1985 Monza 1000Kms

Rothmans-Porsche beaten at last!

The Porsche factory's sportscar team has not been beaten in a World Endurance Championship race since Derek Warwick and John Fitzpatrick trounced the Rothmans cars at Brands Hatch in September 1983, and the inevitable defeat came at Monza on April 28th.

The Monza 1,000 Kms (or 800 Kms, as it turned out) was a memorable event. On Friday Hans Stuck was lapping consistently in the new Porsche 962C he shares with Derek Bell when the engine compartment caught fire, and the car was completely burned out just around the Curva Grande, between two fire points. Stuck got out before the fierce blaze took hold, but the marshals were fast asleep and it took them three minutes to reach the scene and put the fire out, by which time the back of the DM800,000 car was a molten ruin. Presumably FISA and FOCA will be looking into this matter before the Italian Grand Prix is held at Monza in September.