The History of the International Race of Champions Series

The International Race of Champions Series (IROC) was an exhilarating auto racing series of four races, and it featured a small group of invited drivers. The field of contestants consisted of 6 to 12 of the best drivers from mainstream racing series such as NASCAR, FIA, USAC, CART, IRL, and SCCA. The race sought to test drivers’ abilities, rather than vehicle construction capabilities, and because of this, all racing vehicles were identically prepared by the same mechanical team to eliminate any unfair advantage. The series was the brainchild of Roger Penske, Les Richter, and Mike Phelps, and was founded in 1972. The first race finally took place in 1974, with Mark Donohue winning the first series. Unlike other auto racing competitions, the IROC series had no trials or qualifying sessions.

The IROC series had very strict rules concerning driver selection, the type of cars used, car assignments, and starting positions. The organizers of the series gave primary consideration to the winners of major auto racing competitions, and only the best of the best got a chance to compete in the series. The IROC was considered an All-Star Contest of legendary drivers. The cars that were used for the competition were as similar to each other in every possible way; no mechanical adjustments were allowed. Car assignment was done via a blind draw, and a driver would use the same assignment car throughout the entire series. The cars that were used during the inaugural competition were Porsche Carrera RSRs. In the subsequent years, vehicles used for the series included Chevrolet Camaro (1975 to 1989), Dodge Daytona (1990 to 1993), Dodge Avenger (1994 to 1995), and Pontiac Trans Am (1996 to the disbandment of the race). It should be noted that the series was not run in 1981, 1982, 1983, and 2007.

Apart from Mark Donohue, who was the pioneer champion, other notable drivers who managed to win multiple championships included Mark Martin who won five races, Dale Earnhardt Sr. who won four, Al Unser Jr. who won two, and A.J. Foyt who also won two. The most successful of them all was Mark Martin, who won more than 35 cup races and 13 series races in the IROC. Martin was also one of the very few who had gotten the chance to compete and win against the best drivers in the IROC series.

The most memorable and tragic accident to make headlines in the IROC series occurred during the Daytona 500 race of 2001. In the race, iconic driver Dale Earnhardt Sr. was involved in a tragic accident in the final lap of the race. One of Earnhardt Sr.'s most memorable achievements include winning the IROC series four times and emerging victorious 76 times at the Sprint Cup Series. Earnhardt's son, Dale Jr., is also a celebrated NASCAR driver.

After more than 30 years of thrilling competition, the spectacular IROC series came to an abrupt end in 2007, as the organizers failed to find a title sponsor. In the subsequent year, IROC auctioned all their equipment, tools, merchandise, and vehicles, and finally closed all its operations, much to the disappointment of their enthusiastic fan base.

For additional information regarding the IROC series, please refer to these links:

• About IROC: An overview of IROC.

• IROC Drivers: List of drivers who participated in IROC races.

• The Golden Era of Sports Car Racing: An article on the Riverside Raceway, one of the famous IROC racetracks.

• IROC Series: A website that contains articles about the IROC series.

• Dale Earnhardt Biography: A brief history of Dale Earnhardt, one of the IROC greats.

• Dale Earnhardt Crash: An article originally from the Herald – Times and Hoosier Times with information about the Daytona 500 crash and Dale Earnhardt's career highlights.