination of an Englishman, part 2

Next race at Laguna Seca was a perfect race. A fine weather contributed a lot to this fact. John Fitzpatrick and Peter Gregg were alongside each other and the race seemed to be a matter of boost at the start between the two drivers. They went off and pulled ahead of anybody, Danny Ongais being the closest pursuer. They had a ten second lead at mid race when the Hawaiian retired from the race after setting a new lap record. John Fitzpatrick had built a five second lead over Peter Gregg when he spun. Peter Gregg was soon past the Englishman but in five laps, John Fitzpatrick was again in the lead. He ended up the race with a fifteen second margin over Peter Gregg. John Paul was next, leading Ted Field and Rich Sloma, who brought his AAGT Chevrolet Corvette to a fine result. The GTO category was another duel between Tony Garcia and Bob Tullius who finished one-two. Luis Mendez was third in his Porsche Carrera.
The next race, on Memorial Day, took place at Lime Rock Park. It was to be a special event as John Fitzpatrick was not there and Peter Gregg looked like the man to beat for this race. A scant nineteen car field took the start of the two forty five minute sprints. The first heat of the race was a neat victory for Peter Gregg winning with a twenty four second margin over John Paul Sr. Ted Field was next. The start of the race had seen an off course from Phil Currin who ended up his race after running on oil. The GTO category saw a big fight between Luis Mendez, driving a Porsche Carrera, and the two Triumph TR8s driven by Bob Tullius and Bill Adam. The result was almost a dead heat for the three of them. Race number 2 saw the first ever GT ride for John Paul Jr. Peter Gregg was still ahead but a softening tyre resulted in a damaged suspension. He finally retired. Then it was Ted Field who took the lead as he passed John Paul Jr on lap six. After that, John Paul Jr and Ted Field had a show of them. Ted Field held his rank while John Paul Jr hounded him. After many tries, he finally passed him and took the lead while the Interscope car was down on brakes. It was the first ever father and son victory. Third and first in GTO, Luis Mendez took a well deserved class win, beating a pair of well-driven Triumph TR8s.
The next race was a first ever race with a GTO-GTU race, held at Brainerd, Minnesota. That meant that the GTX cars would not be the stars of the race. One remarkable fact was that the pole position was set by a GTU car, Walt Bohren being the fastest qualifyer. Brad Frisselle was next. Twenty three cars took the start of a very open race. The top GTO contenders were just behind with Luis Mendez leading Bob Tullius. At the start, it was Bob Tullius who won the drag race and took the lead. Things were close as Walt Bohren could take the lead on lap nine. Earlier in the race, Paul Newman and Mauricio de Narvaez retired from the race after colliding. Walt Bohren was ahead of Bob Tullius, Luis Mendez and Brad Frisselle were close. The latter would spin and lose two places trying to overtake Luis Mendez. Don Devendorf was out of contention for the lead, after suffering from flats, as was Dennis Aase. After seventeen laps, Bob Tullius, running in second place, pitted with a V8 looking like a V7. Unwilling to destroy his engine, he decided not to go further and spare some money. Walt Bohren suddenly was six seconds ahead of Luis Mendez. Jeff Kline was third but Brad Frisselle was now aiming at his position. Unfortunately for Walt Bohren, his car did not hold until the finish line. Luis Mendez was now the leader and took the overall win over Jeff Kline and Brad Frisselle, both running on Mazda RX7s.

Luis Mendez was the overall winner at the Brainerd GTO-GTU event and the 1980 GTO Champion

Copyright Mark Windecker

The next race was the usual Paul Revere 250 at Daytona, which was run at night. Hurley Haywood was on the pole and he took the lead right from the start. John Fitzpatrick could not run as he might have as he had too rich a fuel which prevented him from turning up the boost. So he had to refuel early in the race. Hurley Haywood then suffered from the heat and to stop to hand the car to Peter Gregg. They were finally third overall as John Fitzpatrick cruised to victory, in spite of his settings. Behind, John Paul Sr and Jr charged back at the Kremer Porsche and they would lose the race for 0.5 second at the end! The GTO category was another Triumph versus Porsche battle but this time, the British V8s took the advantage. Bob Tullius won over Bill Adam with Ernesto Soto taking third in his Carrera. It was a one-two-three for Mazda as Walt Bohren won over Jeff Kline, who experienced gearbox problems, and Brad Frisselle.
A swing to the west coast for the next race held at Sears Point. A very hot race indeed, as Danny Ongais broke the existing record in his Interscope Porsche 935. He could take full advantage of his position as he spun in his very first lap. John Fitzpatrick was in the lead with Bobby Rahal right behind him. John Paul was forced to pit with a cut tyre on the first lap : he would lose one lap. Third was Gianpiero Moretti who had his best drive of the season when he was put off course by a lapped car. The leaders were having a goid fight when Bobby Rahal had to pit on lap twenty to refresh himself with water. Ted Field got past but Bobby Rahal would finally regain his position after nine laps. Chris Cord was a fine fourth overall in his Chevrolet Monza. John Fitzpatrick won again over Bobby Rahal. The GTO class was won by Luis Mendez who took the win over Casey Mollett on a Datsun 280Z and Tom Marx on a Porsche Carrera. Tony Garcia was a challenger but suffered from the heat, while Phil Currin had a flat tyre in his Chevrolet Corvette. No Triumph were to be seen.
At Portland, John Fitzpatrick was on the pole with Gianpiero Moretti alongside. At the start, it was a contest that was won by John Fitzpatrick, but the Italian was close behind. Hurley Haywood was third while John Paul Sr was running a low boost, trying to do the race without refueling. The race was set until the fiftieth lap when Gianpiero Moretti pitted for fuel, say a splosh. Hurley Haywood and Jim Busby did the same, but not John Fitzpatrick who won by a nineteen second margin. John Paul did it too to finish fourth. Once again, the GTO category was won by Luis Mendez, driving an ex-Holbert Porsche Carrera. Bill Craine on a Chevrolet Corvette had the best start, then Phil Currin(Chevrolet Corvette), Tony Garcia and Luis Mendez(Porsche Carrera) got past him. A big fight was to be seen as nobody was willing to give an inch. Phil Currin and Luis Mendez would then pull ahead of Tony Garcia. They would have a relentless duel. On the last lap, Luis Mendez would play one of his trick and got past Phil Currin for yet another victory.
The next race was held at Mosport, for a 1000kilometer race. A new challenge was awaiting the dominating Dick Barbour Porsche driver in the form of three Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbos. However, the Englishman was again on the pole but he had to settle for second at the start when Bobby Rahal took the lead. He trailed him during sixteen laps and then got past. He handed the car to Brian Redman who maintained their position. Hurley Haywood and Bruce Leven did appear in second position when Bob Garretson crashed Bobby Rahal's car. But overheating brakes meant that they could not go further after the car caught fire. It was finally John Paul Jr and Sr who inherited the second place in the last hour. Running wild and catching nearly three seconds per lap off Brian Redman, John Paul Jr had to settle for second definitively after a late pit stop. They were 1m20s down the winning car at the chequered. The GTO battle did not last more than fifty six laps when Luis Mendez crashed his Porsche, giving Bob Tullius and Bill Adam an easy victory with a strong eighth overall. Mauricio de Narvaez and Tony Garcia were second but eight laps down. The GTU category saw a grueling first hour between the Mazdas when Jim Downing and John Morton had a big fight. It ended in a hard way when Jim Downing crashed his car on lap thirty three. Then John Morton was joined by Walt Bohren and Jeff Kline to earn a well deserved victory, cleaely ahead of Brad Frisselle and Roger Mandeville who were plagued by injection trouble. The Lancias were not so competitive as the best car, the Hans Heyer-Walter Rohrl car, did not end better than fourth. The other cars were seventh and eighteenth with a retirement for the second works car.
At Mid Ohio, it was not your usual GT field as Les Griebling had once again set up a special race. It was the Lumbermens 500. With a bunch of Can Am cars, the GTX cars would not have an easy task. Thirty eight cars made for a strong field of machinery. Five Can Am cars took the green and six Group six cars faced GTX cars, renamed Group five for the occasion, and the GTO cars were now Group four cars. Only three Porsche 935s were entered. Many of the top drivers were entered on the top prototypes. GTX cars would have trouble defeating those single seaters. The pole position went to the Frissbee driven by John Morton and Hurley Haywood, easily fastest qualifyer over the Brian Redman-David Hobbs Roy Woods entered Lola T333CS. At the start, John Morton flew away from everybody. He pitted for fuel after fifty minutes or so, and never lost the lead. After one hour, he was still ahead of Brian Redman by twenty seconds. However, it was not to be John Morton's day as he collided with a slower car. Crawling back to the pits to change a tyre, it was to be diagnosed a broken suspension. Then, the Elfin driven by Howdy Holmes-Vern Schuppan took the lead, but the Lola was not so far and Brian Redman took the lead soon. The best Porsche 935 was the Gianpiero Moretti-Jim Busby car which was running strong, waiting for the Can Am cars to falter. Behind, the Ludwig Heimrath Porsche 935 and the Kenper Miller BMW M1 were threatened by the fast John Carusso-Phil Currin Chevrolet Corvette. The Lola would lose the lead on lap eighty one to the Elfin. But this car had a late pit stop to change his brake pads. Brian Redman took the lead, and kept it until the chequered. Gianpiero Moretti-Jim Busby took the GT points. Werner Frank and Rudy Bartling were the Group four winners on their Porsche 934. The best Group six car was the little Marguey driven by Richard Guider-John David Briggs.
The Pabst 500 at Road America was the next race. The pole had been set by John Fitzpatrick but it was Brian Redman who led first in Bob Akin's Porsche 935K3. John Fitzpatrick had to wait for the eleventh lap to take the command of the race. Gianpiero Moretti had lost his fuel injection pump belt, it will cost him many laps. Behind, John Paul Jr was storming back from a seventh on the grid. An interesting new entry was the Bob Sharp Racing Datsun ZX Turbo driven by Paul Newman and Sam Posey. The car was just fresh out of the box and the race was a series of pit stops leading to a retirement after thirty eight laps. John Fitzpatrick led easily but when Dick Barbour handed the car to the Englishman after his relay , the pair was no longer in the lead. John Paul Jr was now the new leader. When his father took the wheel, John Fitzpatrick was able to get closer, thirty seconds behind. He continued pushing hard and would be six seconds behind, just before refueling. But this time, he was unlucky and blew a turbo, slowing definitively his pace. The race was over then, and John Paul could even go for a splash before going to the chequered as the winner. In GTO, a new Porsche Carrera driven by Dennis Aase-Bob Bergstrom looked unbeatable. The duel with the Triumph TR8 would be fine but the Porsche was finally slowed by brake and throttle problems, and the Triumph went on to win the class with Bob Tullius and Bill Adam driving. In GTU, the Electramotive Datsun 280ZX was back to the winner's circle and had a neat victory, beating the Mazda contingent led by Jeff Kline-Walt Bohren. Pierre Honegger and Ernesto Soto were next in the Z and W Racing Mazda RX7.
The Road Atlanta fall race went to John Fitzpatrick who clinched the Championship in the process. He won the first heat over Dale Whittington, who had his best result ever, the latter beating John Paul Jr, who went spinning while fighting hard with him. It was a eight out of eight for the Porsche 935s, the ninth place going to Dave Cowart's BMW M1 . The GTO class went to Phil Currin, who beat Bob Tullius in his Chevrolet Corvette. The second heat was quite different as rain came and Gianpiero Moretti was the luckiest as he gambled for rain tyres. Then Danny Ongais crashed his Porsche 935K3 and the race was quite over, after thirteen laps. Everyone finally got half points and Terry Herman won the GTO class on his Porsche Carrera. Luis Mendez was the new GTO Champion in his Porsche Carrera, finishing second in this rain-shortened event.
The Daytona Finale was a very hard fought race, which saw no more than four lead changes. The practice session saw a new track record by Danny Ongais in 1m43s073 which broke the previous mark by more than one second. At the start, it was Danny Ongais, leading Dale Whittington, Gianpiero Moretti, John Paul Jr, Hurley Haywood who were in the top spots. Bill Whittington retired right from the start. Danny Ongais held the lead until lap eleven. Then Bob Akin and Preston Henn came together, and this action resulted in a safety car parade. The leaders would go refueling and Mo Carter took the lead, which was quite a feat! Shortly after, Danny Ongais would pass the Camaro, he held the lead until the two third mark. Gianpiero Moretti was now in second place, ahead of Dale Whittington who had a great race, and Hurley Haywood. Shortly after, a big change was to happen as Danny Ongais and Dale Whittington would collide  resulting in a dnf for both of them. Gianpiero Moretti handed his car to Reinhold Joest and Hurley Haywood took the lead. Then Hurley Haywood went in to refuel and did not lose his position, but he had a tangle with a slower car which resulted in a pit stop and another one : it was over for the Bayside Disposal car which lost the race to the Momo car. John Paul Sr and Jr finished second but never theatened the leaders.

Gianpiero Moretti and Reinhold Joest won the Daytona Finale on this Porsche 935

Copyright Dave Kutz

The GTO category seemed to belong to the Chevrolet Camaros of Craig Carter and Carl Shafer, but Craig Carter had to retire and Carl Shafer had to slow down due to a tyre wear. The class win finally went to the Triumph TR8s driven by Bill Adam and Bob Tullius, Carl Shafer finishing third. In GTU, the dominating Mazda driven by Walt Bohren took fire while refueling and George Alderman took his first GTU win in his Datsun 280Z, he finished ahead of Charles Morgan and Jim Miller in a similar car.

George Alderman had his sole GTU victory at the Daytona Finale, driving his Datsun 280Z

Copyright Dave Kutz

John Fitzpatrick, the series Champion, was not present in this very last race. He had dominated the 1980 Championship and was willing to create in own racing team, which he did. He had won eight races out of twelve, and had accumulated 179,5 points. John Paul Sr was second with 158 points. Luis Mendez was the GTO Champion and Walt Bohren won the GTU Championship in his Mazda RX7. It was the first title for a Mazda driver, and more were to come.
The end of the season had been saddened by the unexpected death of Peter Gregg, who had committed suicide. He had a road accident when going to the Le Mans race and had vision troubles since, he seemed not to have recovered and his morale had been largely affected. It was a great loss for the racing community.

1980 GTU : Walt Bohren

It was the third year that the GTUs had their own races and things were getting more and more serious with your average twenty car entry. Teams were getting more professional too and fields had a real appeal.
The first race was to take place at Road Atlanta. Don Devendorf was on the pole with Walt Bohren alongside. The race was to start under wet and Don Devendorf was ahead, but not for long as a faulty voltage regulator would slow him. Walt Bohren then would get in the lead he would never relinquish. Dennis Aase finished second in a revised Porsche 911. Next was Paul Newman who did his first regular race in the Datsun 280ZX entered by Bob Sharp Racing for the 1980 season.
The next race was held at Laguna Seca and it was Walt Bohren who was on the pole in his Racing Beat Mazda RX7. At the start, however, it was Dennis Aase who was the most efficient with his new Porsche 911. He held the lead during four laps, then Walt Bohren got past and kept his position until the end. Dennis Aase tried to keep his second place but he had to fight off a challenge from Jeff Kline, running on the second Racing Beat Mazda RX7. But the latter tried probably too hard and put himself out of contention, losing many places, after banging Dennis Aase into fifth place. Don Devendorf was stalking behind and soon found himself in second position after sixteen laps. He tried to close in on the final laps but Walt Bohren finally kept a 1s9 margin at the end. Dennis Aase had regained third position and was just ahead of Brad Frisselle who had un unsorted car.
The next race was held at Lime Rock with a very thin twelve car field. Dennis Aase was on the pole with his lightweight Porsche 911. Walt Bohren and Jeff Kline would start from the back of the grid, but now they had cars that would run well. Dennis Aase took the lead at the green with seven cars that would stay together in the following order : Dennis Aase, Don Devendorf, Paul Newman, Sam Posey, Brad Frisselle, Walt Bohren and Jeff Kline. Sam Posey would pass Paul Newman after three laps while Walt Bohren, running strong, would overtake Brad Frisselle and Paul Newman, then Sam Posey. Then, Don Devendorf and Walt Bohren overtook Dennis Aase, it was great!
Walt Bohren pressured Don Devendorf to take the lead on lap seventeen. Brad Frisselle then got past Sam Posey to become fourth. Walt Bohren pulled slightly ahead of Don Devendorf who would be threatened by Dennis Aase.
Jeff Kline retired on lap twenty five.
Behind, Sam Posey and Paul Newman would swap their fifth place for many times. Then Paul Newman got into Brad Frisselle to decellerate, both went into a big spin. Sam Posey would collect the duo and the three cars had to pit. Only Brad Frisselle could restart. Don Devendorf was back in second place but Dennis Aase would now get closer. The pair was far from Walt Bohren, but he had to stop with a soft tyre, and Don Devendorf  took the lead, with Dennis Aase grasping his second place, but Walt Bohren had tried hard, with no success. According to many, it was probably the best GTU race of all times.
At Sears Point, a big change was to happen as the Mazda RX7s were now at 2250lbs. Even though, Walt Bohren took the pole with Brad Frisselle, Jeff Kline and Bob Bergstrom, four Mazdas. As per usual, the heat would play its part in the race. Walt Bohren and Brad Frisselle had a hard fight but the latter's engine would melt on lap twenty two.

Walt Bohren easily won at Sears Point

Photo courtesy Racing Beat

Don Devendorf had a poor week end and transmission jams as well as shifting problems sidelined him after four laps in the race. Dennis Aase could not start after breaking his car on the pace lap. Paul Newman would do a very good job and drove to a fine second overall. Bob Bergstrom and Jeff Kline had a long battle throughout the race and Bob Bergstrom would maintain his third position to the finish. At the end, Walt Bohren won, closing the gap in the GTU points chase with Brad Frisselle, now only two points ahead of him.
At Portland, Mazda would sweep the top three positions. Jeff Kline stuck to his teammate throughout the race, they would make it to the end that way. The race was interesting, however, as Brad Frisselle started dead last following a strange mix of water in a fuel can, preventing him to practice. He made his way steadily and passed everyone, except the two Racing Beat Mazdas. Paul Newman blew his engine after five laps and Don Devendorf, Roger Mandeville, Dennis Aase and Bob Bergstrom were close for a long battle. Dennis Aase and Roger Mandeville collided. Dennis Aase went into a tyre wall to retire and Roger Mandeville went on with a flat tyre to finish tenth. Don Devendorf finally took third.

Jeff Kline took second at Portland in 1980, behind his teammate Walt Bohren for a Racing Beat 1-2

Photo courtesy Racing Beat

The last race of the season took place at Road Atlanta. It was the race of the non-starters, Walt Bohren did not race as Brad Frisselle did not enter the Georgia event. Walt Bohren was the 1980 GTU Champion. So it was Jeff Kline who was in charge of the Racing Beat hopes. He was on the pole, Bill Koll was second with his Porsche 911 in a lightweight field of thirteen cars. At the start, the two cars were glued together and it would last throughout the race. Bill Koll had his best race ever but Jeff Kline had it right and won the race. Third overall was the stunning Porsche 914/4 driven by Wayne Baker, who had a good drive in an underpowered car. Frank Carney, starting from the last spot, climbed up to fourth, after starting last. At the end, Jeff Kline won and was not unhappy to finish second in the GTU points standings, overtaking Brad Frisselle.

West Palm Beach 1988

Artwork by Lee Self

This event was the third one to take place in Florida, but it would suffer any comparison with Daytona or Sebring. The track was a mere 2,606km circuit and had been moved in the middle of nowhere. In fact, from the beginning of the practice sessions, many accidents were to happen that would modify the timetable. The practice session would take place under a 35* C. It would be dominated by the Electramotive Nissan ZX T GTP driven by Geoff Brabham. The second place was taken by the Jaguar XJR9 driven by John Nielsen-Jan Lammers-Davy Jones. Unfortunately, this car would not start. The Nissan was the only car running under the 1minute mark. An interesting car was the Spice Pontiac Firebird driven by Bob Earl-Jeff Kline which would wind up a very good fourth overall, only beaten by two Jaguars and the Nissan!
Seven Porsche 962s were to start the race, but they were no more fighting for victory in the shorter events. It was interesting to notice that, as for the 935s, they were now heavily modified. Each team was trying his own solutions, and each car was quite unique. The BF Goodrich Team had a long tail while Dyson Racing did test a short one, with little success.

The BF Goodrich Team tried a long tail on its Porsche 962, but the race would not last more than two laps

Copyright Lee Self

The best Lights car was the Whitehall Racing Spice Fiero driven by Bill Koll and Skeeter McKitterick, starting on the twenty first spot.  The race would first be dominated by the Jaguar driven by Jan Lammers, which took the lead right from the start. Geoff Brabham stayed behind the Jaguar after missing a turn. John Nielsen was witnessing the duel, glued in third position.  Behind those cars, the Porsche 962s, now playing second fiddle, were having good times and fought hard for position.  After a first under yellow caused by the Sarel van der Merwe Chevrolet Corvette GTP, who hit the wall after a puncture, the Nissan would take the lead. Jan Lammers was now second with John Nielsen third.  Jean Louis Ricci, leading the GTL class, was sent into the wall by the #42 Fabcar. This piece of action resulting in yet another safety car neutralisation. In fact, the race would be run under yellow for nearly one-third of the event.
Then would happen the incident AJ Foyt and Oscar Larrauri, the latter willing to pass the idol, would find a very tiny hole in a left hander and send AJ into the wall. Furious, AJ Foyt would pit for repairs and wait for Oscar Larrauri to pay him back! But he would retire later and the two pilots would be blamed for that. The race seemed to be over for the lead as the Nissan, driven by Geoff Brabham-John Morton was maintaining its position. The Jaguar driven by Jan Lammers-Davy Jones would keep its second place during the entire race, the gap never over ten seconds. However, the Jaguar never seemed to be in a position to take the lead. Each time the Nissan was pulling ahead, the safety car would have to appear whenever an accident happened. The gap would then be nullified, but then the Nissan again would pull ahead. It seemed that the Japanese car was unbeatable. The Porsche 962 driven by Price Cobb and James Weaver took while the surprising Spice Pontiac Firebird driven by Bob Earl-Jeff Kline was next, fifth was the not less surprising Fabcar Chevrolet driven by Chip Mead and Tim McAdam. In the Lights class, the Tiga GT287 Buick, driven by Tom Hessert and David Loring was declared as the winner, which was quite a feat, the car starting last.

Tom Hessert and David Loring won the Lights class

Copyright Kirk Hoffman

The Alba AR6 Ferrari driven by Martino Finotto and Guido Dacco had been declared first as the winner, but it seemed that confusion helping, the standings had to be reversed later. Finally, the race was over and not quite exciting at all. The many safety car appearances spoiling a race dominated by a single car : the Nissan GTP.

Geoff Brabham and John Morton outrageously dominated the West Palm Beach race
Copyright Kirk Hoffman

Timeline

This timeline is aimed at helping the fans to find out a particular year of racing, it will be updated regularly

                                                                                                                                                                                       

1971	Peter Gregg
1972	Peter Gregg
1973	Peter Gregg
1974	Peter Gregg
1975	Peter Gregg
1976	Al Holbert
1977	Al Holbert
1978	Peter Gregg
1979	Peter Gregg
1980	John Fitzpatrick
1981	Brian Redman
1982	John Paul Jr
1983	Al Holbert
1984	Randy Lanier
1985	Al Holbert
1986	Al Holbert
1987	Chip Robinson
1988	Geoff Brabham
1989	Geoff Brabham
1990	Geoff Brabham
1991	Geoff Brabham
1992	Juan Fangio II
1993	Juan Fangio II

                                                                                                                                                                                       

1971	Peter Gregg
1972	Peter Gregg
1973	Peter Gregg
1974	Peter Gregg
1975	Peter Gregg
1976	Al Holbert
1977	Al Holbert
1978	Peter Gregg
1979	Peter Gregg
1980	John Fitzpatrick
1981	Brian Redman
1982	John Paul Jr
1983	Al Holbert
1984	Randy Lanier
1985	Al Holbert
1986	Al Holbert
1987	Chip Robinson
1988	Geoff Brabham
1989	Geoff Brabham
1990	Geoff Brabham
1991	Geoff Brabham
1992	Juan Fangio II
1993	Juan Fangio II

Bobcor Racing : a short story

Bob Cozza is an Italian Alfa Romeo dealer who had a race shop near Buffalo, New York. Bobcor, as was the name of the Racing Team, was specialized in racing Alfa Romeos. The team began to field Alfa Romeo GTAs in 1968 in the Trans Am 2.5 Challenge. Until 1971, the team met great success,  then in 1972, Datsun began to field a works three car team. With a $1 000 000 budget, they proved unbeatable, Bobcor Racing was beaten. The new Alfa Romeo GTAM had not been allowed to enter the Trans Am Series and Bobcor found no car to race in 1972. They were keeping Bert Everett's Alfa Romeo GTA running, but the Datsuns were the winners. Utterly disappointed by the SCCA disapproval of using the GTAM, Bob Cozza wrote an open letter to the SCCA, in which he challenged Pete Brock to a duel. This would feature the Alfa Romeo GTAM and the Datsun 510, each on equal terms. The Datsun would race with bigger wheels and a full 2,0L engine, as for the Alfa, while Bob Cozza could choose the race distance and the circuit. But it turned out that this duel never was to happen.
In 1972, Bert Everett ran IMSA, running a Ford Escort with John Buffum. The car was a true racer and wound out some very good results, the best was a third overall at 6 Hours of Mid Ohio where the John Buffum-Bert Everett pair finished third overall.
Bert Everett and Bob Cozza got to know each other and then, they would fly over to England, meet with Keith Duckworth, one of the founder of the Cosworth, and buy one of his fantastic race cars.
For the next year, Bobcor would enter one Ford Escort BDA, and win the under 2,0L class in the Trans Am Championship, winning their class in each of the five races they entered. The car was entered at the 12 Hours of Sebring, with John Buffum and Bert Everett driving, and it qualified 11th out of a seventy two car field, which was fantastic for a 2,0L car! At the end of the season, the car would be sold to Paul Newman, who would campaign the car, mainly driving with Tom Ciccone.
Earlier, Bob Cozza was in Milan, Italy, for business. He stopped to meet Carlo Chiti, head of Autodelta, both of them were the Autodelta representatives in the US. Something happened that decided of Bobcor's IMSA racing future. They were having one of their usual big lunch in Settimo Milanese, when they were met by Teodoro Zeccoli, who was driving a street Alfa Romeo Montreal. From that moment, Bob Cozza thought : "why not build an Alfa Romeo Montreal race car?" They talked about the project that started right from here. The cost would be shared by Alfa Romeo Spa, Bobcor and Autodelta. By april of 1972, Teodoro Zeccoli was put in charge. The car was ready for racing test at Boloco, Alfa Romeo test track. Bert Everett flew over to Italy and participated in the tests. It happened very early that the car suffered from a lack of horsepower. Then the Tipo 33-3 engine was installed in the racing Montreal. It was given for 336 hp and the car lapped two seconds faster than with the previous engine. Two weeks later, the car was ready to race and entered a club race in Imola, against BMWs, Porsches and Ferraris. The car was faster than anyone, but in the race, the gearbox broke. It was a retirement but things were starting in a quite hopeful way.  The gearbox would be the weak component in the car.
For 1973, the car was sent to the United States, and was to be entered at the 6 Hours of Watkins Glen, a World Sportscar Championship event. Unfortunately, it was an early retirement as well, due to a gearbox failure.

The Bobcor Alfa Romeo Montreal as it appeared first

Flyer courtesy Bobcor

The car was sent back to Italy to undergo major improvements for the 1974 season, and had a new, more aggressive look.
The first race of the season was at Road Atlanta where Bert Everett and Paul Nichter finished twenty seventh, again struck with gearbox troubles. 

Bert Everett and Paul Nichter at the start of the 6 Hours of Atlanta 1974, they finished 27th overall

Photo courtesy Bobcor

The car was entered at Laguna Seca but again with poor results, finishing 35th and 41st respectively in the two heats.  In fact, the car was no longer developed, as Alfa Romeo Spa had announced they were no longer funding the Montreal racing budget. As to worsen things, the main sponsor Kendall Oil was turning over to NASCAR racing and cut their support by a half. Even Goodyear was no longer willing to supply the team with tyres! In fact, the development costs would raise to $100 000 to go on and no sponsor would be willing to help. That was the end of the story. The car would finish its short career as a show car. Bobcor stopped racing at that point and did not appear at any other IMSA event. The last international appearance would be a 6 Hours of Watkins Glen in 1975, with an Alfetta GT. There, Bert Everett and Franco Marino would last fifty laps for a dnf. However, you may see one of the Alfa Romeo GTA-GTV at some historic races with Bob Cozza's son, Michael, at the wheel.

Many thanks to Bob Cozza, who provided me with some useful information. Still active today, you can visit his site at Bobcoralfa and find out a lot of information about Alfa Romeos of yesterday and today.

 

24 Hours of Daytona 1983 : Porsche 935 last victory

This event was to be the first race of the 1983 schedule, and it had begun in an odd fashion. A storm had been announced by the media and had shortened, as much as possible, the first practice session. The second practice session had been scheduled on February 3rd and would last no less than four hours.
The entry list was the now usual American GTP-GTX field, with a great deal of GTOs and GTUs to make for a huge seventy nine car field.
From Europe, only two Aston Martin Nimrod were entered. They would be driven by a mix of US and non US drivers. Darrell Waltrip-AJ Foyt-Tiff Needell-Guillermo Maldonado were on the first one and Lyn St James-John Graham-Drake Olson drove the second one. Jaguar was represented by Group 44 and had a brand new XJR5 for Bob Tullius-Bill Adam and Pat Bedard. The previous car had been destroyed during the 1982 Daytona Finale.  Two Marches were there too, a 83G for Motorsport Marketing, driven by Randy Lanier-Terry Wolters and Marty Hinze and a 82G Porsche for the Red Lobster Team. This car had a particular paint scheme and was finished prior to the beginning of the first session. Fitted with a 3,2L Porsche found usually on the Porsche 935s, the car would have a lot of trouble running during the practice session. Three Lolas were there : Interscope Racing had two cars, a normally aspirated car and the new V6 Turbo prepared by Ryan Falconer. They were driven by Danny Ongais-Ted Field and Bill Whittington. The other car was the Cooke Racing driven by Ralph Cooke-Jim Adams-Dana Leung and John Bright.
A Mazda GTP was entered by Z and W Racing for Pierre Honegger-Walt Bohren and David Palmer. Fitted with a 13B engine, this car would prove efficient in spite of an obvious lack of power. The chassis making for this lack.
Facing those GTP cars, a bunch of Porsche 935s were entered. The most efficient seemed to be the Andial prepared T Bird Swap Shop car driven by Bob Wollek-Claude Ballot Léna-Preston Henn. It was a Moby Dick chassis that would prove very efficient. JLP Racing had a more standard car for John Paul Jr-René Rodriguez and Joe Castellano. The Pink Panzer was here too with Frank Rubino-Pepe Romero and Doc Bundy. Bayside Disposal Racing had a much modified car for an all-star field of drivers : Al Holbert-Hurley Haywood and Bruce Leven. Bob Akin had his Coke machine for himself, he shared it with John O'steen and Dale Whittington. Pegasus Racing had a nearly standard car for Ken Madren-Mark Speer and Ray Ratcliff. Marty Hinze was here too with his own K3 but he had no co-driver! John Paul Sr had a K3 for himself and Phil Currin. Angelo Pallavicini, from Switzerland was entered on a quite standard 935, not updated to K3 specs. The GTO cars were next, and you could find some very good cars, able to threaten the best, if they proved reliable. The two Stratagraph Chevrolet Camaros were the favorites, with Gene Felton-Tom Williams and Lloyd Frink on the first one, and Billy Hagan-Terry Labonte and Lloyd Frink again on the second one. They would have to face a pair of well driven Pontiac Firebirds entered by always optimistic Gordy Oftedahl. Bob Raub-Carl Shafer-Sam Moses were on the #14 and Mike Brummer-Phil Pate-Duane Eitel drove the #13. Auriga Racing entered a very good Camaro for Nelson Silcox-Tom Nehl and Richard Valentine. One of the most surprising entry for this race was undoubtedly a Studebaker Avanti driven by Herb Adams-John Martin-Joe Ruttman and Len Emmanuelson. This was to be one of the fastest car on the banking and the biggest surprise of this race. A new Porsche 934 was entered by Garretson Enterprises for Wayne Baker-Jim Mullen and Kees Nierop. It was a specially prepared car that would later be the surprise of the year. Ludwig Heimrath had his own 934 for himself and his son. The last competitive car was a Mazda RX7 entered by Racing Beat for Pete Halsmer-Rick Knoop and Bob Reed. Fitted with a 13B engine, it would be quite fast. The remainder of the GTO field was the usual Corvettes, Camaros, Porsche Carreras and two Ford Mustangs entered by Marketing Corporation for John Morton-Tom Klausler-Ronnie Bucknum and Milt Minter-Ronnie Bucknum. Two Chevrolet Monzas were to be seen as well as Porsche 924GTRs and BMW M1s. The GTU category was no more your usual Mazda-Datsun battle as All American Racers entered three brand new Toyota Celicas for Wally Dallenbach-Whitney Ganz-Willy T Ribbs, Dennis Aase-Michael Chandler-Al Unser Jr and Kaoru Hoshino-Masanori Sekiya-Gene Hackman. An all-star team!  They would have to face the usual Mazda RX7s, a single Datsun 280ZX and some Porsche 911s.
The weather did not look fine when the practice sessions  were to begin. A tornado was heading towards Florida and relentless messages were to be seen on the TV screens throughout the week. The first practice session would be run under a very dark weather. However, the first qualifying session would be run on a dry track. As the first ten positions would be set during that session, everyone was willing to have a go at it. Bob Wollek would shatter the previous record in 1m42s155, and Preston Henn was quite happy in spite of an engine loss by his star driver. He was followed by four other Porsche 935s, the best one driven by John Paul Jr but four seconds slower. The two Lolas were then, Bill Whittington would have a big fear when he punctured on the banking and destroyed his car partially. The best GTOs were just behind. The day after, Bob Wollek would not be beaten but Danny Ongais did a 1m42s554, that brought him very close to the French driver. But he would start in eleventh position. He would explode a tyre too. The team would enter the V6 Turbo car only. Gene Felton, as per usual should we say, was the best GTO qualifier on his Chevrolet Camaro, and Lee Mueller powered his Kent Racing Mazda RX7 to the best GTU position, starting on the thirty fourth position. The Red Lobster March 82G Porsche would not run at all, but was allowed to start the race, dead last.

The start of the race with Bob Wollek leading the field with John Paul Jr alongside

Copyright Mike Smith

The weather was Floridian when the cars would be set on the grid and they were seventy nine. At the start, Bob Wollek was the quickest but he had to be very attentive not to be overtaken by his pursuers. In fact, Preston Henn had told him to stay in front while CBS did cover the race, in live. A Porsche Carrera would hit the wall at the very first bend of the very first lap : Lance van Every was the first retirement of the race.
After three laps, he was overtaken by Bob Akin who was willing to show his Coca Cola car in front by all means. He was not the sole driver with such desires and it was then Bob Tullius with his Jaguar XJR5 who was in the lead after six laps. In fact, the TBird car had trouble following the leaders as a turbo pressure problem did appear, slowing the car. The left turbocharger was changed, then the right one, relegating the car in 58th position at the end of the first hour, six laps down. Hurley Haywood had taken the lead, and fought with the JLP Racing car. John O'steen would hit the wall after forty three laps.
The Interscope Lola would hit a Ford Mustang driven by John Morton-Tom Klausler, but the turbo was finally the cause for its retirement later. As the Jaguar would stop at longer intervals, the British car  would take the lead by the second hour.

The new Jaguar XJR5 took the lead at the second hour but it would retire with suspension damage

Copyright Mike Smith

A big surprise was the Ferrari 512BB which was third when the night fell on the circuit. Carson Baird-Chip Mead and Tom Pumpelly would even take the lead at the six hour mark!  The different Porsche 935s would begin to be decimated, as René Rodriguez car, losing a wheel and hitting the wall twice. The Preston Henn car was carefully carving its way back to the lead, but the gap was slowly reducing. The Bayside Disposal car would have a fire and it was the Motorsport Marketing March 83G Chevrolet that was a surprise leader. Bob Wollek and Claude Ballot Léna were eleven laps down but could turn up the boost. The unbelievable would happen, with the March driven by unknown drivers and the Ferrari 512BB swapping the lead for hours. Many off-course were to happen as was Pascal Wittmeur, driving a Pontiac Firebird. With no brakes, he went right into the wall, avoiding a group of cars preceding him. The safety car was out for a new caution period. The two Aston Martins were very far away from the leaders and would retire later with a broken engine.

AJ Foyt drove this Aston Martin Nimrod that would retire with a broken engine. He would then take a ride in the winning car!

Copyright Mike Smith

After six hours, Randy Lanier was leading and Carson Baird was second, then the Racing Beat Mazda RX7 was third with Pete Halsmer and Rick Knoop driving. Bob Wollek and Claude Ballot Léna were fourth, seven laps down. They were running strong while the car had some minor feed trouble, they had to stop every twenty laps, and had to pump the brakes pedal not to lose turbo pressure!  The Avanti, probably needing a big repair, was seen on a trailer going to a local garage to undergo some internal work. The car would be seen later and finished the race. It was then the big "coup" for Preston Henn, seeing AJ Foyt without any drive left, after the Aston Martin Nimrod retirement. He would offer him a drive on the Porsche 935L presently driven by Bob Wollek and Claude Ballot Léna! He could have a rest at his hotel, he was to take his drive at 8AM! For a couple of thousand dollars the deal was OK. His co-drivers did not have it easy, and were steadily closing in on the leaders. The March 83G had been slowed by ignition problems, with water in the distributor, that cost them four laps.

The Motorsport Marketing March 83G Chevrolet driven by Randy Lanier-Terry Wolters and Marty Hinze was the surprise of the race, and finished second overall
Copyright Mike Smith

The Porsche took the lead in the early morning and was two laps ahead of the March.  The Ferrari 512BB was out of the race in the early morning with a broken crankshaft. Bob Wollek would go angry at Preston Henn's decision, arguing from the fact that AJ was a total rookie on this type of car. A real storm was about to burst in the pits. But in fact, it would later come from mother nature as a big storm would happen, flooding the track and the safety car was out once again. AJ Foyt, driving under the rain, proved unsuspected abilities to drive such a car in such conditions, while the March drivers would spin every two laps. Bob Wollek would soften his speech, apparently relieved at this sight. The track became so sodden that the race direction took a the right decision, and the race was stopped. The sweepers would dry the track. It would last fifty four minutes and the race restarted for a very short time as Hurley Haywood hit the wall, and went back three wheeling to his pits. Yellow flag for one more hour at thirty miles per hour. Everyone thought that the race would be definitively stopped. But CBS was here and they would have to go to the end of the race. Bob Wollek refused to take his ride at noon, and explained that AJ Foyt could drive a little more! He would take the wheel of the leading car at 1PM, and AJ did prove he was a great driver, as his rides were run under the wet, with no mistake.

The winning Porsche 935L driven by Bob Wollek-Claude Ballot Léna and AJ Foyt had a strong race to win overall by six laps

Copyright Mike Smith

He would recognize the fact that victory was gained by the two French drivers, mainly, but he proved that he could become a good one too. But the car was probably the best of that race, in spite of a broken valve, Bob Wollek-Claude Ballot Léna and AJ Foyt cruised to a well deserved victory with a six lap advantage over the March 83G Chevrolet driven by Randy Lanier-Terry Wolters and Marty Hinze. Third and first in the GTO class was the Mazda RX7 driven by Pete Halsmer-Rick Knoop and Bob Reed, which finished twenty laps down. The winning GTU car was finally Dave Kent's Mazda RX7 driven by Lee Mueller-Terry Visger and Hugh McDonough.