History
The Canadian American Challenge Cup Series (Can-Am) started out as a race series for Group 7 sports racers with
two races in Canada and four races in the United States of America. The Series was governed by rules called out
under the FIA Group 7 category with unrestricted engine capacity and few other technical restrictions.
The Group 7 category was essentially a Formula Libre for sports cars; the regulations were minimal and permitted
unlimited engine sizes (and allowed turbocharging and supercharging), virtually unrestricted aerodynamics, and
were as close as any major international racing series ever got to anything goes. As long as the car had two seats
and bodywork enclosing the wheels, and met basic safety standards, it was legal. Group 7 had arisen as a category
for non-homologated sports car 'specials' in Europe and for a while in the 1960s Group 7 racing was popular in the
United Kingdom as well as a class in hillclimb racing in Europe. Group 7 cars were designed more for short-distance
sprints than for endurance racing. Some Group 7 cars were also built in Japan by Nissan and Toyota, but these did
not compete outside their homeland (though some of the Can-Am competitors went over to race against them
occasionally).
SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) sports car racing was becoming more popular with European constructors and
drivers, and the United States Road Racing Championship ( USRRC ) for large-capacity sports racers eventually
gave rise to the Group 7 Can-Am series in 1966. There was good prize and appearance money and plenty of trade
backing; the series was lucrative for its competitors but resulted, by its end, in truly outrageous cars with well over
1000 horsepower (750 kW) (the Porsche team claimed 1,500 hp (1,100 kW) for its 917/30 in qualifying trim in
1973), wings, active downforce generation, very light weight and unheard of speeds. Similar Group 7 cars ran in
the European Interserie series, but this was much lower-key than the Can-Am.
Can-Am was the birthplace and proving ground for (what was at the time) outrageous technology. Can-Am cars
were among the first race cars to sport wings, effective turbocharging, ground-effect aerodynamics, and aerospace
materials like titanium. This led to the eventual downfall of the original series when costs got very much out of
hand, but during its height Can-Am cars were at the cutting edge of racing technology and were frequently as fast
as or even faster than their contemporary Formula One cars. Noted constructors in the Can-Am Series included
McLaren, Chaparral, Lola, BRM, Shadow and Porsche.
Notable drivers in the original Can-Am series included virtually every acclaimed driver of the late 1960s and early
1970s. Jim Hall, Mark Donohue, Mario Andretti, Parnelli Jones, George Follmer, Dan Gurney, Phil Hill, Denny Hulme,
Bruce McLaren, Peter Revson, and John Surtees all drove Can-Am cars competitively and were successful, winning
races and championship titles.
The Canadian American Challenge Cup Series was, in many racing fan's minds, North America's greatest road
racing series ever. Can-Am grew from the USRRC for Sports Racing and GT cars formed in 1963 by Tracy Bird, then
head of the SCCA, in consultation with Jim Hall of United States Road Racing Championship and Chaparral fame. In
1965, the Canadian Automobile Sports Club (CASC) and the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) along with the race
tracks and promoters recognized the fan appeal of unlimited sports racing cars and created the Can-Am series for
1966. The unlimited sports cars six race 1966 Can-Am began in Canada at St. Jovite - Mt. Tremblant circuit and
soon raced at Mosport, Watkins Glen, Riverside, Laguna Seca, Mid-Ohio, Road Atlanta, Elkhart Lake and all the
great road racing circuits in North America.
The 1966 Can-Am season was perhaps one of the most exciting of all. At the season opener at St. Jovite, John
Surtees drove his red Lola T70 Chevrolet to victory just 5 seconds in front of Bruce McLaren in his own McLaren
M1B Oldsmobile after a 75 lap long 2 hour battle. The series continued at the Zandvoort-esque Bridgehampton
racetrack located near New York, where Dan Gurney won the race in his Lola T70 Ford Weslake, narrowly beating
Chris Amon racing for Bruce McLaren's team. The Bridgehampton round saw the first appearance of the winged
Chaparrals, 1961 F1 World Champion Phil Hill coming home in fourth place in his Chaparral 2E. The series
continued at Mosport, with a young Mark Donohue getting his and Roger Penske's first Can-Am win, driving a Lola
T70 Chevrolet. Roger Penske's cars have always been a prime example in immaculate preperation, and this
gruelling third round of the championship provided a great opportunity to show it.
After a three week break the 1966 season continued at Laguna Seca. It would turn out to be the only ever Can-Am
win for the innovative and previously all-conquering Chaparral team, with Phil Hill taking victory on aggregate in
the two heat race, after winning the first heat and finishing runner-up in the second. Chaparral founder Jim Hall
was able to complete the party with a second place. The swoopy Califoria road course was extremely suited for the
Chaparral, with it's big wing providing grip in the corners, and with no long straights or slow corners where the
drag of it's wing, it's experimental semi-automatic two speed gearbox or it's slightly weaker engine compared to
the opposition could spoil the fun, although Parnelli Jones was able to win heat two in his Lola T70 Chevrolet,
beating the white Texan cars.
After Laguna Seca it was onto Riverside, where Surtees managed to beat Hall for the win after 62 laps. Five of the
first seven cars had been Lola's, and it became clear Surtees would become hard to catch for the Chaparral and
McLaren teams. He proved it by adding another win and clinching the championship in the Nevada desert at the
Stardust racetrack just outside Las Vegas, after both Chaparrals suffered from metal fatigue in their wings,
resulting in retirement. Bruce McLaren came home second to finish a succesful albeit winless season for the
McLaren team. Bruce's moments of glory would soon come. Peter Revson showed first signs of promise driving his
McLaren M1B Ford Cobra home in fourth place.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Can-Am
http://www.historiccanam.com/background.html
http://www.racingsportscars.com/championship/Can-Am.html
History
The Canadian American Challenge Cup Series
(Can-Am) started out as a race series for
Group 7 sports racers with two races in
Canada and four races in the United States of
America. The Series was governed by rules
called out under the FIA Group 7 category
with unrestricted engine capacity and few
other technical restrictions.
The Group 7 category was essentially a
Formula Libre for sports cars; the regulations
were minimal and permitted unlimited engine
sizes (and allowed turbocharging and
supercharging), virtually unrestricted
aerodynamics, and were as close as any
major international racing series ever got to
anything goes. As long as the car had two
seats and bodywork enclosing the wheels,
and met basic safety standards, it was legal.
Group 7 had arisen as a category for non-
homologated sports car 'specials' in Europe
and for a while in the 1960s Group 7 racing
was popular in the United Kingdom as well as
a class in hillclimb racing in Europe. Group 7
cars were designed more for short-distance
sprints than for endurance racing. Some
Group 7 cars were also built in Japan by
Nissan and Toyota, but these did not compete
outside their homeland (though some of the
Can-Am competitors went over to race
against them occasionally).
SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) sports car
racing was becoming more popular with
European constructors and drivers, and the
United States Road Racing Championship (
USRRC ) for large-capacity sports racers
eventually gave rise to the Group 7 Can-Am
series in 1966. There was good prize and
appearance money and plenty of trade
backing; the series was lucrative for its
competitors but resulted, by its end, in truly
outrageous cars with well over 1000
horsepower (750 kW) (the Porsche team
claimed 1,500 hp (1,100 kW) for its 917/30 in
qualifying trim in 1973), wings, active
downforce generation, very light weight and
unheard of speeds. Similar Group 7 cars ran
in the European Interserie series, but this was
much lower-key than the Can-Am.
Can-Am was the birthplace and proving
ground for (what was at the time) outrageous
technology. Can-Am cars were among the
first race cars to sport wings, effective
turbocharging, ground-effect aerodynamics,
and aerospace materials like titanium. This
led to the eventual downfall of the original
series when costs got very much out of hand,
but during its height Can-Am cars were at the
cutting edge of racing technology and were
frequently as fast as or even faster than their
contemporary Formula One cars. Noted
constructors in the Can-Am Series included
McLaren, Chaparral, Lola, BRM, Shadow and
Porsche.
Notable drivers in the original Can-Am series
included virtually every acclaimed driver of
the late 1960s and early 1970s. Jim Hall,
Mark Donohue, Mario Andretti, Parnelli Jones,
George Follmer, Dan Gurney, Phil Hill, Denny
Hulme, Bruce McLaren, Peter Revson, and
John Surtees all drove Can-Am cars
competitively and were successful, winning
races and championship titles.
The Canadian American Challenge Cup Series
was, in many racing fan's minds, North
America's greatest road racing series ever.
Can-Am grew from the USRRC for Sports
Racing and GT cars formed in 1963 by Tracy
Bird, then head of the SCCA, in consultation
with Jim Hall of United States Road Racing
Championship and Chaparral fame. In 1965,
the Canadian Automobile Sports Club (CASC)
and the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA)
along with the race tracks and promoters
recognized the fan appeal of unlimited sports
racing cars and created the Can-Am series for
1966. The unlimited sports cars six race 1966
Can-Am began in Canada at St. Jovite - Mt.
Tremblant circuit and soon raced at Mosport,
Watkins Glen, Riverside, Laguna Seca, Mid-
Ohio, Road Atlanta, Elkhart Lake and all the
great road racing circuits in North America.
The 1966 Can-Am season was perhaps one of
the most exciting of all. At the season opener
at St. Jovite, John Surtees drove his red Lola
T70 Chevrolet to victory just 5 seconds in
front of Bruce McLaren in his own McLaren
M1B Oldsmobile after a 75 lap long 2 hour
battle. The series continued at the Zandvoort-
esque Bridgehampton racetrack located near
New York, where Dan Gurney won the race in
his Lola T70 Ford Weslake, narrowly beating
Chris Amon racing for Bruce McLaren's team.
The Bridgehampton round saw the first
appearance of the winged Chaparrals, 1961
F1 World Champion Phil Hill coming home in
fourth place in his Chaparral 2E. The series
continued at Mosport, with a young Mark
Donohue getting his and Roger Penske's first
Can-Am win, driving a Lola T70 Chevrolet.
Roger Penske's cars have always been a
prime example in immaculate preperation,
and this gruelling third round of the
championship provided a great opportunity to
show it.
After a three week break the 1966 season
continued at Laguna Seca. It would turn out
to be the only ever Can-Am win for the
innovative and previously all-conquering
Chaparral team, with Phil Hill taking victory
on aggregate in the two heat race, after
winning the first heat and finishing runner-up
in the second. Chaparral founder Jim Hall was
able to complete the party with a second
place. The swoopy Califoria road course was
extremely suited for the Chaparral, with it's
big wing providing grip in the corners, and
with no long straights or slow corners where
the drag of it's wing, it's experimental semi-
automatic two speed gearbox or it's slightly
weaker engine compared to the opposition
could spoil the fun, although Parnelli Jones
was able to win heat two in his Lola T70
Chevrolet, beating the white Texan cars.
After Laguna Seca it was onto Riverside,
where Surtees managed to beat Hall for the
win after 62 laps. Five of the first seven cars
had been Lola's, and it became clear Surtees
would become hard to catch for the Chaparral
and McLaren teams. He proved it by adding
another win and clinching the championship
in the Nevada desert at the Stardust
racetrack just outside Las Vegas, after both
Chaparrals suffered from metal fatigue in
their wings, resulting in retirement. Bruce
McLaren came home second to finish a
succesful albeit winless season for the
McLaren team. Bruce's moments of glory
would soon come. Peter Revson showed first
signs of promise driving his McLaren M1B
Ford Cobra home in fourth place.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Can-Am
http://www.historiccanam.com/background.h
tml
http://www.racingsportscars.com/championsh
ip/Can-Am.html