Need for Weed
Written by Jack Passey | 6th September 2024 | Car Tales
The “International Marijuana Smugglers Association” or, to most of you out there, The IMSA (International Motor Sports Association). A nickname that the organization would struggle to shake for years, all because of two wealthy brothers with an itch to go racing. Reaching for Le Mans, IMSA and finally ending with Indiecar before the pair would plead guilty to a myriad of charges. Unlike Walter White, Don and Bill Whittington started breaking bad.
In 1979 the Kremer Racing Team were top of the pack, running a fleet of Porsche’s 935 K3’s. Erwin Kremer and the team were not looking for new drivers, with the fastest car in the field you have your pick of the litter; so how do two unknown Sunday drivers end up starting and even winning the ‘79 Le Mans outing? Simple really - it still happens today; money. A lot of money.
Initially, the two brothers were not looking for a car, let alone a team. Just two open seats to allow them to compete in that year's Le Mans. Naturally searching for the unfair advantage they flew to France and approached Erwin Kremer, offering $20,000 each in cash for their seats (so nearly 100k in today's money). Despite the offer on the table, the deal very nearly collapsed. Erwin’s terms were that Klaus Ludwig would start the race, a fair assumption right? I mean it is the man's car after all. But as is the risk with endurance racing, the further back in the queue you happen to be, the less chance you have of getting behind the wheel. As a last ditch effort for the brothers to drive the car they asked what it would take to be first. Nothing was going to sway Kremer’s decision, so he jokingly responded with “buy the car… for $200,000”. Game over… the response was deafening and immediate “go into the trailer and collect $200,000 and not a penny more from the duffel bag”. Now to show the seriousness of this offer Erwin had already been offering the car for sale at the time for far less and the price was an obvious inflation. This is the equivalent of me walking into the office of Andreas Seidl, buying his Porsche prototype and going to Le Mans myself.
So having spent nearly $1million in today's money, the brothers would be starting that year's Le Mans. More to the point (despite all the Group 6 cars) they had a trouble free run from start to finish, coming home to win the ‘79 Le Mans, whilst setting the record for the last car to win Le Mans not in the top class. Needless to say that for the brothers this is what we English call a “jolly”, in reality Ludwig would carry the efforts of the team on his shoulders. After the fantasy win, the brothers offered up yet more cash to buy Kremer’s two remaining 935 K3’s, and so begins our epic tale of the rise and fall of the Whittington Bros Racing Team.
So what do you do after your name has been thrust into motorsport legend? Buy Road-Atlanta road racing circuit of course. Now of course we can see the brothers were wealthy, properly rich. But no-one knew why, they could see the money, the cars, the girls. Everything. But neither of the two actually worked, and had no traceable family wealth. The purchase of Road-Atlanta was the first step to their lucrative “business model” taking off, as well as it’s demise.
The brothers started to diversify their racing team and driving disciplines, dipping their toes into IndyCar and NASCAR racing. Both brothers raced in five Indianapolis 500’s, with Don managing a best finish of sixth, with Bill in 14th. Don made 10 NASCAR starts, while Bill only made two, with both finishing with lack-luster results. Eventually jumping over to IMSA, where the tale for the brothers would draw to its inevitable close. Teaming up with Randy Lanier to form Blue Thunder Racing, the group would go on to take that year's IMSA championship.
Even the wealthy know the expense of racing. Motorsport is notorious for it, often with participants joking “How do you make a small fortune in racing? Start with a huge one”. They’re not wrong. So how do two brothers with no apparent income and a below-mediocre racing team finance this? Well if you’ve ever looked closely at racetracks, they all have in common a pit straight. If you really squint your eyes it starts to look awfully like a runway, what use is a runway to a race team? Nothing. To drug smugglers on the other hand, this is exceptionally helpful. No police. No air traffic control and most importantly no customs. The Whittingtons had purchased a for-hire plane company (which they still own to this day), regularly flying two planes in the dead of night in unison to the back straight of Road-Atlanta. Large areas of the circuit had been cordoned off from the public and prying eyes, with shipping containers stretching into the distance. It was rumored that if you looked closely, these containers can be seen on old race footage. If the rumors are true and you can see them, what you’re looking at is weed, devils lettuce, kush, whatever you wish to call it. An awful lot of it.
"My racing wasn't totally funded from running the grass. But it mostly was." - Don Whittington
Tons of drugs come with tons of cash. Dirty money. Using the team to wash their money through fake sponsorship, from their very own offshore shell companies. C.W. Cobb, a suntan lotion distributor that would later be found to be a shell company for a $300 million pot smuggling ring. They would even go as far to hire models to spray perfume on fans claiming it to be one of their sponsors' new products, for a company that didn’t exist, and using relabeled products from genuine brands.
With their success in IMSA interest increased in their financing amongst fellow racers and eventually the IRS, alongside the DEA. Introducing “Operation Sunburn”, so called after the known laundering through C.W. Cobb. However the operation would not last long, with such overwhelming evidence already collected. Come 1986 both brothers would plead guilty to charges of income tax evasion, money laundering, and conspiracy to smuggle cocaine from Columbia. Don Whittington received an 18-month prison sentence, while Bill was hit with 15 years. Also forfeiting $7 million in property — including the Kremer Porsche 935 K3, which was “loaned” to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Foundation museum. After their release the brothers sued the museum for rightful ownership of the legendary car, but after years of court proceedings the car was awarded to the museum, where it remains to this day. Fellow IMSA drivers Randy Lanier, John Paul Sr., and John Paul Jr. would also see prison time for their involvement in the operation.
Racing is a thrill, a ride that many of us simply can never obtain delivering huge levels of dopamine and adrenaline; however for the Whittington brothers they never raced again. Clearly smuggling delivers an even bigger dose as both currently run an aircraft company, which has been under investigation for multiple drug trafficking-related crimes.
Apparently crime doesn't pay, well racing pays even less.
