The 1963 Sports Car World Championship , also the International Championship for GT Manufacturers and the Prototype Trophy , was the eleventh season of this championship. It began on February 17 and ended on October 14, 1963.
The eleventh season of the World Sports Car Championship, which was held for the first time in 1953 , brought the greatest number of races to date. 22 races between February and October were part of the championship. Mountain races were included in the championship for the first time. With the Wiesbaden Rally and the Tour de France for automobiles , the championship also included two rally stage drives.
Racing cars and prototypes were also allowed to compete in the major endurance races this year, and monoposto vehicles were even allowed in the hill climb races . However, only GT and prototypes made it into the championship standings. The large number of ratings again caused a lack of understanding and displeasure among experts. 14 titles were awarded and the mode used was difficult to understand for the racing audience. The works teams in front of Ferrari and Porsche only met at the big races . In the 12-hour race at Sebring , two Scuderia works cars led a Ferrari six-fold victory. Victory went to the Ferrari 250P driven by John Surtees and Ludovico Scarfiotti . The Targa Florio ended with a success for the Porsche works team. Joakim Bonnier and Carlo-Maria Abate won in a Porsche 718 GTR . Scuderia Ferrari was successful again in Le Mans and on the Nürburgring .
The hill climb was dominated by Edgar Barth , who won three races for Porsche. The most successful brands were Abarth and Ferrari, each with four titles.
Alain Bienvenu: Endurance. 50 ans d'histoire. Volume 1: 1953-1963. Éditions ETAI, Boulogne-Billancourt 2004, ISBN 2-7268-9327-9 .
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 .
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Fiat Abarth
Alpine
Austin-Healey
DKW
Volvo
Shelby
