RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01!
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 8,201
Likes: 1
From: Notgrapebutgreat, S.C./N.C., USof A
RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-02!
https://honda-tech.com/zero...ge=17
Made this post in this forum:
Some info the Speed World Challenge 97-02
RealTime Racing introduced the Acura Integra Type R to T2 in 1997, with rookie Pierre Kleinubing earning the Drivers' Championship over Booher's Saturn and teammate Galati. Points for Acura and Honda were split in 1997, allowing Saturn to take the Manufacturers' Championship for the first time.
Saleen returned to the 1998 T1 Championship, sweeping the top two spots in the Drivers' Championship with Terry Borcheller and Ron Johnson over Cunningham's RealTime NSX. The specialty car builder also dominated the Manufacturers' Championship.
Galati used consistency in his RealTime Acura Integra R to take his second T2 Championship-the fourth-straight for the team-over teammate Kleinubing and Lance Stewart's DC Sports Integra R. Acura earned the Manufacturers' Championship, the sixth for American Honda.
The off-season between 1998 and 1999 proved to be the most pivotal for the World Challenge, as the Speedvision Network-a cable broadcasting station dedicated to the fastest things in the air, water and the road-became a part owner in the series and its title sponsor. Exposure and purses grew exponentially, as did the fields. The 1999 season would average nearly 50 cars per race between the two classes.
Archer drove a Viper Speed Dodge Viper to his second-career Championship, winning the Speedvision GT title by a scant point over Peter Kitchak's Porsche 911. Porsche took the Manufacturers' title over Chevrolet, which featured the debut of its new C5, with Scotty B. White giving the car its first win (Vancouver). Archer earned a $50,000 bonus for his Championship-the biggest ever in SCCA Pro Racing history.
Galati branched out to form his own Speedvision Touring Car Acura team in 1999, but the results were the same, taking the title by three points over RealTime's Kleinubing and his teammate Hugh Plumb. Galati tied the all-time record for consecutive wins at the start of the season (four). Acura again took the Manufacturers' Championship.
In 2000, both series ran separately for the first time and standing starts made their debut. The season saw giant jumps in participation, averaging over 70 cars per event between the two series.
Jeff McMillin became the first driver ever to win a title without a win when he scored top-10 finishes in all 10 Speedvision GT races. He became only the third driver ever (joining Galati and Plumb from 1999) to record 10 top-10s in a season. Galati jumped to the Champion Audi GT team in 2000 and finished second, recording the marque's first win in World Challenge at Las Vegas. In all, six different drivers and marques won on the season.
Kleinubing captured his second title by winning the Speedvision Touring Car Championship for RealTime over rookie Neal Sapp (TC Kline Racing BMW 328Ci). Acura took the manufacturers' title, but fought BMW into the last race.
In 2001, new changes include a new spec tire from Toyo Tires, and boosted purses across the board due to various new sponsorships.
Michael Galati became the first driver to win four World Challenge Drivers' Championships, taking the Speedvision GT title with four wins and helping Audi to its first-ever Manufacturers" Championship. Galati battled his former team owner Peter Cunningham all the way. Cunningham won the statistics race, recording seven poles and five wins in his supercharged Acura NSX, but a DNF at Lime Rock hurt his title chances. Galati became the second-straight Speedvision GT driver to place in the top-10 in each race, and he and Cunningham each eclipsed the $100,000 mark in purse and contingency prize money earned for the first time in series history. Audi took the Manufacturers’ title by a scant point over Acura, with Porsche a close third. Johannes van Overbeek (Porsche, third in points) was the only driver other than Galati or Cunningham to win a race.
Pierre Kleinubing captured his second-straight Speedvision Touring Car title and the third of his career (all with RealTime) with a consistent run, earning three wins in his Acura Integra R. Neal Sapp won four races, and finished runner-up for the second straight year and helped BMW earn its first-ever Manufacturers’ title in a runaway over Acura. Other drivers scoring wins in Touring Car were Steve Pfeffer (BMW), Bill Auberlen (BMW) in a run from last to first in the Lime Rock rain and Roger Foo, recording the first win for the Honda Civic Si.
In 2002, Speed Channel took over for Speedvision as the title sponsor after Speedvision was bought by Fox and re-named. The series names changed to Speed World Challenge, Speed GT and Speed Touring Car, respectively.
Michael Galati continued to set new records by capturing his fifth Drivers’ Championship, and second-straight Speed GT Championship. The Championship once again came down to Galati and Cunningham, with Galati scoring three wins and finishing no lower than sixth in all ten races. Cunningham took the Championship down to the final event at VIR, but his exceptional run of finishes, including one win, five podiums and ten top-10 finishes was no match for Galati. Randy Pobst finished third in the Championship with four wins and a podium finish in each of the seven events he entered. Based on Pobst’s dominating run, Porsche took home another Manufacturers’ title, its third in four years.
In Speed Touring Car, defending Champion Pierre Kleinubing faced a stout challenge from an unlikely source, RealTime Racing team boss Cunningham. Originally running Speed Touring Car to help Kleinubing score a third straight title, the plan changed mid-season when two straight 34th place finishes evaporated Kleinubing’s points lead and moved Cunningham into contention. At season’s end, Cunningham’s consistency gave him the title, his third World Challenge title and sixth overall in SCCA Pro Racing competition. Rookie of the Year Marc Kirberg completed the top three in the final point standings. Acura, by virtue of the strong runs by both RealTime pilots, brought home its fourth Manufacturers’ Title since 1998.
More race info:
The line-up for 1998 saw the return of Cunningham, Meyer, Galati, and Kleinubing, in an all-Acura stable of racing cars. The Preludes were sold off, and an additional Type R was added for Mr. Meyer. Cunningham won two races along the way, but was unfortunately hampered by engine failures that cost him a repeat of the GT Championship. Fortunately, Galati and Kleinubing saved the season, by finishing one-two in the Touring Car Driver's Championship. And, between the two of them, earned the lion's share of the points to net Acura their first Manufacturer's title. At the end of the season, it was announced that Acura was pulling back their involvement, and the NSX program came to an end. Peter's '97 championship-winning NSX and Michael's '98 winning Integra were retired to the Honda museum.
The 1999 World Challenge saw the beginning of a new era, as the Speedvision network signed on as title sponsor for a five-year deal. And for the first time, the team owner was not listed as one of the drivers. The RealTime story this year focused on the Touring Car division, with four Type R Integras. Returning to the line-up was veteran Meyer and '97 champ Kleinubing, along with new teammates Hugh Plumb and Kevin Schrantz. Plumb had won the Rookie championship the year before for his own team, and decided to join the RealTime squad for '99. And Series newcomer Schrantz was looking to fight for the same title this year. By fulfilling this goal, he became the third RealTime pilot to capture the Rookie-of-the-Year award, and finished an impressive sixth in points in the process. Meanwhile, Pierre and Hugh together secured fourteen podium finishes in a fight right down to the finale for the Championship, falling just short by a respective three and twelve points to end up second and third for the year.
The 2000 Speedvision World Challenge was another banner year, and the RealTime boys were a big part of it. Cunningham, after taking the '99 season off as far as RTR driving duties were concerned, returned in a GT category BMW M3. Although he scored the most poles and led the most laps, he was unable to convert that speed into another championship. Still, the highlight of the GT effort had to be in St. Croix, Quebec, where the RealTime team leader secured his nineteenth victory, placing him in a tie for all-time wins in the Series.
The RealTime Touring Car program had yet another outstanding year, winning their fifth title in six years. After campaigning two Type Rs in '97, three in '98 and four in '99, the Integra paddock grew once more, as there were now five orange and white Touring Cars under the RealTime tent. In a display of force, RealTime drivers grabbed three of the top-four spots in the points battle, with Kleinubing earning highest honors by taking five poles, three wins and seven podiums en route to his second Speedvision Championship. '98 and '99 Rookie titlists Plumb and Schrantz finished fourth and third respectively, taking home three wins and seven top-threes between the two of them. Meyer, now tenth in all-time starts, ended up twenty-eighth out of the sixty-six drivers scoring Touring points. At the year-end banquet, SCCA Pro Racing named this six-car effort "Crew of the Year", and Acura was awarded their third consecutive Manufacturer's Crown.
The 2001 version of this series was renamed the SPEED World Challenge, as the fast-growing cable network was purchased by the FOX family of channels, and was another show of strength in both categories for the RealTime Acura team. For starters, Touring Car lead Integra driver Pierre Kleinubing took three wins and six other top-five finishes securing his third Driver's Championship, thus bumping the tally for RealTime to seven. And in the GT Championship, team leader Peter Cunningham enjoyed a season that would have been good enough to win that driver's points race in any other season, taking seven poles and five victories in his Vortech-supercharged NSX along the way. But an unfortunate mechanical DNF midseason knocked him down a rung to second. All tolled, the orange and white cars once again took more podiums than any other team.
The 2002 SPEED World Challenge distinguished itself as the most competitive yet, with more teams and more manufacturers running strong programs than ever before. For the tenth year in a row, RealTime Racing put forth a great effort, and once again proved they’re the team to beat. In GT, Peter Cunningham’s Acura NSX led the championship for a time, but had to settle for the runner-up spot to former teammate Michael Galati in the factory Audi Quattro for the second year in a row.
And in Touring Car, defending champ Pierre Kleinubing had a new teammate, the 1995 Touring Car Champion (and team boss) Cunningham. This potent duo ran door handle-to-door handle in their Acura Integra Type Rs all season, notching up 12 podiums between them. If not for two mechanical DNFs mid season, Kleinubing would have earned his fourth title, but Cunningham was right there with consistency to come out on top for the one-two sweep. The 2003 Touring Car Championship was Cunningham’s third and the team’s eighth SCCA World Challenge Driver’s title.
The Manufacturer’s Championship was also hotly contested in 2002, with the title not being decided until two laps from the end of the year. Because of the simple fact that a Mazda passed a BMW running in second place, that handed the title to the Acura Division of American Honda, winning by one point over 2001 winner BMW. The 2002 Championship was Acura’s fourth for Touring Car Manufacturers and it was the eighth such championship RealTime Racing had delivered to either Honda or Acura since 1993.
In other news, RealTime teased the Touring Car community by debuting the first Acura RSX at the final two rounds of the championship. This new model (or any other new car coming into the World Challenge, for that matter) will have a long road to surpass the achievements of the Integra Type R, as it was the most successful package in the history of the championship. Still, the RealTime RSX served notice, scoring an 11th and a 10th place finish right out of the box!
So the question is, can the Acura RSX fill the shoes of its predecessor in 2003? Stay tuned to the official RealTime website to follow the exploits of the team all year long.
1997 (Touring Two Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse SP LR MO WG MN HP TR MP PP RE
1 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra 255 $22,050 2 4 3 3 4 13 6 1 1 4
2 Paul Booher Saturn SC 250 19,200 4 19 1 4 1 3 2 5 6 2
3 Michael Galati Acura Integra 246 16,550 3 2 2 1 5 5 3 2 16 11
4 Taz Harvey Honda Prelude 213 11,500 5 25 9 2 3 7 4 3 3 3
5 Jim Lovett Honda Prelude 205 9,100 7 3 7 5 12 4 13 4 4 6
6 Alain Chebeir BMW 328is 200 10,650 10 7 5 7 7 8 1 9 7 13
7 J. van Overbeek BMW M3 178 11,050 11 20 8 8 - 1 7 19 5 1
8 David Rosenblum Saturn SC 146 5,850 12 22 6 6 6 6 8 8 14 DS
9 Lu Ryba Oldsmobile Achieva 121 3,650 6 6 14 10 10 10 DS - - 15
10 Walter Puckett Saturn SC 119 7,550 - - - - - 2 5 6 2 5
1998 (Touring Two Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse TO LR MO MN GR TR RA WG PP
1 Michael Galati Acura Integra R 240 $13,750 2 2 2 4 8 1 13 3 2
2 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 228 15,200 1 1 3 16 11 2 12 2 1
3 Lance Stewart Acura Integra R 224 15,150 5 8 8 1 1 3 1 1 15
4 Hugh Plumb BMW 328is 167 8,150 9 7 1 2 14 15 4 DS 4
5 Will Turner BMW 328i 166 6,750 8 9 7 8 - 5 2 4 7
6 J. van Overbeek BMW 328is 163 10,550 3 5 4 7 2 7 DS - 3
7 David Rosenblum Saturn 150 4,950 6 11 12 9 12 11 3 9 13
8 Alain Chebeir BMW 328is 139 7,150 12 6 13 3 3 6 DS - 6
9 Walter Puckett Saturn 137 3,900 18 3 24 17 5 4 14 17 5
10 Brad Creger Acura Integra R 113 2,800 15 17 19 11 6 - 8 10 9
1999 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse TO LR MO AT TR GR VN PP PP LS
1 Michael Galati Acura Integra R 265 $47,500 1 1 1 1 4 9 6 3 5 4
2 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 262 31,800 3 2 3 4 1 10 2 19 3 1
3 Hugh Plumb Acura Integra R 253 31,500 2 6 2 2 2 2 1 7 8 2
4 Will Turner BMW 328is 188 20,750 - 6 9 6 18 1 7 1 2 18
5 Alfred duPont BMW 328is 185 14,700 5 7 5 8 12 19 4 2 4 19
6 Kevin Schrantz Acura Integra R 166 13,050 7 15 8 10 17 18 3 13 6 3
7 Brian Wade BMW 328is 133 7,000 10 8 6 11 7 28 8 16 16 20
8 Jeff Tarr BMW 328is 121 6,400 15 19 16 14 16 14 10 9 18 8
9 Rick Ellinger Mercedes-Benz 119 5,700 14 17 - 22 6 5 11 8 9 23
10 Jason Potter Honda Accord 116 6,650 6 9 23 7 5 3 5 - - -
2000 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse CH MP LR SP SC TX AT LS LV SD
1 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 252 $82,920 1 1 - 2 1 11 3 2 4 3
2 Neal Sapp BMW 328Ci 241 49,400 13 2 2 10 2 8 2 7 3 1
3 Kevin Schrantz Acura Integra R 202 34,960 21 6 1 6 4 2 9 6 8 5
4 Hugh Plumb Acura Integra R 192 49,610 2 33 25 1 28 10 5 3 1 2
5 Don Salama BMW 328i 181 26,130 5 9 35 3 3 1 29 9 5 7
6 Alfred duPont BMW 328is 178 30,550 22 5 13 8 29 5 4 1 2 4
7 Paul Alderman BMW 328is 155 10,100 7 14 6 9 27 4 6 17 10 9
8 Steve Pfeffer BMW 328is 143 7,250 - 7 12 5 7 25 8 12 7 10
9 Will Turner BMW 328i 138 14,880 4 4 7 7 24 23 7 11 6 29
10 Mike Fitzgerald BMW 328Ci 133 21,860 30 34 3 4 6 24 1 4 29 26
2001 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse TM SE MP LR DT SP PO LS AT AT
1 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 257 $60,675 4 1 1 2 1 3 15 5 3 4
2 Neal Sapp BMW 325is 216 49,900 2 23 8 25 3 1 1 10 1 1
3 Steve Pfeffer BMW 328is 199 28,700 1 3 4 13 38 2 8 16 4 8
4 Ken Dobson BMW 328ci 197 22,800 10 13 7 9 8 13 4 2 5 3
5 Will Turner BMW 328is 179 22,600 29 2 29 5 4 7 3 8 8 6
6 Don Salama BMW 328is 178 21,000 5 5 3 11 2 9 11 12 6 37
7 Hugh Plumb Acura Integra R 172 20,850 12 4 2 8 6 4 10 6 12 29
8 Terry McCarthy BMW 328is 146 17,000 7 8 5 3 10 DQ 5 3 - -
9 Roger Foo Honda Civic Si 134 17,675 11 11 32 41 13 6 12 1 13 15
10 Taz Harvey Honda Civic Si 121 18,100 9 25 10 32 9 5 2 7 36 38
2002 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse SE MP LR MO RA DC TR MP LS AT VI
1 Peter Cunningham Acura Integra R 255 $64,450 3 9 2 13 3 6 4 7 3 1 6
2 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 248 $66,800 1 3 1 8 2 34 34 8 2 2 1
3 Marc Kirberg(R) BMW 325is 205 $31,100 6 6 5 41 4 1 8 10 12 13 3
4 Ken Dobson BMW 325Ci 194 $35,900 2 1 4 48 32 17 2 5 6 7 17
5 Chuck Hemmingson Mazda Protege 192 $26,550 7 16 36 7 8 5 1 4 4 4 36
6 Will Turner BMW 325i 191 $34,600 9 2 45 1 6 2 28 3 15 32 8
7 Paul Bonaccorsi Mazda Protege 184 $32,600 16 7 6 2 1 35 16 1 5 16 31
8 Taz Harvey Honda Civic Si 167 $20,600 8 5 3 3 30 9 7 9 8 25 21
9 Mike Fitzgerald Lexus IS 300 159 $17,950 5 8 9 4 28 3 3 2 42 DS -
10 Shauna Marinus Mazda Protege 139 $16,075 41 18 39 5 5 8 10 26 16 5 5
Modified by Hooch'n at 12:51 PM 10/24/2007
Made this post in this forum:
Some info the Speed World Challenge 97-02
RealTime Racing introduced the Acura Integra Type R to T2 in 1997, with rookie Pierre Kleinubing earning the Drivers' Championship over Booher's Saturn and teammate Galati. Points for Acura and Honda were split in 1997, allowing Saturn to take the Manufacturers' Championship for the first time.
Saleen returned to the 1998 T1 Championship, sweeping the top two spots in the Drivers' Championship with Terry Borcheller and Ron Johnson over Cunningham's RealTime NSX. The specialty car builder also dominated the Manufacturers' Championship.
Galati used consistency in his RealTime Acura Integra R to take his second T2 Championship-the fourth-straight for the team-over teammate Kleinubing and Lance Stewart's DC Sports Integra R. Acura earned the Manufacturers' Championship, the sixth for American Honda.
The off-season between 1998 and 1999 proved to be the most pivotal for the World Challenge, as the Speedvision Network-a cable broadcasting station dedicated to the fastest things in the air, water and the road-became a part owner in the series and its title sponsor. Exposure and purses grew exponentially, as did the fields. The 1999 season would average nearly 50 cars per race between the two classes.
Archer drove a Viper Speed Dodge Viper to his second-career Championship, winning the Speedvision GT title by a scant point over Peter Kitchak's Porsche 911. Porsche took the Manufacturers' title over Chevrolet, which featured the debut of its new C5, with Scotty B. White giving the car its first win (Vancouver). Archer earned a $50,000 bonus for his Championship-the biggest ever in SCCA Pro Racing history.
Galati branched out to form his own Speedvision Touring Car Acura team in 1999, but the results were the same, taking the title by three points over RealTime's Kleinubing and his teammate Hugh Plumb. Galati tied the all-time record for consecutive wins at the start of the season (four). Acura again took the Manufacturers' Championship.
In 2000, both series ran separately for the first time and standing starts made their debut. The season saw giant jumps in participation, averaging over 70 cars per event between the two series.
Jeff McMillin became the first driver ever to win a title without a win when he scored top-10 finishes in all 10 Speedvision GT races. He became only the third driver ever (joining Galati and Plumb from 1999) to record 10 top-10s in a season. Galati jumped to the Champion Audi GT team in 2000 and finished second, recording the marque's first win in World Challenge at Las Vegas. In all, six different drivers and marques won on the season.
Kleinubing captured his second title by winning the Speedvision Touring Car Championship for RealTime over rookie Neal Sapp (TC Kline Racing BMW 328Ci). Acura took the manufacturers' title, but fought BMW into the last race.
In 2001, new changes include a new spec tire from Toyo Tires, and boosted purses across the board due to various new sponsorships.
Michael Galati became the first driver to win four World Challenge Drivers' Championships, taking the Speedvision GT title with four wins and helping Audi to its first-ever Manufacturers" Championship. Galati battled his former team owner Peter Cunningham all the way. Cunningham won the statistics race, recording seven poles and five wins in his supercharged Acura NSX, but a DNF at Lime Rock hurt his title chances. Galati became the second-straight Speedvision GT driver to place in the top-10 in each race, and he and Cunningham each eclipsed the $100,000 mark in purse and contingency prize money earned for the first time in series history. Audi took the Manufacturers’ title by a scant point over Acura, with Porsche a close third. Johannes van Overbeek (Porsche, third in points) was the only driver other than Galati or Cunningham to win a race.
Pierre Kleinubing captured his second-straight Speedvision Touring Car title and the third of his career (all with RealTime) with a consistent run, earning three wins in his Acura Integra R. Neal Sapp won four races, and finished runner-up for the second straight year and helped BMW earn its first-ever Manufacturers’ title in a runaway over Acura. Other drivers scoring wins in Touring Car were Steve Pfeffer (BMW), Bill Auberlen (BMW) in a run from last to first in the Lime Rock rain and Roger Foo, recording the first win for the Honda Civic Si.
In 2002, Speed Channel took over for Speedvision as the title sponsor after Speedvision was bought by Fox and re-named. The series names changed to Speed World Challenge, Speed GT and Speed Touring Car, respectively.
Michael Galati continued to set new records by capturing his fifth Drivers’ Championship, and second-straight Speed GT Championship. The Championship once again came down to Galati and Cunningham, with Galati scoring three wins and finishing no lower than sixth in all ten races. Cunningham took the Championship down to the final event at VIR, but his exceptional run of finishes, including one win, five podiums and ten top-10 finishes was no match for Galati. Randy Pobst finished third in the Championship with four wins and a podium finish in each of the seven events he entered. Based on Pobst’s dominating run, Porsche took home another Manufacturers’ title, its third in four years.
In Speed Touring Car, defending Champion Pierre Kleinubing faced a stout challenge from an unlikely source, RealTime Racing team boss Cunningham. Originally running Speed Touring Car to help Kleinubing score a third straight title, the plan changed mid-season when two straight 34th place finishes evaporated Kleinubing’s points lead and moved Cunningham into contention. At season’s end, Cunningham’s consistency gave him the title, his third World Challenge title and sixth overall in SCCA Pro Racing competition. Rookie of the Year Marc Kirberg completed the top three in the final point standings. Acura, by virtue of the strong runs by both RealTime pilots, brought home its fourth Manufacturers’ Title since 1998.
More race info:
The line-up for 1998 saw the return of Cunningham, Meyer, Galati, and Kleinubing, in an all-Acura stable of racing cars. The Preludes were sold off, and an additional Type R was added for Mr. Meyer. Cunningham won two races along the way, but was unfortunately hampered by engine failures that cost him a repeat of the GT Championship. Fortunately, Galati and Kleinubing saved the season, by finishing one-two in the Touring Car Driver's Championship. And, between the two of them, earned the lion's share of the points to net Acura their first Manufacturer's title. At the end of the season, it was announced that Acura was pulling back their involvement, and the NSX program came to an end. Peter's '97 championship-winning NSX and Michael's '98 winning Integra were retired to the Honda museum.
The 1999 World Challenge saw the beginning of a new era, as the Speedvision network signed on as title sponsor for a five-year deal. And for the first time, the team owner was not listed as one of the drivers. The RealTime story this year focused on the Touring Car division, with four Type R Integras. Returning to the line-up was veteran Meyer and '97 champ Kleinubing, along with new teammates Hugh Plumb and Kevin Schrantz. Plumb had won the Rookie championship the year before for his own team, and decided to join the RealTime squad for '99. And Series newcomer Schrantz was looking to fight for the same title this year. By fulfilling this goal, he became the third RealTime pilot to capture the Rookie-of-the-Year award, and finished an impressive sixth in points in the process. Meanwhile, Pierre and Hugh together secured fourteen podium finishes in a fight right down to the finale for the Championship, falling just short by a respective three and twelve points to end up second and third for the year.
The 2000 Speedvision World Challenge was another banner year, and the RealTime boys were a big part of it. Cunningham, after taking the '99 season off as far as RTR driving duties were concerned, returned in a GT category BMW M3. Although he scored the most poles and led the most laps, he was unable to convert that speed into another championship. Still, the highlight of the GT effort had to be in St. Croix, Quebec, where the RealTime team leader secured his nineteenth victory, placing him in a tie for all-time wins in the Series.
The RealTime Touring Car program had yet another outstanding year, winning their fifth title in six years. After campaigning two Type Rs in '97, three in '98 and four in '99, the Integra paddock grew once more, as there were now five orange and white Touring Cars under the RealTime tent. In a display of force, RealTime drivers grabbed three of the top-four spots in the points battle, with Kleinubing earning highest honors by taking five poles, three wins and seven podiums en route to his second Speedvision Championship. '98 and '99 Rookie titlists Plumb and Schrantz finished fourth and third respectively, taking home three wins and seven top-threes between the two of them. Meyer, now tenth in all-time starts, ended up twenty-eighth out of the sixty-six drivers scoring Touring points. At the year-end banquet, SCCA Pro Racing named this six-car effort "Crew of the Year", and Acura was awarded their third consecutive Manufacturer's Crown.
The 2001 version of this series was renamed the SPEED World Challenge, as the fast-growing cable network was purchased by the FOX family of channels, and was another show of strength in both categories for the RealTime Acura team. For starters, Touring Car lead Integra driver Pierre Kleinubing took three wins and six other top-five finishes securing his third Driver's Championship, thus bumping the tally for RealTime to seven. And in the GT Championship, team leader Peter Cunningham enjoyed a season that would have been good enough to win that driver's points race in any other season, taking seven poles and five victories in his Vortech-supercharged NSX along the way. But an unfortunate mechanical DNF midseason knocked him down a rung to second. All tolled, the orange and white cars once again took more podiums than any other team.
The 2002 SPEED World Challenge distinguished itself as the most competitive yet, with more teams and more manufacturers running strong programs than ever before. For the tenth year in a row, RealTime Racing put forth a great effort, and once again proved they’re the team to beat. In GT, Peter Cunningham’s Acura NSX led the championship for a time, but had to settle for the runner-up spot to former teammate Michael Galati in the factory Audi Quattro for the second year in a row.
And in Touring Car, defending champ Pierre Kleinubing had a new teammate, the 1995 Touring Car Champion (and team boss) Cunningham. This potent duo ran door handle-to-door handle in their Acura Integra Type Rs all season, notching up 12 podiums between them. If not for two mechanical DNFs mid season, Kleinubing would have earned his fourth title, but Cunningham was right there with consistency to come out on top for the one-two sweep. The 2003 Touring Car Championship was Cunningham’s third and the team’s eighth SCCA World Challenge Driver’s title.
The Manufacturer’s Championship was also hotly contested in 2002, with the title not being decided until two laps from the end of the year. Because of the simple fact that a Mazda passed a BMW running in second place, that handed the title to the Acura Division of American Honda, winning by one point over 2001 winner BMW. The 2002 Championship was Acura’s fourth for Touring Car Manufacturers and it was the eighth such championship RealTime Racing had delivered to either Honda or Acura since 1993.
In other news, RealTime teased the Touring Car community by debuting the first Acura RSX at the final two rounds of the championship. This new model (or any other new car coming into the World Challenge, for that matter) will have a long road to surpass the achievements of the Integra Type R, as it was the most successful package in the history of the championship. Still, the RealTime RSX served notice, scoring an 11th and a 10th place finish right out of the box!
So the question is, can the Acura RSX fill the shoes of its predecessor in 2003? Stay tuned to the official RealTime website to follow the exploits of the team all year long.
1997 (Touring Two Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse SP LR MO WG MN HP TR MP PP RE
1 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra 255 $22,050 2 4 3 3 4 13 6 1 1 4
2 Paul Booher Saturn SC 250 19,200 4 19 1 4 1 3 2 5 6 2
3 Michael Galati Acura Integra 246 16,550 3 2 2 1 5 5 3 2 16 11
4 Taz Harvey Honda Prelude 213 11,500 5 25 9 2 3 7 4 3 3 3
5 Jim Lovett Honda Prelude 205 9,100 7 3 7 5 12 4 13 4 4 6
6 Alain Chebeir BMW 328is 200 10,650 10 7 5 7 7 8 1 9 7 13
7 J. van Overbeek BMW M3 178 11,050 11 20 8 8 - 1 7 19 5 1
8 David Rosenblum Saturn SC 146 5,850 12 22 6 6 6 6 8 8 14 DS
9 Lu Ryba Oldsmobile Achieva 121 3,650 6 6 14 10 10 10 DS - - 15
10 Walter Puckett Saturn SC 119 7,550 - - - - - 2 5 6 2 5
1998 (Touring Two Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse TO LR MO MN GR TR RA WG PP
1 Michael Galati Acura Integra R 240 $13,750 2 2 2 4 8 1 13 3 2
2 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 228 15,200 1 1 3 16 11 2 12 2 1
3 Lance Stewart Acura Integra R 224 15,150 5 8 8 1 1 3 1 1 15
4 Hugh Plumb BMW 328is 167 8,150 9 7 1 2 14 15 4 DS 4
5 Will Turner BMW 328i 166 6,750 8 9 7 8 - 5 2 4 7
6 J. van Overbeek BMW 328is 163 10,550 3 5 4 7 2 7 DS - 3
7 David Rosenblum Saturn 150 4,950 6 11 12 9 12 11 3 9 13
8 Alain Chebeir BMW 328is 139 7,150 12 6 13 3 3 6 DS - 6
9 Walter Puckett Saturn 137 3,900 18 3 24 17 5 4 14 17 5
10 Brad Creger Acura Integra R 113 2,800 15 17 19 11 6 - 8 10 9
1999 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse TO LR MO AT TR GR VN PP PP LS
1 Michael Galati Acura Integra R 265 $47,500 1 1 1 1 4 9 6 3 5 4
2 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 262 31,800 3 2 3 4 1 10 2 19 3 1
3 Hugh Plumb Acura Integra R 253 31,500 2 6 2 2 2 2 1 7 8 2
4 Will Turner BMW 328is 188 20,750 - 6 9 6 18 1 7 1 2 18
5 Alfred duPont BMW 328is 185 14,700 5 7 5 8 12 19 4 2 4 19
6 Kevin Schrantz Acura Integra R 166 13,050 7 15 8 10 17 18 3 13 6 3
7 Brian Wade BMW 328is 133 7,000 10 8 6 11 7 28 8 16 16 20
8 Jeff Tarr BMW 328is 121 6,400 15 19 16 14 16 14 10 9 18 8
9 Rick Ellinger Mercedes-Benz 119 5,700 14 17 - 22 6 5 11 8 9 23
10 Jason Potter Honda Accord 116 6,650 6 9 23 7 5 3 5 - - -
2000 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse CH MP LR SP SC TX AT LS LV SD
1 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 252 $82,920 1 1 - 2 1 11 3 2 4 3
2 Neal Sapp BMW 328Ci 241 49,400 13 2 2 10 2 8 2 7 3 1
3 Kevin Schrantz Acura Integra R 202 34,960 21 6 1 6 4 2 9 6 8 5
4 Hugh Plumb Acura Integra R 192 49,610 2 33 25 1 28 10 5 3 1 2
5 Don Salama BMW 328i 181 26,130 5 9 35 3 3 1 29 9 5 7
6 Alfred duPont BMW 328is 178 30,550 22 5 13 8 29 5 4 1 2 4
7 Paul Alderman BMW 328is 155 10,100 7 14 6 9 27 4 6 17 10 9
8 Steve Pfeffer BMW 328is 143 7,250 - 7 12 5 7 25 8 12 7 10
9 Will Turner BMW 328i 138 14,880 4 4 7 7 24 23 7 11 6 29
10 Mike Fitzgerald BMW 328Ci 133 21,860 30 34 3 4 6 24 1 4 29 26
2001 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse TM SE MP LR DT SP PO LS AT AT
1 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 257 $60,675 4 1 1 2 1 3 15 5 3 4
2 Neal Sapp BMW 325is 216 49,900 2 23 8 25 3 1 1 10 1 1
3 Steve Pfeffer BMW 328is 199 28,700 1 3 4 13 38 2 8 16 4 8
4 Ken Dobson BMW 328ci 197 22,800 10 13 7 9 8 13 4 2 5 3
5 Will Turner BMW 328is 179 22,600 29 2 29 5 4 7 3 8 8 6
6 Don Salama BMW 328is 178 21,000 5 5 3 11 2 9 11 12 6 37
7 Hugh Plumb Acura Integra R 172 20,850 12 4 2 8 6 4 10 6 12 29
8 Terry McCarthy BMW 328is 146 17,000 7 8 5 3 10 DQ 5 3 - -
9 Roger Foo Honda Civic Si 134 17,675 11 11 32 41 13 6 12 1 13 15
10 Taz Harvey Honda Civic Si 121 18,100 9 25 10 32 9 5 2 7 36 38
2002 (Touring Car Class)
Ps. Driver Car Points Purse SE MP LR MO RA DC TR MP LS AT VI
1 Peter Cunningham Acura Integra R 255 $64,450 3 9 2 13 3 6 4 7 3 1 6
2 Pierre Kleinubing Acura Integra R 248 $66,800 1 3 1 8 2 34 34 8 2 2 1
3 Marc Kirberg(R) BMW 325is 205 $31,100 6 6 5 41 4 1 8 10 12 13 3
4 Ken Dobson BMW 325Ci 194 $35,900 2 1 4 48 32 17 2 5 6 7 17
5 Chuck Hemmingson Mazda Protege 192 $26,550 7 16 36 7 8 5 1 4 4 4 36
6 Will Turner BMW 325i 191 $34,600 9 2 45 1 6 2 28 3 15 32 8
7 Paul Bonaccorsi Mazda Protege 184 $32,600 16 7 6 2 1 35 16 1 5 16 31
8 Taz Harvey Honda Civic Si 167 $20,600 8 5 3 3 30 9 7 9 8 25 21
9 Mike Fitzgerald Lexus IS 300 159 $17,950 5 8 9 4 28 3 3 2 42 DS -
10 Shauna Marinus Mazda Protege 139 $16,075 41 18 39 5 5 8 10 26 16 5 5
Modified by Hooch'n at 12:51 PM 10/24/2007
Goot post 
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 12,098
Likes: 1
From: blavica
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (Jon D)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jon D »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You just made my posters worth more money.... thanks Andy 
</TD></TR></TABLE>
Come to the 12 hours of Sebring, get them signed and have them worth even more!!!
I know I'll be taking both of mine with me this year!!!
</TD></TR></TABLE>Come to the 12 hours of Sebring, get them signed and have them worth even more!!!
I know I'll be taking both of mine with me this year!!!
Trending Topics
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 11,340
Likes: 1
From: Homie dont, play that, USA
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (Dave_B)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Dave_B »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
Come to the 12 hours of Sebring, get them signed and have them worth even more!!!
I know I'll be taking both of mine with me this year!!!</TD></TR></TABLE>
They already are sucka
Come to the 12 hours of Sebring, get them signed and have them worth even more!!!
I know I'll be taking both of mine with me this year!!!</TD></TR></TABLE>
They already are sucka
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 3,316
Likes: 0
From: North Carolina
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (Hooch'n)
i remember seeing them in 01-02 or so at VIR.
i picked up a front bumper and lip from Kleinubings ITR that rolled. he ended up getting 1st place that weekend.
he even signed it for me.
i picked up a front bumper and lip from Kleinubings ITR that rolled. he ended up getting 1st place that weekend.
he even signed it for me.
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 8,201
Likes: 1
From: Notgrapebutgreat, S.C./N.C., USof A
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (Jon D)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jon D »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
They already are sucka </TD></TR></TABLE> Yeah, i have all the realtime posters...actually all the itr posters 
I know some people never saw those years......i was in college and went to Sebring/Toronto/Midohio/WatkinsGlen/VIR/ and others to watch them race.
Roger Foo
They already are sucka
</TD></TR></TABLE> Yeah, i have all the realtime posters...actually all the itr posters I know some people never saw those years......i was in college and went to Sebring/Toronto/Midohio/WatkinsGlen/VIR/ and others to watch them race.
Roger Foo
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 12,299
Likes: 0
From: selling YOU a Honda or Acura
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (baonest)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by baonest »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
i picked up a front bumper and lip from Kleinubings ITR that rolled. he ended up getting 1st place that weekend.
</TD></TR></TABLE>
I'm telling ya. Make a mold of that front splitter. I have $$$$ in hand.
i picked up a front bumper and lip from Kleinubings ITR that rolled. he ended up getting 1st place that weekend.
</TD></TR></TABLE>
I'm telling ya. Make a mold of that front splitter. I have $$$$ in hand.
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 3,316
Likes: 0
From: North Carolina
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (get RIGHT)
i believe it may be the complete lip, except for one end. but if the end is broken, i have the broken piece still on the bumper.
my friend suggesting i make a mold back when i first got it. i may actually look into it.
do i just look for some sort of fiberglass shop?
my friend suggesting i make a mold back when i first got it. i may actually look into it.
do i just look for some sort of fiberglass shop?
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 8,201
Likes: 1
From: Notgrapebutgreat, S.C./N.C., USof A
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (baonest)
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 8,201
Likes: 1
From: Notgrapebutgreat, S.C./N.C., USof A
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (get RIGHT)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by get RIGHT »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">LMAO. That kid cracks me up. </TD></TR></TABLE>
YES!!!! i can't get enough of the little dood......hahaha
</TD></TR></TABLE>YES!!!! i can't get enough of the little dood......hahaha
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 8,201
Likes: 1
From: Notgrapebutgreat, S.C./N.C., USof A
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 12,299
Likes: 0
From: selling YOU a Honda or Acura
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (Hooch'n)
I can't either. I have walked around for weeks, "put em in the wall, messes with me. put em wall." I think it's hillarious.
being a nascar fan doesn't hurt either.
being a nascar fan doesn't hurt either.
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 8,201
Likes: 1
From: Notgrapebutgreat, S.C./N.C., USof A
Re: RealTime Type R Facts/Results/Champs 97-01! (get RIGHT)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by get RIGHT »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I can't either. I have walked around for weeks, "put em in the wall, messes with me. put em wall." I think it's hillarious.
being a nascar fan doesn't hurt either.</TD></TR></TABLE>
nascar sucks, but i like the nascar style of puttum in the wall
being a nascar fan doesn't hurt either.</TD></TR></TABLE>
nascar sucks, but i like the nascar style of puttum in the wall
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
powerfulperformance
Vehicles for sale
2
Feb 3, 2009 12:41 PM
