1998 IMSA GT Championship | |||
Previous: | 1997 | Next: | 1999 (ALMS) |
The 1998 Professional SportsCar Racing Championship season was the 28th season of the IMSA GT Championship, the final one of the original IMSA. It consisted of an open-cockpit World Sports Car (WSC) class of prototypes and Grand Tourer-style racing cars divided into GT1, GT2, and GT3 classes. It began March 22, 1998, and ended October 25, 1998, after eight rounds.
The IMSA GT Championship was replaced by the American Le Mans Series in 1999, which was supported by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). This series, based on the 24 Hours of Le Mans, was initially previewed during the 1998 season with the running of the inaugural Petit Le Mans. Professional SportsCar Racing remained as the series organizer.
Of note is the lack of the 24 Hours of Daytona and the Six Hours of Watkins Glen, both of which were acquired by the revived SCCA United States Road Racing Championship.
Rnd | Race | Length | Circuit | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Superflo 12 Hours of Sebring | 12 Hours | Sebring International Raceway | March 22 |
2 | Toshiba Nevada Grand Prix | 3 Hours 45 Minutes | Las Vegas Motor Speedway | April 26 |
3 | The Dodge Dealers Grand Prix † | 1 Hour 45 Minutes | Lime Rock Park | May 25 |
4 | Sports Car Grand Prix of Road Atlanta | 3 Hours 45 Minutes | Road Atlanta | June 21 |
5 | Mosport Festival | 2 Hours 45 Minutes | Mosport | August 9 |
6 | NAPA Sebring Classic | 3 Hours | Sebring International Raceway | September 20 |
7 | Petit Le Mans | 10 Hours or 1000 Miles | Road Atlanta | October 10 |
8 | Visa Sports Car Championships | 2 Hours 30 Minutes | Laguna Seca Raceway | October 25 |
† - Two separate races were held for Lime Rock: One for WSC, one for the GT classes.
Points are awarded to the finishers in the following order:
Exception however for the 12 Hours of Sebring, which awarded in the following order:
Teams only score the points of their highest finishing entry in each race.
Pos | Team | Chassis | Engine | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | Rd 4 | Rd 5 | Rd 6 | Rd 7 | Rd 8 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Doyle-Risi Racing | Ferrari 333 SP | Ferrari F310E 4.0 L V12 | 26 | 25 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 11 | 25 | 19 | 161 |
2 | Dyson Racing | Riley & Scott Mk III | Ford 5.0 L V8 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 21 | 145 | ||
3 | Downing Atlanta | Kudzu DLM Kudzu DLY | Mazda 2.0 L 3-Rotor Mazda R26B 2.6 L 4-Rotor | 15 | 21 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 13 | 118 |
4 | Intersport Racing | Riley & Scott Mk III Spice SC95 | Ford 5.0 L V8 Oldsmobile Aurora 4.0 L V8 | 18 | 19 | 11 | 9 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 17 | 114 |
5 | MOMO/Doran Enterprises | Ferrari 333 SP | Ferrari F310E 4.0 L V12 | 30 | 21 | 10 | 19 | 12 | 15 | 107 | ||
6= | Transatlantic Racing Services | Riley & Scott Mk III | Ford 5.0 L V8 | 17 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 7 | 93 | ||
6= | Matthews-Colucci Racing | Riley & Scott Mk III | Ford 5.0 L V8 | 20 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 93 | ||
8 | Dollahite Racing | Spice BDG-02 Ferrari 333 SP | Chevrolet 6.0 L V8 Ferrari F310E 4.0 L V12 | 13 | 17 | 14 | 44 | |||||
9 | Genesis Racing | Hawk MD3R | Mazda 2.0 L 3-Rotor Chevrolet 6.0 L V8 | 19 | 11 | 30 | ||||||
10 | Kopf Race Products | Keiler KII | Ford 5.0 L V8 | 15 | 12 | 27 | ||||||
11 | BMW Motorsport | Riley & Scott Mk III | BMW 4.0 L V8 | 25 | 25 | |||||||
12 | TRV Motorsports | Kudzu DL-4 | Chevrolet 6.0 L V8 | 22 | 22 | |||||||
13 | Porsche AG | Porsche LMP1-98 | Porsche 3.2 L Turbo Flat-6 | 21 | 21 | |||||||
14 | Team Cascandia | Argo JM20 | Chevrolet 6.0 L V8 | 17 | 17 | |||||||
15 | Denaba Racing | Kudzu DLM | Buick 4.5 L V6 | 14 | 14 | |||||||
16 | Fantasy Junction | Cannibal | Chevrolet 6.0 L V8 | 10 | 10 |
Pos | Team | Chassis | Engine | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | Rd 4 | Rd 5 | Rd 6 | Rd 7 | Rd 8 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Panoz Motor Sports | Panoz Esperante GTR-1 | Ford (Roush) 6.0 L V8 | 30 | 25 | 25 | 21 | 25 | 25 | 21 | 25 | 197 |
2 | Champion Motors | Porsche 911 GT1 Evo | Porsche 3.2 L Turbo Flat-6 | 26 | 25 | 25 | 76 | |||||
3 | Mosler Automotive | Mosler Raptor | Chevrolet 6.3 L V8 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 57 | |||||
4 | Rock Valley Racing | Chevrolet Camaro | Chevrolet V8 | 22 | 22 | |||||||
5 | G & W Motorsports | Porsche 911 GT1 Evo | Porsche 3.2 L Turbo Flat-6 | 21 | 21 | |||||||
6 | Art Pilla | Porsche 911 GT2 Evo | Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6 | 19 | 19 | |||||||
7 | Robinson Racing | Oldsmobile Aurora GTS-1 | Oldsmobile 4.0 L V8 | 18 | 18 | |||||||
8= | John Annis | Chevrolet Camaro | Chevrolet V8 | 17 | 17 | |||||||
8= | Porsche AG | Porsche 911 GT1-98 | Porsche 3.2 L Turbo Flat-6 | 17 | 17 | |||||||
10 | Greg Malvaso | Chevrolet Camaro | Chevrolet V8 | 16 | 16 |
Pos | Team | Chassis | Engine | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | Rd 4 | Rd 5 | Rd 6 | Rd 7 | Rd 8 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Schumacher Racing | Porsche 911 GT2 | Porsche 3.6 L Flat-6 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 25 | 17 | 148 | |
2 | Prototype Technology Group | BMW M3 | BMW 3.2 L I6 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 100 | ||||
3 | Konrad Motorsport | Porsche 911 GT2 | Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6 | 30 | 21 | 25 | 76 | |||||
4 | C.J. Motorsports | Porsche 911 GT2 | Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6 | 24 | 19 | 19 | 62 | |||||
5 | Saleen-Allen Speedlab | Saleen Mustang SR | Ford 5.9 L V8 | 26 | 14 | 40 | ||||||
6= | Martin Snow Racing | Porsche 911 GT2 | Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6 | 19 | 19 | 38 | ||||||
6= | American Spirit Racing | Vector M12 | Lamborghini 5.7 L V12 | 19 | 19 | 38 | ||||||
8 | David Friedman | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 19 | 17 | 36 | ||||||
9 | Marcos Racing International | Marcos LM600 | Chevrolet 6.0 L V8 | 12 | 21 | 33 | ||||||
10 | Freisinger Motorsport | Porsche 911 GT2 | Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6 | 25 | 25 | |||||||
11 | Bell Motorsports | BMW M3 | BMW 3.2 L I6 | 21 | 21 | |||||||
12 | Rohr | Porsche 911 GT2 Evo | Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6 | 19 | 19 | |||||||
13 | Mark Hein | Acura NSX | Acura 3.2 L V6 | 18 | 18 | |||||||
14= | Larbre Compétition | Porsche 911 GT2 | Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6 | 17 | 17 | |||||||
14= | Jon Lewis | Vector M12 | Lamborghini 5.7 L V12 | 17 | 17 | |||||||
16= | Cameron Worth | Mazda RX-7 | Mazda 2.0 L 3-Rotor | 15 | 15 | |||||||
16= | Alex Job Racing | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 15 | 15 | |||||||
18 | Charles Coker Jr. | Porsche 968 Turbo RS | Porsche 3.0 L Turbo I4 | 13 | 13 |
Pos | Team | Chassis | Engine | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | Rd 4 | Rd 5 | Rd 6 | Rd 7 | Rd 8 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Prototype Technology Group | BMW M3 | BMW 3.2 L I6 | 30 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 191 |
2 | Alex Job Racing | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 24 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 25 | 12 | 25 | 141 | |
3 | G & W Motorsports | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 15 | 71 | ||||
4 | Team A.R.E. | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 20 | 14 | 25 | 11 | 70 | ||||
5 | AASCO Performance (#55) | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 13 | 13 | 17 | 43 | |||||
6 | Tim Vargo | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 19 | 15 | 34 | ||||||
7= | The Racer's Group | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 14 | 19 | 33 | ||||||
7= | AASCO Performance (#17) | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 19 | 14 | 33 | ||||||
9 | Team Ecuador | Nissan 240SX | Nissan 2.4 L I4 | 10 | 13 | 23 | ||||||
10= | Olive Garden Racing | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 17 | 17 | |||||||
10= | Gordon Zimmerman | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 17 | 17 | |||||||
12 | Bill Radar | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 16 | 16 | |||||||
13= | Phoenix Motorsports | Pontiac Firebird | Pontiac V8 | 15 | 15 | |||||||
13= | Technodyne | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 15 | 15 | |||||||
15= | Chris Mitchum | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 14 | 14 | |||||||
15= | T.C. Kline | BMW M3 | BMW 3.2 L I6 | 14 | 14 | |||||||
17 | Raymond Boissoneau | Mazda RX-7 | Mazda 2.0 L 3-Rotor | 13 | 13 | |||||||
18= | Reisman Property Interests | Chevrolet Camaro | Chevrolet V8 | 12 | 12 | |||||||
18= | Dale White | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 12 | 12 | |||||||
20 | First Union | Porsche 911 Carrera RSR | Porsche 3.8 L Flat-6 | 11 | 11 |
Bill Auberlen is an American factory race car driver known for his affiliation with BMW, driving cars made and run by the famous German marque for a number of years.
A Le Mans Prototype (LMP) is the type of sports prototype race car used in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, FIA World Endurance Championship, WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series and Asian Le Mans Series. Le Mans Prototypes were created by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The technical requirements for an LMP include bodywork covering all mechanical elements of the car. Currently there are three classes within Le Mans Prototypes, called LMP1, LMP2 and LMP3.
The World Sportscar Championship was the world series run for sports car racing by the FIA from 1953 to 1992.
The 2006 American Le Mans Series season was the 36th season for the IMSA GT Championship, with the eighth as the American Le Mans Series. It was a series for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Touring (GT) race cars divided into 4 classes: LMP1, LMP2, GT1, and GT2. It began March 18, 2006, and ended October 21, 2006 after 10 races.
The 2005 American Le Mans Series season was the 35th season for the IMSA GT Championship, with it being the seventh under the American Le Mans Series moniker. It was a series for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Touring (GT) race cars divided into 4 classes: LMP1, LMP2, GT1, and GT2. It began March 19, 2005 and ended October 16, 2005 after 10 races.
The 2003 American Le Mans Series season was the fifth season for the IMSA American Le Mans Series, and the 33rd overall season of the IMSA GT Championship. It was a series for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Touring (GT) race cars divided into 4 classes: LMP900, LMP675, GTS, and GT. It began March 15, 2003 and ended October 18, 2003 after 9 races.
The 1999 American Le Mans Series season was the inaugural season of the IMSA American Le Mans Series, and is now recognised as the 29th season of the IMSA GT Championship. It was a series for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Touring (GT) race cars divided into three classes: LMP, GTS, and GT. It began March 20, 1999, and ended November 7, 1999, after eight races.
The 2001 European Le Mans Series season was the only season for the IMSA European Le Mans Series. It is a series for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Touring (GT) race cars divided into 4 classes: LMP900, LMP675, GTS, and GT. It began 17 March 2001 and ended 6 October 2001 after 7 races.
The 2007 American Le Mans Series season was the 37th season for the IMSA GT Championship, with the ninth labeled as the American Le Mans Series. It was a series for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and Grand Touring (GT) race cars divided into 4 classes: LMP1, LMP2, GT1, and GT2. It began March 17, 2007, and ended October 20, 2007 after 12 races. It was the league's longest season since 2000.
Wayne Taylor is a South African sports car racing driver and team owner. He won the 1996 and 2005 24 Hours of Daytona, and the 2005 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype drivers' championship. He drove for SunTrust Racing with Max Angelelli. He co-drove in the 2006 International Race of Champions in the United States with Angelelli. Taylor now owns and manages his own team competing in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
The 1998 Petit Le Mans was the seventh race for the 1998 IMSA GT Championship season, then known as the Professional SportsCar Racing series. It also served as a prelude to the first American Le Mans Series race held at Sebring in 1999. Don Panoz's American Le Mans Series was developed with the backing of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), the ruling body of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It took place on October 11, 1998.
Spice Engineering was a British racing team founded by driver Gordon Spice with Raymond Bellm in the early 1980s, later becoming a successful sports car constructor in 1986. They competed in the World Sportscar Championship in Europe as well as the IMSA GT Championship in North America, at times partnering with major manufacturers such as General Motors and Honda as well as race engine manufacturer Comptech.
The Porsche WSC-95 was a Le Mans Prototype originally built by Tom Walkinshaw Racing. It was modified by Porsche from the original Group C Jaguar XJR-14 from which it derived, and run by Joest Racing. Originally intended to race in the IMSA World Sportscar Championship, the WSC-95 saw very little race action even though it won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in both 1996 and 1997 without being acknowledged as a factory supported project. It was later upgraded to the Porsche LMP1-98 before being retired. Only two cars were ever built.
IMSA GT was a sports car racing series organized by International Motor Sports Association. Races took place primarily in the United States, and occasionally in Canada.
The 1997 Exxon World Sports Car Championship and Supreme GT Series seasons were the 27th season of the IMSA GT Championship. It consisted of open-cockpit prototypes referred to as World Sports Car (WSC) and Grand Tourer-style racing cars divided into GTS-1, GTS-2, and GTS-3 classes.
The 1995 Exxon World Sports Car Championship and Supreme GT Series seasons were the 25th season of the IMSA GT Championship. It consisted of open-cockpit prototypes referred to as the World Sports Car (WSC) class and Grand Tourer-style racing cars divided into GTS-1 and GTS-2 classes. It began February 4, 1995, and ended October 8, 1995, after eleven rounds.
Risi Competizione is an Italo-American auto racing Ferrari factory-backed team formed by Giuseppe Risi in 1997. Initially, the team had a partnership with Doyle Racing using the name Doyle-Risi Racing, but soon Giuseppe Risi took full control of the project and it was rebranded with its current name in 2000. Risi Competizione has won races and championships in the IMSA GT championship, American Le Mans Series, and Rolex Sports Car Series, as well as earning three class wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1998, 2008 and 2009. Much of Risi Competizione's success has come through the use of Ferrari machines.
The 2016 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship was the third season of the United SportsCar Championship and first to be under the name as the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship organized by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). It was the 46th season of IMSA-sanctioned GT Championship sportscar racing tracing its lineage to the 1971 IMSA Camel GT season. It began on January 30 with the 24 Hours of Daytona. and ended on October 1 at Petit Le Mans.
The 2017 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship was the 47th season of the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) GT Championship that traces its lineage to the 1971 IMSA GT Championship. It was the fourth season of the United SportsCar Championship and second under the name as the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. It began on January 28 with the 24 Hours of Daytona, and ended on October 7 with the Petit Le Mans.
The 2019 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship was the 49th motor racing championship sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA). It was the sixth season of the United SportsCar Championship and fourth to be held under the name as the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. It began on January 26 with the 24 Hours of Daytona, and ended on October 12 with the Petit Le Mans. The 2019 season marked the 50th anniversary since the founding of the International Motor Sports Association.