This previous weekend noticed one thing that had not occurred in almost 20 years: precise IROC automobiles racing on observe.
1000’s of race followers flocked to Lime Rock Park July 19-20 to see IROC current two nostalgic days of on-track racing. These in attendance have been handled to a visually compelling racing exhibition of genuine IROC race automobiles being piloted by an array of well-known drivers, together with IROC racing legends Greg Biffle, Geoff Brabham (two-time IROC race winner), Davy Jones, Bobby Labonte (three-time IROC race winner and 2001 IROC Sequence champion), Mark Martin (13-time IROC race winner and five-time IROC collection champion), Ken Schrader, Danny Sullivan (one IROC race win) and Al Unser Jr. (11-time IROC race winner and two-time IROC collection champion).
Along with this spectacular record of former IROC drivers, the occasion additionally included four-time NASCAR Truck Sequence Champion Ron Hornaday, Grand-Am Sports activities Automobile Sequence and Trans Am champion Boris Stated and 1995 NASCAR Truck Sequence champion Mike Skinner. The IROC occasion happened as a part of the SVRA’s SpeedTour All-Star Race weekend.
IROC (Worldwide Race of Champions) is a collection that held races from 1973 to 2006, which introduced collectively the best drivers from all types of motorsport to race similar automobiles on historic tracks for an all-star extravaganza. Earlier this 12 months, NASCAR Corridor of Fame member Ray Evernham and former NASCAR Cup Sequence group proprietor and enterprise capitalist Rob Kauffman based IROC Holdings LLC and introduced that they had acquired the rights to the enduring IROC model. The return of IROC to the race observe this previous weekend was step one in revitalizing the model.
“What we got down to do with our occasion at Lime Rock Park was to show there may be nonetheless curiosity within the IROC model,” Evernham mentioned. “After experiencing the overwhelmingly constructive response this weekend, there isn’t a query that IROC has a particular place in motorsports historical past and followers need it again.”
The automotive line-up featured two classic 911 Porsches paying tribute to Mark Donahue and George Follmer, together with 21 unique IROC racecars representing almost each era of automotive utilized in IROC competitors up till the collection paused operations in 2006. In the course of the exhibition race held on Saturday, 17 automobiles went out on observe and placed on a charming present for the followers that lined the rolling hills of Lime Rock Park.
Along with the on-track racing exhibition, the IROC paddock was a hub of exercise all weekend. Followers had the chance to rise up shut and private with the IROC race automobiles, two autograph classes have been held with a whole lot of followers lining as much as meet their favourite drivers and commemorative IROC-branded merchandise was obtainable for buy. Ray Evernham, Mark Martin, Geoff Bodine and Matt Yocum additionally participated in a particular IROC panel dialogue that gave followers insider entry to a few of their favourite recollections from IROC historical past.
“I’ve actually loved working along with Ray and his group bringing again the IROC model. The fan response has been extraordinarily gratifying,” Kauffman mentioned. “Ray and I want to prolong our due to the SVRA, Lime Rock Park, True Worth, Audrain Motorsport, VP Racing Fuels, and Goodyear for his or her assist in making this occasion potential, however, most significantly, I need to thank the entire followers for his or her unwavering enthusiasm for what we’re doing.”
As a part of the SpeedTour All-Star Race weekend at Lime Rock Park, which was hosted by Parella Motorsports Holdings (PMH), followers have been additionally handled to the SpeedTour All-Star Race, which gathered icons from Formulation 1, NASCAR, IndyCar and IMSA, and paired them with opponents from the Trans Am Sequence introduced by Pirelli’s CUBE 3 Structure TA2 Sequence to compete as co-drivers in a race to win $50,000.
On what’s subsequent for IROC, Evernham and Kauffman would solely say, “keep tuned”.
