Before there was Corvette, sports cars were largely a European specialty. Innovative racers were keen to transplant muscular American engines into the typically small and light European cars, or when they couldn’t afford that they often built their own cars! GM recognized the growing market early on, and created the Corvette in response.
Following in the path of burned rubber left by the mighty Corvette Grand Sport, it was only natural that the Sting Ray in competition spec would prove a dangerous weapon. On the track, the Sting Ray was remarkably true to the street car, and as a result every victory stung just that much more with the teams who invested so much in their exotic machinery, only to lose to a car that looked like it just left a local GM showroom!