Tiff Reviews the Porsche 911 GT1
Tiff Needell gets behind the wheel of the Porsche 911 GT1 – a road going race car, that has earned the title of “automotive unicorn” since its conception in the mid 1990s. The 1980s saw what many regard as the greatest decade of World Sportscar racing ever seen, as the Group C regulations attracted entries from a dozen or so different manufacturers.
Porsche were quick out of their blocks with their 956/962 models dominating early on as they won six Le Mans 24 Hours races in a row from 1982 to 1987 before Jaguar and Mercedes upset their run, and the final Le Mans podium place for a 962 went to a private entry in 1990 – when Tiff Needell was part of the 3rd placed team chasing the two factory Jaguars home.
Unfortunately, regulation changes drove budgets ever higher and the Group C bubble burst and in 1994 the most popular global series was for the new GT1 category for modified road cars – which saw the McLaren F1 claim the 1995 Le Mans crown. Opposition to McLaren came from the likes of the Jaguar’s XJ220, Ferrari F40, Lotus Esprit, Chrysler Viper, Venturi, De Tomaso, Bugatti, and the V12 Jaguar powered Lister Storm that Tiff raced … plus the Porsche 911.
