Porsche 956: Group C Legend

Porsche has created many iconic racing cars over the years, but none achieved more, or enjoyed a frontline career for as long, as the 956/962 series. In its various forms it was successful between 1982 and 1994, and while Jaguar and Sauber-Mercedes also did a lot of winning, no car better defines the Group C era, or played such a pivotal role.

Veteran Porsche employee Jurgen Barth, son of F1 and sportscr racer Edgar, played a special part in its history. A Le Mans winner himself in 1977 with the 936, he helped to create the rules that produced the 956, and was the first man to drive the finished prototype. And as Porsche's customer boss, he was responsible for ensuring that the 956 became the car of choice for private teams in the FIA world championship and later, in its 962 guise, in the IMSA GTP series.

The Group C rules were created after the old Group 5 'silhouette' and Group 6 prototype categories had ran out of momentum. It was accepted that it was no longer practical to base a successful formula on road cars, due to the endless homologation wrangles that inevitably resulted, not to mention the commitment required from manufacturers.