[PICS] The Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers are Reunited at Amelia Island

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[PICS] The Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers are Reunited at Amelia Island


For the first time since the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans, the three Briggs Cunningham Corvette racecars that competed in that race were reunited at the 2023 Amelia Concours d’Elegance on Amelia Island. That location seems only fitting since it was two years ago at Amelia Island in which the grandson of Briggs purchased the car at RM Sotheby’s auction, ending a protracted legal battle over the ownership of the No. 1 Corvette Le Mans Racer.

The backstory on the three Le Mans racers have been told many times, and we highly recommend watching “The Quest” documentary by Michael Brown which focused on the No.3 Corvette which won the class and finished 8th overall.

The short story is that businessman and gentleman racer Briggs Cunningham had tried unsuccessfully at winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the 50s and so he turned to Zora Arkus-Duntov for help. With Zora’s help, three identically prepared Corvettes with 283-fuelie V8s were purchased by Cunningham and further prepped for racing at Le Mans. Zora’s original plan was to drive one of the cars, however his boss Ed Cole nixed it due to the AMA ban on racing as well as the fact that Zora was simply too valuable to the brand as that point.

[PICS] The Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers are Reunited at Amelia Island


In the opening hours of the race, the three Corvette racers were doing well against their European counterparts in the GT 5.0 Class, but rain started falling in the afternoon when disaster struck for the No. 1 Corvette. As the rain opened up, the No.1 car entered the pits and refueled with Bill Kimberly taking over for Briggs Cunningham. Still on regular tires, Kimberly lost control at the Maison Blanche corner, spinning, and flipping over before coming to rest wheels down. Kimberly was able to escape as the engine caught fire, dashing the hopes of the No.1 Corvette after 32 laps. The No.2 Corvette would make it to lap 207 before it would retire due to engine failure, but the No.3 Corvette turned out to be the champ, and it would finish first in class and 8th overall.

Following the race, the three Corvettes were returned to the States where they were restored back to street trim and then resold as used cars. The No. 2 Corvette was identified early on and landed in the collection of Bruce Meyers. The crashed No.1 Corvette was sold as-is and it was restored by the first owner who added custom bodywork to the roadster. After that, the car would go through a succession of owners before winding up in the St. Petersburg, Fl warehouse of a retired Judge. After the judge passed away, his son found the VIN and research led them to the Cunningham Museum and eventually to Lance Miller, whose family owned the No.3 Corvette as the time.

[PICS] The Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers are Reunited at Amelia Island


Lance would buy the Corvette in 2012 and he sold it to Kevin Mackay, but then the car became a target for litigation by the likes we have never seen. After being tied up in the courts for years, a federal judge ordered a receiver to take possession and sell the car at a future no-reserve auction. The No.1 Corvette was offered for sale at RM Sotheby’s Amelia Island auction in May 2021 and Briggs Cunningham grandson purchased the car for $785,000. He turned it over to Kevin Mackay’s restoration shop Corvette Repair who completed the return of the car to its 24 Hours of Le Mans livery.

[PICS] The Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers are Reunited at Amelia Island


Thanks to CORVETTE TODAY’s Steve Garrett for providing these photos from Friday’s seminar at Amelia Island featuring the reunion of the three Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans racecars. Here is Steve’s Recap:

It was a historic evening at The Amelia Car Concourse weekend Friday night as the three Cunningham Corvettes were reunited after 63 years!

In an evening unveiling was attended by 300-400 people, Michael Brown of Corvette Nation fame, co-hosted the event.

The documentary, The Quest, was shown first. The three Cunningham Corvettes were lined up in front of the stage, just as they were in 1960 prior to the start of the race at Le Mans.

After the documentary was completed, the men from Kevin Mackay’s Corvette Repair in Long Island New York, pulled the cover back on the #1 car to reveal it in its original livery from that historic race in 1960. This is the first time all three Cunningham Corvettes have been together in 63 years! Kevin Mackay and the men of Corvette Repair spent close to 16 months expertly restoring the #1 Cunningham Corvette.

Briggs Cunningham’s youngest daughter, Lynn, was in attendance. As a matter of fact, Kevin Mackay emerged from the #1 Corvette after the cover was pulled off the #1 car in a 1960’s style racing suit, racing helmet and a full mask that looked very similar to Briggs Cunningham! He welcomed the crowd as Briggs Cunningham himself and thanked them for attending. Other dignitaries attendance included Bruce Meyer, who owns the #2 Cunningham Corvette and Lance Miller, former owner of the #3 Cunningham Corvette along with its current private owner.

Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers
Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Le Mans Racers


Source:
Photos by Steve Garrett

Related:
[PODCAST] Kevin Mackay and the Story of the #1 Briggs Cunningham Le Mans Corvette
[VIDEO] Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette Sells for $785K at RM Sotheby’s Amelia Island Auction
No. 1 Briggs Cunningham 1960 Le Mans Corvette Racer Found

 



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4 COMMENTS

  1. A very special moment, wish I could have been there.
    These Corvettes informed the world that Corvette was not a passing thought. They took notice and realized Chevrolet was a player back then but don’t talk openly about it.

  2. I lived in Naples, FL from 1989 to 2010 and visted the Miles Collier Private Car Collection. Where the Finest Porsche Collection, outside of Stuttgart, Germany, plus some of Cunninghams Race cars.
    This the link to the Miles Collier Reves Institute in Naples, FL. https://www.collierautomedia.com/high-revs

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