IMSAblog

The March saga, part 2

At the end of the 1983 season, March revealed its new weapon for the 1984 season in the name of 84G. Entered by Leon Bros Racing, the car was powered by a Chevrolet engine. The car, driven by Al and Art Leon, the car did not show great promises, due to the poor driving abilities of its owners. Yet, it was only the beginning for the new Bicester spearhead. The March 84G could be powered by different powerplants, ranging from the classical V8 Chevrolet to the V6 Buick turbo or even the flat 6 Porsche. With a honeycomb chassis, the overall design appeared much more sleek. The windshield was bigger and differed mostly from its predecessors. To the rear, the car did not display any brakes scoop. The March 84G/01, entered by the Leon Bros, did not capture any significant result in 1984, except at Riverside, but they were helped by Hurley Haywood, and they took a fifth overall.

Al and Art Leon purchased the first March 84G chassis. They finished eighth overall at Daytona in 1984, co-driven by Terry Wolters.

Copyright Mark Windecker

The car underwent some aesthetical improvements, with the rear wing fins which were not attached to the bodywork. The car was entered in 1985, too but the team had purchased a 85G, which was powered by a Porsche engine. This car, 85G/05, did not claim any significant result too. The 84G/02 chassis was purchased at the end of 1983 by Pegasus Racing. Powered by a V6 3,4L Buick powerplant, fed by a Warner Ishi single turbo and prepared by McLaren engines, the car debuted at the Daytona Finale 1983. Driven by Ken Madren and Mark Speer, the car ended up in sixth place, which was an encouraging result. It was not to last, unfortunately, as 1984 proved to be a very unlucky season. The car would never see the checkered, whatever the race. After a very poor season, the car was then sold to Conte Racing, who entered the car at Sebring for the enduro. The 1985 season would not be a better year with a regular string of dnfs. After one race in 1986, the car disappeared for two years, only to be run at Lime Rock in 1988. Entered by Briody Racing, the result was unfortunately the same as per usual, then it was not to be seen anymore. Chassis 84G/03 was purchased by DJ Racing, who was used to running Marches. As for their former car, it was powered by a flat 6 Porsche prepared by Andial. Wearing the Kreepy Krauly colors, the car experienced an early fire, which postponed the car's debuts to Portland. For this race, Sarel van der Merwe took the pole and had a very short race. The car once again caught fire! After being restored, the car did not prove fast enough to capture any win. In 1985, it could be seen at the 24 Hours of Daytona, but the race was some kind of littering for this car which was now Yokohama shod, and backed. Miami was then the last race for this car. The Apartheid issue was too much for this team, as well as the financial situation, which was not improving. They had to withdraw from the series, and then the car was rented to John Hotschkis. Then it was entered for the Le Mans 24 Hour race. Some last minute modifications had to get done, in order to comply with the ACO regulations, but the race was one to forget, with a twenty second place overall. But the car remains as the only March to see the chequered in the famed French classic.
John Kalagian had run a Lola T600 in 1983, but in 1984, he purchased a March 84G. In fact, he would not enter this car before the Portland race in July. This first race saw John Kalagian, co-driven by John Lloyd end up in seventh position. In fact, it would be their sole positive accomplishment in the season. In 1985, while running the three Floridian enduros, then the car was rented by David Cowart. Then the car never reappear in any 1985 race, and it seems that it had been purchased by Joe Hill, who entered the car at Columbus at the end of the season. Then not any news about this car could be collected. One thing is sure, she did not shine at all.
The chassis 84G/05 was the most successful ever in IMSA history for the March fleet. It was entered by Blue Thunder Racing, and driven by Randy Lanier and Bill Whittington for the most part of the season. It was debuted at Riverside on April 29 1984. This very first race saw the car fighting all the race with the equally debuting Porsche 962 entered by Bayside Disposal Racing. The March won by a scant 4s9 margin over the Porsche. Then a string of successes and high finishes was recorded by Randy Lanier at Laguna Seca and Charlotte, a second place finish at Lime Rock and another win at Mid Ohio with Bill Whittington. With two retirements at Watkins Glen and Sears Point, things seemed to straighten up for the opposition. However, at Road America, the Randy Lanier and Bill Whittington duo took a third place overall. With the new Porsche 962 opposition, it looked like they would be defeated at the end, but they wanted it and never surrendered.

Randy Lanier and Bill Whittington had an extraordinary season, with the fromer winning the drivers title.

Copyright Mark Windecker

Two new victories were collected at Michigan and Portland, which ensured Randy Lanier his first IMSA drivers crown. The car underwent some very slight changes during the course of the 1984 season, as the oil filling cap and the rear view mirror moving backwards. The car was powered by a V8 5,8L Chevrolet prepared by Ryan Falconer. It seemed obvious that the team was thoroughly well funded, and it allowed them to service the car as it was required. The drivers could rely on a perfectly maintained car. At the Daytona Finale, Bill Whittington ran this car which curiously displayed the number 1, while Randy Lanier, who was freshly crowned, drove the number 57 car. Randy Lanier owed very much to Bill Whittington's ability to set up cars, and the latter offered him the title on a silver plate.
The car was to be seen again in 1985, at Miami and Sebring, but with no interesting result at stake. The glorious 84G/05 chassis career was over, but it remains as the most successful March GTP chassis ever. The very last 84G chassis to tackle the IMSA Championship was the 84G/06, which was sold to Phil Conte. Used to entering a Lola, Conte Racing entered this March at Charlotte in 1984. Mostly driven by John Morton, along with many different co-drivers, the car ran well, falling short of the podium twice at Charlotte and Mid Ohio. After retiring at Pocono, the car was to be later replaced by a 85G model. In fact, Phil Conte had been approached by Buick's Joe Negri, and these talks led to Conte Racing becoming the official Buick representative. The deal was that they would have horsepower. And they did!
At the 1985 Daytona 24 Hours, the 84G/06 car was rented by DeAtley Motorsport, and repainted red, wearing the Budweiser colors. Tommy Byrne, Michael Roe and Darin Brassfield drove this car to a dnf. At Miami, Ralph Sanchez rent it for his local entry and had once again Emerson Fittipaldi drive it. After a run in with the officials, the car was given a stop and go and probably lost a well deserved victory. Emerson Fittipaldi and Tony Garcia finished third. This car was to be entered again at Miami the next year. Partnered by Bobby Rahal, Emerson Fittipaldi, while as fast as ever, retired early in the race with a broken gearbox. Ralph Sanchez had purchased a 85G, chassis 02, which he entered at the Daytona Finale in 1984. Powered by a Buick turbo engine, the car, which was driven by Emerson Fittipaldi, blew a turbo in the race after starting from the tenth spot. This car was to be entered by Ralph Sanchez, along with the 84G, who nearly missed the win. Jan Lammers and Roberto Guerrero drove it, but the engine was not suited to the track, and they finished ninth.

Phil Conte March 85G Buick was driven by John Morton and John Paul Jr throughout the 1985 season. The car had horsepower, but failed to finish most of the races.

Copyright Dave Kutz

Conte Racing had entered their newly acquired 85G/01, which was Buick powered, for John Paul Jr and John Morton at the Daytona Finale 1984 too. Starting ninth, the car retired after twenty nine laps with a blown turbo. These two cars were the 1985 weapons for the Bicester make. Phil Conte also had 85G/03, which was used as a backup car. Sleeker and lighter than the 83G and 84G chassis, the new design was to allow a greater speed, in order to face the new Porsche challenge. Unfortunately, the car entered by Conte Racing suffered from many chassis failures. The 85G chassis was ill-handling. It was very difficult to drive, though it was fast. Everything was on the rear tyres. The engine went right, but many parts on the chassis would break. They had to reinforce everything. What's more, the support they expected to have from March was not to come as expected. Things worsened as time passed. Phil Conte had to spend a lot of money on the cars, and money ran short. Their only honest result was to happen at Pocono, with a fifth place finish earned by Bill Adam and Whitney Ganz. The remainder of the season was strewn with dnfs and breakdowns. In 1986, two cars were entered. The team nearly won at Road Atlanta, with 85G/03, in an outstanding battle with the Chevrolet Corvette GTP driven by Sarel van der Merwe. This race remains for ever in Phil Conte's memory. John Paul Jr would no more drive for the team, as he had been indicted and taken into custody. So Whitney Ganz, Bob Lobenberg, Ken Madren and Jim Crawford did the job of driving the ever evolving cars. Now renamed as Hawk, as the two cars were extensively modified, reliability was always searched for. In 1987, the cars were thoroughly modified by Tony Cicale, who had a new nose installed at the front of the car, with side-mounted radiators. After experiencing some retirements, the team was rewarded by a fourth place finish at Lime Rock, with the 86G/11. Whitney Ganz and Bob Lobenberg drove the Hawk Buick to its last race. Phil Conte had dropped from racing, probably burned out from so much money spent.
Leon Bros had purchased one 85G chassis(85G/05), which was wrecked at Road Atlanta in 1985, and Neil deAtley another one(85G/04). John Kalagian had also acquired a new March 85G, chassis 85G/06.

John Kalagian and Tommy Grunnah drove this March 85G Porsche to eighth overall at Mid Ohio. They had a mixed season.

Copyright Terry Capps

A string of consistent results rewarded the team, but it was obvious that they did not have the means to win races. He ran with many different co-drivers, including John Mills, Tommy Grunnah, Steve Shelton and John Lloyd. At Sears Point, he was partnered by a friend, Jim Cook, who tried to qualify the car. Sadly, he suffered from a heart attack and died during practice. John Kalagian finished 19th in points. The 1986 season was full of hope for John Kalagian, who was supposed to drive for Holbert Racing, as backup driver. He had sold his March and as the deal did not come to a conclusion, he found himself without a car. Then he was able to purchase Ralph Sanchez chassis 85G/02. Jim Bailie, freshly hired from Conte Racing, was content to work for a smaller team, and he found himself at home with the car. In fact, this car would  actually be raced once. Jim Mullen was enlisted as co-driver, and  heard a noise in the car. John Kalagian got under the wheel, and had an horrendous crash, leaving him paralysed. It was the end of his racing career as a driver, but he returned to racing as a team owner in 1988.
Chassis 85G/07 had a different story, as it was purchased by BMW, who used it as test bed, in order to re-enter the GTP class in 1986. The last chassis to be seen in IMSA was the one labeled 85G/11, also owned by Phil Conte. The other cars had been shipped to Japan.
 

The next generation of March prototypes was designed by Gordon Coppuck. They were no longer customer cars, as they were intended for factories, who ordered them. BMW had ordered seven 86Gs, Nissan four ones and Conte Racing would have one, which was Buick powered. This car would be sold to Gianpiero Moretti, who raced it until the end of 1988. The remainder of the cars had been sold to Nissan, who used them to develop future cars. However, private March entries could be seen until the end of the eighties, but they no longer played a major part in IMSA races. They had their share of glory, but these days were over.
 

Glenn Bunch Jaguar XKE

Glenn Bunch began his racing career after an attempt at autocrossing. He then attended Bill Scott's racing school, then began racing Saab Sonetts, both in V4 or Sonett III form.
A native of Newport News, Virginia, he began entering IMSA as soon as 1972, running the sole Saab Sonett ever entered in IMSA. However, after a rather disappointing season, he could not do better than an eleventh place at Bryar Park, it was clear for him that he needed more horsepower. He had a street Jaguar '62 XKE, which appeared to be faster than his racing Saab. Wondering what to do next, his knowledge of Jaguars was far much better than Porsches or Corvettes, so switching to a racing Jaguar XKE was an obvious choice. This first XKE looked and was pretty much stock, and not only in appearance. His first 1973 race with the Jaguar took place at Indianapolis Raceway Park. He finished twenty first, but the car suffered from handling problems. Those were the days of the beginnings of IMSA, and everyone was very helpful. Glenn Bunch had not any pit crew. The Daytona Finale was his second race, but he could not do better than 32nd overall, after losing power very early in the race. The car had no spoiler then, and Glenn would add it later. It was powered by a L6 engine, which was lacking power, but was reliable.
The car was much modified for the first 1974, which was Road Atlanta. Glenn Bunch was disappointed at Sebring's cancellation, which was due to the oil crisis. So he headed for Road Atlanta, and Glenn was partnered by Al Taylor. Amusingly, Glenn missed his first stint, as he went into a very deep nap! Al Taylor doubled his duty. The pair finished twenrieth, and the car suffered mainly from air leaks behind the Webers. They lost time to fix up that problem. Glenn had decided to miss the next three races in order to work on the car. He removed the door glass and frames, stripped the hardtop and lightened the car by 200 lbs. The best improvement on the car was installing a new 4,5L V6 engine, which was fresh. New brakes were installed too and the car handled better too.

Glenn Bunch and John Hastings finished 15th at Mid Ohio in 1974 with a much improved car.

Copyright Mark Windecker

At Mid Ohio, Glenn Bunch was co-driven by his high school buddy John Hastings, who debuted in racing. The car ran very well, and the pair finished fifteenth, which was a pretty good result, according to the field's strength. skipping the next race, always for the sake of improvement, Glenn Bunch showed up at Talladega. After working under the car to reduce air drag and shortening the primary pipes, it was now capable of speeds in excess of 165mph. Lest! Heavy rains flooded the track, and the car was destroyed during practice when Glenn swerved to avoid another driver who lost control of his car. He went back home to rebuild it. He worked night and day in order to get it ready for the next event, which was to take place at Charlotte Motor Speedway. It was the first time the cars ran on the infield-banking combination track, and the track machinery was still there when the cars ran. The Jaguar's hood had been replaced with a '69 one, which displayed a larger air intake. The car ran well, but some problems pertaining to the previous race,  he could manage to end up eleventh. This race was to be the last one for Glenn in 1974, as he had to concentrate on his business. Time and money were running short, too.
The 1975 season was to begin, for Glenn, with the 12 Hours of Sebring, which had a special meaning to him. He wanted to be the first driver to bring an E type Jaguar to the chequered. Alas, it was not to be. He had sold his V6 car to John Hastings, yet, they would race this car for the last time. Starting 45th, the car ran pretty well during the first two hours, and Glenn had gone up in the standings and completed 34 laps. Handing the car to John Hastings, it would not do one more lap! John Hastings lost control of the Jaguar and collided with a motorcar. He was badly hurt and would spend many months in traction The car was a mess. It was time to run the V12. This car had been tested at Silverstone and wound up the best lap times ever to be performed by such a car. Glenn was very optimistic as to his race season. Forward Engineering had fitted it with a six carburetter 5,8L engine, given for 410hp. However, the car was not in IMSA trim, and it would change things a lot.
He worked on the car to make it legal, added a steel rollcage and modified the bodywork. It was much more heavier, too. The very first race, for this car, took place at Mid America, on a hot summer day. While the car had low speed torque problems, the car proved extremely hot, too, as the differential grew hot and the seats began to melt down, starting a fire. The car began to fill up with smoke. He could speed up to the pits to have the fire extinguished, and finished at a lowly twenty second place. The car, again, needed to be improved, obviously. Back to the shop, a set of new headers was made, with new exhaust pipes. New rear disc brakes, as well as a better rear fender ducting, to improve brakes cooling while a new dry sump system was installed. He had to cure the Weber fuel rejection problem, which had caused the car to fill up with smoke. Fixing all those improvements would take time, and Glenn Bunch would not enter any other race in 1975. He would be back in 1976. Meanwhile, he had become a Beck-Arnleys representative, and his car proudly displayed his new colors.

Glenn Bunch V12 XKE Jaguar, displaying his new Beck-Arnleys colors at Mid Ohio in 1976.

Copyright Carl Meynardie

The first race took place at Mid Ohio,and the dry sump tank nearly cost him to start the race. He was almost happy to finish twenty first out of forty cars. The E type went to Talladega, but it seemed that the Alabama track was never to bring him luck. He retired after six laps, after his windshield was destroyed by a fender falling on it. This being the result of a collision just in front of him. With no spare one, he could go back home again. At Pocono, for the next race, the car experienced some unsolved troubles. The oil pressure was bobbing up and down, and Glenn, fearing to destroy his engine, did not even attempt to qualify. This was to be the very last race for the Jaguar. At the end, the V12 Jaguar proved to be a total disappointment. It never ran as expected, but he never had any real support from the factory, or even from Forward Engineering. He would concentrate on working on street Saab Sonetts, but the racing bug did not leave him. He would be back to the IMSA fields two years later with a totally different new machine : a Dodge Challenger AAGT. Later, he admitted that he should have developped further his own version of the V6 car. Unfortunately, he had relied on a car that could have run well, but he probably did not get enough support from anyone, and it certainly made the difference. You may visit Glenn Bunch personal site for a much more detailed story of his racing career.

1987, part 1

The new season began without BMW, who had decided not to go further with their GTP program. In fact, it seemed that Porsche would have the going easy to win a new IMSA crown.
With the best teams switching to Porsche, the other teams were feeling more and more lonely, and they were. The Hendrick Racing Chevrolet Corvette GTP was still to be entered, with Sarel van der Merwe and Doc Bundy driving. Group 44 was still there, concentrating on one single car for the most of the season, with Bob Tullius, Hurley Haywood sharing the driving. Roush Racing would field a homebuilt Ford Maxxum, powered by a 7,0L powerplant, but it looked rather short on power. The occasional March Buick, entered by Conte Racing, would bring some welcome diversity to the fields that were overshadowed by the Porsche dominance. In the Lights class, it became suddenly obvious that Spice would dominate the field, with four cars now entered by Don Bell, Ball Bros and the likes. Jim Downing would remain faithful to his Mazda powered Argo JM19. The GTO class seemed very promising, with Ford being threatened by a host of Chevrolet Camaros and Corvettes. The new Peerless and Protofab cars were state of the art tubeframe machines, capable of astonishing speed. The Toyota Celicas entered by AAR had a lot of effective arguments : they would be the surprise of the year. The GTU class was a continuity from the 1986, with the Huffaker Pontiac Fieros fighting out throughout the season with the everlasting Mazda RX7s. This duel was being troubled by a very consistent opposition provided by Bob Leitzinger with his improving Nissan 300ZX.
The season was to begin, as per usual, at Daytona, for the traditional 24 Hour enduro. Nine Porsche 962s were to face one Jaguar XJR6, the Chevrolet Corvette GTP, two Fords, one March 84G and a Tiga GT286 turbo. Bayside Disposal Racing entered one car for Jochen Mass-Klaus Ludwig and team owner Bruce Leven. BF Goodrich had Bob Wollek and Darin Brassfield. Dyson Racing entered one car for Rob Dyson, Price Cobb and Vern Schuppan. Primus Motorsport was a new team and had Brian Redman, Chris Kneifel and Elliot Forbes Robinson. Foyt Racing was running one car for AJ Foyt, Al Unser Sr and Danny Sullivan. Brun Motorsport had Gianfranco Brancatelli, Oscar Larrauri and Massimo Sigala. Holbert Racing had a 2,8L car for Chip Robinson, Derek Bell, Al Unser Jr and Al Holbert. Bob Akin was driving his car with James Weaver and Hans Stuck while John Hotschkis shared his car with his son and Jim Adams. The cars were very different, with 2,8L or 3,0L engines, while some of them came from the Porsche works, the other ones were built at the Holbert Racing shop in Warrington, Pennsylvania. The Wynn's car and the Primus Motorsport one directly came from Holbert's race shop. The Holbert Racing car, the Brun Motorsport, the Dyson Racing one and the Wynn's car all relied on 2,8L engines. Facing this quite inbeatable armada, Ford was represented by Zakspeed USA, who had exceptionally entered a Ford Probe, which appeared as slightly improved. Powered by a 6,0L engine given for 750 hp, it could theoretically be a real threat to the Porsches, but it would not be so.

The new Ford Maxxum debuted at Daytona. It was powered by a V8 6,5L Ford and driven by Scott Pruett, Pete Halsmer and Tom Gloy.

Copyright Michael Crews

The Ford Maxxum, which was powered by a V8 6,5L Ford engine, was entered by Roush Racing, and driven by Scott Pruett, Pete Halsmer and Tom Gloy. The two cars were quite different, and the two teams were not inclined to cooperating. Group 44 had a Jaguar XJR6, with John Mortin, Bob Tullius and Hurley Haywood. Powered by a V12 6,0L Jaguar, the car could do well on the long run, but suffered from being too lonely. De Atley Motorsport entered a March 85G Chevrolet, driven by Darin Brassfield, John Bauer, Michael Roe and Norton Gaston. This car was outdated and was longer a threat to the favorites. Costas Los had brought the Roy Baker Racing Tiga GT286 Ford Turbo, which was powered by a 3,3L DFL engine. The Lights class was more open, with two brand new Spice Fieros appearing as favorites. The Don Bell entered car was the quickest of them all, and wound up a fourteenth place overall in practice. Steve Durst and Mike Brockman took the second place on their Mazda powered car. Jim Downing and John Maffucci were third on the grid, but further down in terms of pure speed. More than six seconds was the gap between the best Spice and the fastest Argo! You could find a bunch of Tigas and Argos next. Gaston Andrey had entered his very fast Alba AR2 Ferrari, but he could hardly run faster than 1m59s664. The race waould be another story.
The GTO battle was gorgeous, and Ford no longer seemed to have the edge over its opponents. It was a good thing and the spectators really appreciated this fact. Ford, however, took the GTO pole with Lyn St James, Tom Gloy, Bill Elliot and Bruce Jenner. Behind this car, Wally Dallenbach brough his Protofab Chevrolet Camaro to second, while Irv Hoerr was third in his Whitehall Rocketsports Oldsmobile Toronado. The Toyotas were lower on the grid but did not seem to worry about this fact. The GTU class was dominated by the Mazda RX7s, which were not to be challenged by the Pontiac Fieros, as no one dared to enter this tough race. Some older Porsche 911 would try to count on their famous reliability to hope for a win in this class. Tom Kendall took the GTU pole, just ahead of Al Bacon, while Bill Auberlen took an outstanding third place in his SP Racing Porsche 911. The race was set, with a very good start from the front-runners. Klaus Ludwig jumped in front, with Bob Wollek trailing him, and Sarel van der Merwe, who ran cautiously, as he had a new engine.

The Porsche 962s of Rob Dyson and AJ Foyt are dicing with the Jaguar XJR6 driven by Bob Tullius in the early stages of the race.

Copyright Michael Crews

The three of them would rapidly get away from a bunch of drivers, including AJ Foyt, Price Cobb, Brian Redman, Jim Adams, Chip Robinson and Bob Tullius. Hans Stuck could not take part in this battle, hampered by some brakes trouble. The Chevrolet Camaro entered by Protofab, and driven by Terry Labonte, Darrell Waltrip and Greg Pickett easily dominated the GTO class and appeared in tenth place at the end of the first hour, while Frank Jelinski was a surprising leader in the Lights class, at the wheel of the Gebhardt 853 BMW. In the evening, the two leading Porsche 962s were out, with a broken valve on the BF Goodrich car, and with a broken suspension on the Bayside Disposal car. The Chevrolet Corvette GTP was slighty delayed, so the Porsche 962s driven by AJ Foyt, Al Unser Sr and Danny Sullivan and the Löwenbrau car, driven by Al Holbert, Derek Bell and Al Unser Jr would fight it out until the end of the race! In the GTO class, many leader changes were to take place, and the two Protofab Chevrolet Camaros were still in the lead after six grueling hours. Then the two remaining opponents to the Porsches would suddenly disappear, as their engine failed, it would end up in a German parade. AJ Foyt and Al Holbert's cars were always in front, but Price Cobb was next, in the Dyson Racing Porsche 962. The battle in GTO would turn into a nightmare for the leading Chevrolet Camaro, which was forced to stop. The AAR Toyota Celicas were all of a sudden leading the class! Up front, the Holbert Racing Porsche 962 had built up a four lap lead upon the Foyt Racing car, but a tyre burst would negate this advantage. The leading Toyota Celica, driven by JM Fangio, had an overheating engine an lost many laps. The leading Spice Fiero, driven by Don Bell, Jeff Kline and Bob Earl would lose the leadership to the old Badger Mazda, after being diagnosed an oil leak. While the Foyt Racing car would end up the race with an ailing engine, finally retiring, Al Holbert, Derek Bell and Al Unser Jr would take a somewhat easy victory. Second was the Brun Motorsport Porsche 962, which ended up eight laps down the leading car, but an interesting fact was the fifteen laps gap that the car had twenty hours earlier. They ended up very strong. More disappointing, from the spectators point of view, was the GTO class lead lost by the Toyota thirty minutes from the end, due to a faulty suspension. Ford grabbed a late minute GTO victory. The GTU class went to the Team Highball Mazda RX7 driven by Amos Johnson, Jack Dunham and Dennis Shaw. An interesting fact was that it was the third in a row for the Team Highball car.
The next race was held at Miami, for the now traditional Grand Prix, and it would be a premiere. The GTP race was to be held after the GTO-GTU race, which saw Bob Earl drive the new Dingman Bros Pontiac Fiero GTO to its first victory. The race was marked by a lot of crashes, and many Pace car sessions ruined Jack Baldwin's hopes for the win. Muhammad Ali was the guest star and waved the green flag to the thirty four car field. Geoff Brabham had stuck his Nissan ZX T GTP on the pole, just ahead of the Conte Racing Hawk Buick driven by Michael Andretti and Jim Crawford. Sarel van der Merwe was next, with Chip Robinson only fourth on the first Porsche 962. At the start, the Nissan driven by Geoff Brabham was in the lead, followed by Michael Andretti and Sarel van der Merwe. Chip Robinson was next, followed by Scott Pruett, at the wheel of the Ford Maxxum. Bob Wollek would then hit a tyre wall, and pitted to switch for a new bonnet. While Hurley Haywood collided with Steve Shelton, the Jaguar would lose ten laps to have its suspension repaired. The leading Argo JM19 Buick, driven by Brent O'neill, hit the wall, bringing a full caution period, and Klaus Ludwig was in the lead. Every car, except him and Derek Bell, went in for a refueling. When the two of them did so, the Nissan was back in the lead, and it would be th Bayside Disposal car, driven by Jochen Mass and Bobby Rahal, which appeared as the most threatening one. Then Jm Crawford destroyed his Hawk Buick, and a new eleven lap caution period was brought. Geoff Brabham went back to his pits, letting Jochen Mass take the lead, but when he would do so, the Nissan would regain his position. The Nissan ZX T GTP would go to the chequered and earn a well-deserved first ever victory.

Geoff Brabham and Elliot Forbes Robinson took an easy victory at Miami, at the wheel of the Nissan ZX T GTP.

Copyright Kirk Hoffman

Jochen Mass and Bobby Rahal took an excellent second place, while Scott Pruett and Pete Halsmer took advantage of their tyre mount to overtake Derek Bell, who had to go for a late refueling pit stop. The Lights class was very disputed, with the two Spice Fieros and the Argo JM19 Mazda driven by Jim Downing dicing all over the race. Steve Durst and Michael Brockman took the lead after the Argo being penalized for not respecting the pit lane lights. However, the Spice Pontiac would be slowed by its engine, which ran on three cylinders, and finally lost the lead to the Fabcar Porsche driven by John Higgins, Charles Monk and Chip Mead, who inherited the lead, for a last minute win.
The next race would take place at Sebring, for the second longest enduro of the season. The track had undergone tremendous changes and was now 4.11 miles long. The two concrete runways were no longer used, yet the spirit of Sebring still persisted. While attractive, the Sebring race had a somewhat disappointing field of GTP cars. Nine GTPs were entered, with eight of them being Porsches. The only opposition to this armada was a Ford Mustang GTX, which could obviously not challenge the Porsche 962s.
Nineteen Lights cars would probably proffer a much better race than their counterparts. Chip Robinson took the pole position, driving the Holbert Racing car, with Jochen Mass and Bobby Rahal taking the second place on the Bayside Disposal car. In fact, these two cars would fight out throughout the race, dominating the entire race. The Holbert Racing car seemed to secure the win, as it had pulled away from its main challenger, but a turbocharger had to be changed two hours from the finish, losing nine minutes in the pits. The Bayside Disposal car took the lead, and never relinquished it. Jochen Mass and Bobby Rahal enjoyed victory lane. While the Holbert Racing car managed to take the second place, third place was taken by the Primus Motorsport car driven by Brian Redman, Chris Kneifel and Elliot Forbes Robinson.

Don't get wrong, this Chevrolet Camaro, driven by Tommy Riggins and Greg Pickett, took a fifth place overall and easily won the GTO class.

Copyright Robert Manley

The GTO class was won by the Protofab Chevrolet Camaro driven by Greg Pickett and Tommy Riggins, who finished at a very creditable fifth place overall. The Lights class was again taken by the White Allen Fabcar Porsche, driven by John Higgins, Charles Monk and Howard Cherry, whose consistency was beginning to pay off. The GTU class was once again won by a Mazda RX7, driven by Al Bacon, who was co-driven by Bob Reed. The two of them won over the SP Porsche 911 driven by Gary Auberlen, Bill Auberlen and Karl Durkheimer by a one lap margin.(to be continued)