Press archive

"First pole for Hoerr, but usual win for Audi"

Hans Stuck won in the Audi Quattro. The full results answer one of the site's open questions:

• 17th – Paul Radisich, Porsche 944, 28 laps. racingyears credits a "Paul Radisch" with one 1988 start for Bruce Jenner Racing; this is almost certainly him, in one of the team's Porsches. The New Zealander went on to win the FIA Touring Car World Cup in 1993 and 1994.
• 28th – Chris Kneifel, Trans-Am (the #72 Pontiac), out after 6 laps, mechanical – matching Kneifel's own results sheet.
• Bruce Jenner isn't in the results.

"Pruett not too busy to win"

Scott Pruett flew from an IROC race at Michigan to Lime Rock and won wire to wire in his Merkur XR4Ti.

• 28th – Chris Kneifel, Trans Am, 33 laps, engine – again matching his results sheet.
• John Schneider, who raced the #72 at Lime Rock the year before, was 19th in a Corvette.
• The box gives the next round as "Mid-Ohio, September 4", confirming the date on Kneifel's sheet.

The Lady Wigram Trophy meeting at RNZAF Base Wigram, Christchurch, on 16–17 January 1993 was the fourth round of the Peter Jackson International series. Bruce brought two American drivers and two of his cars for its Peter Jackson–Auto News TraNZam races – which is why every car in the class wore an Auto News windscreen banner.

"Spectacular racing likely"

"Two American cars and drivers have been brought out" for the TraNZam races: a Porsche 944 for Chris Kneifel and a Pontiac Firebird for Scott Lagasse, "two drivers who have already proven their worth on the American scene."

• The car to beat: New Zealand champion Kayne Scott's Ford Merkur, run by Petch Motorsport.
• Other fancied V8s included Grant Brennan's "immaculate Camaro", Don Grindley's Oldsmobile Cutlass and Kieran Wills' Mazda RX8.

Lagasse second on the grid

1. Kayne Scott (Ford Merkur) 1:12.88
2. Scott Lagasse (Pontiac Firebird) 1:12.94
3. Chris Kneifel (Porsche 944 Turbo) 1:15.04
4. Kieran Wills (Mazda V8) 1:15.74
5. Don Elvy (Capri V8) 1:20.82
6. John Harcourt (Starlet V8) 1:21.02

Bernard Carpinter wrote that Lagasse "made a big improvement in his Pontiac Firebird to score second on the grid". John Harcourt, sixth here, would later own the Jenner Camaro.

Three from three for the Jenner Pontiac

Race 3 was the traditional "flying farewell". Times from NZ Speedsport, which lists Scott's car as a Ford Sierra (the Merkur XR4Ti is a Sierra under the skin) and numbers the races by programme order (2, 9 and 19).

"A 3-0 drubbing to the Kiwis"

John Hawkins: "An American, Scott Lagasse, won three races from as many starts in the Peter Jackson-Auto News TraNZam series." Scott was "bothered by a power steering problem with his Merkur", and "Lagasse's team mate, Chris Kneifel was troubled by an engine vibration with his Porsche."

"A fantastic day. I'm giving up 100bhp on the top Kiwis, but the Pontiac is really good onto the straights and we just carried that momentum down."Scott Lagasse

The full story of the weekend

Speedsport's report fills in the races. The Americans "were not that confident of beating the likes of Kayne Scott and Kieran Wills on what is a horsepower circuit", and qualifying left "a two and a half second gap to Chris Kneifel in the Jenner Porsche".

• Race 1: Lagasse made "a disastrous start" and was 2.5 seconds down after two laps, then caught Scott as his power steering failed, swapped the lead and passed him for good a lap from the end. Kneifel had "a lonely run in third".
• Race 2: Lagasse led lap one; Scott took over until power-steering fluid sprayed his windscreen. Kneifel "lasted five laps before withdrawing with an engine problem."
• Race 3: Scott led again until the power steering went; Lagasse took the lead and Scott held on for second. Kneifel retired again.

"We had the car stiffened with lots of sway bars to help solve some other problems but it worked to our favour. The opposition sort of helped us out, but that is racing I guess."Scott Lagasse

"Jenner needless to say was also ecstatic over his car's wins particularly when it was giving away 100 or so horsepower to Scott and Wills." Scott set the weekend's fastest lap, 1:12.34.

The opening lap

"Opening lap at Wigram with Scott leading Lagasse, Kneifel, Wills and Don Elvy. Lagasse went on to win all three TraNZam races at Wigram after Scott and Wills had problems." Wills' Mazda suffered too: the dry-sump pump in its Chev engine couldn't scavenge fully on Wigram's fast left-handers.

"The wild rumour of the week"

"The wild rumour of the week was that American Scott Lagasse's Pontiac Firebird, which scooped all three TraNZam races at Wigram, will remain in New Zealand after the Peter Jackson series. Even more exciting was the story that it would be staying in Christchurch."

The rumour came true: the Pontiac stayed in New Zealand and was later sold to Paul Williams of Rangiora, just north of Christchurch – and it is still racing here today. The same column notes that Mike Johnston of Ashburton was thinking of returning to OSCA; he would be the 1999 champion and "defending champion" when Williams won at Ruapuna.

"Crowd cheer OSCA V8 revival!"

The Golden Mile Tavern OSCA series opener drew one of the best V8 saloon fields in years. Williams won two of the three races in the ex-Jenner Camaro; a failed power-steering line cost him a clean sweep.

The full story on Paul's page →

"'Guns' should again provide thrills"

The local paper's preview of round three led with Williams, who "headed the field home in two of the three races at last month's meeting".

On Paul's page →

"Williams dominates small OSCA field"

Three wins from three – two races and the handicap – in the newly painted, colour-changing Camaro at the Canterbury Car Club's season opener: the start of his title season.

On Paul's page →

"Ruthless efficiency in Williams' series win"

The season review of his 2000 OSCA championship: "We haven't been out of the placings in any race," Williams said. Transcribed in full on his page.

Read it on Paul's page →

Wigram Glory Days Relived

With the Wigram airfield circuit gone, the Motor Racing Club planned a Wigram Glory Days Relived meeting at Ruapuna Raceway on 31 October 1998 for cars that had raced at Wigram. A hundred owners and drivers had already registered – an RA Vanguard and an Allard J2 among the older cars, a Ralt RT4 and an F5000 among the later ones, and, in the saloon field, "the ex-Bruce Jenner Camaro and two ex-Reg Cook Datsuns".

In 1998 the Jenner Camaro – the car that won all three TraNZam races at Wigram in 1993 as the blue Pontiac – was with Paul Williams, so that is most likely the car meant. Bruce's 1970s OSCA Camaro is the other candidate. If you were at Ruapuna that day, we'd love to know which it was and how it went.

The organiser named was Errol Maffey of the Motor Racing Club.

Ian Munt – the name behind the memorial race

Ian Munt, secretary of the Open Saloon Car Association and its longest-standing competitor, died aged 54, collapsing shortly after racing at the final round of the OSCA championship at Timaru in April 1998. He began at Ruapuna in the 1960s, raced in Australia from 1969, and returned to Christchurch in the mid-1970s to race in OSCA – the same era as Bruce's own OSCA Camaro. He developed his Capri Chev over many seasons and won the title in 1977, then from 1993 raced a self-built Commodore Chev, finishing runner-up again the previous season. About 500 people attended his funeral.

OSCA's Ian Munt Memorial race at Timaru carries his name: in March 2000 Lindsay Dodd finished 3rd in it in the Jenner replica, on the day Paul Williams clinched the OSCA title in the original car. The March 2000 report →

"Williams secures OSCA title"

• "Rangiora driver Paul Williams clinched OSCA's overall championship by finishing third in the opening race with his GT2 spec Camaro" – the title MotorSport NZ lists as the 2000 OSCA series.
• GT1 (TraNZam) cars weren't eligible for overall OSCA points; Craig Gilbert won in his GT1 Camaro from Eddie Fairbairn, with Williams third.
• The photo shows the original car in its purple Resene Santano livery with Paul Williams Motors and Golden Mile Tavern on the screen and Whiting's Dry Cleaners on the splitter.
• Lindsay Dodd, "in his Wayne Moore built Camaro" – the Jenner replica, #14 in L.J. Hooker colours – "had his first good run and finished 3rd in the Ian Munt Memorial race."

Issue numbering: No. 111 carried the 10 October season opener, so No. 116 (March) dates that meeting to October 1999, the start of Williams' title season.

Greenslade leads the North Island OSCA championship

At the penultimate round of the North Island OSCA championship, Andy Greenslade went to Manfeild as series leader in the Camaro, in its Bed Rumours / Printstop colours, battling Cameron Jones' very fast Mazda RX7.

• Race 1: Greenslade crossed the line first, but a 30-second penalty dropped him down the field and handed the win to Jones.
• Race 2 (handicap): 2nd, behind Jones.

The issue isn't dated on the page; its numbering puts it in the mid-2000s.

"He built that car himself"

Under a Terry Marshall photo of Bruce's #17 Camaro leading Kevin Haig at Ruapuna, a man who worked for Bruce in the 1970s remembered:

"I worked for Bruce then, and he built that car himself, day and night for months. The moulds, all the fibreglass work, shifted the motor back, everything. He was amazing."Phillip Laughton

Kevin Haig raced the ex-Dawson Camaro in 1974–75, so the photo is probably from that season, when Bruce chased him for the South Island OSCA title. Another reader suggested the OSCA Championship 0–6000cc race at Ruapuna on 30 November 1975, with 12 starters including Jenner's Camaro, Haig's ex-Dawson Camaro, Dickie's Victor-Chev, McComb's Cortina Cobra and McElrea's Mustang.

Bruce's NZ Camaro →

"The ex-Kiwi Bruce Jenner's 2 car team"

Mark Petch – whose Petch Motorsport ran Kayne Scott's Merkur, the car the Jenner team beat at Wigram – looked back on the 1993 season:

"In 1993 TraNZam racing was by far the most popular category in New Zealand… This selection of photo's shows the ex-Kiwi Bruce Jenner's 2 car Team's and his 2 USA drivers, led by highly rated Chris Kneifel and his team mate Scott Lagasse."Mark Petch

Away from the track, he and Kayne Scott took Kneifel and Lagasse trail-riding on motorbikes up the Shotover River at Queenstown.

Have a clipping?

If you have programmes, results sheets or articles about the Jenner cars – especially Bruce's 1985–86 seasons, the AC Delco Camaro around 1994, or Andy Greenslade's title year – please get in touch.

Clippings are shown for historical reference and remain the copyright of their publishers and photographers: Autoweek, NZ Speedsport, the Christchurch press, Euan Cameron and Terry Marshall.