Historic Corvette Race Cars at the The 2025 New England Concours October 2025

Pictures to promote this corvette event were wiped out by the author except for only one.....
and details of the event were also wiped out...unfortunate...
By Tara HurlinGet ready to rev your engines! The annual New England Concours d’Elegance is back by popular demand,

Get ready to rev your engines! The annual New England Concours d’Elegance is back by popular demand, and in celebration of the event’s featured marque for 2025 – the 1953-2026 Chevrolet Corvette – spectators will be dropping jaws over an impressive collection of six historic Corvette race cars. Get a sneak peek of the vintage Corvette race cars followed by each vehicle’s rich racing history below, before witnessing the icons in person.
The car show will take place on Sunday, October 12, 2025, at The Farmington Polo Club in Farmington, Connecticut. It’s not too late to get your tickets at this link.

1960 Corvette Briggs Cunningham Le Mans Racer #1

The #1 1960 Corvette racer, entered by Briggs Cunningham at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, is a significant piece of American motorsports history. The car, chassis number 3535, was prepared with unofficial assistance from Corvette lead Zora Arkus-Duntov. The #1 Corvette, along with the other two Cunningham Corvettes (#2 and #3), were the first Corvettes to compete at Le Mans. The Cunningham Corvettes were equipped with high-performance features, including a 283-cubic-inch fuel-injected V8, sintered-metallic brake linings, and quick-ratio steering.
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Driven by Briggs Cunningham and William Kimberley, the #1 car was the first of the Cunningham entries to retire from the race, skidding off the track due to heavy rain on the 32nd lap. After the race, the car’s engine was returned to Chevrolet, and Bill Frick handled the sale of the car. It was later converted for drag racing and eventually ended up in a junkyard until it was rediscovered in 2012.

Thought to be lost for decades, the #1 Corvette was rediscovered in a St. Petersburg, Florida warehouse in 2012 by a man who recognized its VIN during a Google search. The car became the subject of a legal battle over its ownership, involving various parties who had laid claim to it. By 2015, a judge ultimately ordered the sale of the car, with the proceeds to be divided among the claimants. The #1 Cunningham Corvette was sold at an RM Sotheby’s auction at Amelia Island in May 2021 for $785,500. The car’s title has been cleared, and it since underwent a restoration, bringing it back to its original 1960 race condition and livery.

1960 Corvette Briggs Cunningham Le Mans Racer #3

Although the #1 and #2 cars did not finish the 1960 Le Mans race, the #3 Corvette, driven by John Fitch and Bob Grossman, went on to win its class and finish eighth overall despite overheating issues during the race. It was the first time in history for a Corvette to win 1st in Class at the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the race car held this title for over 40 years.

The race was plagued by hours of rain, which the car’s drivers expertly navigated. However, the team faced a major setback when a mechanic accidentally removed the radiator cap, causing most of the engine’s coolant to escape. Because race rules prohibited adding fluid to the radiator within the last few hours, the team resorted to packing the engine bay with dry ice at every pit stop to keep the car cool. This ingenuity allowed Grossman to cross the finish line and secure the historic victory.


An irreplaceable piece of motorsports history, the 1960 Corvette Briggs Cunningham Le Mans Racer #3 is the only one of the three Cunningham Corvettes that raced and finished. After its triumphant return to the US, the #3 Corvette was converted for street use and sold to an unsuspecting private owner, fading into obscurity for years. Its story was chronicled in the documentary The Quest, which followed Corvette enthusiast Chip Miller’s long search for the lost race car. Miller’s quest was aided by restorer Kevin Mackay, who located the car’s VIN through the Le Mans archives.

Though Chip Miller passed away in 2004 before he could complete his dream of returning the restored Corvette to Le Mans, his son Lance fulfilled the wish in 2010 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the historic win. Driver John Fitch, who was 92 at the time, was able to ride with Lance for the momentous return to the circuit. The restored Corvette has since been part of the Irwin Kroiz collection after being sold by the Miller family in 2022.

1966 Roger Penske Corvette

The 1966 Roger Penske Corvette was the first L88 Corvette produced and marked the beginning of the legendary Team Penske. Having retired from driving the previous year, Roger Penske established his own racing team in 1966 and acquired the C2 Corvette coupe from Chevrolet. The car was a developmental model used by Chevrolet engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov to test the new 427 cubic inch L88 big-block engine.

Penske’s new team, which consisted of only six employees at the time, entered the Corvette into its inaugural race, the first 24-hour version of the Daytona Continental. Wearing factory red paint, the car sustained heavy front-end damage during the night portion of the endurance race, knocking out its headlights. Despite the setback, co-driver Dick Guldstrand famously followed the taillights of a competitor to continue racing. Driven by Guldstrand and George Wintersteen, the Corvette went on to finish first in the GT class and eleventh overall.
Following its success at Daytona, the Corvette was repainted in the now-iconic Sunoco blue livery at the request of Penske’s sponsor. Later that year, the team entered the car in the 12 Hours of Sebring with drivers Wintersteen and Ben Moore. It won its class again and finished ninth overall, tying the record for the highest finish ever for a Corvette.

The Corvette’s victories in both Daytona and Sebring helped launch Team Penske to prominence and cemented the L88 engine’s racing legacy. It became recognized as one of the most historically significant Corvettes ever produced. The car’s success in 1966 was the first of many for Team Penske, which would go on to become one of the most successful racing organizations in the world. After its brief but triumphant racing career, the Penske Corvette has been recognized as a landmark achievement and has since been restored.

 

1956 Corvette SR-2 #1 Racer

The 1956 Corvette SR-2 #1 was originally built for Jerry Earl, the son of General Motors design chief Harley Earl, to compete against European sports cars. After Jerry Earl began racing a Ferrari, Harley Earl initiated the development of the SR-2, also known as the “Sebring Racer” or “Sports Racing,” to produce a purpose-built factory Corvette race car. The vehicle was constructed from a production 1956 Corvette chassis and featured unique fiberglass bodywork, including a longer nose, side cove air ducts, and an aerodynamic low rear fin. Under the hood, it was equipped with a 265 cubic-inch V8 fitted with a “Duntov” racing cam and dual four-barrel carburetors for increased output.
By mid-June 1956, the first SR-2 was ready and registered with the SCCA as car number 144. It made its race debut at the “June Sprints at Road America” that same month, though Jerry Earl had a brief initial spin-out while getting accustomed to its power. Initially, the car retained some road car features, but after its first outing, it underwent weight reduction, with lighter seats and non-essential components removed. That winter, the car was further modified with a new, taller fin and upgraded to a 331 cubic-inch fuel-injected engine with a ZF 4-speed transmission.

The SR-2 also saw a successful second career after being sold to racer Jim Jeffords following the 1957 season. Under his ownership, the car was repainted and nicknamed the “Purple People-Eater”. Jeffords drove it to two SCCA national championships in the B-Production series in 1958 and 1959, achieving its greatest racing success.

After its racing career with Jeffords, the SR-2 passed through several owners, including a drag racer who campaigned it as the “Terror from Terre Haute”. The car was notably well-preserved, with a history free of major crashes throughout its extensive racing career. It was later purchased by collectors and competed in vintage racing events for nearly 30 years without incident. In 2015, the historic vehicle was offered for sale for over $6 million, cementing its status as one of the most sought-after Corvettes in history.

1968 L88 Sunray Oil DX2 Racer

The 1968 L88 Sunray Oil DX2 Racer was a celebrated and successful C3 Corvette, built and campaigned by legendary racer Don Yenko and his Sunray DX team. Its history is notable for both its achievements on the track and its unusual origin story.
Before the 1968 Daytona 24-Hour race, Yenko’s specially ordered factory L88 Corvette failed to arrive on time. To ensure his team could compete, he pulled a Rally Red street-spec L71 hardtop convertible from his dealership’s showroom floor and converted it into a high-performance L88 racer. Despite these last-minute efforts, the car, driven by Yenko and Peter Revson, performed admirably at Daytona, securing a second-place finish in its class. The older 1967 Sunray DX L88, driven by Dave Morgan and Jerry Grant, took first in class.

Following Daytona, the team headed to the 12 Hours of Sebring. For this event, Yenko partnered with rising star Pedro Rodriguez, and the Corvette, now wearing number 2, set a blistering new GT-class lap record. However, the challenging Sebring course took its toll, and the car was forced to retire on lap 43 due to engine problems.

The team, flush with confidence, made plans to take the L88s to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France, but civil unrest in the country led to a race postponement. The team’s Le Mans aspirations were ultimately ended when Sunray DX was acquired by Sunoco, which already had its own successful racing team run by Roger Penske. The Sunray DX motorsports program was subsequently disbanded.

After its racing career with the Sunray DX team concluded, Don Yenko took possession of the Corvette and used it as his personal racer. He went on to win the 1968 SCCA Midwest Division road-racing title in the car. The Corvette continued to be raced by subsequent owners through the 1970s and 80s. In 2008, the car underwent a comprehensive restoration by Kevin MacKay of Corvette Repair. It was returned to its original 1968 racing livery and has since received significant recognition, including the prestigious NCRS American Heritage Award and induction into the Bloomington Gold Special Collection.

1968 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Sunray DX3 Racer

The 1968 Chevrolet Corvette L88, adorned in the red, white, and blue livery of Sunray-DX, is one of the most celebrated race cars in Corvette history, with its legend cemented during a highly successful 1968 season. The car’s story begins with the Tulsa, Oklahoma-based Sunray-DX petroleum company, which launched a motorsports campaign in the mid-1960s to promote its products. For its Corvette program, the company partnered with legendary racer and performance Chevrolet dealer Don Yenko.
The factory-ordered L88 Corvette intended for the 1968 racing season was not completed in time for the 24 Hours of Daytona. Unfazed, Yenko famously pulled a Rally Red 435/427 convertible from his showroom floor and converted it into a full-fledged L88 race car for the endurance event. This particular car became known as the “showroom car”. At Daytona, the new C3-body Sunray-DX L88, driven by Don Yenko and Peter Revson, placed second in the GT class, behind the team’s own 1967 L88.

Following its success at Daytona, the “showroom car” competed at the 12 Hours of Sebring with Yenko and Pedro Rodriguez behind the wheel, where it set a GT-class lap record. Although the car later retired from the race with mechanical issues, it had made its mark on the track. The 1968 racing season continued with success for the car and for Yenko, who drove it to win the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) Midwest Division road-racing title. The car was even registered to compete at the 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans, but the race was postponed and the Corvettes never ran.

EVENT DETAILS

Tickets: Tickets can be purchased at this link.

Location: The Farmington Polo Club, 162 Town Farm Road, Farmington, CT.

Date: Sunday, October 12, 2025.

Time: Spectator gates open at 9:30 a.m., show begins at 10:00 a.m.. Get the full schedule.

The Sunray-DX racing program ended in 1969 when the company merged with Sunoco, which had its own prominent racing effort led by Roger Penske. The Yenko-prepped Corvette continued to be raced by private owners through the 1970s and 1980s. Decades later, the car was comprehensively restored back to its iconic 1968 Sebring livery, earning prestigious awards, including the NCRS American Heritage Award and an induction into the Bloomington Gold Special Collection. The documentation and verification of its racing pedigree make it one of the most historically significant C3 Corvette race cars in existence.