Compelling in the showroom and impressive on the street, the 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray was also a competition contender—especially if you checked the right options boxes. The objective of this Corvette’s first owner, Steven Hull of Indiana, was racing: For his Daytona Blue over Saddle leather Sting Ray Coupe, he selected the most potent, 360-horsepower fuel-injected V-8, matched with a four-speed manual transmission and Positraction rear axle.

Relatively few buyers chose this $430.40 engine, but even fewer—just 199—selected RPO code Z06. For $1,293.35, it added “Special Performance Equipment” including larger shocks and springs, larger-diameter front sway bar, and heavy-duty finned drum brakes with sintered linings and a unique dual-circuit master cylinder. Its cost was offset, slightly, by a $100 credit from the heater delete.

Per historical documentation and NCRS research, this Sting Ray was completed on 20 February and sold to Hull on 6 March via Kurdys Chevrolet of Richmond, Indiana. As it was destined for the racetrack, Hull signed a statement for the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles in late 1963 indicating that it would not be used on public roads; four subsequent owners would do the same. Research on file tells of an active racing career in the Great Lakes region that would last across its first four owners and take it to notable tracks including Mid-Ohio, Waterford, and Nelson Ledges, retiring after a 1974 wreck during an SCCA event in Britton, Michigan.

Under prior ownership, this rare Corvette was completely restored in its factory-correct colors by Nabors Brothers of Houston, Texas beginning in 2012; it is one of only three Z06 examples known to have been finished in Daytona Blue over Saddle Leather. Seldom-seen “two-bar” Kelsey Hayes knock-off wheels complete its wonderful, period-correct appearance. In November 2016, the car received the Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals Triple Diamond award—recognition that it had previously achieved three coveted honors: National Corvette Certification Board Bloomington Gold certification (2013), National Corvette Restorers Society Top Flight Award (2015), and Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals Concours Gold (2016). Further honors include a Santa Fe Concorso class award (2013), a Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance Palmetto Award (2014), and an Atlanta Concours d’Elegance Best in Class win (2017).

The Sting Ray has continued to benefit from high-quality care as needed. In June 2018, its numbers-matching engine was rebuilt by Performance Specialties, Inc. of Birmingham, Alabama, and it is said to have been driven just 20 miles following break-in on a dynamometer. In 2019 its Rochester fuel-injection system was overhauled by specialist Jack Podell of South Bend, Indiana. Invoices for both jobs accompany the sale, as do photos of its earlier restoration.

With single-year “split-window” styling, racing provenance and a known history from new, a selection of highly desirable options, and an award-winning restoration, this 1963 Corvette Sting Ray Z06 would be a fitting acquisition for an enthusiast of American performance.