IMSA official history

[NaBUru38]

Here's the 1990s according to IMSA.

The 1990s proved to be a tumultuous decade for North American sports car racing. The decade concluded with open wounds that led to an acrimonious split that is only now healing with the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

The 1995 Rolex 24 was a great "what might have been" event. Porsche entered a pair of turbocharged Le Mans WSC Prototypes, and tested at Daytona with Mario Andretti and Scott Pruett – with four-time Rolex 24 winner Bob Wollek also in the line-up. Only two weeks before the event, IMSA imposed additional restrictions on the air intakes for the new Porsches – and the factory promptly withdrew both cars.

The on-track competition was fabulous. Car counts were also solid – the 1997 Rolex 24 had an 80-car starting field, only two shy of the record set in 1984. However, politics dominated the talk as the decade progressed. IMSA had been in good hands under the leadership of John Bishop. A succession of different owners tried in vain to carry that momentum.

Concerned with the future of that sanctioning body, Daytona International Speedway awarded the sanction for the Rolex 24 to a new organization. The USRRC, an alternative series sanctioned by the SCCA, folded only three races into the 1999 season.


Dr. Don Panoz held a new event to close out the 1998 PSCR season. Styled after the French event, Panoz called it the Petit Le Mans. Encouraged by Panoz and the success of that event, the lead PSCR series became the American Le Man Series, using rules similar to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The move paid immediate dividends.


A fork in the road had been reached. Next week's chapter details the split in the road.

[NaBUru38]

Here's the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.

[BullMan]

I didn't know USRRC only lasted a whopping 3 races. I guess NASCAR HAD to step in at that point, right?

[Speed-King]

Originally Posted by BullMan

I didn't know USRRC only lasted a whopping 3 races. I guess NASCAR HAD to step in at that point, right?

Three races into its second season, that is.

[ACFlinn]

Originally Posted by BullMan

I didn't know USRRC only lasted a whopping 3 races. I guess NASCAR HAD to step in at that point, right?

Imagine if NASCAR had purchased IMSA from John Bishop when he sold it following the 1988 season.

Andy Flinn

[BullMan]

Originally Posted by ACFlinn

Imagine if NASCAR had purchased IMSA from John Bishop when he sold it following the 1988 season.

Andy Flinn

Quite the nightmare scenario there, FB.