Steve McQueen sits on the pit wall at Sebring in 1970, conferring with his crew chief, Haig Alltounian, while an admirer strains to see the movie star from an adjacent pit stall. Alltounian is telling McQueen that their car is now in first place in the 12-hour race, but Mario Andretti has been put in the second-place Ferrari 512 in hopes of chasing their Porsche down for the win. To counter this move, McQueen, with his helmet still on, made the decision to let his skilled co-driver, Peter Revson, take the last stint instead. Now, they wait to see if there is a chance he can hold off Andretti.
McQueen's film production company, Solar Productions, had entered a 3-liter Porsche 908 in the race as "research" for his next movie, Le Mans, scheduled to start filming in just a few months. The 908 was a very capable car in its class, but it was no match for the 5-liter Porsche 917s and Ferrari 512s, both entered by the factories and driven by the world's top drivers, many of whom also competed in Formula One.
McQueen was no stranger to motorsports. He had driven many races, including at Sebring in 1962. He was also an avid off-road motorcyclist. But he realized his limitations, and that is why Revson shared the cockpit with him. At this point in time, Revson was just beginning his upward trajectory; the next year, he would have a factory ride with McLaren in both IndyCar and Can-Am, winning the Can-Am championship in 1971. He would then add F1 to his schedule, winning two races in the 1973 season.
McQueen had an additional complication at Sebring in 1970. Two weeks before, he was competing in an off-road motorcycle race and broke his ankle. You can see part of the cast on his left (clutch) foot in this photo. Race promoter Alec Ulmann persuaded the medical director to give him a pass to race, as the star power of having McQueen — one of the biggest names in Hollywood at the time — was important for ticket sales.
Revson qualified the car in 15th place. McQueen took the 11 am start and just tried to stay out of trouble. Revson had given him good advice: "Listen, just run within 10 seconds of my lap times and that will be fine. The thing is consistency in a race like this. And, for heaven's sake, don't try to go faster than I do." Despite his physical handicap, McQueen would have driven almost half the race had it not been decided to let Revson do a double stint at the end.
As the race wore on, mechanical problems sidelined many competitors. The Gulf Porsche 917s started having problems with their front wheel hubs. The Ferraris began experiencing transmission problems. Mario went out around 9 pm, the same time the 917s retired, and transferred over to the second-place Ferrari. Suddenly, due to the attrition, Revson and McQueen's little 908 was in the lead!
But, alas, it was not meant to be. Andretti passed Revson in the final minutes only to have his fuel light come on. He raced into the pits (there were no speed limits in the pits back then!), and got a splash of gas just as Revson went by to take the lead again. Mario roared out and, in his words, "drove like a man possessed" to repass Revson and take the win by 23 seconds after racing for 12 hours. It was, for many years, the closest Sebring victory in history.
