An ill wind will blow during this, the second event of the 1985 Group C sports car racing season, at the legendary Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Monza, Italy. Check it out, here.
https://motorsport.tv/duke-classic-videos/video/1985-world-sports-car-monza/2421
Round two of the 1988 World Sports Car Championship is a sprint race, the 1988 Jarama 360 Kilometers.
After the Sauber Mercedes victory at Jerez, the Silk Cut Jaguar team come to round two of the championship, ready to reverse/even the score with the three pointed star, from the previous weekend. The Jarama race will be the first of two “sprint” events of 360 kilometers in distance. Jaguar, Mercedes, and Porsche, all need the points on the board early in the year, and this one pit stop sprint race could be the way any of them could earn them. Let’s join race commentator, Brian Kriesky, for all the action.
https://motorsport.tv/duke-classic-videos/video/1988-world-sports-car-jarama/2291
Yours truly, has an idea, and that idea is, to share these races, in video, if that is possible, through a new feature, Group C Race of the Day. Hopes are this idea works. To give full credit, these videos were produced by Duke Video in the United Kingdom, through Videovision Broadcast International and producer, director, writer, and narrator, the late, great, Brian Kreisky. Hopefully this all works. Stay tuned for tons more Group C content. These races will be published randomly, and not at all in order, like the season review race reports were. So, please do, stay tuned.
We shall start this series, today, March 12th, 2019.
We travel to southern Spain, for the Jerez 800 Kilometers, round one of the 1988 FIA World Sports Car Championship. Reigning champions from Silk Cut Jaguar, have a new contender to deal with. The German/Swiss built Sauber C9 Mercedes Benz. Mercedes officially re-enters the world of sports car racing for the first time, in 33 years, after their disastrous crash, at the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans, which resulted in the worst crash in racing history when one of their cars lost control, and plowed through the crowd, killing 90 spectators.
Porsche are back too, but with prevalent privateers fielding their venerable 962. Click on the link, and enjoy this one.
https://motorsport.tv/duke-classic-videos/video/1988-world-sports-car-jerez/2286
Folks, we’ve reached the end of the reviews for each season and each race in our retrospective of the thunder that was the Group C sports car racing era. Now, the focus of the blog, will shift to historical and anecdotal posts, so long as yours truly can find them, all about the mystique and the aura of the Group C cars. Some ideas are already lined up, while others have to be found. Stay tuned for more memories of one of the greatest eras in sports car racing history, and also, forthcoming, a book review.
This will be a championship finale for the ages, and one not to forget. Here in the city of 23 million, as motorists dodge street vendors, a different group of drivers will be racing at Autodromo Hermano Rodriguez located in one of the poorer areas of Mexico City. Five points separate the top two drivers going into the finale. Drivers and regulations will change for WSPC 1990. So, this is a nostalgic gathering for everyone in Mexico City to close out the decade of the ‘80s in sports car racing competition. The mood is jovial in the heat of Mexico City. We are ready, for the final WSPC race of 1989.
It’s a front row lockout for Mercedes, with Toyota and Porsche behind them. There’s drama on the grid, before we’ve even taken off for the formation lap. The driver’s door is open on the Joest Porsche 962 to be started by Bob Wollek. The flat six turbo engine has stalled. Mechanics and marshals alike are having a look to see what is wrong with the car. The rest of the field is signaled to proceed with the formation lap, and so, driver’s behind Wollek’s motionless 962 will have to thread the needle around Wollek and his stalled racer.
The mechanics will bump start the 962 and maybe that will allow Wollek to get away. He’s fine, as the rest of the field moves away from the grid, on the warmup lap. We have 109 laps scheduled for this race. Incidentally, the old reliable V12 XJR9 Jaguar’s are back. Here’s the starting grid in Mexico.
There’s your 22 car field for the finale. We should be ready to go, as the cars snake through the esses. Green light, and we’re off and racing in Mexico City! The Mercedes’ are side by side and the whole field gets a good start. Mauro Baldi holding off the challenge on the inside against Jean Louis Schlesser and here comes Julian Bailey into the picture as well. Harald Huysman, Bob Wollek, Jan Lammers, Andy Wallace, and others are all going for it straight away.
Jean Louis Schlesser has already made a pass on Mauro Baldi, look. Schlesser leads Baldi and Johnny Dumfries in the Toyota. Schlesser moves ahead of Baldi and Johnny Dumfries is the chap hanging on with the two Mercedes’ in that third spot. Julian Bailey is being harried by Harald Huysman and Oscar Larrauri is next in line. A marshal shows a black flag, and I can only assume Bob Wollek is the driver being called into the pits due to having that push start on the grid. The Porsche’s have found a turn of speed here in Mexico City, but Jean Louis Schlesser is the man to beat so far.
What about Jean Louis Schlesser’s fuel consumption? The two Mrrcedes’ pulling away from the Toyota. Johnny Dumfries pits as the tires are knackered early. He hands the car to John Watson. The #8 sole remaining Porsche 962 for Joest Racing pits. Henri Pescarolo and Jean Louis Ricci are listed as the pairing on that car, but it is Frank Jelinski who will take over the car for this stint. Ricci said later that he asked Jelinski to drive in his place to give the car the highest possible finish in the points. So, the lineup in #8 is now Pescarolo/Jelinski, not Pescarolo/Ricci.
35 laps done and dusted and what will happen for Mercedes on their pit strategy? The running order is:
Schlesser leads Baldi to the tune of six seconds, and which of them will pit first? The longer they stay out, the better chance of getting more fuel into the tank for the next phase of the motor race. Pit stops have begun and Mauro Baldi is the first to blink and head for the lane. He will hand the wheel to Kenny Acheson. The team changes the tires and does the driver change, also electing to do a brake pad change. There are special tools to handle the brake pads and brake discs because they are so hot, you’d risk severe burns touching them even with fireproof gloves on.
The Tim Lee-Davey Porsche goes back onto the circuit. Kenny Acheson will drive the middle stint, as he surely wants his team mate to win the world title as much as he wants to win it himself. Once Acheson settles into the car with the new tires, a full fuel load, and new brakes, he’ll prove why he’s done so, so well in Group C for Mercedes in 1989. Jean Louis Schlesser leads the motor race, but he does hit pit lane and is ready to hand the #62 Sauber Mercedes to Jochen Mass. It is the same pit routine the sister car had.
Repsol Brun pit and are doing a brake pad change. We see the pliers like tool to pull the pads out of the brakes. So, Jochen Mass is back on track. Mass still hoilds the lead of this motor race. Behind him is Kenny Acheson. They are team mates. But Acheson is racing for his team mate, Mauro Baldi. Julian Bailey pits the Nissan to hand the car over to Mark Blundell. The team removes the front bodywork to make repairs, and speaking of removed front bodywork, Toyota #37 has binned it. John Watson came into contact with the Spice under braking and the result is the right front corner of the car, the headlamp and the front fender, are damaged.
Watson in the Toyota is limping back to pit lane. Meanwhile, Kenny Acheson moves past Jochen Mass into the race lead! Wow! If Acheson can hold Mass off, that bodes well for Mauro Baldi. We still have a wide open battle for the championship. Baldi or Schlesser will be the world champion, and Jochen Mass is going for it indeed, while Acheson is doing likewise. Both these men are racing fro their team mates. It is a race within a race as Mercedes has dominated this season with their 5.0 liter turbocharged V8 motors.
The older Jaguar with the larger displacement, normally aspirated V12 is having a hard time keeping up with the turbo Mercedes cars in the rarified air of Mexico City which is at a certain level of altitude, starving the engines of oxygen of course. Mercedes Benz and Sauber have managed to work out the pressure differences and also the engine performance in the thin air here in Mexico City. They have the turbo boost and piston efficiency both spot on. Kenny Acheson and Jochen Mass are both racing for their own points in the drivers’ championship.
Jochen Mass is thinking about passing Acheson, but Acheson is spinning! Acheson is in trouble, looping the leading Mercedes! Bang! He’s clouted the wall! The whole front clip is destroyed and knocked clean off the car! Steam spewing from the radiator, and that’s game over for Acheson and Baldi! His race is over, and Mauro Baldi’s title hopes have gone up in a plume of steam! Jean Louis Schlesser is going to win the world championship! Kenny Acheson says he is very disappointed for Mauro Baldi, his team mate. It was win or bust.
He ran wide and overcommitted in the corner, spinning off the road. He is disconcertingly frank about what happened in the wreck. Team manager Dave Price is also very disappointed. Sauber Mercedes clearly runs as a team. Merceds Motorsport Director Bernard Harling says that they race as a team. He is sad for Mauro and says Jean Louis Scdhlewsser is a worthy champion. Johcen Mass leads Oscar Larrauri in the race order.
The green light is back on and we are back racing. Jochen Mass is leading the motor race. Jean Louis Schlesser will have the championship no matter what. Mass controls the race from the front. Nissan now runs second with the #23 car of Mark Blundell and Julian Bailey. They have not had the handling on that car and have suffered with understeer all year. It’s a shame that Mauro Baldi is out of the race. Team boss Max Welti is sorry for Mauro and Kenny. But, he’s happy for Jean Louis Schlesser winning the title. Jochen Mass continues to put in the laps in the middle section before he hands the car to Jean Louis Schlesser for the finish.
Mercedes have won everywhere except for Dijon when Joest Porsche scored the win. Pit stops round two, as Frank Jelinski hands the #8 Joest Porsche back to Henri Pescarolo. Harald Huysman drives past the sister Brun Porsche. Porsche have made a comeback in the middle of 1989, but they have had handling issues, and Frank Jelinski says the Joest car has had a broken spark plug and the revs are down. Jochen Mass pits the #62 Mercedes, handing over to Jean Louis Schlesser. Harald Huysman tries to pit the Brun Porsche 962C #5, but he spins into the lane! That was a close call!
Some overenthusiastic driving is sure to cost Harald Huysman a fine from the FIA after this race is over. Jean Louis Schlesser thunders back onto the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. He leads this race and Oscar Larrauri takes over the #5 from Huysman and goes back on track. Meanwhile, the #14 RLR Porsche 962 C GTi with Cabin sponsorship is running very well. Derek Bell and Tiff Needell qualified well on the fourth row of the grid for this race. They are doing extremely well, just as the other Porsche’s are, in the rarefied atmosphere.
Julian Bailey has also put the Nissan out of the motor race. He looked to be out of fuel, but it seems more terminal woes have sidelined that car. The fuel pump is broken. So, Jean Louis Schlesser will win seven of eight races for Sauber Mercedes and he has already won the championship. Bad luck for Kenny Acheson. There was a bump on this very bumpy track, that caught him out. Many people in the Mercedes pits have their fingers crossed. But, they uncross them now as Mercedes wins the finale of the 1989 World Sports Car Championship, and he is also the world champ!
It’s a perfect end to an amazing season. It was without doubt, Mercedes’ year. So, here are the results.
The final drivers’ championship standings look like this.
BRD. West Germany
Here are the final standings in the constructors championship.
To the victors go the spoils, and the champagne spray! Jochen Mass is more than happy to join in with the champagne spray. Jean Louis Schlesser must be absolutely delighted. Jean Louis Schlesser and Jochen Mass acknowledge this was an exciting season, and are both happy. So ends the 1989 season, and our look at Group C… the thunder of the ‘80s. We’ve enjoyed bringing it to you, and hope you’ve enjoyed reading about it. So long, everybody.
We are ready to get underway with the seventh event of the 1989 WSPC season, at the fabulous Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium. This race through the Ardennes forest will be for a total of 70 laps. The top six places on the grid are taken up by familiar cars and driver teams. Mercedes is on pole, with Jaguar on the outside of the front row.
Those are your quickest qualifiers in a massive, 38 car field, here at Spa. Julian Bailey and Mark Blundell in the Nissan are just outside the top six. They will likely be a factor in this race, perhaps, along with the Jaguar’s, the quickest of the Toyota’s, and the Sauber Mercedes cars. Eliseo Salazar and Ray Bellm have the quickest of the Spice SE89C’s up there towards the sharp end of the grid, and yes, we have a new driver to look out for, Roland Ratzenberger. Yes, there is a driver, with that name. He is sharing the Jagermeister Brun Porsche 962, car #16 with Oscar Larrauri, here at Spa.
Before the race even starts, drama for Harald Huysman in the #5 Hydro Aluminum sponsored Brun Porsche 962 he shares with Uwe Schafer! There is trouble with the ECU, the engine control unit/engine management unit on that automobile. He is being towed by the tow truck back to the grid. Now, that could mean that he and Uwe Schafer could be disqualified from the race by the FIA stewards, without even having turned a lap yet. So, we’ll keep an eye on that issue. This massive field winds it way to the start of the race. It will be a land rush towards La Source hairpin.
The safety car pulls off. Red lights, on. Green lights, on! Away we go! Mauro Baldi makes a good start but here comes Jan Lammers in the Jaguar! Lammers is side by side with Baldi, squeezed against the fence! They touch! There’s argy bargy already! Baldi in the silver Mercedes is holding the lead over the purple and white Jaguar. Lammers is second, but Jean Louis Schlesser, the man was shot out of a cannon from his sixth place on the grid! Both of the Sauber Mercedes’ run first and second as they climb the hill through the daunting Eau Rouge for the first time.
Jan Lammers is third, followed by Bob Wollek, Julian Bailey, and everyone else in this 37 car field. Baldi and Mass thunder up the hill as the rest of the pack of Group C cars comes storming after them. Toyota, Nissan, Spice, and Aston Martin, all of them are in this fight along with Mercedes, Jaguar, and Porsche. Mercedes are 1-2 as we approach the downhill side of the circuit through Fangnes, Malmedy (a corner now called Piff Paff), and more of the legendary corners on this great speedway. Nearly three wide for third spot, Jan Lammers loses out to Bob Wollek for third and will have to try his challenge again.
Johnny Dumfries, former team mate to Lammers at Jaguar, is fifth in the Toyota, as we have run ten laps of this motor race already. Here’s the top eight.
Mazda leads the IMSA GTP class for the American spec endurance cars, and they have their car in the capable hands of David Kennedy from Ireland and hometown favorite, Belgian Pierre Dieudonne. In C2, the current leader is the #171 Spice for Team Mako. Canadian Robbie Stirling is sharing the car with Brit James Shead. Fermin Velez and Nick Adams who lead the championship in C2, are moving up after starting from pit lane. They have the #101 Chamberlain Engineering Spice Cosworth.
The Velez/Adams car had a fuel leak on the starting grid, which was fixed. But, all they need to do is finish third or better in C2 to score the drivers’ world championship in the division. Julian Bailey is giving the Nissan a good run before he hands the car over to Mark Blundell later on, and he wants to take care of the fuel consumption on the car, and push more towards the end of this motor race. Bob Wollek maintains third spot in the Joest Porsche. The Lammers/Tambay #1 Jaguar is still fourth, but closing on them all the time is Johnny Dumfries in the Toyota he shares with fellow Briton Geoff Lees.
Dumfries is all over Lammers as they steam up the Kemmel straightaway. He’s weaving all over the road looking to make a move. Nowadays, he can only make one move, without being penalized by the stewards, but no such rules were in place back in the day. The Ardennes forest resounds to the thunder of the Mercedes V8. Schlesser leads, but trouble is ahead! Schlesser is all over the road here, look. Jean Louis Schlesser and the throaty rumble of the Mercedes, may be silenced. It appears to be game over for the Silver Arrow! Now, he’s slid off on oil that seems to be put down by the Jaguar. Could there be a seal or something on that V6 motor that has come loose, and thus the Jaguar is puking oil all over the road? Jan Lammers is slowing down on the far end of the circuit. It has to be game over for the boys from Coventry.
In the meantime, the plot thickens. After Schlesser’s shemozzle, we see Mauro Baldi in the sister Mercedes giving it the welly and he’s pulled out a 23 second lead already! Poor old Schlesser is a lucky bloke because he didn’t crunch the barriers, fortunately. Schlesser is back on track, screaming towards the pit lane. It’s not a good day for some of the lower placed teams. The Lancia, run by Mussato team has been disqualified for receiving a push start on the grid. It will be nil points for the Italian duo of Franco Scapini sharing with Formula 1 and sports car veteran, and countryman Bruno Giacomelli. All of this happens, as Antoine Salamin the Swiss mobile chicane, he completes his pit stop in his privately entered Porsche 962 he shares with Moroccan racer Max Cohen-Olivar.
Meanwhile, there’s big smoke (very expensive smoke, from the motor), for Tiff Needell in the GTi Engineering Porsche, car #14. He and Steven Andskar, the Swede, are out of this race. The motor has gone bang. Derek Bell, fortunately, never drove the car, or the five-time Le Mans winner would have been bitterly disappointed to retire. Jaguar #1 is in the pit lane. Reports indicated it was touring slowly on the far end of the circuit here at Spa. It is undoubtedly game over for the Jaguar as well. Baldi still leads Schlesser as the Jaguar is put away for the day.
Meanwhile, Frenchman Francois Wettling spins the very slow Louis Descartes entered ALD 06 with the BMW engine, the M88 3.5 liter straight six. Wettling is unlucky, as the Frenchman was 40 seconds off the pace of the Mercedes pole time for this event. Definitely an amateur racer, Wettling is sharing the car with countryman Thierry Lecerf. Guess what, chaps? He’s still spinning. Come on Francois? Get back on the circuit, lad. 19 laps now on the board, and Nissan are the first to blink and bring their car to pit lane. Julian Bailey will hand over to Mark Blundell, a man who would go on to Formula 1 and still do occasional sports car races after his stint in F1 ended, most notably for MG in the early 2000s.
In fact, he and Julian Bailey would both drive for MG. Nissan have taken great care to consolidate their fuel mileage so they can go quicker towards the end. Mauro Baldi is confident, staying on course, showing he has fuel left in the tank. Aston Martin is running well, with their best car, #19, ninth overall in the hands of David Leslie, and Irishman Michael Roe. Leslie and Roe will partner at Aston Martin for the 1990 championship. The Nissan rejoins the race, with the aforementioned Mark Blundell at the wheel of it.
Bob Wollek has made his way past the Toyota still in the hands of Johnny Dumfries. So, here’s the running order after 20 laps.
Toyota pit from fourth overall. There is a driver change as Johnny Dumfries is out, and Geoff Lees is in. John Watson had been co-driving the Toyota earlier this year, but has left the Toyota squad. Lees is British but lives in Japan and races in the Japanese national Formula 3000 championship, later to become known as Formula Nippon. Both Mercedes, and the Joest Porsche have yet to pit. Mauro Baldi, meanwhile has had another lucky escape on the far end of the track. Baldi got caught out behind the composite chassis Porsche 962, which was a back marker.
The Team Davey Porsche spun, smashed the barrier big style, and is totally destroyed! Baldi dives for pit lane after that incredible escape from danger. He will hand the #62 Sauber Mercedes to co-driver Kenny Acheson. New Michelin tires are on the car. Unlike last year when they were having problems, Michelin has now become in partnership with Mercedes, the most successful WSPC tire brand. Jean Louis Schlesser in the sister car takes the lead of the motor race.
He too will soon pit. Dave Price, Mercedes team manager gives the signal. “Start it, Kenny!” and Acheson races back into competition. Wayne Taylor then pits from sixth overall in the #22 Spice Cosworth. Nissan are checking their fuel consumption and they should be in good shape. Walter Brun pits the Repsol Porsche for fuel and service. Jean Louis Schlesser takes the lad. Henri Pescarolo pits the second Joest Porsche, car #8. The Le Mans veteran and four-time winner hands the car over to Jean Louis Ricci.
Pit stop time now, too, for Jean Louis Schlesser, bringing the Mercedes in from the lead. This will need to be a quick stop. Jochen Mass gets into the car and will be racing to catch team mate Kenny Acheson. Acheson retakes the lead as team boss Max Welti looks on. The sole remaining Jaguar is in the lane, ninth overall. There’s trouble with the engine, pouring water into the radiators. It’s game over for John Nielsen and Andy Wallace, the official listing of the retirement being an electrical failure. A scrap ensues for third overall as Bob Wollek is being pursued hotly by Mark Blundell.
Toyota is also in this race, but Jaguar certainly isn’t. The scrap ensues between Nissan and the Porsche, as Frank Jelinski has taken over the car. Kenny Acheson is pushing like no tomorrow, and has 35 seconds in hand over team mate Jochen Mass. Jean Louis Schlesser needs second place in order to win the World Driver’s Championship. Wayne Taylor in the Spice continues to run well as we see a spin in La Source. #34 is on the whirligig for the brothers Almeras, Jacques and Jean-Marie Almeras. It is well and truly game over, for Jaguar. #2 is pushed into the garage.
Jean Louis Schlesser still runs second as we watch the Brun Porsche and the Spice battle each other, with Thorkild Thyrring at the controls of the Spice at the moment. Eliseo Salazar in the sister Spice was held up in the lane with starter motor failure. He and Ray Bellm might be out of this race. Well, check that. They’ll get back into competition, but not before losing 19 minutes for repairs. No worries for Kenny Acheson. The Aston Martin was running eighth overall, but the big V8 has gone ka-blammo! David Leslie and Michael Roe are out.
Their sister car, #18, in the hands of Brian Redman and Stanley Dickens, would ultimately finish seventh overall. Porsche #7 pits and Bob Wollek takes over the driving chores. Brian Redman is indeed still driving the sole remaining Aston Martin in this motor race. Bob Wollek in the Joest Porsche runs third. Meanwhile, there’s argy bargy and spinning! Herve Regout and Ray Bellm touch, and both pirouette into the gravel trap. Regout is at the wheel of the #13 Courage Competition Cougar C22S Porsche and the Belgian shares the car with France’s Pascal Fabre. Ray Bellm re-fires the Spice, but Regout in the Cougar, it could be game over.
Seven laps to go, and more attrition. Walter Brun in the Repsol Porsche, the engine has gone ka-blammo. He’s out. Wayne Taylor and Thorkild Thyrring in the surviving Spice will inherit sixth in the overall. Sauber Mercedes are four minutes away from th drivers’ championship., although they are apprehensive about the fuel. Mauro Baldi leads. Bob Wollek, lapped, runs third in the Porsche. Towards Eau Rouge, and up through Raidillon for the final time. Baldi will be on for his third win of the season, winning also at Suzuka and Brands Hatch. Jean Louis Schlesser will win the drivers’ championship. He won Japan, Jarama, Nurburgring, and Donington. Mauro Baldi and Kenny Acheson have driven better than anyonre here at Spa.
Bob Wollek unlaps himself and has to do one more lap. But, Baldi and Acheson win Spa! Max Welti is very happy. Three different manhufacturers on the podium. Mercedes, Porsche, Nissan. The world driver’s championship is wide open and the calculations for the season-ender in Mexico are anyone’s guess.
Here are the driver’s points.
The calculations for the finale in Mexico are simple. Whoever wins the race, is world champion. We’ll see you down Mexico way, at the end of October, to decide the title.
The ball is in Mercedes’ court, here, at Donington Park. They can clinch the teams’ championship today, which has practically had their name on it since the season opener in Japan. Mercedes have been beaten just once this year. In qualifying at Donington, Jean Louis Schlesser sets a fast lap time of 1:19.19, which seems safe for pole. Baldi squeaked by, at the last possible second, with a 1:19.12! No matter, it is an all Mercedes front row, here at Donington, as we look towards the race on Sunday afternoon. Here are the top qualifying positions, in a field that will include 33 cars.
The weather for this sixth of eight races in 1989 is hot, overcast, and dry. Two hours, or, 120 laps from now, Sauber Mercedes could indeed be the teams’ champions in the 1989 World Sports Prototype Championship. Jean Louis Schlesser, driving the #62 Mercedes wants to score the drivers’ championship. But, Nissan, Mercedes’ closest rivals, they will stop at nothing to take the glory away from the silver cars. They want victory. Before we start this race, it is important to review some of the rules pertaining to the new Group C. Nissan and Mercedes operate under the same regulations.
Turbocharged cars operate under unlimited engine capacity, but they are heavily restricted in terms of fuel consumption. Two classes race, C1 and C2 with different minimum weights and fuel limits. We have not really had the chance to touch on the C2 entrants this year, because the battle for the top spot in C1 has been so, so compelling. Normally aspirated cars have no fuel consumption restrictions, but the engine capacity limit is drawn at 3.5 liters in displacement. The fuel consumption restrictions mean the race here at Donington, is going to force drivers to really be aware of how much fuel they are using in addition to battling each other on track.
Jan Lammers for Jaguar believes they can finish, but they want to finish in front and go ahead and win if they can. In seventh place on the grid, is old #7, the Joest Porsche 962C of Bob Wollek and Frank Jelinski. They are the only team that has been able to one up Sauber Mercedes in 1989 so far. Look out too, for the Brun Porsche’s, especially the car in the hands of Oscar Larrauri, the #5 Hydro Aluminum 962C he shares with Belgian Harald Huysman. 2.5 miles of race track, for 120 laps, means a 300 mile race, with 30+ cars out there doing battle.
The fuel mathematics are half a liter per kilometer, which over the scheduled distance works out to 241 liters of fuel in total. The C1 cars have 100 liter fuel tanks, and the fueling rigs in pit lane are restricted to 60 liters per minute on the pit stops. This guarantees two pit stops of 100 seconds duration, each time. Mercedes on the front row followed by Nissan, Toyota, Mercedes, Jaguar, Porsche, and Aston Martin. The team cars for Spice in C2 are the quickest in the class. Wayne Taylor and Thorkild Thyrring are in the lead Spice, with team mates Eliseo Salazar from Chile, and Britain’s Tim Harvey, driving. C2 cars have no fuel limits.
The C1 cars might struggle a bit compared to the C2’s. All eyes are on Mercedes as they are going for that championship. The safety car pulls off, and we’re ready for a start. We’ve got the green light, and we’re off and racing at Donington Park! Mauro Baldi jumps into the lead with Jean Louis Schlesser mounting a challenge on the outside. Baldi and Schlesser lead, with Jaguar running third. The rest of the field files in behind. Mauro Baldi, leading Jean Louis Schlesser, and Jan Lammers. The Nissan is in the battle and so are Oscar Larrauri and Johnny Dumfries. Alain Ferte in the sister Jaguar is behind Dumfries in the Toyota, followed by a brace of Porsche 962s.
Mercedes makes their customary clean getaway and are now opening a cushion on everyone else. Lammers outbrakes Jean Louis Schlesser into the hairpin and makes the move stick! How about that! Lammers continues holding Schlesser at bay. Next in line it’s Julian Bailey, Oscar Larrauri, Johnny Dumfries, Alain Ferte, and Derek Bell in the RLR Porsche. Mauro Baldi continues opening a lead over Jan Lammers as they negotiate the dips, twists, and turns, here at Donington. Baldi is whistling off into the distance. Lammers has his hands full with Schlesser in the second Mercedes. Schlesser looks to make his move on Lammers on the back straight. He looks inside, but no dice.
The fight is still in the Dutchman! He tries again. Ah yes. He gets by Schlesser at the Melbourne hairpin. Mercedes is the bread, and Jaguar is the meat in the sandwich as we’ve completed ten laps of this race already. Julian Bailey is much closer to the leaders, in the Nissan, than is fifth place man Oscar Larrauri. Johnny Dumfries continues to run sixth overall. Here comes Jean Louis Schlesser, shot out of a cannon! He’s passed his team mate, and dives inside Jan Lammers! Jean Louis Schlesser, snatches the lead, taking two cars in one corner! Yikes! The leaders have caught the lapped traffic at the back end of the field, so slower C1 and C2 cars are there for them to contend with.
Give a call to Wayne Taylor in the yellow Spice, having started 11th he is working his way steadily through the field. Taylor has taken sixth place away from the Toyota with Johnny Dumfries still at the wheel of it. Also, we see that Julian Bailey is finally able to clear Mauro Baldi. Mercedes, Jaguar, Nissan, Mercedes, are the top four in the running order as the positions have been shuffling lap after lap. Oscar Larrauri has Wayne Taylor in the Spice all over him. Taylor has the advantage of no fuel restrictions because of the normally aspirated 3.5 liter Cosworth V8 in the back of the Spice chassis. Jan Lammers has caught Jean Louis Schlesser and a game of cat and mouse ensues.
Lammers ducks inside Schlesser to take the lead back! Wow! If you take your eyes off this race for one second, you’ll miss something. Up to the esses they go. Schlesser tries sticking his nose under Lammers, but he isn’t close enough yet to make the move. Through the sharp left hand turn at Goddard’s corner. Schlesser is right on top of the Jaguar now, look. Making the pass, Schlesser turns on the horsepower from the turbo V8. But Lammers uses all the oomph of the turbo V6 to come right back! The new engine for Jaguar seems to be very effective. They are wheel to wheel! Lammers defends his lead through Craner curves down to the Old Hairpin.
Schlesser is going for it, and Lammers turns it on, trying to make the pass, but no. Schlesser has slammed the door in the Dutchman’s face. The shark is in the water, chasing the minnow once again, as Julian Bailey in the Nissan is closing on the Jaguar hand over fist! No question, the V8 Mercedes does have more power than the 3.5 liter V6. It proves the old saying, there is no substitute for cubic inches. Spice #22, the Taylor/Thyrring car, sets fastest lap of the race at 1:25.126, and a speed of 273.5 kilometers an hour/170 miles per hour! The Group C cars are flying around Donington this afternoon! Wayne Taylor is having the drive of his life.
Taylor pulls out to make a pass on Julian Bailey in the Nissan. He’s looking inside into Melbourne hairpin, and just like that, Taylor makes the pass! Third spot for the Spice has to be the highest placing occupied by a non turbo Group C car this year. Incredible. Whoops! We have ourselves some argy bargy through the esses! The #29 Lancia LC2/89 of Franco Scapini gets tipped into a spin! Scapini is sharing this latest evolution of a car that has been around for about six years (having debuted in 1983), with fellow Italian Bruno Giacomelli, driving for the Mussato Action Car team.
The one’s who get the worst of that deal, are Uwe Schafer and Stanley Dickens, driving the #16 Brun Motorsport Porsche 962C, with sponsorship for this race, from FATurbo Express, Hydro, and Eterna Watches. Holy cow! Wayne Taylor ought to win the Driver of the Day award here. He’s gotten his second place and is bearing down on the Mercedes! He’s at his favorite overtaking spot, on the outside into Melbourne hairpin! Wayne Taylor goes for it, but no! Schlesser slams the door in his face! Wayne Taylor only wanted to lead for a lap, but now has to hit the pit lane for service.
Wow! What a battle! That one sent your commentator’s heart racing! What a brilliant scrap for the lead! Taylor is in for the first of two pit stops for the car, and will hand it over to Danish co-driver Thorkild Thyrring. Jean Louis Schlesser continues to lead this motor race, but once again, the scrap resumes as both Nissan and Jaguar can smell blood. Julian Bailey is going to give Schlesser a run for the lead, look. Melbourne hairpin is the preferred passing spot here at Donington and it seems to work every single time. Bailey clears Schlesser. The Nissan’s brakes are glowing cherry red at the front. Outbraking a competitor makes the brakes work very hard.
Through the first corner at Red Gate, the leaders have lapped cars to deal with. It’s pit stop time now for the second Spice being shared by Tim Harvey and Eliseo Salazar. Johnny Dumfries pits the Toyota as well, handing the driving duties to John Watson, the five-time Formula 1 race winner from Northern Ireland. This is by no means Watson’s first outing in a sports car. We’ve seen him featured in races throughout this Group C retrospective series. New tires on the Toyota, and of course, the drivers have their own individual form fitting seat inserts.
Jan Lammers pits and it looks like Mercedes has the edge on fuel as they try to build an advantage. Jean Louis Schlesser hopes to pit after Julian Bailey in the Nissan does so. Thorkild Thyrring has the Cosworth powered Spice running 15th in the overall. Frank Jelinski has taken over the controls of the #7 Joest Raacing Porsche 962. Jochen Mass is chasing, going after sixth place where Jelinski is now. Both Aston Martin AMR1’s are running quite well, fifth and sixth in the overall. Brian Redman is sharing with fellow Brit David Sears in the #18 car, and the #19 has David Leslie sharing with Irishman Michael Roe. Nissan meanwhile, lead the motor race, after Mark Blundell took over the wheel from Julian Bailey.
Yikes! John Watson locks the brakes on the Toyota, going off the road briefly, and Kenny Acheson has a grandstand seat in the Mercedes, watching all this action. We’ve made it to the halfway point, and 150 miles into the race. 60 laps completed. Derek Bell and Tiff Needell have the RLR Porsche running well. This is the T car, the spare car, as the primary car blew a motor in the morning warmup. We’ve completed 77 laps so far. Harald Huysman has made his way to third spot. Jochen Mass is still second in the second Mercedes. He is aiming to lap the Nissan, as Kenny Acheson has clear sailing around Goddard’s onto the start/finish straight toward Red Gate. But, Mark Blundell is still leading Acheson by six seconds.
Both of the aforementioned Aston Martins are fifth and sixth overall, despite running a lap down to the leaders. After earlier troubles, John Watson and Johnny Dumfries in the Toyota, they are buried in 12th overall. Joest Porsche pits car #7 as Frank Jelinski hops out and Bob Wollek resumes in the race for his stint. Normally flamboyant and on the edge, Jelinski and Wollek, have run a very conservative, laid back race today at Donington. They are out for a Sunday drive it seems. Aston Martin #19 is in the lane as well. Kudos to them! They are doing so well in front of their home crowd. Jochen Mass is still on track, waiting to the last possible moment to make their move into the pit lane.
The sister Aston Martin is in for service, and so, David Sears hands the car back to the legend, Brian Redman. Fresh tires and the V8 monster will thunder out of the pit lane. The braking problems suffered by some teams and cars early on this year, seem to have cleared up. Kenny Acheson has a close moment as John Watson dives inside and overcooks the corner! Egad! That was so, so close! Acheson passes Watson as they drive downhill towards Melbourne hairpin another time. Finally, Kenny Acheson will make the long awaited pit stop for Mercedes, and hand the car over to Mauro Baldi to take it to the finish.
No worries about brakes for Mercedes. They have far more reliability with the steel brakes than they did experimenting with the new carbon discs. Over the last 30 years since these wonderful races happened that we are covering here on the blog, brake technology has come leaps and bounds. Now, there’s some confusion at timing and scoring, because Mark Blundell in the Nissan has presumably moved ahead on the pit stop rotation. Harald Huysman has moved to second at the wheel of the #5 Brun Hydro Aluminum Porsche 962, and Kenny Acheson in the Mercedes is now in third spot. The #18 and #19 Aston Martin’s follow.
This is the order before the pit stops. Mauro Baldi is back on track as Nissan are in the lane for their stop. Mark Blundell handing the car to Julian Bailey as predicted. Mercedes also pits, and now, it is truly a battle of the pit crews. Whoever exits pit lane first, and has the quickest pit stop, will resume in the lead of this motor race. The battle for the lead is on in pit lane, a la Formula 1. Jean Louis Schlesser takes over the Mercedes. Team boss for Nissan Keith Green holds the car. Schlesser has gone around Bailey. Julian Bailey is being left behind, and for the first time in ’89, the lead has changed during a pit stop. Mark Blundell says the Nissan is running real well, and might win.
Blundell tells pit reporter Brian Kreisky, the fuel load will be very close and that he hopes Julian Bailey, his team mate, can bring home a win for the Nissan boys. Bailey must catch Schlesser. Catching is one thing, passing is another. Does Julian Bailey have sufficient fuel to reel in the Mercedes? Does the Mercedes of Schlesser have the fuel to hold off the challenge from Nissan? Everyone has to drive on the limit, and save fuel, two things that are hard to do at the same time. Mercedes are driving to a game plan.
Julian Bailey, however, is in a conundrum, because of the traffic. The more time he spends trying to pass by the lapped cars, the more fuel will be burned off. Nissan team manager Keith Green says their fuel calculations are spot on for this very moment in the race. They are dead on the fuel strategy they planned. Julian Bailey still runs second behind Schlesser as the pit crew are poring over the data. 100 laps, 250 miles down here at Brands Hatch. We are getting very, very close to the end of this race and the Nissan is now 37 seconds in-arrears of the Mercedes. Oscar Larrauri runs in third place. Mauro Baldi in the second Mercedes is fourth, followed by the two Aston Martin’s.
Jean Louis Schlesser can claim the championship for constructors, for Mercedes at the end of this race. Mercedes team manager Max Welti is positive about their fuel mileage. There should be no issues, but don’t tell Nissan any secrets. Mauro Baldi runs fourth in the overall. Alain Ferte and Andy Wallace are still running consistently in the #2 Jaguar as Mauro Baldi makes a clean pass on Oscar Larrauri for position. Uh oh. We have drama out on the circuit. Richard Piper is ablaze in the #111 Texas liveried PC Automotive Spice Cosworth C2 car he is sharing with American Olindo Iacobelli. So, the race is run for the British/American duo. Game over indeed.
Surely Piper is aware the automobile is on fire. He’s trying to drive it to a corner station so the marshals can put out the blaze. That car is burning significantly. Get out of there, Richard. Dear me, this is a bad one. Marshals attack the fire with the foam from the extinguishers. Piper clambers out and sprints to safety through all the noxious smoke. Piper is indeed OK. So, we return to the sharp end of the field, and Mauro Baldi is booking it as he’s gone around Julian Bailey in the Nissan. This gives Mercedes a 1-2 and if they maintain it, they’ll have the teams’ title in their back pocket after Donington, going into the last two races of the year for 1989.
It’s the 120th and final lap. Jean Louis Schlesser will win the world championship for Sauber Mercedes! Through Craner Curves, the Old Hairpin, and Coppice, down the straight, and Mercedes can celebrate once Schlesser gets through Melbourne and Goddard’s. He does! Schlesser wins the race and wins the title! Max Welti gives Peter Sauber a kiss on the head, that is how happy these chaps are! Schlesser leads team mate Baldi in the driver’s standings by 17 markers, 107 points to 90 points, a then, Mas and Acheson follow on 87 and 85 respectively. The Mercedes boys realistically are the only ones in contention for the drivers’ cup.
The points standings in the drivers’ cup after Donington look like this.
In the teams’ championship, Sauber Mercedes are your winners. They have double the points of their nearest rivals from Joest Racing and Porsche. They’ve signed it, sealed it, wrapped it with a bow, and delivered it.
Mercedes has easily wrapped the title up, but Jean Louis Schlesser still believes it was a close fight. Now, Mercedes, like everyone else, can focus on the penultimate race of the year, at Spa Francorchamps, in Belgium, coming up in two weeks.
We have another large grid of Group C cars assembled for the Nurburgring race. Mercedes Benz, by now is the team to beat. Joest Porsche are their main rivals. But, the new Jaguar and Nissan cars are in the mix as well. Aston Martin and Toyota are fast. But, can they compete with the top runners? Here are the top qualifiers.
As you can tell, it’s all close at the front between the Brits, the German’s, and the Japanese. The lights flash to green here at Nurburgring, and we are underway in the Eiffel Mountains! Mercedes leads away from Nissan and Jaguar. Aston Martin are competitive, and so is Toyota. But, the 89C-V Toyota’s 3.2 liter turbo V8 is proving to be too thirsty of a motor to keep up with the rest of the pack on fuel efficiency.
The lights flash green, and away we go! Mercedes leads the start in their home race, with Nissan and Jaguar in tow. Mauro Baldi is without a doubt the faster driver than his co-driver Acheson, or Jean Louis Schlesser and Jochen Mass in the sister Silver Arrow. Mercedes is running their same strategy, qualify at the front, open up a lead, and then, cruise to the finish of the race, conserving fuel. We have a car off the road in the first few corners. It looks to be one of the Nissans, but it’s difficult to tell. Fuel consumption is key as quantities of petrol for each race are allotted by the race organizers at the FIA and fixed. Maximum capacity of the fuel cells in the Group C automobiles is 100 liters, and thus, in sprint race trim, they are obliged to make a minimum of two pit stops.
Once again, these regulations are quite similar to Formula 1 as far as fuel, although refueling in Formula 1 was banned and then reintroduced at some point. The fuel flow rate is also decreed so that the maximum pit stop time is around 100 seconds. Mercedes has the advantage on fuel economy as we watch one of the Jaguars participate in some agricultural racing, but the deal is Mercedes hopes they are the ones with the best fuel mileage and they simply cannot let their rivals snooker them on fuel. Mark Blundell is not driving for Nissan this weekend, so, young Brit Andrew Gilbert-Scott is at the wheel of it, and he is doing an impressive job to stay with the Mercedes duo at the front.
The lead battle is seeing the silver cars, vs. the blue, white, and red factory car from Japan. The pressure is without doubt on the Mercedes boys with the Nissan right on their tails. OK. Andrew Gilbert-Scott, he wants to go for it. He wants to show the Mercedes blokes what he’s made of. Gilbert-Scott dives inside of Mauro Baldi, completes the pass for second spot, and makes it stick! Now, he is determined to give Jean Louis Schlesser all the Frenchman can handle. Mercedes are driving to a plan that includes fuel consumption.
They have to resist the challenge of the Nissan, but at the same time, team management has said that if a competitor passes them, they must resist the urge to fight back. Andrew Gilbert-Scott is taking no prisoners, and he has taken P1 away from Schlesser. So, Nissan is at the sharp end, and it looks like Mercedes is about to get swamped. They have been the dominant force in Group C all year, but Jaguar and Porsche are the sharks in the water, smelling blood, and Mercedes may just become the minnow here. The Jaguar’s fuel consumption is unknown right now and it might be able to still pass and stay ahead of the competition.
More trouble for one of the RLR Porsche’s. That’s the #15 off the road in the hands this weekend of Sweden’s Steven Andskar and future Formula 1 driver/current Formula 3000 pilot, Frenchman Bertrand Gachot. Neither Nissan nor Joest seem to have the capability of keeping on top of their fuel consumption while simultaneously trying to lead this motor race. Oscar Larrauri though, in the #16 Jagermeister liveried Brun Porsche 962 has other ideas. He is so determined to get in front that he is showing no respect to Schlesser, and biffing the Frenchman right out of the way. Jean Louis, you make a better door than a window, and I am going to go right past you. Seriously, bud, you are a road hog.
After that bit of insult, Schlesser recovers and continues on his way. Minor dramas and attrition affected the remainder of the field, but there was no letup in the battle at the front of this motor race. Pit stops came and went, and Mercedes, these boys are on their own schedule, in their own zip code. Overtaking rivals is more expensive on fuel, with the bursts of acceleration and more frequent use of the gearbox. Nissan, with Julian Bailey driving, lead this race now by 27 seconds. Nissan team manager Keith Green is telling Bailey, “slow your pace down, sunshine.” Incidentally, this is the same Keith Green who was team boss at Richard Lloyd Racing earlier in the decade.
Nissan is definitely showing Mercedes who’s boss, and that, on Mercedes’ home turf in the heart of Deutschland here at the Nurburgring. What will the Mercedes team think of that? A relative newcomer interloping on their turf, has to be leaving the Sauber Mercedes squad, scratching their heads. That being said, Nissan is now running low on petrol. Like Toyota, Nissan was also dealing with fuel consumption issues on their new car. It’s rocket quick, but it’s also very thirsty. Mercedes and Joest Porsche, the German veterans, have mastered fuel consumption to a T. But the Japanese teams are still struggling with the fuel calculations that are so much a part of this type of racing even though it has clearly switched from endurance to a sprint/Grand Prix type format for ’89.
Bailey is slowing, falling into the clutches of Jean Louis Schlesser. On the long straights of the Nurburgring, the Mercedes is closing up on the Nissan hand over fist. Schlesser now has Bailey in his crosshairs. It’s nose to tail stuff between the two drivers now. It’s a matter of time, and the Mercedes certainly looks like it will prevail, and the shark is about to swallow the minnow whole in one gulp. Bailey doesn’t even get an assist from any of the back markers. Schlesser goes by, and then, to add insult to injury for Bailey, Bob Wollek in the Porsche plays mind games with him, too, and relegates the Nissan to third spot.
Mercedes, Porsche, Nissan, Mercedes, that’s the top four in the running order currently. Schlesser sails through, and then, Wollek goes for the inside pass on Bailey. Bailey has the door halfway open. Bob Wollek, though, he’s a veteran. He’s a scrapper, and he won’t just let Bailey slam the door in his face. Wollek forces Bailey a bit wide onto the front straight, and makes the pass as cleanly as you please, like a hot knife through butter. Jean Louis Schlesser is content in 1st place. He’s master of his fuel consumption, and he can drive a smoother race. This is a very similar situation to what we’ve seen in modern day Formula 1 with Mercedes, and their multiple world champion Lewis Hamilton. Get into the lead, and maintain enough of a gap that you can just drive away from everyone else, and be out on a Sunday cruise.
But, this race is far from over. Bob Wollek is not rolling over and playing dead yet. Wollek is all over Schlesser like the proverbial el cheapo suito here, and soon, he makes his move and takes the lead away from the Mercedes. Now, Porsche leads over Mercedes. For Wollek, however, the dreaded fuel gauge is going to bite him. He’s running dry in the 962 and has to top up in the lane, soon. Tit for tat, as Jean Louis Schlesser nips past the Joest Porsche to reclaim the top spot. Wollek will be holding on for dear life here, now that Schlesser has regained command of this motor race. What did we talk about earlier? Wollek is a fighter. He’s come back. This is turning from a motor race into a ten round heavyweight boxing match. Wollek is somehow able to hang right with Schlesser even though he’s conserving his last drops of fuel in the tank. Will Bob Wollek have anything left in the locker to catch Schlesser? Wollek chooses his moment, and retakes the top spot, putting Porsche out front again here at Nurburgring.
So determined is Bob Wollek, the marshals have put out the blue passing flags for Schlesser telling him in no uncertain terms to move over and make way for the Porsche. Schlesser knows Wollek is there, and he isn’t just going to stop and open the door for his countryman to come through. Somehow, Wollek gets a tremendous drive out of the final corner on the circuit. Here he comes! He’s making his move on Schlesser! Wollek tried to dive inside Schlesser into the turn as he’d done to Julian Bailey. No dice. So, he powers by the Mercedes Benz on the front straightaway and says, “au revoir, Jean Louis”. Wollek is throwing caution to the wind, while Schlesser has no choice but to keep conserving his petrol level.
Schlesser is giving Wollek the same treatment. He’s weaving around, looking for a slight opening to go back through that door. These two are racing, while the other competitors are just tooling around hoping to finish the motor race. But, it’s clear sailing now for Schlesser. Bob Wollek’s low fuel light has come on in the cockpit. The 962’s tank is dry, and the Frenchman from Strasbourg must heed the call to the pits. Schlesser, though, has fuel issues of his own. Did he use up too much in the tank in that battle royal with Wollek? Amazingly, Mercedes makes it to the flag! Jean Louis Schlesser wins, and it’s a Mercedes 1-2 with Mauro Baldi coming home second! How about that?!
Poor old Bob Wollek, he does run out of fuel and the marshals have to push him onto the grass. Kremer Porsche finishes in third spot with the #10 Porsche 962 of South African George Fouche and Italian Giovanni Lavaggi, whose name translates literally in English, to Johnny Carwash. Walter Brun and Jesus Pareja are fourth. John Nielsen and Andy Wallace in fifth place, as the best of the Jaguars. Aston Martin complete the top six with Brian Redman and David Leslie. Check that. They are eighth, bhind the Oscar Larrauri/Franz Konrad Brun Jagermeister Porsche, car #16, and the Lees/Dumfries #37 Toyota.
Pardon the language here. But, to quote Jochen Mass, about Jean Louis Schlesser, when asked, “how was your co-driver?”, Mass replies, “he’s normally full of s***, but today, he was good!” Mass tells Schlesser “get on with the interview!” Ha! Schlesser says the win is very good. Jochen Mass says, “you have to win in Germany, ja! and we did!” Races are dwindling on the schedule, and we head next back to England and to the Donington Park circuit in Leicestershire, in two weeks.
A sweltering hot day greets the drivers in the English countryside of Kent, at the great Brands Hatch circuit. There are 43 entries and 36 of them will take the start of this race, as Jaguar has finally unveiled their new XJR11 now powered by the Jaguar built 3.5 liter turbocharged V6 engine. This is the first appearance of the XJR11 in Europe, although they’ve been very successful back stateside in the IMSA Camel GT Grand Touring Prototype division, which is the American equivalent of Group C in a way.
There are two XJR-11s here at Brands Hatch. #1 to be piloted by Jan Lammers and Patrick Tambay, while #3 sees a duo of American Davy Jones teaming up with Frenchman Alain Ferte, and the #2 Dumfries/Wallace entry is still the tried and true XJR-9 with the V12 lump wedged in the back of it. As the new XJR11’s made their debut on European soil, they were considered so top secret, they were concealed behind closed garage doors, and the engine cover for the new V6 power unit was never removed in the pit lane either. After Jan Lammers qualified alongside Mauro Baldi on the front row, the other teams had to be saying, “wow, what is this strange and amazing new motorcar?” So, the top six qualifiers at Brands Hatch are:
Out of Clearways they come, it’s green lights, on, and away we go! Deary me! Their four wide in the middle of the pack! Settle down, lads. Even with the new car and new motor, the Jaguars were outgunned by the Silver Arrows into Druids and Pilgrim’s Drop for the first time. Baldi and Schlesser move into the top two, and are off into a scrap of their own once more. Jan Lammers runs fourth, and the Porsche’s are coming on like gangbusters to try and stay with the leaders.
Joest, Repsol Brun, and Richard Lloyd Racing are all hoping to pick up the pieces behind the factory cars, especially RLR as they are on their home turf here at Brands Hatch with sponsorship from Porsche Cars Great Britain, and Derek Bell and Tiff Needell sharing the driving chores. Mercedes battle each other, looking to be under no pressure from the Jaguars. But, Schlesser and Baldi are rivals, just as much as they are team mates. Johnny Dumfries in the Toyota finds himself surrounded on all sides, and from the rear, by Jaguar and Nissan. Where did Nissan come from? Julian Bailey is going like the clappers here, and he’s all over both the second Mercedes and one of the Spice cars.
Bailey is co-driving with Andrew Gilbert-Scott of course. The weak spot on the Nissan is in it’s chassis, as the car is dealing with gobs of understeer. Lola cars, in England, who built the chassis, will have some work to do in that department for the future. Despite the speed and performance, Julian Bailey overcooks it, or, overenthuses it into Clearways corner. James Weaver in the sister Richard Lloyd Racing GTi Porsche 962 also spins off the road at Clearways. Weaver is sharing that car, with David Hunt, brother of 1976 Formula 1 World Champion for McLaren, James Hunt.
Mercedes still run 1-2 as the pit stops come and go. Their braking issues are now seemingly cured. They changed to steel brake discs instead of carbon. They found at Jarama, that the carbon discs overheated way too quickly. Deary me! We have a big shemozzle on the road in the left hand curve behind the pit lane! Wayne Taylor in the Spice, Uwe Schafer in his Porsche 962, and the #8 Joest Porsche of Jean Louis Ricci, are all off the road. Everyone seems to get away with it, but Jean Louis Ricci will retire on the spot with an engine fire. So, it is game over for he, and countryman Henri Pescarolo, the four-time 24 Hours of Le Mans overall winner. If you read the 1984 WSC review, you know well that ’84 was his fourth and final Le Mans triumph. Poor old Jean Louis Ricci pulls the car to a halt, and bails out. Mercedes, despite some off course argy bargy, is still leading this motor race at Brands Hatch and by now, it is established they are the team to beat in WSPC.
Recall, last year, at this race, in 1988, Mercedes had a huge crash where one of their cars was totally written off, and the sister car spun to avoid it. Mercedes and Joest Porsche are running to plan, but Jaguar is not running consistently on home soil. A faultless pit stop and driver change for Mercedes. Mercedes, you guessed it, takes over the lead. The turbocharged Jaguars have proven competitive based on power and handling. But, their reliability is still questionable. They had a pit lane fire and we get a glimpse of the motor, although shrouded in smoke. It was game over for one of the Jaguars, anyway. Mauro Baldi leads for Mercedes, but hot on his heels is the #7 Joest Porsche of Wollek and Jelinski.
Heartbreak for RLR! Tiff Needell has no brakes on his 962, and is pitched into a spin, which results in him… ker-runch!, hitting the Clearways fencing. He is stuffed right into the same spot where James Weaver went off the road shortly before. Jaguar is also off the road, as John Nielsen also suffers brake failure, and stuffs the #2 machine into the barriers. His was at Hawthorne’s Bend and there’s big, big damage to the XJR9, look. So, Jaguar are down to one bullet in the gun, minus one of the old cars and minus one XJR11. John Nielsen reckons this is the heaviest wallop he’s had in a Jaguar and the heaviest wreck of his racing career so far. Fortunately, he is unhurt.
Dear me. More dramas in the closing laps here at Brands Hatch as the Toyota of Johnny Dumfries is crawling to a stop. Dumfries, sharing with Formula 1 veteran John Watson, runs out of petrol within sight of Toyota’s best finish of the ’89 season! Bob Wollek is also in trouble. Now, he is on the reserve fuel pump, but the fuel pump is broken. It is feeding just one bank of cylinders, meaning only three of the six cylinders in the Porsche 962 are receiving fuel. Despite that, the 962 is still running swiftly and proves to be a king size headache for the Mercedes boys.
Baldi and Schlesser are creating their own headaches! Look at that! They split the Porsche going three wide, and one of these blokes if off indulging in some rallycross on the grass! Baldi wins at Brands Hatch with Kenny Acheson. Bob Wollek and Frank Jelinski are second, followed by Jean Louis Schlesser and Jochen Mass, then the Aston Martin of David Leslie and Brian Redman, Jan Lammers and Patrick Tambay give the new Jaguar XJR11 a fifth place finish, and in sixth, Walter Brun and Jesus Pareja in the Repsol Porsche.
Here are the driver’s championship points after four races, and the season is now past halfway.
Jaguar is looking less and less likely to repeat their team’s championship from a year ago. The team’s points are:
Once again, less than a month’s break, and the WSPC is back in action at the legendary Nurburgring, the modern, shorter circuit, in the Eiffel Mountains of Germany. Only three rounds now remain in the championship for 1989.
Group C Sports Cars, the thunder of the '80s 