The Pegasus WSC was a

sports prototype A sports prototype, sometimes referred to simply as a prototype, is a type of Auto racing, race car that is used in high-level categories of sports car racing. They are purpose-built auto-sports race cars, as opposed to production-car based or s ...

racing car Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including ...

built by

Pegasus Racing Pegasus (; ) is a winged horse in Greek mythology, usually depicted as a white stallion. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as horse-god, and foaled by the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus was the brother of Chrysaor, both born from Medusa's blood whe ...

in 1993 to the World Sports Cars regulations. Originally built as a

Lotus Esprit The Lotus Esprit is a sports car built by Lotus Cars from 1976 to 2004 at their Hethel, England factory. It has a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. Together with the Lotus Elise / Exige, it is one of Lotus' most long-lived models. Th ...

, the Pegasus WSC featured significantly modified bodywork and a

naturally aspirated A naturally aspirated engine, also known as a normally aspirated engine, and abbreviated to N/A or NA, is an internal combustion engine in which air intake depends solely on atmospheric pressure and does not have forced induction through a turboc ...

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

engine in place of the usual

Lotus 900 series The Lotus 900 series is a family of internal combustion engines designed and built by Lotus Cars of United Kingdom. Successor to the Lotus-Ford Twin Cam, the 900 was the first complete engine developed by Lotus. The engine was built from 1972 t ...

unit. The car was used in a handful of races before being replaced by a new car, derived from the Argo JM16.

Racing history

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

IMSA GT Championship IMSA GT was a sports car racing series organized by International Motor Sports Association. Races took place primarily in the United States and occasionally in Canada. History The series was founded in 1969 by John and Peggy Bishop, and Bill ...

team

opted to rebuild a third-generation Lotus Esprit to the new World Sports Cars (WSC) regulations. The resulting car had heavily modified bodywork, and, in place of the usual

engine, a

naturally-aspirated A naturally aspirated engine, also known as a normally aspirated engine, and abbreviated to N/A or NA, is an internal combustion engine in which air intake depends solely on atmospheric pressure and does not have forced induction through a turboc ...

unit was installed. The car's debut came at the sixth round of the IMSA season, which was the Grand Prix of Ohio, with Oliver Kuttner behind the wheel; it would not prove to be successful, as a mechanical problem forced him to retire from 19th, and saw him classified 17th, and last. Kuttner next drove the car two rounds later, at the

Road America 500 The IMSA SportsCar Weekend (formerly the Continental Tire Road Race Showcase at Road America, Road America 500) is a sports car race held at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. The event began in 1950, in 1951 was added to the SCCA National ...

; however, an engine failure after 6 laps restricted him to 41st overall. Mechanical issues struck again at the next race, held at

Laguna Seca Laguna Seca Raceway (branded as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and previously Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for sponsorship reasons) is a paved Racing track#Motorsport, road racing track in central California used for both auto racing and Motorcyc ...

, but Kuttner's 44 laps were enough to secure the WSC class victory, and 12th overall. The class victory was due to the #43 Scandia Kudzu DG-2 (another WSC car) failed after 38 laps. Kuttner then entered the next round of the series, which was the

Portland Grand Prix The Portland Grand Prix was a sports car race held at the Portland International Raceway in Portland, Oregon from 1978 until 2006. It began as a round of the IMSA GT Championship, and became an American Le Mans Series The American Le Mans S ...

; for the first time, he was able to finish the race, albeit in 12th overall and second in class. This would prove to be the WSC's last race, as Pegasus Racing opted to build a new car, based on the Argo JM16, for the following season.

References

{{reflist Lotus racing cars Sports prototypes Mid-engined cars Rear-wheel-drive vehicles