For the 11th year, the Classic and Sports Racing Group organized its Charity Challenge at Sears Point in Sonoma, California, with proceeds benefiting the Speedway Children’s Charities of Sonoma. A record crowd enjoyed the festivities under hot and sunny skies, with many spectators adding an extra dimension to their experience by taking a lap around the track as a passenger in one of the competing racecars.
More than 250 cars participated in the nine CSRG race groups, each enjoying two daily track sessions. The weekend featured a 21-car historic Grand Prix field from Masters HGP, with Sunday’s race victory taken by Nathan Kinich in his ex-John Watson McLaren MP4/1B-Cosworth. Equally as large was the Formula Junior grid, also with 21 cars, from which Art Herbert emerged victorious with his Lola Mk5A.
The Charity Challenge served as the season finale for the Formula 5000 Drivers Association, which crowned its two class champions at Sonoma, with Tony Adamowicz (Eagle Mark 5-Chevy) topping Class A (pre-1972 cars), and Tom Malloy (Eagle 755-Chevy) and Paul Wilson (March 73A-Chevy) sharing the Class B title. Race winners at Sonoma were Bruce Leeson (McLaren M10B-Chevy) in Class A, and Wilson, who nipped Malloy for Class B honors to bring about the championship tie.
