Bold Step — 1985 Lola T711-Chevrolet

We’ve partnered with Sports Car Digest to republish Corvette stories that we think our members will enjoy. This piece was originally published on October 1, 2014. Members can enjoy it here on CorvSport.

Most sports go through periods of change for whatever reason. Sometimes, these changes are to liven things up when things get a little stale, or as a response when it is perceived that the public is losing interest. Other times it’s driven by sponsors or participants mounting publicity campaigns to try and recoup some of the monies invested in the particular sport. Motor racing, over the years, has seen many changes in all formula of the sport. Today’s Formula One appears far more contrived than the heady “golden eras” of years gone by. DRS and double points all trying to keep television audiences watching as the latest Grand Prix season unfolds. Throughout its history, sports car racing has gone through many transformations as well. Like the others, these various changes were intended to keep manufacturers, sponsors, drivers and yes, even the spectators, tuned in and turned on to the on-track spectacle.

The IMSA GT series is a prime case in point. Founded in 1969, the original idea was to have a series of races for classes of GT and Touring cars, and it enjoyed immediate success from its very first race at Virginia International Raceway. It was the Peter Gregg and Porsche show in these early years, as they first made their mark and then dominated the series in a manner similar to the “Bruce and Denny Show” in Can-Am. However, when a series devolves to the point where it becomes a foregone conclusion as to which car and driver combination will win races before a flag has even dropped, it’s usually time for a change and a reevaluation of the rules.

From 1981 through to 1993, in an effort to spice things up, the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) category was born to accommodate the new Group C cars from the World Endurance Championship (WEC). While keeping to the Group C constraints, the new GTP cars were not to be restricted by fuel consumption. Some of the prominent drivers of the day—most notably Derek Bell, who enjoyed the power and performance that the Group C rules allowed—were dismissive of the WEC rules, which erred on fuel economy. The freedom of unrestricted fuel in the GTP category really appealed to Bell—a true die-hard racer.