1980 PORSCHE 911 SC

A few weeks after Jean-Pierre Nicolas' victory in 1978's Monta-Carlo Rally with the 911 Carrera RS 3.0, Porsche presented its successor in the FIA's Group 3 and 4 categories, having already replaced it ‘on the road’. The new car was the 911 SC, sharing many features with the Carrera RS, including its 3-litre engine. However, its official participation in the World Rally Championship was sporadic and limited to just a few races, which meant that Porsche was unable to compete for the Manufacturers' title. Despite this, the car enjoyed notable successes during its four-year career, the last one claiming victory in the prestigious 1980 Tour de Corse.

The 911 Carrera SC made its debut in competition in the spring of 1978, with its first notable result finishing second in the Safari Rally with Vic Preston Jr. and John Lyall, just behind the Peugeot 504 of Jean-Pierre Nicolas. The following year, the most significant success was a victory in the Arctic Rally, a European Rally Championship (ERC) event, achieved by Finns Leo Kinnunen and Jussi Kuukkala, complementing the success of Bernard Béguin, who won the French championship title in a 911.

In 1980, the official Porsche Esso team only participated in the Monte Carlo Rally and the Tour de Corse. In the first event, Alain Coppier and Josépha Laloz finished ninth, while the other car, with Hannu Mikkola and Anne Hertz, dropped out due to transmission problems. Porsche took its revenge in Corsica when both cars managed to secure podium places. The highest position on the podium was claimed by Frenchmen Jean-Luc Thérier and Michel Vial, who, in their 911 SC, finally caught up with the Fiat 131 Abarth driven by specialists Walter Röhrl and Christian Geistdörfer, who only needed a second place to win the world title (in fact, they did not participate in the last two races in Great Britain and Ivory Coast). Third place went to Alain Coppier and Josépha Laloz.

[WITH THE 911 SC THÉRIER WINS THE TOUR DE CORSE]

Victory is not yet assured, even if the ascent suggests otherwise. After the first stage, the rankings are dominated by the Fiat 131 Abarth, only threatened by the Talbot and the Renault 5 Turbo.

Thérier's 911 is more than 6 minutes behind the leaders, but in the following stages, it catches up and returns to third place, ahead of Jean Ragnotti's Renault 5 Turbo and Bernard Darniche's 131 Abarth, which were delayed by breakdowns and accidents in the key stage of Saint Roch-Corte. Thérier managed to maintain the lead and hold off Röhrl, who had fought his way back up the rankings in stages 14 to 18. As always, alongside the two 911 SCs of the official team (the only ones entered in Group 4), numerous other Group 3 SCs (little more than production cars) lined up on the starting grid, with Christian Gardavot and Christian Audibert's car finishing seventh overall. In 1980, the 911 SC recorded further successes other than in the world championship, such as the Rally of Catalonia won by Spaniard Antonio Zanini, who triumphed again in the European Rally Championship that same year. In 1981, Frenchman Bernard Béguin also took second place in the Ypres Rally.

Jean-Luc Thérier had never driven a Porsche in a rally until the Tour de Corse. In the ten years prior to that, he had driven Alpine A110s, dominating the World Rally Championship in 1973, but only winning the Manufacturers' title, not the Drivers' title, and Toyota Celicas. During the 1980 season, Thérier competed in three World Championship events in addition to the Tour de Corse, alternating between the Toyota Celica 2000 GT and the Volkswagen Golf GTI. Despite his victory in Corsica, he had to settle for 12th place in the world rankings, even though the season brought him the satisfaction of winning the French gravel earth championship for the second consecutive time, a success to which he added the 1973 and 1982 championships on tarmac. In 1981, Thérier contested four rounds of the World Championship in the 911 SC, including the Monte Carlo Rally, the Tour de Corse, the Rally of Portugal and the Rally of San Remo, finishing with three withdrawals and one placement well outside the top positions.