Prepped for the 2026 Mille Miglia in Italy, Team Zora USA’s SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE rocks at Corvettes on the Circle!
Competitive Historic racer Michael Moss – Lola T70 & Gurney Eagle – wins Class and Favorite Car “gold” with his SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE at the 26th Annual Skyway Corvette Club’s Corvettes on the Circle show on May 3rd. Held at St. Armands Circle, Sarasota, FL, this year’s show hosted more than 175 Corvettes spanning eight generations of America’s sports cars.
Team Zora USA and the SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE celebrate the Corvette’s legacy of excelling on the world stage of racing for decades. The team’s mission is to honor the legacy of Zora Arkus-Duntov by competing in 1000 Miglia events, including the 2026 Mille Miglia in Italy.
Mike Moss conceived Team Zora USA with friend and teammate Martyn Schorr – author, founding editor of VETTE Magazine, and a friend of Zora during the 1960s-1970s. Its mission: Competing in 1000 Miglia events and paying tribute to the Godfather of the Corvette. Even though a Corvette did not participate in the original Mille Miglia between 1953 and 1957, Corvette is on the 1000 Miglia Guest List of Approved Cars because of its historical significance. Team Zora USA’s ’57 FI Corvette has been issued a FIVA (Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens) ID Card, issued for historically-correct vehicles competing in international events like those sanctioned by 1000 MIGLIA S.R.L.
A longtime competitor in HSR & SVRA Historic road racing, Moss has driven a variety of vehicles, from a B/SP Corvette Sting Ray to a Lola T70 Mark IIIB (432 cubic-inch Dart/Chevy) and the ex-Peter Revson Can-Am Lola T163 (513 cubic-inch fuel-injected Dart aluminum engine).
He also owns and races a trio of important, vintage Indy 500 racecars. Two are powered by Ford quad-cam V-8s: 1966 Gerhardt 66, naturally-aspirated Ford, driven by Gordon Johncock, and a 1969 Dan Gurney Santa Ana Eagle, turbocharged Ford, driven by Denny Hulme and Swede Savage. A turbocharged Offy powers the third, a 1969 Mongoose driven by Bill Vukovich. RM Motorsports, Wixom, MI supports his racing efforts.
The Venetian Red with Shoreline Beige coves, dashboard, and interior trim, with red upholstery, SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE is powered by the highest performance engine – RPO-579C, 283 cubic inches, 283 horsepower – available in 1957. It’s fitted with Rochester Ramjet Fuel-Injection, Sebring dual filter-element air cleaner, and Duntov solid-lifter .393/.399-inch-lift, 287/287 degree-duration camshaft, and lightweight valve train. An RPO-685 B-W close-ratio four-speed and RPO-677 Positraction 3:70:1 rear complete the powertrain.
Its original chassis sports RPO-684 HD suspension, brakes, and fast 16.4:1 steering. Steel wheels are RPO-276 15×5.5-inch-wide, fitted with Dunlop CR65 Vintage Racing #204 compound 600L-15 tires. A column-mounted 8,000-rpm (RPO-579D engine option) AC mechanical tach and Radio Delete Block-Off plate distinguish it from typical street-driven Corvettes. Mechanical race-prep was executed by Tony Pardo and his team at RM Motorsports. Local Corvette specialist, Bo Martin at Martin Autobody, Bradenton, FL, detailed and buffed out the Venetian Red paint and painted the Shoreline Beige coves and interior panels.
In addition to Moss, a longtime supporter of the National Corvette Museum, and Schorr, Team Zora USA includes John Cutrone and Kenneth W. “Ken” Kayser, above, Bob Elkins photo. Cutrone is the Team Manager as well as a Cultural Attaché to Italian Food & Wine Festivals. He will be handling hospitality and logistics support for the Mille Miglia and other events in Italy. Kayser is the team’s Corvette Racing Historian. He’s a retired career GM and Chevrolet engineer, Rochester Fuel Injection expert, author, and President of Tachometer Publishing. He’s written and published The History of GM’s Ramjet Fuel Injection on Chevrolet’s V-8 Engine and its Corvette Racing Pedigree, and several books on the Corvette and Zora Arkus-Duntov. Team members are also members of Sarasota Café Racers.
The next event for the SPIRIT OF ZORA ’57 CORVETTE FUELIE will be The Corvette Story, Speed-Style-Legacy Show at the Saratoga Automobile Museum, Saratoga Springs, NY. It will share space with historic high-performance Corvettes, racecars, one of the five Grand Sports, and iconic Corvette Concept Cars from GM’s Heritage Collection, including the legendary Mako Shark and Manta Ray. For more information, please visit https://www.saratogaautomuseum.org/current-exhibitions
Check out the hosts of the 26th Annual Corvettes on the Circle Show, the Skyway Corvette Club, @ https://skywaycorvetteclub.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?page_id=0&club_id=475459
Ken Kayser’s books on Corvette history, Ramjet Fuel Injection, and Zora Arkus-Duntov are available @ https://www.tachometerpublishing.com/
