Sebring 12 hour race 1985

The Porsche 962 with starting number 14; Al Holbert , Derek Bell and Al Unser junior achieved second place overall with this car

The 33rd Sebring 12-hour race , also 33rd Running of Coca Cola Classic 12 Hours of Sebring, Sebring International Raceway , took place on March 23, 1985 at Sebring International Raceway and was the third race of the IMSA GTP series this year.

The race

As in previous years, the IMSA GTP series began with the Daytona 24-hour race . The 1985 edition of this 24-hour race was won by AJ Foyt , Bob Wollek , Al Unser and Thierry Boutsen in a Porsche 962 . In the second race of the season, the 3-hour race in Miami , Al Holbert and Derek Bell , who also drove a Porsche 962, won.

The 962, a type of racing car from the German sports car manufacturer Porsche , made its Sebring debut in 1985. The Porsche 956 did not meet American rules in two respects. For safety reasons, not least because of severe leg injuries in Formula 1 at that time, the IMSA demanded that pedals be attached behind the front axle, which Porsche achieved by moving the front axle forward and thus longer wheelbase. The aluminum monocoque was also reinforced by a steel roll cage . In addition, in order to limit costs, the water-cooled biturbo engine of the 956 had to be replaced by the air-cooled engines with single turbochargers from the well-tried Porsche 935 ; However, it was no use restriction as in the World Sportscar Championship for Group C .

The fastest training time was achieved by Hans-Joachim Stuck , who lapped the course in a Porsche 962 in 2: 12.975 minutes. With an average speed of 211.748 km / h, this was the fastest lap so far in the 12-hour race. The race was decided by a serious accident by Jim Busby after nine hours of racing. Busby, who shared the cockpit of a 962 with John Morton and Jochen Mass , lost control of the car when he drove over rough tire wear. He was seriously injured when he hit a barrier. The trio had taken the lead after three hours and were in the lead for six hours in a row. After the accident, AJ Foyt and Bob Wollek took over the first position and never gave it up until the end.

Results

Final ranking

Item	class	No.	team	driver	vehicle	Round
1	GTP	8th	Preston Henn	AJ Foyt Bob Wollek	Porsche 962	281
2	GTP	14th	Holbert Racing	Al Holbert Derek Bell Al Unser junior	Porsche 962	277
3	GTP	68	Busby Racing	Dieter Quester Pete Halsmer Rick Knoop	Porsche 962	268
4th	GTP	44	Group 44	Chip Robinson Bob Tullius	Jaguar XJR-5	259
5	Lights	63	Jim Downing	Jim Downing John Maffucci	Argo JM16B	253
6th	GTO	65	Team Roush Protofab	Wally Dallenbach John Jones	Ford Mustang	251
7th	GTP	2	Leon Bros. Racing	Al Leon Art Leon Skeeter McKitterick	March 85G	250
8th	GTP	11	Kendall Racing	Chuck Kendall John Hotchkis Robert Kirby	Porsche 935K3 / 80	240
9	GTO	90	Road Circuit Technology	Les Delano Andy Petery Patty Moise	Pontiac Firebird	239
10	GTO	09	901 shop	Peter Uria Mike Schaefer Larry Figaro Jack Refenning	Porsche Carrera RSR	237
11	GTO	61	Team USA Racing	Don Courtney Brent O'Neill Mike Hackney	Chevrolet Monza	231
12	GTO	89	Latino Racing	Enrique Molins Kikos Fonseca Alfredo Mena	Porsche 934	219
13	Lights	37	Burdsall - Welter Racing	Tom Burdsall Peter Welter Nick Nicholson	Tiga GT284	216
14th	GTU	56	SP Racing	Gary Auberlen Peter Jauker Adrian Gang Cary Eisenlohr	Porsche 911	209
15th	Lights	93	Mid-O Rusty Jones	Kelly Marsh Ron Pawley Don Marsh	Argo JM16	205
16	GTP	31	Goral Racing	Paul Goral Rick Wilson	Porsche 935	204
17th	GTU	00	Tom Kendall	Tom Kendall Bart Kendall Max Jones	Mazda RX-7	202
18th	Lights	34	O'Brien - van Steenburg Racing	Larry O'Brien Mike Van Steenburg	Mazda OVS-1	184
19th	GTO	98	Bob's Speed ​​Products	Bob Lee Bill Julian Jeff Hudlett	Buick Skyhawk	182
20th	GTP	20th	Spirit of Cleveland	Richard Silver Don Herman Freddy Baker	Porsche 935 JLP-2	182
21st	GTU	35	Team Dallas	Jack Griffin Bobby Hefner Skip Winfree	Porsche Carrera RSR	178
22nd	GTU	36	Case Racing	Ron Case Dave Panaccione	Porsche 911	165
23	GTO	83	K&P Racing	Karl Keck William Wessel Mark Montgomery	Chevrolet Corvette	158
24	GTU	02	RNGC Racing	Roy Newsome Bill McVey Dale Kreider	Mazda RX-7	148
25th	GTO	85	Don Nooe	Don Nooe Jim Stricklin Tim Stringfellow	Chevrolet Corvette	118
26th	GTU	54	Zwiren Racing	Steve Zwiren Mike Tearney Robert Peters	Mazda RX-7	111
27	GTO	25th	Steve Roberts	William Boyer Steve Roberts John Barben	Chevrolet Camaro	109
Failed
28	GTO	53	Mandeville Auto Tech	Danny Smith Tom Waugh	Mazda RX-7	218
29	GTO	39	R & H Racing	Rainer Brezinka John Centano Fritz Hochreuter	Porsche Carrera RSR	202
30th	GTO	58	Coin Operated Racin	Rick Borlase Michael Hammond Jim Torres	Porsche 934	198
31	GTO	38	Mandeville Auto Tech	Roger Mandeville Logan Blackburn	Mazda RX-7	180
32	GTP	67	Busby Racing	Jim Busby John Morton Jochen Mass	Porsche 962	175
33	GTP	15th	John Kalagian Racing	John Kalagian John Lloyd Tom Grunnah	March 84G	170
34	GTP	43	De Narváez Racing	Mauricio de Narváez Dave Cowart Kenper Miller	Porsche 935J	157
35	GTO	88	Schaferacing	Craig Shafer George Shafer Joe Maloy	Chevrolet Camaro	145
36	GTO	55	Dave Heinz Imports	Dave Heinz Jim Trueman Jerry Thompson	Chevrolet Corvette	134
37	GTO	78	Tokina Zoom Lenses	John Higgins Chip Mead James King	Porsche Carrera RSR	128
38	GTP	7th	Henn's Swap Shop Racing	Bob Wollek Don Whittington Preston Henn	Porsche 935L	121
39	GTU	42	Mike Meyer Daffy	Paul Lewis Scott Pruett Joe Varde	Mazda RX-7	117
40	GTO	81	Ken Bupp	Ken Bupp Guy Church EJ Generotti	Chevrolet Camaro	116
41	GTU	76	Malibu Grand Prix	Jack Baldwin Jeff Kline	Mazda RX-7	114
42	GTP	1	Blue Thunder Racing Team	Bill Whittington Randy Lanier	March 84G	114
43	GTO	45	Pennzoil de PR	Luis Gordillo Rolando Falguera's Manuel Villa	Porsche Carrera RSR	111
44	GTP	01	Charles Young	Don Bell Mike Brockman Tommy Riggins	Argo JM16B	105
45	GTO	22nd	Walter Johnston	Del Russo Taylor John Hayes-Harlow Arvid Albanese	Pontiac Firebird	101
46	GTU	75	Pettit Wholesale	Cameron Worth Foko Gritzalis	Mazda RX-3	91
47	GTP	29	DeAtley Racing	In it Brassfield aria Luyendyk Jerry Brassfield	March 85G	90
48	GTO	51	Mosler Racing	John McComb Rick Mancuso Fred Fiala	Ferrari 512BB / LM	88
49	GTP	05	Robert Whitaker	Robert Whitaker Ed Crosby Richard McDill	Chevrolet Camaro	76
50	GTP	16	Marty Hinze Racing	Marty Hinze Milt Minter Art Yarosh	Porsche 935K3	70
51	GTP	26th	Toyota Village	Werner Frank Dave White Jerry Kendall	Porsche 935/80	68
52	GTU	17th	Al Bacon Racing	Al Bacon Charles Guest Bobby Akin	Mazda RX-7	67
53	GTP	5	Bob Akin Motor Racing	Hans-Joachim Stuck Bob Akin Jim Mullen	Porsche 962	66
54	GTU	79	Whitehall Motorsports	Elliot Forbes-Robinson Tom Winters Bob Bergstrom	Porsche 924 Carrera GTR	65
55	GTU	49	Conrad Racing	Carlos Munoz Louis Lopez Herman Galeano	Porsche 911	65
56	GTO	47	Dingman Brothers Racing	Walt Drilling Steve Millen Billy Dingman	Pontiac Firebird	63
57	GTU	74	Whitehall Promotions	Austin Godsey Paul Gentilozzi Kent Hill	Porsche 924 Carrera GTR	59
58	GTO	21st	Gopher Motion	William Gelles Steve Cohen Don Walker	Ferrari 512BB / LM	54
59	GTU	71	Team highball	Amos Johnson Jack Dunham Dennis Shaw	Mazda RX-7	48
60	GTU	13	Rubino Racing	Dennis Wagoner Ken Knott Frank Rubino	Mazda RX-7	46
61	GTO	69	Wonzer Racing	John Hofstra Charles Slater Mick Robinson	Porsche Carrera RSR	45
62	GTU	08	Simms-Romano	Drake Olson Steve Potter Paul Romano	Mazda RX-7	44
63	GTP	95	Van Every Racing	Lance Van Every Ash Tisdelle Jack Refenning	Porsche 935	42
64	GTU	60	Tom Hunt	Tom Hunt James Shelton Dean Jameson	Mazda RX-3	40
65	GTP	3	Pegasus Racing	John Paul junior Ken Madren Wayne Pickering	March 84G	38
66	GTO	70	Ormond Racing Associates	Don Cummings Craig Rubright Greg Walker	Chevrolet Corvette	37
67	GTP	04	Group 44	Brian Redman Hurley Haywood	Jaguar XJR-5	36
68	GTO	50	Monty Trainer's Restaurant	Buz McCall Pancho Carter Tom Sheehy	Chevrolet Camaro	34
69	GTP	4th	Lee Racing	Carson Baird Terry Labonte Billy Hagan	Chevrolet Corvette GTP	27
70	GTO	92	OMR engines	Chris Gennone Hoyt Overbagh Fern Prego	Chevrolet Camaro	27
71	GTP	12	Gebhardt Motorsports	George Schwarz Frank Jelinski Jan Thoelke	Gebhardt JC843	22nd
72	GTO	66	Habersin Camera Shop	Rick Habersin Art Habersin	Chevrolet Camaro	22nd
73	GTO	48	Gary Wonzer	Tom Cripe Gary Wonzer Bruce Dewey	Porsche 934	9
74	GTO	32	KJJ Enterprises	John Bossom Ken Hill Reagan Riley	Triumph TR8	1
Not started
75	GTP	0	Gary Wonzer	Gary Wonzer Del Russo Taylor	Chevron GTP	1
76	GTP	6th	Morgan Performance	Charles Morgan Bill Alsup	Royale RP40	2
77	GTO	23	Raul Garcia	Raul Garcia	Pontiac Firebird	3
78	GTO	77	Tortuga Racing	Carlos Munoz Joe Gonzalez	Chevrolet Camaro	4th
79	GTU	87	Mosler Racing	George Alderman Joe Hill Steve Alexander	Ferrari 308 GTB	5
Not qualified
80	GTO	80	Carlos Catter	Carlos Catter Hector Coco	Chevrolet Camaro	6th

¹ not started ² not started ³ not started ⁴ not started ⁵ not started ⁶ not qualified

Only in the entry list

Here you will find teams, drivers and vehicles that were originally registered for the race but did not take part for a variety of reasons.

Item	class	No.	team	driver	chassis
81	GTP	19th	Performance motorcar	Jack Miller Carlos Ramirez Bruce Redding	Nimrod NRA / C2
82	GTO	27	Tokina	John Higgins Chip Mead James King	Porsche Carrera
83	GTO	33	Ricardo Londoño	Ricardo Londoño Pedro Cardenas Alfredo Sesana	Pontiac Firebird
84	GTO	46	Dingman Brothers Racing	Billy Dingman Walt Drill	Pontiac Firebird
85	GTO	64	Protofab	Wally Dallenbach Greg Pickett	Ford Mustang
86	Lights	72	Fabcar	Tom Winters Bob Bergstrom Elliot Forbes-Robinson	Fabcar CL
87	GTU	97	Championship motorsports	John Petrick Don Wallace	Mazda RX-7

Class winner

class	driver	driver	driver	driver	vehicle	Placement in the overall ranking
GTP	AJ Foyt	Bob Wollek			Porsche 962	Overall victory
Lights	Jim Downing	John Maffucci			Argo JM16B	Rank 5
GTO	Wally Dallenbach	John Jones			Ford Mustang	Rank 6
GTU	Gary Auberlen	Peter Jauker	Adrian Gang	Cary Eisenlohr	Porsche 911	Rank 14

Racing data

• Registered: 87
• Started: 74
• Valued: 27
• Race classes: 4
• Spectator: unknown
• Race day weather: sunny, warm and dry
• Route length: 7.821 km
• Driving time of the winning team: 12: 00: 06.858 hours
• Total laps of the winning team: 281
• Total distance of the winning team: 2197.817 km
• Winner's average: 183.122 km / h
• Pole position: Hans-Joachim Stuck - Porsche 962 (# 5) - 2: 12.975 - 211.748 km / h
• Fastest race lap: Al Holbert - Porsche 962 (# 14) - 2: 15.716 - 207.470 km / h
• Racing series: 3rd round of the IMSA GTP series 1985

literature

• Ken Breslauer: Sebring. The official History of America's Great Sports Car Race. David Bull, Cambridge MA 1995, ISBN 0-9649722-0-4 .
• Peter Higham: The Guinness Guide to International Motor Racing. A complete Reference from Formula 1 to Touring Car. Guinness Publishing Ltd., London 1995, ISBN 0-85112-642-1 .

Web links

• Race results at Racing Sports Cars

Previous race 3 Hours of Miami 1985

IMSA-GTP series

Follow -up race 500 km from Road Atlanta 1985