The paths of Martini, the Italian vintner, and famed sportscar maker Porsche crossed in December, 1970. Martini was interested in contesting the 1971 World Championship with a Porsche 917.
As it turns out, the partnership would result in great success. Martini and Porsche turned their attention to racing 911-based models when the 917 was eliminated from competition in 1972 due to rule changes.
Rolf Stommelen and Manfred Schurti teamed up for three out of seven rounds of the 1976 Group 5 Championship for Makes. Driving the very handsome Martini-liveried Porsche 935, the duo were unable to finish the Nürburgring 1000km when a distributor failed only 9 laps into the event. At the second last race of the season, a 6-Hour event at Watkins Glen, the pair finished third.
Manfred Schurti on his way to earning critical points at Dijon, France.
The Championship battle still came down to the final 6-Hour race at Dijon where Ickx and Mass by themselves could not have earned Porsche a title. It was the third place that Schurti and Stommelen earned, driving car #3, providing the critical points that secured the World Championship for Porsche!
The 1976 World Championship marked the arrival of the greatest competition machine ever made. The Porsche 935 would earn countless victories in races and on tracks of every description, from sprints to 24-hour endurance races at Daytona and Le Mans!