The cars and equipment of the previous year's successful Porsche Salzburg team was purchased for the Martini Racing Team by "Conte" Gregorio Rossi di Montelera (of the Martini & Rossi company). They entered three cars – a long-tail for Vic Elford/Gérard Larrousse (winners at Sebring and the Nürburgring) and a magnesium-alloy chassis short-tail for Gijs van Lennep/Helmut Marko. (JWA was not offered these experimental options) The third was an experimental short-tail version. The 917/20 was built as a test-bed for future Can-Am parts and aerodynamic low-drag concepts. Shorter and much wider than the 917K, it was designed and tested by Robert Choulet and the SERA wind tunnel, after their other work on the 917. Nicknamed “the Pig” by the company, it was driven by Reinhold Joest/Willi Kauhsen. Following up the psychedelic paintjob of their car the previous year Martini, with tongue in cheek, had the chunky car painted in pink for the race with names of pieces of meat written across it.