Bill Adam
Encyclopedia
Bill Adam is a Canadian racing driver born in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire
, Scotland.
Starting his career in sports cars toward the end of the 1970s, Adam drove as a privateer, winning a Canadian championship before being hired professionally. Invited to join the factory backed Group 44 race team in 1980, he spent time co-driving with Bob Tullius in the Triumph TR8
in the IMSA
series and had GTO class victories at the 12 Hours of Sebring
, Road Atlanta
, Mosport
, and Road America
, as well as a victory at Daytona
where he drove alone. In mid-1982, the team unveiled its Prototype Jaguar GTP racer
, and it finished 3rd at its first race ever at Road America. In the 1983 season, Adam and Tullius led almost every race but the car proved fragile, although it they did win Road Atlanta, Lime Rock, Mosport and Pocono races. In 1985, Adam joined Conte Racing, co driving with John Paul, Jr.
in the factory-backed March
GTP racer. Power came from a factory engine program at Buick
, a V-6 turbo motor that put out in excess of 1000HP. Unfortunately, the power of this engine was more than the chassis could handle and it led almost every race, but broke down in almost every race. Following years were spent with Bayside Racing from Seattle, Washington in their Porsche 962
GTP racer, as well as the Hendricks Motorsport Chevrolet Corvette
GTP racer. 1986 & 1987 were also spent in the Rothmans Porsche Cup in Canada with numerous victories as well as winning a prestigious Porsche Cup award, something given out to the worlds' top Porsche racers. At the 1987 24 Hours of Le Mans
, driving a Porsche 962C for Porsche Canada/Brun Motorsport
, Adam teamed with Scott Goodyear
and Richard Spenard, running as high as 5th overall before stopping with engine problems. One season was spent with the Protofab race team, racing a factory backed effort in both Camaro and Corvette race cars before spending a few years out of motorsport. 1994 saw Adam return to racing, driving the Champion Racing Porsche. Along with co-drivers including John Paul, Jr., Juan Manuel Fangio II
, Brian Redman
, and Thierry Boutsen
, he had a second place finish at the Sebring 12 Hour with Hans-Joachim Stuck in 1995 and second place at Watkins Glen International
. He would return in 1996 with Stuck to win the 12 hour Sebring GT1 class. In 1997, he placed 2nd in class, again with Stuck and Boutsen, at the 24 Hours of Daytona.
In 2002 Adam drove two races of the Porsche Supercup
at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
on United States Grand Prix
weekend, placing 11th and 13th. The following year he was driving the number 23 Porsche 911 twice, in the Grand-Am Motorola Cup. He qualified the car 2nd on the grid at Mont Tremblant.
Recently, Adam has been racing an Audi R8 (chassis 405) in the Historic Sports car Racing series, winning the Daytona WSC Enduro race in November 2005. In 2008, Bill Adam, driving for Jim Rogers, won the overall HSR Championship, placing first in four races and second in the other three in which he partook.
In 2010, Adam continued driving for Jim Rogers in a "new" Audi R8. This car, chassis 607, was unraced and used as a showcar by Audi, before being completely gone over by ex Champion crew chief Bobby Green. Teamed with Butch Leitzinger, Adam won the opening HSR race at Sebring for the teams first victory with this car. Road Atlanta and the "Mitty" followed, where teamed with Andy Wallace, they placed 2nd.
The rest of the year was complete domination by the Adam/Wallace team as they won at Road America, Wisconsin and followed with pole positions AND wins at Road Atlanta (September), Homestead Miami Speedway, and the Sebring finale, winning the HSR Championship.
Airdrie, North Lanarkshire
Airdrie is a town within North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It lies on a plateau roughly 400 ft above sea level, and is approximately 12 miles east of Glasgow city centre. Airdrie forms part of a conurbation with its neighbour Coatbridge, in the former district known as the Monklands. As of 2006,...
, Scotland.
Starting his career in sports cars toward the end of the 1970s, Adam drove as a privateer, winning a Canadian championship before being hired professionally. Invited to join the factory backed Group 44 race team in 1980, he spent time co-driving with Bob Tullius in the Triumph TR8
Triumph TR8
The Triumph TR8 is an eight-cylinder version of the "wedge-shaped" Triumph TR7 sports car, designed by Harris Mann, and manufactured by British Leyland , through its Jaguar/Rover/Triumph division. Because of its outstanding performance, the TR8 was often dubbed the "English Corvette"...
in the IMSA
International Motor Sports Association
The International Motor Sports Association is an American sports car auto racing sanctioning body based in Braselton, Georgia. It was started by John Bishop, a former employee of SCCA , and his wife Peggy in 1969 with help from Bill France, Sr...
series and had GTO class victories at the 12 Hours of Sebring
12 Hours of Sebring
The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, a former Army Air Force base in Sebring, Florida...
, Road Atlanta
Road Atlanta
Road Atlanta is a 2.54-mile road course located just north of Braselton, Georgia, USA. The facility is utilized for a wide variety of events, including professional and amateur sports car and motorcycle races, racing and driving schools, corporate programs and testing for motorsports teams...
, Mosport
Mosport
Mosport International Raceway is a multi-track facility located north of Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada. The facility features a , 10-turn road course; a half-mile paved oval; a 2.4 km advance driver and race driver training facility with a quarter-mile skid pad Mosport International Raceway...
, and Road America
Road America
Road America is a road course located near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin on Wisconsin Highway 67. It has hosted races since the 1950s and currently hosts races in the NASCAR Nationwide Series , American Le Mans , SCCA Speed World Challenge Series, ASRA, and AMA Superbike series.- Current track and...
, as well as a victory at Daytona
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, one of the most prestigious races in NASCAR. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races of ARCA, AMA Superbike, Grand-Am and Motocross...
where he drove alone. In mid-1982, the team unveiled its Prototype Jaguar GTP racer
Jaguar XJR Sportscars
The Jaguar XJR Sportscars were a series of race cars used by Jaguar-backed teams in both the World Sportscar Championship Group C and the IMSA Camel GTP series between 1984 and 1993.-History:...
, and it finished 3rd at its first race ever at Road America. In the 1983 season, Adam and Tullius led almost every race but the car proved fragile, although it they did win Road Atlanta, Lime Rock, Mosport and Pocono races. In 1985, Adam joined Conte Racing, co driving with John Paul, Jr.
John Paul, Jr.
John Lee Paul, Jr. is a former race car driver in CART and the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series and winner of the 1982 12 Hours of Sebring while co-driving with his father John Paul, Sr....
in the factory-backed March
March Engineering
March Engineering was a Formula One constructor and manufacturer of customer racing cars from the United Kingdom. Although only moderately successful in Grand Prix competition, March racing cars enjoyed much better achievement in other categories of competition including Formula Two, Formula Three,...
GTP racer. Power came from a factory engine program at Buick
Buick
Buick is a premium brand of General Motors . Buick models are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, Taiwan, and Israel, with China being its largest market. Buick holds the distinction as the oldest active American make...
, a V-6 turbo motor that put out in excess of 1000HP. Unfortunately, the power of this engine was more than the chassis could handle and it led almost every race, but broke down in almost every race. Following years were spent with Bayside Racing from Seattle, Washington in their Porsche 962
Porsche 962
The Porsche 962 was a sports-prototype racing car built by Porsche as a replacement for the 956 and designed mainly to comply with IMSA's GTP regulations, although it would later compete in the European Group C formula as the 956 had...
GTP racer, as well as the Hendricks Motorsport Chevrolet Corvette
Chevrolet Corvette
The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car by the Chevrolet division of General Motors that has been produced in six generations. The first model, a convertible, was designed by Harley Earl and introduced at the GM Motorama in 1953 as a concept show car. Myron Scott is credited for naming the car after...
GTP racer. 1986 & 1987 were also spent in the Rothmans Porsche Cup in Canada with numerous victories as well as winning a prestigious Porsche Cup award, something given out to the worlds' top Porsche racers. At the 1987 24 Hours of Le Mans
1987 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 1987 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 55th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 13 and 14 1987. It was also the fifth round of the 1987 World Sports-Prototype Championship.-Track alterations:...
, driving a Porsche 962C for Porsche Canada/Brun Motorsport
Brun Motorsport
Brun Motorsport GmbH was a Swiss auto racing team founded by driver Walter Brun in 1983. They competed as a Porsche privateer team in sports car racing for their entire existence, running in a multitude of international championships. They notably won the World Sportscar Championship in 1986 and...
, Adam teamed with Scott Goodyear
Scott Goodyear
Scott Goodyear is a former race car driver from Newmarket, Ontario, Canada. Goodyear ran the IRL and Champ Car series during his career from 1987, winning the Michigan 500 in 1992 and 1994...
and Richard Spenard, running as high as 5th overall before stopping with engine problems. One season was spent with the Protofab race team, racing a factory backed effort in both Camaro and Corvette race cars before spending a few years out of motorsport. 1994 saw Adam return to racing, driving the Champion Racing Porsche. Along with co-drivers including John Paul, Jr., Juan Manuel Fangio II
Juan Manuel Fangio II
Juan Manuel Fangio II is a former auto racing champion and the nephew of legendary auto racer Juan Manuel Fangio....
, Brian Redman
Brian Redman
Brian Herman Thomas Redman is a British racing driver from England....
, and Thierry Boutsen
Thierry Boutsen
Thierry Marc Boutsen is a former racing driver who raced for the Arrows, Benetton, Williams, Ligier and Jordan teams in Formula One.-Career:thumb|left|Boutsen driving for [[Arrows]] at the [[1984 Dallas Grand Prix]]....
, he had a second place finish at the Sebring 12 Hour with Hans-Joachim Stuck in 1995 and second place at Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International
Watkins Glen International is an auto race track located near Watkins Glen, New York, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. The facility is owned by International Speedway Corporation...
. He would return in 1996 with Stuck to win the 12 hour Sebring GT1 class. In 1997, he placed 2nd in class, again with Stuck and Boutsen, at the 24 Hours of Daytona.
In 2002 Adam drove two races of the Porsche Supercup
Porsche Supercup
The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup is the international motor racing series supporting the FIA Formula One World Championship organized by Porsche AG....
at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway, located in Speedway, Indiana in the United States, is the home of the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race and the Brickyard 400....
on United States Grand Prix
United States Grand Prix
The United States Grand Prix is a motor race which has been run on and off since 1908, when it was known as the American Grand Prize. The race later became part of the Formula One World Championship. Over 41 editions, the race has been held at nine locations, most recently in 2007 at the...
weekend, placing 11th and 13th. The following year he was driving the number 23 Porsche 911 twice, in the Grand-Am Motorola Cup. He qualified the car 2nd on the grid at Mont Tremblant.
Recently, Adam has been racing an Audi R8 (chassis 405) in the Historic Sports car Racing series, winning the Daytona WSC Enduro race in November 2005. In 2008, Bill Adam, driving for Jim Rogers, won the overall HSR Championship, placing first in four races and second in the other three in which he partook.
In 2010, Adam continued driving for Jim Rogers in a "new" Audi R8. This car, chassis 607, was unraced and used as a showcar by Audi, before being completely gone over by ex Champion crew chief Bobby Green. Teamed with Butch Leitzinger, Adam won the opening HSR race at Sebring for the teams first victory with this car. Road Atlanta and the "Mitty" followed, where teamed with Andy Wallace, they placed 2nd.
The rest of the year was complete domination by the Adam/Wallace team as they won at Road America, Wisconsin and followed with pole positions AND wins at Road Atlanta (September), Homestead Miami Speedway, and the Sebring finale, winning the HSR Championship.
External links
- Cars that Adam has driven from Racing Sports Cars
- Bill Adam at Driver Database