As SPEED SPORT celebrates its 90th year of reporting about motorsports, we are diving into the archives and looking back at key and unusual events throughout the history of motorsports.
The April 24, 1974 issue of National Speed Sport News, included the headline: ‘NASCAR Bows To IMSA.”
Here’s the story as printed by in 1974:
IMSA vs. NASCAR, “The Match Race of the Century,” was the way Road Atlanta billed the John Greenwood-Bobby Allison race here Saturday.
Greenwood, driving his big-engined Corvette representing IMSA and Allison, in his Permatex 200-winning Camaro, carrying the colors for NASCAR.
Greenwood won out for IMSA in his thundering 456-inch ‘Vette, blazing out to a big lead over the Coke Camaro, then backing off to a 6.7-second victory in the event which was cut from 10 to five laps.
“The Goodyear people told me to be on guard,” Greenwood said, explaining they reported. “Bobby put on trick tires just before the start.”
Greenwood said of Bobby’s disappointing performance, “I think he missed a gear at the flag, and I kept waiting for him to come after me. But after the first couple of laps I stopped worrying. I knew he wasn’t coming.”
Allison gave the record Saturday turnout of 20,000 a different kind of thrill when he landed his Aerostar on the backstretch, then taxied his plane around the track to the front straight.
Following the match, he flew back to North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway for Sunday’s Gwyn Staley Memorial Winston Cup Series race.