Above: Doc Bundy in his #24 1964 Lotus 23 is a heavy favorite to repeat as SVRA national champion in his Group 5 class.

The SportsCar Vintage Racing Association’s vintage racing national championships at Circut of The Americas have blossomed into the season-ending crescendo officials were hoping for when they conceived of the event in 2013. The annual invitational of the top competitors across all recognized vintage racing organizations in the country has an outstanding class of cars and stars from both professional and amateur sectors of the sport. Bell Racing is back as sponsor of their special gold-and-black helmet trophy – the signature emblem of SVRA national championship races.

Some big names pop off the entry list with just a cursory glance. Among them are 1993 Le Mans 24 Hours winner Geoff Brabham, the son of Formula 1 World Champion Sir Jack Brabham and father of 2016 Indianapolis 500 starter Matthew. The Brabhams are among only three families with three generations of drivers to start the Indianapolis 500. The others, the Andrettis and the Vukovichs, are racing royalty as well.

Geoff, who started the Indianapolis 500 10 times with a best finish of fourth, has driven in two of the SVRA’s “Indy Legends Charity Pro-Am” races at the Brickyard Invitational. At that event this past June,he made some history when he became only the second member of his family to race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in a Brabham racecar. That was one of two canary yellow 1971 Brabham BT35 Formula B cars of owner Ron Horning. Both Geoff and Ron picked off wins in SVRA Group 2 sprint races during that weekend. They will be back in the same machines at COTA.

“Unfortunately, I enjoyed myself a bit too much,” Brabham quips. “When I got a call from Ron about joining him at COTA, I just couldn’t think of a good reason not to do it. I’d go to any track with Ron. His cars are well prepared and professional. It is a bonus to go to a world-class track, though. I’ve watched Matthew race here, but this will be my first time driving.”

The car Geoff is driving also carries the special distinction of being SVRA Gold Medallion certified. This is an elite certification program that holds applicants to rigorous standards of period-correct restoration to prove authenticity and historic significance. Horning had the car, which was once campaigned by former Formula 1 Ferrari driver and Indianapolis 500 veteran Stefan Johansson, painstakingly prepared. This was recognized the last two years at the Brickyard Invitational as the machine was awarded the “Brabham Trophy” as the best example of the marque at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Another household name going wheel-to-wheel this weekend is Boris Said. He will compete with the SVRA for only the second time in his stellar career; the first came at the 2015 Coronado Island Speed Festival. Said was at the wheel of a 1968 BMW 2002 on that occasion. This time around he will be wheeling a 1999 GT4 Corvette.

Adam Carolla (pictured), the comedian and all-around car guy who received plaudits for his work in producing the 2015 documentary, “Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman,” will be back with the SVRA for the second time this season. He competed at Coronado Island in September. Carolla has his ex-Newman 1970 Datsun 510 B Sedan entered in Group 8 competition.

Another strong talent is 23-year-old Theo Bean. Bean, who aspires to the ranks of professional racing, has taken the unconventional path of grooming his racecraft through seat time in vintage racing. This year he raced in IMSA’s Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge ST class as well as the Toyota Racing Series, a winter open wheel competition in New Zealand. He is back at COTA to defend the Group 11 national championship he brought home last year.

Bean has two teammates: his father, Toby, and his younger brother Patrick. They are also entered in Group 11 with an impeccable pair of 1990 Chevrolet Intrepids. The car at Theo’s disposal, however, is extra-special – the ex-Geoff Brabham 1988 Nissan which Geoff won the IMSA GTP championship with that year. Brabham was the dominant driver of the series during that era, picking off 23 race wins and four successive championships from 1988 through 1991.

Above: Defending Group 11 SVRA national champion Theo Bean will drive this historic ex-Geoff Brabham 1988 Nissan GTP car. His father Toby and brother Patrick will compete in Chevrolet Intrepids visible in the background. (Credit: Theo Bean)

“My father bought the car directly from the factory maybe 30 years ago, but it’s been stored in his shop for the last dozen years or so, ” Bean shares. “We pulled it out and have restored it top to bottom. The car was just added to iRacing a month or so ago, so I have been getting familiar with it online. I can’t wait to get it onto the track.”

Numerous historic, quality cars are entered throughout the various classes. There is no better example than SVRA Group 4. Peter Giddings’ awe-inspiring 1954 Lancia Ferrari that was featured on RACER.com coverage of the U.S. Vintage Grand Prix at Watkins Glen in September will undoubtedly be one of the most photographed cars of the weekend.

Also, Group 4 boasts two elite SVRA “Gold Medallion” cars. These very extraordinary racecars are Thor Johnson’s 1959 Lotus 17 (the last front-engine sports racer of that marque) and Susan Patterson’s rare 1952 Devin MG TD. Only a handful of these cars exist in the world. An interesting Group 4 matchup could be Johnson’s Lotus 17 and the 1960 Lola Mk1 entry of Dale Bloomquist. The Lotus was designed back in the day as a response to the Lola when it was introduced in 1958.

The list of historic and significant racecars is exceptional. An important weekend feature comes in the form of three Mazda prototype racers fresh from the August Motorsports Reunion in Monterey. Mazda North American Operations has filed three truly historic entries from what they call their “Heritage Collection:” a 1989 Mazda 767B, a 1990 Mazda 787 and the 1992 Mazda RX-792P IMSA GTP racer. All three are entered in the SVRA Group 10 class.

The 767B (pictured below) and 787 both competed at Le Mans with the 767B taking two class wins. More importantly, these were the cars that established Mazda’s trajectory to become the first and still only Japanese manufacturer to win overall at Le Mans with their 787B prototype in 1991. Moreover, this also remains the only car powered by a rotary engine to win the historic race. The group’s appearance is part of the company’s celebration of the 25th anniversary of their historic Le Mans triumph.

Doc Bundy, who won the GTO class for Porsche at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1982, is another driver to keep an eye on. Doc is back in the saddle of owner Paul Rego’s Regogo Racing “Grabber Blue” 1964 Lotus 23B. Doc brought home Bell Racing’s gold with black trim trophy helmet for the SVRA national championship of his class the last three years.

Two other big guns of SVRA racing, Peter Klutt and Andre Ahrle of Legendary Motorcar, are favored Group 6 entries. Both have won the Indy Legends Charity Pro-Am. Klutt scored with driving partner Al Unser Jr. in 2014 and Ahrle came home first this year with Robby Unser. Group 6, which features classic American muscle cars, boasts one of the largest fields with 50 howling, snarling old-school racers. Among them will be SVRA President and CEO Tony Parella, who will take some time out from running the business to race his Duntov Motor Company-prepared red 1972 B Production Corvette.

Another amazing and historic racecar that will be on the grounds is the Lola T70 racing legend Dan Gurney drove in Can-Am competition during the 1967 season. Gurney’s former ride won’t hit the race track, but the auction blocks instead. It is a marquee offer in Motostalgia’s auction of rare and fine automobiles – a great dimension of the motorsports festival atmosphere of SVRA events. The auctions will take place both Friday and Saturday.

The Trans Am series once more joins the SVRA as the featured contest on Saturday. Defending champion Amy Ruman holds a slim one-point margin over her nemesis of the last several years, Paul Fix, in Trans Am’s top class. Fix was 2013 SVRA Group 11 champion with his 2000 Jaguar XKR. Both drivers race Corvettes.

Qualifying for all classes will take place Friday with sprint races on Saturday. Sunday is the big day for the national championship events with Bell Racing’s helmet trophy awarded to all class winners. In addition to the wide variety of racing and the Motostalgia auctions, Hagerty, the SVRA’s official insurance provider, will host a Saturday car show. That day will be capped off with an evening performance by country music legend Charlie Daniels. With over 400 cars speeding around the 20-turn, 3.427-mile course, the SVRA is ready to back up their claim that their show offers the widest array of car designs and engine sounds American race fans can find anywhere.

Click on the thumbnails below for larger images.

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