John Mecom showed up for the Speedweek in 1964 with his impressive stable of matching blue and white striped race cars. The most imposing of the group was Grand Sport 003, wearing the audacious double-zero. Mecom was hoping to repeat his 1963 success!
Stock car driver Jack Saunders, an unknown racing pilot by international standards, put Mecom's lovely blue Grand Sport Coupe on the front row for the main event: the 250-mile Nassau Trophy Race. He even out-dragged Roger Penske into the first corner and under the bridge, running neck-and-neck with Ken Miles' experimental 390 ci aluminum block Cobra! Eventually Penske got by Saunders, but the young Californian had shown his mettle.
After defending successfully against the attacks of Ferrari 250LMs and Ford GT40s, Saunders' Grand Sport suffered mechanical trouble that ended his race early. A similar fate became the Grand Sport during the 100-mile Governor's Cup Race.