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GRAND-AM
GRAND-AM: 50 Years Of Rolex 24, 1991
It was age over beauty at the 1991 Rolex 24 At Daytona...
Rolex 24 at Daytona legend, Hurley Haywood. (Photo: LAT)
It was age over beauty at the 1991 Rolex 24 At Daytona.
Jaguar, Nissan and Toyota had taken over as the cars to beat in the IMSA Camel GTP ranks, leaving the venerable Porsche 962 in the background.
Much of the attention in the Porsche camp went to the two-car Dauer Racing entry, which featured cars for the Andrettis (Mario, Michael and Jeff) and Unsers (Al, Bobby, Al Jr. and Robbie).
Joest Racing entered a pair of 962C's for a veteran lineup including Hurley Haywood and Bob Wollek. Ignoring that he was considered too old, a determined 47-year-old Wollek put the team's No. 6 Torno entry on the pole. It was Wollek's fourth pole for the event, even though it came on a technicality as the front row was reserved for Camel GTP cars. Derek Daly was fastest in qualifying, driving a Group C Nissan.
Haywood was entered in the No. 7 Joest Blaupunkt Porsche. He was a four-time winner of the Rolex 24, although his last victory came in 1979 when he joined Danny Ongais in Ted Field's Interscope Porsche 935.
Despite the glitter, Haywood recalled that the Joest team took a conservative approach.
"Joest was a tactician," Haywood recalled. "He preferred to sit back in the cradle and watch them beat themselves up. We didn't even start to run hard until halfway through the race."
By that point, many of the stars had fallen out, with attrition quickly taking its toll on the faster cars. Both of Dan Gurney's Toyota Eagles struggled with electrical problems and water pumps were the Achilles heel for the TWR Jaguars. The lead Nissan lost its transmission, while its sister car had handling trouble. Even the No. 6 Porsche quit near the halfway – when Wollek was switched to the No. 7 entry. "They're tired – old," Wollek quipped. "They need a young man to drive."
The Andrettis staged a remarkable comeback in their Dauer Porsche. Struggling with electrical issues and running 33rd after two hours, Michael followed a brilliant night time drive by his father to take the lead at 9 a.m. It was all for naught, though, with the gearbox failing and putting their car back on the sidelines.
Haywood's team also had their share of drama – especially in the final two hours, when they survived three cut tires, a battery failure and overheating problems. Despite the trouble, they went on to win by 18 laps over the Nissan of Daly, Chip Robinson, Geoff Brabham and Bob Earl.
Joining Haywood and Wollek in victory lane were Frank Jelinski, Henri Pescarolo and John Winter. It was the fifth victory in the event for Haywood, the fourth for Wollek, and first for Pescarolo – a four-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
"This has been the hardest victory here, that's for sure," the 42-year-old Haywood said after the race. "We raced hard, and the competition was good. This has probably been the most rewarding one. Racing at night in the rain was pretty exciting, but we had no close calls."
Looking back, Haywood feels differently than he did at the heat of the moment.
"Actually, that was pretty simple – not one of my most difficult ones," Haywood said. "It was like a cast of thousands with five guys driving, and we had a great time. I loved driving with Wollek – he was a great guy to drive with. It wasn't my hardest victory, but any time you finish the Rolex 24, you're doing something right."
It turned out to be the final victory in the Daytona classic for both Haywood and Wollek – along with the Porsche 962 – ending a storied chapter in the history of the Rolex 24.
Jaguar, Nissan and Toyota had taken over as the cars to beat in the IMSA Camel GTP ranks, leaving the venerable Porsche 962 in the background.
Much of the attention in the Porsche camp went to the two-car Dauer Racing entry, which featured cars for the Andrettis (Mario, Michael and Jeff) and Unsers (Al, Bobby, Al Jr. and Robbie).
Joest Racing entered a pair of 962C's for a veteran lineup including Hurley Haywood and Bob Wollek. Ignoring that he was considered too old, a determined 47-year-old Wollek put the team's No. 6 Torno entry on the pole. It was Wollek's fourth pole for the event, even though it came on a technicality as the front row was reserved for Camel GTP cars. Derek Daly was fastest in qualifying, driving a Group C Nissan.
Haywood was entered in the No. 7 Joest Blaupunkt Porsche. He was a four-time winner of the Rolex 24, although his last victory came in 1979 when he joined Danny Ongais in Ted Field's Interscope Porsche 935.
Despite the glitter, Haywood recalled that the Joest team took a conservative approach.
"Joest was a tactician," Haywood recalled. "He preferred to sit back in the cradle and watch them beat themselves up. We didn't even start to run hard until halfway through the race."
By that point, many of the stars had fallen out, with attrition quickly taking its toll on the faster cars. Both of Dan Gurney's Toyota Eagles struggled with electrical problems and water pumps were the Achilles heel for the TWR Jaguars. The lead Nissan lost its transmission, while its sister car had handling trouble. Even the No. 6 Porsche quit near the halfway – when Wollek was switched to the No. 7 entry. "They're tired – old," Wollek quipped. "They need a young man to drive."
The Andrettis staged a remarkable comeback in their Dauer Porsche. Struggling with electrical issues and running 33rd after two hours, Michael followed a brilliant night time drive by his father to take the lead at 9 a.m. It was all for naught, though, with the gearbox failing and putting their car back on the sidelines.
Haywood's team also had their share of drama – especially in the final two hours, when they survived three cut tires, a battery failure and overheating problems. Despite the trouble, they went on to win by 18 laps over the Nissan of Daly, Chip Robinson, Geoff Brabham and Bob Earl.
Joining Haywood and Wollek in victory lane were Frank Jelinski, Henri Pescarolo and John Winter. It was the fifth victory in the event for Haywood, the fourth for Wollek, and first for Pescarolo – a four-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
"This has been the hardest victory here, that's for sure," the 42-year-old Haywood said after the race. "We raced hard, and the competition was good. This has probably been the most rewarding one. Racing at night in the rain was pretty exciting, but we had no close calls."
Looking back, Haywood feels differently than he did at the heat of the moment.
"Actually, that was pretty simple – not one of my most difficult ones," Haywood said. "It was like a cast of thousands with five guys driving, and we had a great time. I loved driving with Wollek – he was a great guy to drive with. It wasn't my hardest victory, but any time you finish the Rolex 24, you're doing something right."
It turned out to be the final victory in the Daytona classic for both Haywood and Wollek – along with the Porsche 962 – ending a storied chapter in the history of the Rolex 24.
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