This ’65 Shelby GT350R Prototype, 5R002, was the first Shelby R-Model competition car built – and the first to race.
Not only that, but it won on its debut. Well, its driver was the hugely talented Ken Miles, who claimed the spoils in 5R002 on Valentine’s Day 1965 at the Green Valley Raceway near Dallas, Texas.
Other famous faces to have raced it include Bob Bondurant, Chuck Cantwell, Peter Brock and Jerry Titus.
It also served as a rolling test bed for ideas and component development, Miles and Cantwell reputedly putting as many as 50,000 milles in behind the wheel, and it’s the car shown to motorsport’s governing body the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile) for homologation for SCCA B Production class racing in 1965 – it’s illustrated in the official homologation paperwork.
And if that wasn’t enough, this was the car used to introduce the GT350 to the media. You can read its full story here.
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Lizzie Pope
Lizzie Pope is Classic & Sports Car’s Associate Editor
