Scott Pruett was leading the Sunchaser 1000 in the final 30 laps on the verge of a record eighth major sports car title when he was punted from behind by the #99 Jon Fogarty, cutting Pruett’s tire and giving Fogarty and teammate Alex Gurney a controversial Daytona Prototype championship.
Pruett was in the lead and needed to make only a quick stop-and-go pit stop, while the other championship contenders would need to make full pit-stops and a driver change when Fogarty’s right front hit Pruett’s left rear, cutting a tire on the #01 TELMEX Lexus and knocking him off the track. Despite Pruett falling more than a minute down and five positions behind the #99, Pruett passed four cars, finally passing the #99 after a slight tap while the #99 was being passed for position by Oswaldo Negri. It appeared for a moment that Pruett had done the impossible and reclaimed the championship before a questionable call by Grand-Am officials declared that the second contact between the #01 and the #99 to be “avoidable” despite the fact that the #99 had only a slight bobble.
“Cheap shot, a big cheap shot,” said Pruett. “He (Fogarty) just came in and cleaned me out right on my back end. Congratulations to Bob Stallings, but the drivers there have no class. And then I’m coming up on the inside of the #99 and we rubbed a little bit and I get called for avoidable contact. I just think it was a call that shouldn’t have been made. He didn’t get off, he got a little off-line, but no harm, no foul. A disappointing end. I expected a lot more out of those guys, but stupid people do stupid things.”
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