1961 World Sportscar Championship

Last updated
1961 World Sportscar Championship
Previous: 1960 Next: 1962

The 1961 World Sportscar Championship season was the ninth season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1961 World Sports Car Championship, [1] which was contested over a five race series [1] that ran from 25 March to 15 August 1961. The title was won by Italian manufacturer Ferrari. [1]

Contents

Season schedule and results

Ferrari won the 1961 World Sports Car Championship with their 250 TR61 (pictured) and 246 SP models Ferrari TR61, O.Gendebien-P.Hill Winner Le Mans 1961 - Flickr - exfordy.jpg
Ferrari won the 1961 World Sports Car Championship with their 250 TR61 (pictured) and 246 SP models
Maserati placed second with their Tipo 61 (pictured) and Tipo 63 models Maserati Birdcage.jpg
Maserati placed second with their Tipo 61 (pictured) and Tipo 63 models
Porsche placed third with their 718 RS61 model (pictured) Porsche 718 W-RS Spyder-1961 frontright 2009-03-14 A.JPG
Porsche placed third with their 718 RS61 model (pictured)

Schedule with results

RoundDateRaceCircuitLocationWinning TeamWinning DriversWinning CarResults
1March 25 Flag of the United States.svg 12 Hours of Sebring Sebring International Raceway Sebring, Florida, United States Flag of Italy.svg #14 Scuderia Ferrari Flag of the United States.svg Phil Hill
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Olivier Gendebien
Ferrari 250 TR61 Results
2April 30 Flag of Italy.svg Targa Florio Palermo Palermo, Italy Flag of Italy.svg #162 Scuderia Ferrari Flag of Germany.svg Wolfgang von Trips
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Olivier Gendebien
Ferrari 246 SP Results
3May 28 Flag of Germany.svg 1000km Nürburgring Nürburgring Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Flag of the United States.svg #1 Camoradi USA Flag of the United States.svg Masten Gregory
Flag of the United States.svg Lloyd Casner
Maserati Tipo 61 Results
4June 10-11 Flag of France.svg 24 Hours of Le Mans Circuit de la Sarthe Le Mans, Sarthe, France Flag of Italy.svg #10 Scuderia Ferrari Flag of the United States.svg Phil Hill
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Olivier Gendebien
Ferrari 250 TR61 Results
5August 15 Flag of Italy.svg 4 Hours of Pescara Pescara Circuit Pescara, Italy Flag of Italy.svg #4 Scuderia Centro Sud Flag of Italy.svg Lorenzo Bandini
Flag of Italy.svg Giorgio Scarlatti
Ferrari 250 TR61 Results

Manufacturers Championship

Points were awarded to the top 6 places, in the order of 8-6-4-3-2-1, however manufacturers were only awarded points for their highest finishing car in each race, with no points awarded to places filled by other cars from the same manufacturer..

Only half points were awarded at the Pescara race as it was staged over a four-hour duration, which was less than the FIA’s minimum requirement of six hours or 1000km.

Only the best 3 results out of the 5 race season counted towards the championship totals of each manufacturer. Discarded points are shown within brackets.


Pos [1] Manufacturer [1] Rd 1Rd 2Rd 3Rd 4Rd 5Total
1 Flag of Italy.svg Ferrari 88(6)8(4)24
2 Flag of Italy.svg Maserati 383(2)14
3 Flag of Germany.svg Porsche 26(1)(2)311
4 Flag of Italy.svg O.S.C.A. 11

The cars

The following models contributed to the nett points totals of their respective manufacturers in the 1961 World Sports Car Championship.

Related Research Articles

The World Sportscar Championship was the world series run for sports car racing by the FIA from 1953 to 1992.

1989 World Sportscar Championship

The 1989 World Sportscar Championship season was the 37th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1989 FIA World Sports Prototype Championship, which was open to Group C1 Sports Prototypes, Group C2 Sports Prototypes and IMSA GTP cars. The championship was contested over an eight round series which ran from 9 April to 29 October 1989.

The 1953 World Sportscar Championship was the first FIA World Sportscar Championship. It was a seven race international motor racing series for sports cars contested from 8 March to 23 November 1953. The championship was won by Ferrari.

The 1954 World Sportscar Championship season was the second season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured a series of six endurance races for sportscars, contested from 24 January to 23 November 1954. The championship was won by Ferrari.

The 1955 World Sportscar Championship season was the third season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured a series of six endurance races for sportscars, contested from 23 January to 16 October 1954.

The 1956 World Sportscar Championship was the fourth annual FIA World Sportscar Championship. It was a contested by sportscars over a series of five races from 29 January to 12 August 1956.

The 1957 World Sportscar Championship season was the fifth season of the FIA World Sportscar Championship. It was a series for sportscars that ran in many worldwide endurance events. It ran from 20 January 1956 to 3 November 1957, and comprised seven races.

The 1958 World Sportscar Championship was a motor racing series for sportscars which ran from 26 January to 13 September 1958 and comprised six races in six countries. It was the sixth World Sportscar Championship.

The 1959 World Sportscar Championship was the seventh FIA World Sportscar Championship. It was a series for sportscars that ran in many worldwide endurance events. It ran from 21 March 1959 to 5 September 1959, and comprised five races, following the 1000 km Buenos Aires being removed from the calendar, although the race did return in 1960.

The 1960 World Sportscar Championship season was the eighth season of the FIA World Sportscar Championship. It was a series for sportscars that ran in many worldwide endurance events. It ran from 31 January 1960 to 26 June 1960, and comprised five races. The 1000 km Buenos Aires returned to the calendar at the expense of the RAC Tourist Trophy, which formed part of the inaugural FIA GT Cup.

The 1964 World Sportscar Championship season was the 12th season of FIA 'World Sportscar Championship' motor racing. It featured the 1964 International Championship for GT Manufacturers which was open to Group 3 GT cars and was contested from 16 February 1964 to 11 October 1964 over a twenty race series. Titles were awarded in three engine capacity divisions:

The 1966 World Sportscar Championship season was the 14th season of the FIA "World Sportscar Championship" motor racing. It featured the 1966 International Manufacturers' Championship and the 1966 International Sports Car Championship, which were contested between 5 February 1966 and September 11, 1966, over a total of thirteen races. The International Manufacturers' Championship was open to Group 6 Sports-Prototypes and was contested in two engine capacity divisions, P1 and P2. The International Sports Car Championship was open to Group 4 Sports Cars and was contested in three engine capacity divisions, S1, S2 and S3.

1967 World Sportscar Championship

The 1967 World Sportscar Championship season were the 15th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship racing. It featured the International Championship for Sports-Prototypes and the International Championship for Sports Cars. The former was open to Group 6 Sports-Prototypes and the latter to Group 4 Sports Cars. The season ran from 4 February 1967 to 3 September 1967 and comprised 14 races in total.

The 1968 World Sportscar Championship season was the 16th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship racing and featured the 1968 International Championship for Makes and the 1968 International Cup for GT Cars. The former was contested by Group 6 Sports Prototypes, Group 4 Sports Cars and Group 3 Grand Touring Cars and the later by Group 3 Grand Touring Cars only. The two titles were decided over a ten race series which ran from 3 February 1968 to 29 September 1968.

The 1970 World Sportscar Championship season was the 18th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1970 International Championship for Makes and the 1970 International Cup for GT Cars, which were contested concurrently from 31 January to 11 October over a ten race series. The International Championship for Makes, which was open to Group 6 Sports-Prototypes, Group 5 Sports Cars and Group 4 Special GT Cars, was won by German manufacturer Porsche. The International Cup for GT Cars was also won by Porsche.

The 1973 World Sportscar Championship season was the 21st season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1973 World Championship for Makes and the 1973 Cup for GT Cars which were contested concurrently over a ten race series. The World Championship for Makes, which was open to Group 5 Sports Cars and Group 4 GT Cars, was won by Matra and the Cup for GT Cars, which was open only to Group 4 GT Cars, was won by Porsche.

The BPR Global GT Series was a grand tourer-based sports car racing series which ran from 1994 to 1996 before becoming the FIA GT Championship in 1997. The series was founded by Jürgen Barth, Patrick Peter, and Stéphane Ratel as an international endurance racing series to replace the World Sportscar Championship which had ended in 1992.

The 1977 World Championship for Makes season featured the sixth FIA World Championship for Makes. This was a motor racing series for Group 5 Special Production Cars, Group 3 & 4 Grand Touring Cars and Group 1 & 2 Touring Cars which ran from 5 February to 23 October 1977 and comprised nine races.

Throughout its history, the Italian auto manufacturer Maserati has participated in various forms of motorsports including Formula One, sportscar racing and touring car racing, both as a works team and through private entrants.

1961 12 Hours of Sebring sports car endurance race held at Sebring International Raceway, Sebring, Florida, USA

The Sebring 12-Hour Florida International Grand Prix of Endurance for the Alitalia Group took place on 25 March 1961, on the Sebring International Raceway,. It was the opening round of the F.I.A. World Sports Car Championship. This was also the second round of the F.I.A. GT Cup.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Previous FIA Championship Winners, World Sports Car Championship (Makes), FIA Yearbook, 1974