<< Prev Page 2 of 2 Run by Dick St. Yves, the Mazda USA team signed defending champion Pete Halsmer to drive the lead car while a second was fielded for Jim Downing. His Atlanta shop was also the base of the operation and he also served as team manager. With a class pole position in the 1990 Daytona 24 Hours, the RX-7 GTO had a spectacular debut. Unfortunately that car was forced to retire with engine problems, but the other survived to finish second in class. By the fifth round of the season, Halsmer scored the new Mazda's first victory. This win at Topeka was immediately followed by another a Mid-Ohio.
Halsmer's most significant win of the 1990 season was the GTO class victory at San Antonio; this was the 100th (class) win for the RX-7 in IMSA competition. Following the historic victory, Halsmer failed to add more to the GTO's tally but three wins in the debut season was far from disappointing. After the first few races, Downing had stepped out of the second car to concentrate on his managing duties. His first replacement was Mazda development driver Elliott Forbes-Robinson while later in the year 1990 Le Mans winner Price Cobb stepped in. For 1991, Cobb would join Halsmer permanently.
A year's worth of development really paid off in 1991 when Halsmer and Cobb dominated the IMSA GTO class. Halsmer took three victories, while Cobb added another two to the RX-7's tally. Even a 100 lbs weight penalty halfway through could not stop the Mazdas. Halsmer and Mazda ended the season as IMSA GTO champions. Halfway through the year work had started on an even more ambitious IMSA GTP campaign for 1992. Dykstra was once again responsible for the design, which also featured the all-new R26B engine, this time mounted amidships. The IMSA GTO effort ceased and the two cars were shipped to Japan.
Over two years later, Mazda dusted Halsmer's RX-7 GTO off for a 1994 Le Mans entry in the IMSA GTS class. Here it faced off against its old rival, the Nissan 300 ZX Turbo and eventually finished second in class and 15th overall. Later in the year, the car was also raced in the 1000 km sports car race at Suzuka. It briefly led before retiring. This would be the RX-7 GTO's final outing. Of the two cars built, one is in Japan and occasionally displayed. The other has been returned to the United States, where it was restored to full running order.
With the suspension of the GTO program at the end of 1991, the long and highly successful IMSA career of the RX-7 came to a close. With the help of private entrants, the type's final (class) victory tally is 106. Of these, eight were scored by the RX-7 GTO, which remains as the most extreme RX-7 based racing car ever built. << Prev Page 2 of 2
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Run by Dick St. Yves, the Mazda USA team signed defending champion Pete Halsmer to drive the lead car while a second was fielded for Jim Downing. His Atlanta shop was also the base of the operation and he also served as team manager. With a class pole position in the 1990 Daytona 24 Hours, the RX-7 GTO had a spectacular debut. Unfortunately that car was forced to retire with engine problems, but the other survived to finish second in class. By the fifth round of the season, Halsmer scored the new Mazda's first victory. This win at Topeka was immediately followed by another a Mid-Ohio.