Porsche Rennsport Reunion 7 is taking place this weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California. The automaker-organized event offered fans the opportunity to celebrate Porsche’s racing history once every few years and the marque’s classic machines as well as their drivers in action one more time. Racer had the unique chance to take a closer look at three Porsche sports prototypes from three different eras.
The video features Holbert Racing’s Löwenbräu Special Porsche 962, Penske Racing’s DHL Porsche RS Spyder and Porsche Penske Motorsport’s current Porsche 963. Marshall Pruett, North American editor at Racer, alongside two-time Le Mans winner Patrick Long, took a walking tour of these racing cars important in defining Porsche’s motorsports presence in North America
The Löwenbräu Special competed during IMSA’s original GTP era during the 1980s. The Holbert Racing 962 won the IMSA GTP championship in 1985 and 1986 as well as the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 1986 and 1987.
The RS Spyder was a famous giant killer in the American Le Mans Series during the 2000s. The factory prototype was destined to reign supreme in LMP2, a category intended for privateers. However, the RS Spyder also went toe-to-toe with Audi’s legendary LMP1 racers. The nimble Porsche won the 2008 12 Hours of Sebring over the Audi R10 TDI, its higher-class competitor.
To close, Pruett and Long discussed the Porsche 963. The current prototype competes in IMSA’s revived GTP class, harkening back to the era of the 962’s dominance. The project also rekindled the partnership between Penske and Porsche, and the RS Spyder heavily influenced the modern hybrid machine. It was a nostalgic closing of the loop, with the past leading to the present and inspiring the future.