The Dick Barbour 934.5 on the grid at Mexico Trans-AM November 1978. Janet Guthrie drove it to 4th place. Upon return to the shop in Northern California it was pushed into a corner. It was not going to race again until Sebring 1979. Photo: Jerry Woods.
The 1979 Sports Car season at Dick Barbour Racing would once again start with probably the toughest race, the Daytona 24 hours. In late 1978 we had just sent the Team’s Porsche 934 1/2 down to Mexico City for the Trans Am race in November of 1978. Janet Guthrie had driven it to 4th place. That car returned and got pushed into a corner after that. Preparation then started for the two cars that would run at Daytona in January of 1979.
The Dick Barbour 934.5 on the grid at Mexico Trans-AM November 1978. Janet Guthrie drove it to 4th place. Upon return to the shop in Northern California it was pushed into a corner. It was not going to race again until Sebring 1979. Photo: Jerry Woods.
Dick Barbour had just bought Porsche 935 chassis 930 770 0910 from Otis Chandler (the ex-Jim Busby car). This would be our second car for Bob Akin, Rob McFarlin and Roy Woods (#9). Chassis 930 890 0024 would be the main car and be driven by Dick, Brian Redman, and Paul Newman the actor (#6). The #9 car was a single turbo car, while the #6 was a newer twin turbo installation. Newman was only allowed to drive (by the movie studios) when he was not making any movies, so for 1979 that meant Daytona, Le Mans and Watkins Glen. Although he wanted to drive at Sebring, the studio said no as a film project was starting the week after the race. He would be replaced by Rick Mears, but that is another story. Both cars were sponsored by Budweiser Beer, which came thru the connection with Paul Newman.
