It's a common misconception that Americans only know how to build cars that go fast in a straight line, or race cars that can only turn left. For the most part, America's roads are long, straight stretches, perfect for muscle cars with big engines and big horsepower. From a marketing standpoint, it makes sense that American car manufacturers should build more of those right?

But America has a rich racing heritage and has produced a number of legendary race cars that have made a name for themselves internationally by leaving the competition in their dust. Furthermore, over the years, more and more muscle cars have become track monsters themselves and have moved on from being one-trick ponies, just like the awesome Shelby Mustang GT350, for example. Here's a rundown of the 10 greatest American competition cars of all time.

10 Ford GT40

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Ford's most successful Le Mans winner, the GT40, may not just be one of America's greatest competition cars, but also one of the world's most famous race cars of all time. Everyone may have already seen the movie Ford vs. Ferrari racing movie that won two Oscars, but it's more than just a Hollywood box office story.

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It took the best and brightest minds to develop the GT40. Backed by one man's personal revenge, its four straight victories on the Circuit de la Sarthe cemented its status as an endurance racing legend.

RELATED: Here's What Everyone Forgot About The Ford GT40

9 Dodge Viper GTS-R

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One of the most recognizable and accomplished sports cars from the USA is the Viper GTS-R. Some of you may know this car from the Gran Turismo game, but most people don't know that it took a class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans three times in 1998, 1999, and 2000.

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Along with French team Oreca, Dodge developed the 8.0-liter V10 Viper into a competitive GT-class car, and swept the series championship in the FIA GT Championship from 1997 to 2002.

RELATED: Here's How Much A Classic Dodge Viper Is Worth Today

8 Chaparral 2J

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While it may be an odd-looking car, the Chaparral 2J was a groundbreaking vehicle, introducing to the world the use of fans to extract airflow from underneath the car and boosting downforce levels without the use of aerofoil wings. It earned the nickname 'fan car' due to its two fans at the back.

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Jim Hall's creation introduced the fan-powered ground effect in the CanAm series, and even though it wasn't successful, it set forth a new trail to blaze in increasing the aerodynamic efficiency of racecars for years to come.

RELATED: Looking Back At The Chaparral 2J

7 Shelby Cobra

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While it may have a chassis built by AC Cars, a British company, it took an American engine and an American race car driver to take the Cobra to legendary status.

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It would go down in history as one of the fastest production sports cars ever sold in America, as well as a motorsport legend, winning multiple SCCA titles, as well as a class win in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 12 Hours of Sebring.

6 Chevrolet Corvette C5-R

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After 45 years in production, GM finally took the Corvette racing in 1996 to prove one thing; that the C5-R is not just your ordinary muscle car, it is a real sports car, built to compete with the very best the world has to offer.

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General Motors was successful in achieving that feat, with wins in Sebring, Le Mans, and Daytona. The triple crown of endurance racing.

5 Hudson Hornet

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Immortalized in the Disney Pixar movie Cars, the Fabulous Hudson Hornet was the car to beat back when NASCAR used to really race stock cars in dirt ovals. From 1951 to 1954, this car was untouchable and won a significant number of races compared to its rivals.

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Its secret for its success lies in its unibody construction that made it lightweight, as well as having the lowest center of mass during its time, which gave it great handling characteristics.

4 Ford GT

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Fifty years after the first win of Ford in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the iconic GT nameplate returned to the legendary race track, and repeated its success by taking the LM GTE-class win in the 2016 endurance race.

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A further 18 endurance race wins soon followed over the course of a four-year campaign that culminated in the Petit Le Mans race in Atlanta. Ford further cemented the quality of their engines, as the new GT was powered by the same 3.5-liter V6 Ecoboost engine found in the F-150 pickup truck, albeit tuned for track use.

3 Gurney-Eagle Weslake Mk. I

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Designed and driven by motorsport legend Dan Gurney, the Gurney-Eagle Weslake Mk I participated in the 1967 Formula One season and won the Belgian Grand Prix, beating the likes of Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Jack Brabham, and Jackie Stewart, as well as established teams like Lotus and Ferrari.

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It used exotic materials such as magnesium and titanium to overcome the Eagle's weight disadvantage, and when the stars finally aligned for the Spa-Francorchamps race, Gurney became the only American to win a European Grand Prix using an American car.

2 Cunningham C4-R

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Briggs Cunningham designed the C4-R with one thing in mind; to win in the 24 Hours of Le Mans with an all-American racing team. Cunningham may have come up short in achieving that feat, but the all-American team found success in other motorsports events.

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Powered by a Chrysler engine, the C4-R found success in winning the 12 Hours of Sebring, and further top 5 places in the Le Mans endurance races added to the list of achievements that the car has garnered in its short three-year lifespan.

1 Shelby Daytona Coupe

shelby daytona coupe (gtsupreme)
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The Shelby Daytona Coupe was an evolution of the Cobra roadster built to take on Ferrari and its 250GTO in the GT class for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

shelby daytona coupe (pinterest)
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While the original Cobra flew on technical tracks, its aerodynamic drag meant it was a sitting duck on longer straights, which featured a lot on the Circuit de la Sarthe. With that in mind, Carroll Shelby made Pete Brock transform the Cobra into a streamlined coupe, and together with extensive testing by Ken Miles, finally beat Ferrari in the GT class at the 1964 24 Hours of Le Mans.

NEXT: 10 Greatest Japanese Competition Cars Of All Time