ONE of the rarest Porsche models currently on the road anywhere in the world will make a headline appearance at this year’s The Bend Classic.

WORDS: Richard Craill

A stunning Porsche 911 GT1 Evolution, thought to be the only one in the world converted from racing car to street use, will be a star attraction at the September 5-6 event at The Bend Motorsport Park.

Recently purchased by a South Australian collector, the car is literally a one-of-a-kind model that led Porsche’s charge at the famous Le Mans 24 Hour race in France in the 1990s.

While 23 road-going versions of the GT1 were produced by Porsche to satisfy homologation requirements for the racing program, this particular car is the only one of 18 racing versions built known to have been converted to road use.

The car in question, built in 1997, won the Canadian GT championship on three occasions, made regular starts in the Daytona 24-hour race in Florida and amassed 13 wins from 31 race starts prior to its conversion to road use.

Powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.2-litre flat six engine, the GT1 Evo produces 640 Horsepower that saw it able to reach more than 330km/hr down the famous Mulsanne straight at Le Mans.

The ‘Evolution’ designation references significant mid-life upgrades the GT1 received in 1997 that upgraded its appearance to mirror the ‘996’ Porsche 911 road car.

Later versions of the GT1 would help deliver Porsche victory at Le Mans.

The 911 GT1 Evo will join a host of extreme performance Supercars at The Bend Classic – as the event celebrates both the pinnacle of motorsport and motoring, old and new.

“It is a coup for us to have secured this car to be demonstrated at The Bend Classic,” said The Bend Motorsport Park Marketing Manager, Michael Rossi.

“The car was only recently sold to a new owner here in Australia and they were eager for it to be on show to as many people as possible.

“The fact that it is the only known example in the world to have been converted from a race car to road use makes this truly one of a kind and we’re thrilled that it will be at The Bend classic for South Australian fans to see.

“It’s incredibly rare and very special and will join a host of other similar cars, road and race, at the event.”

The event will include the official unveiling of an ultra-rare (there are only two in Australia), Hypercar that has been under wraps in The Bend’s Welcome Centre for the past few months.

The official unveiling will occur on the Friday prior to The Bend Classic.

The 2020 The Bend Classic has currently attracted more than 70 entries, spread across a variety of categories.

Formula 1 machinery from the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s will be joined by Historic Sports Sedans, Touring Cars, Sports Cars from many eras and historic cars covering a century of motoring and motorsport.