Taking its rightful place alongside the “HSR Classics” races at Daytona International Speedway and Sebring International Raceway, the inaugural Historic Sportscar Racing Classic 6 Hours of The Glen debuts this weekend on the Grand Prix circuit at Watkins Glen International, June 9 -11. A vintage and historic tribute race to Watkins Glen’s longstanding and premier endurance race, which has run as the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen for the past 20 years, the Classic 6 Hours at The Glen completes the HSR Classics triple crown.
The HSR Classic Daytona 24 Hour presented by IMSA debuted at DIS in 2014 and two years later the HSR Classic 12 Hours of Sebring, presented by the Alan Jay Automotive Network, followed on the legendary Sebring airport road course. The addition of the HSR Classic 6 Hours of The Glen now creates the perfect trifecta of HSR tribute races saluting America’s three oldest major sports car endurance races.
The featured on-track component of the HSR Classic 6 Hours of The Glen is the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen tribute race that takes place Saturday and Sunday. It begins with a symbolic six hours of non-stop competition Saturday before all three competing Run Groups contest a final round of races Sunday afternoon to bring the Classic 6 to a close.
The HSR Classic 6 Hours features three different Run Groups that are each home to specific generations of sports cars, some from more than 50 years ago and others retired from contemporary competition as recently as five years ago. Each Run Group takes to the 3.377-miles Watkins Glen three different times for a trio of nearly one-hour long races for each division over the course of Saturday and Sunday. The competitors covering the most combined distance in each Run Group will be crowned inaugural 2023 HSR Classic 6 Hours of The Glen champions and be awarded custom designed watches carrying the race’s logo from B.R.M. Chronographes.
HSR Classic 6 Hours of The Glen Run Groups:
Run Group A – Early Era: Pre-1978 – The oldest and perhaps most memory-stirring division, Group A features legendary and early FIA-era Prototypes and GT machines that raced in IMSA, Trans-Am and the Six Hours of The Glen when it was part of FIA international world championship competition in the late 1960s and ’70s. The group has attracted race cars such as the Lola T160, T165 and T70 Coupe and several Chevron B21/23, B26, B31 and B36 models. Entered production-based GT cars of the era include 1970’s BMW CSLs, a 1973 Ford Escort RS1600, a Porsche 914/6 GT and the always formidable contingent of late 1960s and ’70s era Porsche 911 S, RSR and IROC entries. British small-bore fans have a pair of the late 1960s TVR Vixens to follow while another entry to watch is the always quick GMT Racing 1962 No. 1 Lola 23b of Travis Engen. The Lotus is the oldest car competing in the inaugural HSR Classic 6 Hours of The Glen.
Run Group B – Historic Era: 1978 – 1993: The prime of the original GTP and Group C years is at the heart of this division along with the wide-body GTX, GTS, GTO and GTU machines that were a hallmark of the original IMSA Camel GT and later series. Former HSR Classic Daytona 24 Hour winner Malcolm Ross brings his ex-Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) 1991 No. 2 Jaguar XJR-16 to The Glen as an early Group B favorite for the victory. Two-time HSR Classic Daytona winner Steve Cohen also seeks another “HRS Classics” win in the inaugural HSR Glen 6 Hours in his flame-throwing Sundry Racing 1995 No. 5 Oldsmobile Aurora GTS. A mass of Porsche 911 and 993 entries add to the mix as do some smaller but quick production based machines that raced in Speed Word Challenge, IMSA Firestone Firehawk and even the Canadian Rothmans Porsche Turbo Cup series. Several competitors in these classes could deliver some surprises and sneak onto the Group B podium in the Classic 6 Hours.
Run Group C – Modern Era: 1994 – 2018: Historic but familiar, Group C is home to a diverse and competitive mix of everything from mighty LMP1 and GTLM cars battling with mid-generation Daytona Prototypes, Oreca FLM-09 “PC” machines and early-production LMP3 prototypes. The battle royale for overall Group C honors will likely come down to the similar 2005 and 2004 Audi R8 LMP entries of Engen and Larry Connor and the 2009 Zytek GZ09SC/LMP1 of Keith Frieser. The Matador Motorsports 2016 No. 3 Corvette C7.R of Pierce Marshall leads the most diverse lineup of GT cars in the Classic 6, with Run Group C also featuring Ferrari F458s, a Lamborghini Super Trofeo and class-leading line up of Porsche 991 GT3 Cup and 981 Cayman GT4 Clubsports.
The Classic 6 Hours race weekend also features the HSR Watkins Glen Historics that are points-paying races for HSR’s various season-long championships. In addition to a doubleheader lineup of HSR WeatherTech Sprints for all Run Groups, the Glen Historics feature race lineup includes the HSR Stoner Car Care Global GT and Sasco Sports International/American Challenge sprints on Friday afternoon and twin B.R.M. Endurance Challenge one-hour races Sunday morning.
Detailed event information for the HSR Classic 6 Hours of The Glen, including weekend schedules and entry lists, is available at www.HSRRace.com.
Spectator tickets for the HSR Classic 6 Hours of The Glen are available exclusively at the Watkins Glen International website at https://www.theglen.com/.