The Pegasus WSC was a

sports prototype A sports prototype, sometimes referred to as simply a prototype, is a type of race car that is used in the highest-level categories of sports car racing. These purpose-built racing cars, unlike street-legal and production-based racing cars, are n ...

racing car Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

built by

Pegasus Racing Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...

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

Lotus Esprit The Lotus Esprit is a British sports car that was built by Lotus Cars at their Hethel factory in England between 1976 and 2004. It was among the first of designer Giorgetto Giugiaro's polygonal "folded paper" designs. Background In 1970 Tony ...

, the Pegasus WSC featured significantly modified bodywork and a

naturally aspirated Naturally may refer to: ;Albums * ''Naturally!'', an album by Nat Adderley * ''Naturally'' (Houston Person album) * ''Naturally'' (J. J. Cale album) * ''Naturally'' (John Pizzarelli album) * ''Naturally'' (Sharon Jones album) * ''Naturally'' ...

BMW 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 The Argo JM16 is an IMSA GTP Lights sports prototype race car, designed, developed and built by Argo Racing Cars, in 1984. It competed in the IMSA GT Championship sports car racing series between 1984 and 1993. It, unfortunately, did not win any ...

Racing history

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

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 F ...

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 BMW 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 Oliver may refer to: Arts, entertainment and literature Books * ''Oliver the Western Engine'', volume 24 in ''The Railway Series'' by Rev. W. Awdry * '' Oliver Twist'', a novel by Charles Dickens Fictional characters * Ariadne Oliver ...

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

; 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 may refer to: * Laguna Seca Formation, a geologic formation in California * Laguna Seca (Mexico), see Convention of London * Laguna Seca (Santa Clara County), a seasonal lake in California * Laguna Seca, Texas, United States * Rancho La ...

, 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 (the 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

, for the following season.

References

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