A racer himself, Zora Arkus-Duntov – the “Godfather of the Corvette” – understood the value of creating purpose-built racing cars instead of modifying production cars for competition. Twice, Duntov stood ready to launch specially prepared racing Corvettes, but both attempts were thwarted by GM executives. For a limited time, these “Stealth Fighter” Corvettes – the 1957 SS and the 1963 Grand Sport – will be displayed together at The Revs Institute in Naples, Florida.

Focused on development of Corvette road cars, Duntov initially showed no interest in building a Corvette-based sports racer to compete against the likes of the Aston Martin DBR-1, the Jaguar D-Type and the Maserati 300S. It was Harley Earl who kicked off the program by borrowing a D-Type from Jack Ensley and parking it in GM’s Research Studio, tasking designers with creating a copy that looked “more like a Corvette,” powered by a V-8 instead of an inline six.

Rare Corvette concepts on display at The Revs Institute in Naples, Florida.