The TWR Jaguars were popular team during the Camel GT era, although
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abandoned his plans for open-wheel competition by the
end of 1970, concentrating on forming a six-race series
in 1971 for FIA Group 2 and Group 4 sports cars, along
with “Baby Grand” stock cars.
That series became the IMSA GT Series. The R.J. Reynolds
Tobacco Company began sponsoring what became
Camel GT in 1972, and the series quickly gained in popularity.
Bishop’s vision of adding prototype sports cars
in the early 1980s proved to be a huge success, and the
series thrived throughout the 1980s with many of the top
names in U.S. and international sports cars battling on
North America’s top road circuits in Porsche, Jaguar, Ford,
Nissan, Chevrolet and Toyota Camel GTP Prototypes.
In addition to the GTP Prototypes, Camel GT
also featured Camel Lights Prototypes and
production-based competition in the GTO,
GTU and American GT classes. IMSA also
sanctioned American stock cars in the Kelly
American Challenge; small sedans in the
Champion Spark Plug Challenge; production
cars in the Firestone Firehawk Endurance
Championship; exotics in the Bridgestone Super
Car Championship; and open-wheel cars
in the Barber Saab Pro Series.
Bishop sold the organization to Florida businessmen
Mike Cone and Jeff Parker in 1989
and the company was relocated to Tampa,
Florida. With a sharp drop in participation in
the GTP class due to a challenging economy,
IMSA announced a shift to a revolutionary
concept for 1994, introducing the World
Sports Car, an open-cockpit prototype.
There were many additional changes for 1994.
Florida businessman and GT racer Charlie
Slater purchased IMSA. Exxon USA took over
sponsorship of the series, which became
the EXXON World Sports Car Championship,
while GT competition took place in the EXXON
Supreme GT Series.
In September 1996, the International Motor
Sports Group – a conglomerate including Roberto
Mueller and Andy Evans – purchased
IMSA and changed its name to Professional
SportsCar Racing for 1997.
Many changes took place over the following three years.
The United States Road Racing Championship sanctioned
races with the assistance of the Sports Car Club
of America in 1998-99.
While afliated initially with the USRRC, Don Panoz departed
to hold the inaugural Petit Le Mans endurance
race at Road Atlanta in 1998. He expanded that concept
into a full series in 1999, the American Le Mans Series.
He envisioned bringing European-style endurance sports
car racing to America – highlighted by the 12 Hours of
Sebring and Petit Le Mans.
they could never win at Sebring.
Peter Gregg and the Brumos Porsche team are legends of IMSA’s
early years.