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LIME ROCK PARK • THE EARLY YEARS 1955-1975
518 CHAPTER SEVENTEEN • 1972: SHOWROOM STOCK SEDANS INTRODUCED
the race was the Ford Escort TC driven by John Buffum. After starting fourth on the grid, he stayed with the leaders, and actually led on lap fifty, only for an oil seal to blow, causing him to retire on lap sixty-nine. The only accident of the race occurred on lap fifty-seven when John Magee flipped his BMW and rolled four times at the start of the main straightaway. Magee scrambled from the wrecked car and escaped with suspected broken ribs.
With Ford, General Motors and Chrysler no longer participating as factory teams in the Schaefer Trans-Am series, and the top drivers not being attracted to the series, it made it more attractive for the independent teams to enter and try to gather the $24,000 prize money on offer. However, they still had to contend with the AMC factory team entries, who was reveling in the publicity of being the only factory team present at Lime Rock. The Javelins did not disappoint, as George Follmer stormed into the lead from the start and maintained his lead to take a three lap victory covering the 200 miles at an average speed of 88.65 mph, ahead of Warren Agor in a Chevrolet Camaro. Agor finished three seconds ahead of Tony DeLorenzo, a stock car driver, driving a Pontiac Firebird instead of his intended Ford Mustang, due to the Mustang experiencing engine problems. DeLorenzo went through four engines and a transmission on his Mustang during practice. Follmer was clearly in command of the race all the way, but afterwards said “I couldn’t let up the pace for an instant. I ran the whole race flat out and didn’t have any reserve. Today I over-shot my own pits on a scheduled mid-way fuel stop. I had to make another lap and come in again. I simply
LEFT: Poster for Schaefer BELOW: Ray Cuomo Racing entered Trans-Am, May 6. (JG) a Ford Mustang in the Trans-Am
race for Jan Nelson, who finished in sixteenth place, May 6. (DN)
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