Just two weeks ago at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, Butch Leitzinger took his place in HSR victory lane after co-driving to an HSR Classic Endurance Championship presented by Mission Foods second-place finish.
This weekend, Leitzinger – the IMSA racing legend who is now a regular in HSR – returns to MRRA to now take his place in the IMSA Hall of Fame in this weekend’s 4th Annual Induction Celebration framed around Motul Petit Le Mans.
The second-generation driving star, who follows in the footsteps of his championship-winning father Bob Leitzinger, is a two-time Petit Le Mans class winner, a three-time Rolex 24 At Daytona overall winner and a two-time IMSA WSC Champion. He has built a résumé worthy of the IMSA Hall of Fame, but the honor still came as a pleasant surprise.
“It means the world,” Leitzinger said. “It was very unexpected. I was a little bit worried that Mark Raffauf was pranking me a little bit or something, but it makes me step back a bit because the people that are going to be on the stage with me are people that I have so much respect for. Some of them I just grew up idolizing.”
Leitzinger feels a little bit of idol worship of his own coming his way these days as a frequent and regular competitor over the last decade in HSR, often winning at the wheel of such iconic prototypes as the Audi R8 LMP1, Pescarolo 01 Judd LMP1 and the Cadillac Dallara DPi.
The Pennsylvania-born veteran now regularly shares the cockpit of the 2017 No. 81 Cadillac DPi with Mission Foods President Juan Gonzalez and Gonzalez’s nephew,
Roberto Gonzalez. The No. 81 trio remained in podium contention throughout the recent HSR Road Atlanta Classic 10 Hour presented by Mission Foods, September 19 – 20, ultimately earning a second-place finish in Group D.
“One of the things I love about HSR and historic racing is that you can still enjoy the feel of driving these cars, but there isn’t all the pressure around it. You’re able to actually enjoy it a little bit more than having to worry about tenths of a second. At the end of the day, you can have a beer and have a laugh with everyone. It’s just nice to be able to spend time with everyone, old friends and people that are still at the top of their abilities but now have the chance to enjoy it a little bit more.”
The recent Classic 10 Hour also gave Leitzinger the opportunity to think about what was to come with this weekend’s prestigious honor. He and his fellow Class of 2026 inductees will be formally ushered into the IMSA Hall during Sunday’s Induction brunch at Chateau Elan and lauded later that evening at the WeatherTech Night of Champions awards ceremony.
“Honestly, I’ve been thinking about it a lot,” Leitzinger said. “I kept thinking last month at the track, well, this is where I’m going to be in a few weeks. I’m bringing my family down, I was planning things out, and being there kind of brought it front and center a little bit more than it probably would have if I wasn’t here.”
Leitzinger will join a distinguished group in this year’s Hall of Fame class, including Bill Auberlen, Lyn St. James, Hans-Joachim Stuck, Brian Redman and Roger Mandeville. Also honoring the sport’s legendary machines, four notable sports cars in IMSA’s history will also be enshrined in the Hall.
Next up on the HSR calendar is the HSR Daytona Classic 24 Hour presented by Mission Foods and the HSR Daytona Historics, November 11 – 15, at Daytona International Speedway.
