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HomeMediaFeatured marque indeed: More than 50 Datsun/Nissan race cars entered at 41st...

Featured marque indeed: More than 50 Datsun/Nissan race cars entered at 41st Mitty

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More than 50 Datsun and Nissan racing cars are on the entry list for the 41st HSR Classic Motorsports Mitty vintage races taking place this weekend at Road Atlanta. The Datsun and Nissan vehicles represent 50 years of the featured marque’s racing heritage in the United States. 

Among those cars are a 1971 Datsun 240Z that has been actively racing for more than 45 years, a 1968 SRL311 that has won more than 60 races, and a 1971 510 that qualified for the SCCA Runoffs every year from 1972-77, winning the championship in 1973.

Glenn Chiou’s 1971 Datsun 240Z in competition

The ’71 Z, now owned and raced by Glenn Chiou, last competed at Road Atlanta at the 1982 SCCA Runoffs. It is the former FAR Performance car later campaigned in VIP’S Restaurant colors.

The ’68 SRL311 (such cars also were known as Datsun 2000s), now owned by Michael Anderson, originally was raced by Andy Vargo, who drove it to more than 60 victories in the 1980s and ‘90s in D Production competition.

David Stone will take his No. 93 Datsun 510 to the Mitty

The ’71 510 , owned by David Stone, was a factory-backed racer built by Dave Frellsen and is a former B Sedan national champion. 

Other highly regarded entries include a first-generation 1971 Nissan Skyline GT-4 C10 owned by Alex McDowell; a 2009 Nissan GT-R owned by Dave Roberts that carried Mike Skeen to rookie of the year honors in the Pikes Peak Hill Climb and also has a successful history in World Challenge road course racing.

Laguna lists Reunion, Pre-Reunion schedules

Nissan celebrates 50 years of its American racing heritage at events including The Mitty and the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion | Nissan photo

Whether you call it just plain Laguna Seca, or still refer to it as Mazda Raceway or already are in tune with WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, the acclaimed and historic racing circuit at Monterey, California, has released provisional schedules for both the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion and for the Pre-Reunion test and practice session the previous weekend. 

The annual Motorsports Reunion is scheduled for August 23-26 in conjunction with activities taking place during Monterey Car Week and the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

Of 15 racing groups, the featured categories this summer at Formula One, Trans-Am, Can-Am and Formula 5000, the later celebrating its 50th anniversary with an international tour. 

Nissan will be the featured marque. 

The Pre-Reunion session will feature 10 racing groups and more than 300 cars, with each group getting two sessions on the track each day, August 18-19.

The provisional Reunion schedule is on the track’s website.

McLaren MP4/4 in action at Goodwood | Motor Sports Hall of Fame photo

Hall of Fame announces nominees

The (international) Motor Sport Hall of Fame has announced its shortlist of finalists for induction at its ceremony June 4 at the Royal Automobile club Woodcote Park estate in England.

The finalists are: U.S. — A.J. Foyt, Phil Hill and Richard Petty; Sports car — Hans-Joachim Stuck, Henri Pescarolo, Pedro Rodriguez; Motorcycle racing — Mike Hailwood, Joey Dunlop, Kenny Roberts; Formula 1 — Mike Costin and Keith Duckworth, Jenson Button, Gilles Villeneuve; Racing car — Porsche 917, McLaren MP4/4, Audi quattro.

The June 4 program not only honors the winner in each category, but raises money for Mission Motorsport, a charity that provides opportunities for injured military veterans to use motor racing as part of their recovery and rehabilitation process.

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Larry Edsall
Larry Edsall
A former daily newspaper sports editor, Larry Edsall spent a dozen years as an editor at AutoWeek magazine before making the transition to writing for the web and becoming the author of more than 15 automotive books. In addition to being founding editor at ClassicCars.com, Larry has written for The New York Times and The Detroit News and was an adjunct honors professor at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

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