2023 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course - Sportscar Vintage Racing Association

The Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA) is the largest and one of the oldest Vintage racing organizations in the United States. The association has evolved since it was founded in 1978 by Ford Heacock III. It was originally called the Southeast Vintage Racing Association with a membership of approximately 25 drivers and supporters. Today, the organization host events for over 2,500 licensed competitors.

Race weekends are held throughout North America. The SVRA visits Sebring International Raceway, Road Atlanta, Charlotte Motor Speedway, WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Lime Rock Park, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Portland International Raceway, Utah Motorsports Campus, Circuit of the Americas, Road America, The Ridge Motorsports Park, Sonoma Raceway, Watkins Glen International, NOLA Motorsports Park, New Jersey Motorsports Park, Auto Club Speedway and Virginia International Raceway. But their best-subscribed event is at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

To accommodate the wide range of vehicles owned by members of the Sportscar Vintage Racing Assocation, there are twelve race groups.

Group 1 – is for small displacement production sports cars and sedans such as the Mini Cooper and MG Midget.
Group 2 – this group is for pre-1973 Formula cars conforming to the association’s classic formula car rules.
Group 3 - sports cars and sedans manufactured prior to 1972 compete in this class.
Group 4 – sports cars built before 1960, such as ‘specials’ and sports cars with a limited production run, participate in this group.
Group 5 – this category was created for small-bore World Sports Car Championship and prototypes that were raced between 1960 and 1972 but also includes Sports 2000 cars, Spec Racer Fords and World Sports Racers.
Group 6 – Corvettes, Camaros, Mustangs and other selected big-bore production sports cars and sedans built up to and including 1972 are in Group 6.
Group 7 – this class accommodates a wide range of cars referred to as sports racers - World Championship of Makes sports cars on slicks, under 2 Liter sports cars as raced after 1972, Can Am cars as raced after 1967 and center-seat Can Am cars. Also, cars that competed in the Sports Car Club of America’s A and B Sports Racer classes are eligible.
Group 8 - Sports cars and sedans manufactured before 1979 are placed in this division.
Group 9 – this group is for the quickest open-wheel cars. It includes Indy Lights, Formula 1, Formula 5000, Formula Atlantic and Super Vees.
Group 10 – this is an exciting category that includes everything from NASCAR Cup and Busch Series stock cars to Trans-Am and production-based cars that raced from 1999 to 5 years from today’s date.
Group 11 – in this class are sports racer machinery that raced from 1981 to 5-years from today’s date. The cars are very quick and previously competed in GTP/Group C, American Le Mans Series, Professional Sports Car Racing, World Sports Car and Grand Am prototype classes.
Group 12 – this division accepts GT sports cars and sedans raced between 1973 and 5 years before today’s date. These are Production-based cars such as Motorola Cup or any other stock / prepared racing series.

Across these very different race groups, the objective is to provide – safe, fair and fun competition for drivers, crews and fans.

The eleventh race weekend of the 2023 SVRA season was conducted at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and was called the Permco Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio. The weekend included two races for each SVRA group, as well as International GT, Trans Am, Formula 4 and Formula Regional.

This No. 4 Ford Mustang, with backing from AER and Mackenzie Financial, was campaigned by Canadian Ron Fellows in the 1992 Trans Am series. Fellows collected victories at Lime Rock Park and Road America. He finished fourth in the final standings. At the Permco Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio, the Mustang was driven by Jonathan DeGaynor. DeGaynor competed in the 10GT3 class and won the weekend's last race.

Former SCCA World Challenge competitor Steven Lisa campaigned the No. 21 Norma M20F. Norma is a French company founded by Norbert Santos and Marc Doucet. Their early cars were built for Hillclimbs; however, by 1995, they had an entry in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The M20F raced by Lisa was constructed in 2009. A 2.0-liter Honda K20 with a sequential transmission sits in the tube-frame chassis.

Australian Paul Zazryn races the No. 24 Lola T332. The T332 is chassis HU32, initially owned and driven by Evan Noyes. Zazryn purchased the Lola in 2010. The Lola T332 dominated the SCCA F5000 series from 1974 until the championship ended 1976. When the Can-Am was revived in 1977, the cars were rebodied and called a Lola T333CS. This extended the life of the chassis until 1980, when Lola introduced the T530.

Brett Moyer brought this 1995 Spice WSC to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course SVRA event. The Spice BDG-02 was powered by an Oldsmobile engine. The car competed in the IMSA Exxon World Sports Car Championship and Supreme GT Series. The season's highlight for the No. 2 Brix Racing entry was a class victory in the Rolex 24 at Daytona with drivers Jeremy Dale, Jay Cochran and Fredrik Ekblom.

The 007 is a 1971 Jaguar XKE V12 driven by Keith Dunbar. The Jaguar XKE made its debut in 1961 and was manufactured until 1974. Most of the Jaguars were powered by the double overhead camshaft six-cylinder engine. However, the 1971 Series 3 model had a 5.3-liter V12 engine. Dunbar's car competes in SVRA's 6AP class. He was second fastest in the first qualifying session but finished third in the feature.

The Tasman Series was a popular motorsport competition for open-wheel cars from 1964 to 1975. Races were held in Australia and New Zealand. From 1971 to 1975, the Formula 5000 category was used to determine the Tasman champion. In an effort to revive Formula 5000, the VHT S5000 Australia Drivers' Championship was launched in 2021. On hand at Mid-Ohio was Nathan Bird in an AF01, which is the series model.

The No. 118 is a 1967 Lotus Elan piloted by Thomas Spencer. The Elans were manufactured between 1962 and 1975. The cars were equipped with a lot of components from Ford UK. The 1558-cc engine used the Ford Kent block with a Lotus Twin Cam cylinder head. The transmission could be found in British touring cars such as the Ford Anglia and Cortina. Spencer ended the weekend with a victory in the 8CP class.

The Alfa Romeo GT Veloce (known as GTV) was popular in the Trans Am Under 2.5-Liter Challenge. The No. 44 of Raymond Nichols is a 1971 model and competes in the 8RS division. The 1971 GTV has a two-liter overhead-camshaft engine, producing just over 200 horsepower. It also features a five-speed transmission and four-wheel disc brakes. Nichols won his category at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Tom Ragonetti drove the No. 11 1969 Alfa Romeo Duetto Spider in the 8DP group. This model of Alfa Romeo is often referred to as a Round Tail due to the body lines on the back of the car. It was introduced by the company in 1966. The engine used in the Duetto Spider is a 1779-cc double-overhead-camshaft four-cylinder. Ragonetti had issues in the qualifying session. However, he won his category in the feature.

The No. 26 Crown Royal Ford Fusion was driven by Jamie McMurray in the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. The 2003 NASCAR Rookie of the Year replaced Kurt Busch in the Roush Racing Ford. The highlight of his season was at Dover, where McMurray led the most laps and finished second. He finished twenty-fifth in the final standings. At the Permco Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio, the Ford Fusion was raced by Scott Dolfi.

The No. 53 1966 Sunbeam Alpine was driven by Brad Babb. This Alpine is a Series V. The final version was produced from 1965 until 1968. The later models used a four-cylinder 1725-cc engine. And for added strength, the company introduced five main bearings to support the crankshaft. The induction system is twin Zenith-Stromberg carburetors. Over 19,000 Series V Sunbeam Alpines were produced.

David Jacobs competes regularly in SVRA events driving the No. 33 Chevron B19. The 1971 Chevron is powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder Cosworth FVC engine. It was designed and built by Derek Bennett. Bennett formed Chevron Cars in 1965 and was the company principal until 1978, when he died in a hang-gliding accident. Since then, Chevron has passed through several hands, with the last car being constructed in 2010.

The TVR Vixen was produced from 1967 to 1973. The fiber-glass body is mounted on a tube frame chassis. Stopping the TVR are disc brakes on the front and drums on the rear. The suspension is a double wishbone design on the front and rear. The early cars used a 1599-cc Ford Kent engine, with the later models being powered by a Triumph 2.5-liter inline-six. The No. 57 is a 1970 Vixen driven by Michael Zappa.

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