The1981 World Sportscar Championship season was the 29th season ofFIAWorld Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1981 FIA World Endurance Championship which was contested over a fifteen race series which ran from 31 January to 27 September.[1] The former World Challenge for Endurance Drivers was renamed to the World Endurance Championship of Drivers for 1981 and the World Championship of Makes was renamed to the World Endurance Championship of Makes.Bob Garretson won the World Endurance Championship of Drivers andLancia was awarded the World Endurance Championship of Makes.[1]
World Endurance Championship of Drivers was contested over all fifteen races however only six of the races counted towards the World Endurance Championship of Makes.[1]
| Drivers Rd. | Makes Rd. | Race | Circuit | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 |  24 HoursPepsi Challenge | Daytona International Speedway | 31 January 1 February |
| 2 | - | Coca-Cola12 Hours of Sebring | Sebring International Raceway | 21 March |
| 3 | - |  Mugello 6 Hours | Mugello Circuit | 12 April |
| 4 | 2 | 1000km Monza | Autodromo Nazionale Monza | 26 April |
| 5 | - | Los Angeles TimesToyotaGrand Prix (6 Hours) | Riverside International Raceway | 26 April |
| 6 | 3 |  Silverstone 6 Hours | Silverstone Circuit | 10 May |
| 7 | 4 |  1000km Nürburgring | Nürburgring | 24 May |
| 8 | 5 |  24 Hours of Le Mans | Circuit de la Sarthe | 13 June 14 June |
| 9 | - | Coppa Florio (6 Hours) | Autodromo di Pergusa | 28 June |
| 10 | - | 6 Hours of Daytona Champion Spark Plug Challenge | Daytona International Speedway | 2 July |
| 11 | 6 | 6 Hours of Watkins Glen | Watkins Glen International | 12 July |
| 12 | - |  24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps | Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps | 26 July 27 July |
| 13 | - |  Molson 1000 Kilometres (6 Hours) | Mosport Park | 16 August |
| 14 | - | Pabst500 Miles | Road America | 23 August |
| 15 | - | Flying Tigers 1000 Kilometres | Brands Hatch | 27 September |
Although various classes of cars contested the championship races, only the overall race winners are listed in the table below.
The World Endurance Championship of Drivers was open to FIAGroup 1,Group 2,Group 3,Group 4,Group 5,Group 6,Group C and GTP cars and toIMSA GTX, IMSA GTP, IMSA AAGT, IMSA GTO, IMSA GTU and IMSA RS cars.[3]
Drivers Championship points were awarded on a 20-19-18-17-16-15-14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis to the first twenty overall finishers at each round.[3]Bonus points were also awarded as follows:[3]
Only half points were awarded at the shortenedNürburgring round.[3] All points scored were retained towards the championship totals.[3]
A total of 371 drivers scored points in the 1981 World Endurance Championship of Drivers.[5]
The World Endurance Championship of Makes was open FIAGroup 1,Group 2,Group 3,Group 4 andGroup 5 cars and toIMSA GTX cars.[3]
Cars from all eligible groups were combined, and then divided into two Divisions based on engine capacity.[3]Points were awarded on a 20-15-12-10-8-6-4-3-2-1 basis for the top ten places in each Division at each race.[7]Only the best placed car of each make in each division at each race was eligible to score points.[3]Cars from groups not included in the championship (e.g. FIA Group 6 cars) were disregarded when assessing divisional positions for championship purposes.Only half points were awarded for the shortened Nurburgring race.[3]The best five round results could be retained by each make.[3]
The overall World Endurance Championship of Makes title was won byLancia.[1] Although both Lancia and Porsche scored 100 points from their best five class results, Lancia was awarded the title based on its six divisional victories against the five scored byPorsche .[1]
| Pos | Manufacturer | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | Rd 4 | Rd 5 | Rd 6 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Porsche | 20 | 20 | 20 | (7.5) | 20 | 20 | 100 |
| 2 | BMW | 8 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 4 | 52 | |
| 3 | Ferrari | 3 | 15 | 15 | ||||
| 4 | Lancia | 6 | 6 | |||||
| 5 | Morgan | 2 | 2 |
| Pos | Manufacturer | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | Rd 4 | Rd 5 | Rd 6 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lancia | 20 | 20 | 20 | (10) | 20 | 20 | 100 |
| 2 | BMW | 15 | 7.5 | 22.5 | ||||
| 3 | Opel | 5 | 5 | |||||
| 4 | Ford | 4 | 4 | |||||
| 5 |  Toyota | 2 | 2 | |||||
| 6 | Alfa Romeo | 0.5 | 0.5 |
