Look Back: Porsche RS Spyder
Recently, while posting a throwback Thursday post on our Instagram page, the object of the post brought back some memories of what would become a modern legend in sports car racing. It was 2005, at the Monterey Sports Car Championship at Laguna Seca Raceway, and last race of the season for the American LeMans Series. It was a four hour timed race that would end in the darkness. It was a twenty eight car grid divided across three classes. The ADT Champion Racing Audi R8 team was there as was Aston Martin Racing in a DBR 9 and the ultra impressive Italian supercar turned racer Maserati MC12.
It would also turn out to be the debut of a racing partnership almost too unbelievable to be real. Team Penske and Porsche reunited once again after their last partnership when they combined to enter the 917/10 in the Can-Am Series. This time around it would be the Porsche RS Spyder marking the return of Porsche to the top level of prototype racing, something that was last done in 1999. The Porsche RS Spyder was designed to compete in the LMP 2 class, at the time what was presumed the second fastest prototype class from the LMP 1 cars such as the Audi R8 LMP. Planning a full-time run in the 2006 ALMS season, Team Penske and Porsche decided to use the last race of the 2005 season as an initial test in racing conditions. Piloted by Porsche factory hotshots Sasha Massen and Lucas Lahr the RS Spyder finished first in class and 5th overall.
Over the next few seasons, the Team Penske RS Spyders claimed 4 constructors championships, 4 drivers championships in LMP2 class and a stunning overall victory at the 2008 12 Hours of Sebring. Additionally, in 2008, the RS Spyder customer teams won their class in every Le Mans Series Race in Europe and an RS Spyder from Ban Merksteijn Motorsport came in first in its class in the 24 Hours of Lemans.
Today, various RS Spyder chassis are likely to show up at the Rennsport Reunion and other historic events such as the Monterey Motorsport Reunion.
Thanks for joining us on this trip down the memory of pit lane. Enjoy some shots of the RS Spyder from seasons gone by.
