Motorsport competition
The 1972 Trans-American Championship was the seventh running of the Sports Car Club of America's Trans-Am Series. The first seven rounds used split classes, while the last four rounds had the Under 2500cc class only. Milt Minter brought Pontiac its first win, at Mid-Ohio. George Follmer and American Motors won the over 2.5L division, while John Morton led Datsun to the championship title of the "Two-Five Challenge".
1972 is considered to be the end of the series' "golden era". From 1973 onward, Trans Am would evolve into a lesser clone of the rival IMSA GT Championship, with similarly modified cars, but with a more conventional focus with vehicles such as the Chevrolet Beretta being used. IMSA GT's focus on exotic cars such as Ferraris and Porsches provided a more adaptable format, in comparison to Trans Am's reliance on domestic performance sedans.
Rnd | Date | Circuit | Distance | Over 2.5 Winning Car | Under 2.5 Winning Car |
Over 2.5 Winning Driver(s) | Under 2.5 Winning Driver(s) |
1 | May 6 | Lime Rock Park, Lakeville, Connecticut | 130.05 mi (209.30 km) (U2L) 200.43 mi (322.56 km) (O2L) | AMC Javelin | Datsun 510 |
George Follmer | Bob Sharp |
2 | May 29 | Bryar Motorsports Park, Loudon, New Hampshire | 112 mi (180 km) (U2L) 152 mi (245 km) (O2L) | AMC Javelin | Datsun 510 |
George Follmer | John Morton |
3 | June 4 | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio | 120 mi (190 km) (U2L) 180 mi (290 km) (O2L) | Pontiac Firebird | Datsun 510 |
Milt Minter | Peter Gregg |
4 | June 17 | Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York | 114.818 mi (184.782 km) (U2L) 192.489 mi (309.781 km) (O2L) | AMC Javelin | Datsun 510 |
George Follmer | Peter Gregg |
5 | July 2 July 4 | Donnybrooke International Speedway, Brainerd, Minnesota | 150 mi (240 km) (U2L) 210 mi (340 km) (O2L) | AMC Javelin | Alfa Romeo GTV |
George Follmer | Horst Kwech |
6 | July 16 | Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin | 108 mi (174 km) (U2L) 200 mi (320 km) (O2L) | Ford Mustang | Datsun 510 |
Warren Tope | John Morton |
7 | July 30 | Sanair Super Speedway, Saint-Pie, Quebec | 104 mi (167 km) (U2L) 169 mi (272 km) (O2L) | Ford Mustang | Alfa Romeo GTA |
Warren Tope | Bert Everett |
8 | August 19 | Road Atlanta, Braselton, Georgia | 126 mi (203 km) | not contested | Datsun 510 |
John Morton |
9 | September 17 | Portland International Raceway, Portland, Oregon | 105.325 mi (169.504 km) | not contested | Datsun 510 |
John Morton |
10 | October 15 | Laguna Seca Raceway, Monterey, California | 102.5 mi (165.0 km) | not contested | Datsun 510 |
John Morton |
11 | October 28 | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California | 127.5 mi (205.2 km) | not contested | Datsun 510 |
John Morton |
[1] |
Drivers' championships
[edit] The points system was as follows:
1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th |
20 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Color | Result | Gold | Winner | Silver | 2nd place | Bronze | 3rd place | Green | 4th & 5th place | Light Blue | 6th–10th place | Dark Blue | Finished (Outside Top 10) | Purple | Did not finish | Black | Disqualified (DSQ) | White | Did not start (DNS) | Blank | Did not participate (DNP) | Not competing | |
| Color | Result | Gold | Winner | Silver | 2nd place | Bronze | 3rd place | Green | 4th & 5th place | Light Blue | 6th–10th place | Dark Blue | Finished (Outside Top 10) | Purple | Did not finish | Black | Disqualified (DSQ) | White | Did not start (DNS) | Blank | Did not participate (DNP) | Not competing | |
Manufacturers' championships
[edit] Only the highest-finishing car scored points for the manufacturer. The points system was as follows:
1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th |
9 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Best 6 results count toward the championship.
Best 9 results count towards the championship.