HISTORIC RACING GUIDE 2016 - Classic Cars

Transcription

HISTORIC RACING GUIDE 2016 - Classic Cars
HISTORIC
RACING GUIDE
2016
in association with
F R O M M O N A C O TO G O O DWO O D , O N T R A C K , STA G E A N D C O N C O U R S
THE CLASSIC EVENTS YOU WON’ T WANT TO MISS
SPRING
01 HRG 2016.indd 1
SUMMER
AUTUMN
17/02/2016 16:43
HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
CONTENTS
0 4 F E B RUA RY/ MA R C H
Phillip Island Classic
Amelia Island Concours
Masters Festival Zolder
Goodwood Members’ Meeting
0 6 A PRI L
HSCC 50th Castle Combe
Tour Auto
VSCC Spring Start
Donington Historic Festival
0 8 M AY
GP de Monaco Historique
10 M AY
Spa Classic
Mille Miglia
HSCC International Trophy
Masters Historic Festival
12 JU N E
Cholmondeley Pageant of Power
Monza Coppa Intereuropa
Brooklands Double Twelve
Goodwood Festival of Speed
14 JU LY
HSCC Brands Hatch
Masters Donington Festival
Shelsley Walsh
Le Mans Classic
Chateau Impney Hillclimb
16 JU LY
Shelsley Walsh Classic Nostalgia
Eifel Rallye Festival
Ennstal Classic
Silverstone Classic
18 AU G U ST/ SE P T E MB E R
VSCC Prescott
Croft Nostalgia Festival
Nürburgring Oldtimer
Oulton Park Gold Cup
Zandvoort Historic Grand Prix
2 0 AU G U ST
Pebble Beach & Rolex Monterey
2 2 S E PTEMB E R
Goodwood Revival
24 S EPTEMB E R -D E C E MB E R
Spa Classic Six Hours
Espiritu Del Jarama
RAC Rally of the Tests
Daytona Classic
Sebring Classic
2016
CALENDAR
March 10-13
March 10-13
March 19/20
April 1-3
April 9/10
April 16/17
April 18-24
April 23
April 30-2 May
May 13-15
May 13-15
May 19-22
May 21/22
May 21/22 May 28/19
June 3-5
June 10-12 June 17-19
June 18/19
June 24-26 July 1/3
July 2/3
July 3
July 8-10
July 9/10
July 16/17
July 21-23
July 27-30
Jul 29-31
August 5-7
August 6/7
August 12-14
August 17-21
August 27-29
September 2-4
September 9-11
September 16-18 October 1
October 15/16
November 3-6
November 10-13
December 2-4
Phillip Island
Amelia Island Concours
Goodwood Members’ Meeting
Jarama Classic
Masters Festival Zolder
HSCC Castle Combe (50th anniversary)
Tour Auto
VSCC Spring Start Silverstone
Donington Historic Festival
GP de Monaco Historique
Spa Classic
Mille Miglia
Pau Historique
HSCC International Trophy Silverstone
Masters Festival Brands Hatch
Grand Prix de l’Age d’Or, Dijon
Cholmondeley Pageant of Power
Monza Coppa Intereuropa
Brooklands Double 12
Goodwood Festival of Speed
Brands Hatch Historic Superprix
Donington Masters Festival
Shelsley Walsh VSCC
Le Mans Classic
Chateau Impney Revival
Shelsley Walsh Classic Nostalgia
Eifel Rally Festival
Enstall Classic
Silverstone Classic
Prescott VSCC
Croft Nostalgia Weekend
Nürburgring Oldtimer GP
Pebble Beach & Rolex Monterey
Oulton Park Gold Cup
Zandvoort Historic GP
Goodwood Revival
Spa 6 Hours
Castle Combe Autumn Classic
Masters Festival Jarama
Rally of the Tests
Daytona Classic
Sebring Classic
USEFUL WEBSITES
WWW. C R E D I T- S U I S S E . C O M / C LAS S I C CA R S
C LAS S I C RA LLY AS S O C I AT I O N www.craevents.eu
E N DU R AN C E RA LLY AS S O C I AT I O Nwww.endurorally.com
FO R M U LA J U N I O R RAC I N G AS S O C I AT I O Nwww.formulajunior.com
G R O U P C S E RI E Swww.groupcracing.com
HE R O www.heroevents.eu
HI ST O R I C G RA N D P RI X C ARS AS S O C I AT I O Nwww.hgpca.net
HI ST O R I C RAC I N G D R I V E RS C LU Bwww.hrdc.eu
HI ST O R I C RA LLY C A R R EG I ST E R www.hrcr.co.uk
HI ST O R I C S P O R T S C A R C LU B www.hscc.org.uk
M AST E R S S E R I E Swww.themastersseries.com
M OT O R RAC I N G LEG E N DSwww.motorracinglegends.com
P E T E R AU T Owww.peterauto.peter.fr
V E T E RA N C AR C LU Bwww.vccofgb.co.uk
V I N TAG E S P O RT S C AR C LU B www.vscc.co.uk
U2TCwww.historicmotor-racingnews.co.uk
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In love with old racing cars? Planning your season to
catch the best historic race meetings around the UK
and beyond? Then look no further. Our annual
Historic Racing Guide, produced in partnership with
our friends at Credit Suisse, is all you need to mark
the key dates on your calendar for another packed
season of action.
The question is, which events are ‘must-see’ this time around? Flick
through our novel back-to-front, upside-down special and make a
mental note of those races, rallies and shows you know you just can’t
miss – and the answer is likely to be most of them!
The Members’ Meeting at Goodwood is a great place to start, then
there’s the HSCC’s 50th anniversary special at lovely Castle Combe.
The glorious Brands Hatch Grand Prix track features twice in just
three months, and the pair of Silverstone meets have race entries
unmatched anywhere in the world. What about Cholmondeley or
Brooklands in June? How about Donington in May or July? The
Chateau Impney hillclimb is back after its heralded return last year.
Then there’s Shelsley Walsh, Oulton Park, the RAC Rally of the
Tests… and that’s without even mentioning the biennial Monaco and
Le Mans classics.
The tapestry is rich when it comes to historic motor racing – and
your diary will be full in no time. Truly, we’ve never had it so good.
Damien Smith, Editor
Editor Damien Smith Written by Paul Lawrence, Simon Arron,
Damien Smith Art Editor Damon Cogman Digital Designer
Zamir Walimohamed Advertising Sean Costa, Peter De Vries
The 2016 season is a ‘Monaco year’ for us here at
Credit Suisse and we are very much looking forward
to the 10th edition of the Grand Prix de Monaco
Historique in May. While a fleet of stunning historic
machinery will occupy the paddock, there will be a
new building in the middle of it: the Credit Suisse
Drivers’ Club. We will offer once again a place for
recreation and networking for drivers, VIPs and our guests. Moreover,
there will be activities for the press.
I will have the pleasure of hosting our seventh Historic Racing
Forum in Monaco on May 13 where our racing legends will share
entertaining stories of their racing past. As always, we will publish the
Forum video on our website credit-suisse.com/classiccars. You will
also find there a splendid video of the 2014 GP de Monaco
Historique, with anecdotes from Derek Bell, Sir Stirling Moss and
Alain de Cadenet. In parallel we will organise our ‘Monaco Classics’
Rally which ends with our Rally Parade on the race track.
September is time, of course, for Goodwood, where Credit Suisse
will once again call the Race Control building its home for the
weekend. In 2015 I drove my 1955 Austin Healey 100S in the Freddie
March Memorial Trophy ‘night race’ – and what fun it was. On the
website you will find our video including great historical footage of
this special race.
As usual, our season will end in October when Adolfo Orsi Jr
publishes the bible for every classic car collector, the annual Classic
Car Auction Yearbook.
I hope you enjoy this Historic Racing Guide produced by our
long-standing partners at Motor Sport.
Karsten Le Blanc, Credit Suisse
“Credit Suisse” is the global marketing brand name for the
investment banking, asset management and private banking services
offered by Credit Suisse Group AG subsidiaries and affiliates worldwide. Credit Suisse Group AG
is headquartered in Zurich. Each Credit Suisse Group AG entity is subject to distinct regulatory
requirements and certain products and services may not be available in certain countries or to all
customers. No product or service will be offered where unlawful under applicable law.
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HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
MARCH
11-13
PETER ELLENBOGEN
The leading event of the Antipodean historic racing
season is the Philip Island Classic, run at the 2.7-mile
coastal track to the south-east of Melbourne.
The 2016 edition will celebrate the racing career of
tin-top legend Jim Richards, seven-time winner of the
Bathurst 1000. Tying in neatly with 100 years of
BMW, Richards is to be reunited with the JPS-livered
635 CSi that took him to the first of his four Australian
Touring Car titles. Richards will race a 635 and will also
take his own JPS M3.
With more than 400 entries expected across an array of
classic and historic classes, this promises to be the biggest
Philip Island Festival so far.
www.vhrr.com
MARCH
11-13
AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS D’ÉLÉGANCE
APRIL
MASTERS FESTIVAL, ZOLDER
A new event will kick-start the mainstream historic racing
season in Europe, when Masters Historic Racing makes
its debut at Zolder, Belgium.
The meeting will feature the opening rounds of the FIA
Masters Historic Formula 1 Championship and the FIA
Masters Historic Sports Car Championship. By moving
the start of the season to northern Europe, Masters is sure
to attract strong grids for both races.
Sharing top billing will be the modern Belcar series for
a wide array of GT machinery. Although overshadowed
by Belgium’s other track at Spa, Zolder hosted the Belgian
Grand Prix 10 times and has a strong annual programme.
www.mastershistoricracing.com
JAKOB EBREY
RASHBA.COM
The big event of the spring for the American classic car
movement is the 21st Amelia Island Concours d’Élégance
on Amelia Island, Florida.
To commemorate the 100th anniversary of BMW, the
event’s guest of honour will be German racer Hans Stuck.
Stuck’s first race in America also marked BMW’s first
major international victory, when he shared the winning
3-litre CSL with Brian Redman, Sam Posey and Allan
Moffatt in the 1975 Sebring 12 Hours.
Alongside about 250 classic cars, the event will feature
the 1949 Buick Roadmaster used in the Dustin Hoffman
film Rain Man. As well as the main activity there will be
road tours, an auction and seminars.
www.ameliaconcours.org
9-10
WILLEM STAAT
PHILIP ISLAND CLASSIC CAR FESTIVAL OF SPEED
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MARCH/APRIL
SPRING
MARCH
19-20 GOODWOOD 74TH MEMBERS’ MEETING
‘The right crowd and no crowding’ was often
attributed to Brooklands, but it could readily
be applied to the Goodwood Members’
Meeting. Edition 74, and the third since the
event was recreated, runs in March and the
event is already established as a starting point
for the British historic season.
Far less crowded than the Revival, the
Members’ Meeting is an outstanding event that
has a fantastic line-up and a special
atmosphere. However, a mid-March date does
play Russian roulette with the British weather.
Several races and demonstrations move
beyond the traditional Goodwood 1966 cut-off,
notably the wonderful Gerry Marshall Trophy
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for Group 1 Touring Cars. With star names
including current BTCC aces, it is a great
spectacle as 3-litre Capris, Chevrolet Camaros
and Rover Vitesses battle with 1275GT Minis.
The three high-speed demonstration sessions
get very up to date for 2016, with a session
dedicated to the Super Touring cars of the
1990s. Group 5 sports cars (topped by Porsche
917s and Ferrari 512s) and ground-effect F1
cars bring things up to the 1970s and early ’80s.
Among the new races for 2016 is the SF
Edge Trophy for Edwardian racing cars from up
to 1923, which will be a Goodwood first for
these stunning leviathans.
www.goodwood.co.uk
17/02/2016 17:12
HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
APRIL
16-17
HSCC 50TH ANNIVERSARY AT CASTLE COMBE
JEFF BLOXHAM
In May 1966, the first Griffiths Formula race for sports
cars from 1945 to 1955 ran at Castle Combe – catalyst to
the formation of the Historic Sports Car Club.
Half a century later, the club is going to celebrate this
landmark anniversary by commencing its season with a
two-day race meeting at the Wiltshire track.
The big attraction will be a recreation of that first grid,
with some original cars and matching models for the
others. Drivers and mechanics from the 1966 race will be
on hand and the public will be able to take part in a grid
walk to see the machinery up close.
www.castlecombecircuit.co.uk
APRIL
19-24 TOUR AUTO
APRIL
PETER McFADYEN
23
VSCC SPRING START
It is a long-established tradition that the Vintage SportsCar Club racing season begins at Silverstone in April,
with the Spring Start meeting. Although the eclectically
diverse VSCC motor sport season will have been in full
swing for four months, the Silverstone date heralds the
start of a five-meeting race schedule.
The usual mix of VSCC trophy races and short
handicap events will be enhanced by the return of the
Historic Grand Prix Cars Association with a race for
rear-engined Grand Prix cars. Front-engined cars will be
welcomed into the Patrick Lindsay and Amschel
Rothschild Trophies race.
As ever at VSCC events, the public car parks will be full
of classics spanning a century of motoring.
www.vscc.co.uk
JEFF BLOXHAM
PETER AUTO
Easily the market leader in race and rally tours, Tour
Auto is a glorious evocation of the former Tour de France
with five days of competition on race tracks and closed
public roads.
The 2016 route has overnight halts in Beaune, Lyon,
Valence and Marseille before the finish in Cannes, with a
special loop of night stages in the mountains to mark the
event’s 25th edition. Races will be held at Dijon, Bresse,
Ledenon and Paul Ricard.
Sports and GT cars of the 1960s and 1970s pack the
entry and 200 of the 240 available places were booked
before Christmas, including Jochen Mass in a mighty
De Tomaso Pantera.
www.tourauto.com
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APRIL/MAY
SPRING
30 DONINGTON HISTORIC FESTIVAL
2
APRIL
–
MAY
One of the elements helping Donington Park
return to its very best is the annual Historic
Festival, now firmly established over the
early May Bank Holiday weekend.
For three days the focus is on top-quality
racing at a track that is superbly suited to
period cars. The 2016 edition will be the
sixth, and three full days of on-track action
will be supported by parades, demonstrations
and car club gatherings on the infield.
The full programme had not been
confirmed at the time of writing, but pre-war
machinery will be prominent as the weekend
celebrates the 80th anniversary of the
Donington Grand Prix win for the Alfa
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Romeo of Dick Seaman and Hans Ruesch.
The weekend marks the dawn of the 2016
Super Touring Trophy and Historic Formula 2
campaigns, while the new Pre-80 Endurance
Series will draw out sports-racing and GT cars
from the World Endurance Championship of
the 1970s.
Period sports cars feature in the Woodcote
Trophy and Sir Stirling Moss Trophy from
Motor Racing Legends, while the revamped
Historic Touring Car Challenge will field a grid
of cars from the 1970s and 1980s.
Demonstration runs from more recent
Grand Prix cars will complete the weekend.
www.doningtonhistoric.com
17/02/2016 17:13
HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
MAY
13-15
CREDIT SUISSE
RETURNS TO MONACO
The Credit Suisse Drivers Club has
become a popular refuge for
competitors in the paddock since the
bank began supporting the Grand Prix
de Monaco Historique in 2010. But there
is more to its partnership with this event
than offering drivers hospitality over the
course of a busy racing weekend.
The Credit Suisse Classic Rally Parade
has become part of the itinerary
between competitive sessions, its
participants being treated to three laps
of the GP track to complete an
unforgettable weekend. Then there is
the Credit Suisse Historic Racing Forum,
staged for the media and broadcast
online at credit-suisse.com/classiccars.
The Forum features brand ambassadors
such as Jochen Mass, Alain de Cadenet,
Sir Stirling Moss and Derek Bell.
In 2014 Porsche’s World Endurance
Championship star Romain Dumas
added a modern perspective
to remind us that Monaco now is
as captivating as it has always been.
GRAND PRIX DE
MONACO HISTORIQUE
The year ends in an even number… which for discerning
owners of historic racing cars makes this a Monaco season.
Formula 1 wouldn’t countenance bypassing May without
a visit to the gaudy principality – God forbid – but for the
old-car brigade the honour of treading motor racing’s
most famous streets comes only every other year. What a
suitable aura that creates: the most exclusive historic race
meeting in the world becomes only more so when you
have to wait 24 months for the next rather than 12.
Top preparers will have drawn up their 2016 season
schedules around what is only the 10th GP de Monaco
Historique, held two weeks before the Grand Prix proper,
on May 13-15. For drivers, the attractions of experiencing
Monaco from the view that counts the most are obvious.
But for fans too the glamorous haven for the privileged
few has its attractions – and we’d argue more so for the
classic weekend than the supposed main event at the end
of the month.
The streets in and around Monte Carlo are always
bustling, and getting anywhere fast is not usually an
option, particularly by car. But there’s at least a little more
room to breathe in Historique week than during the GP,
when negotiating the streets can become overbearing.
Exploring on foot is the least frustrating and most
rewarding way to experience a place soaked in motor
sport history – and dripping in a veneer of rarely tasteful
opulence. Walking the circuit in the evenings, after track
action has ceased and the narrow roads have been
returned to the public, is arguably the best part of a trip
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The Monaco GP Historique takes
place every other year, a fortnight
before the principality’s F1 race
ERIC SAWYER & JAGUAR
MAY
to Monaco – if you aren’t lucky enough to be in
possession of a media tabard or you don’t know
someone who happens to have access to a convenient
balcony view…
The meeting kicks off with a half-day of track
action on the Friday from 2.30pm-6.30pm. A full day
of practice and parades follows on the Saturday,
ahead of (literal) wall to wall racing around the
principality’s famous streets on the Sunday.
Six classes are catered for with races in Monaco.
Sadly, the pre-war Grand Prix cars have lost the
competitive element to their weekend, although there
is a silver lining to a demotion to parade status only.
Without the cut and thrust of racing, drivers no longer
need to wear crash helmets and fireproof overalls,
allowing entries to offer a genuine period spectacle –
even if modern tower blocks have cost the Monaco
backdrop much of its original charm.
Classes for Formula 1 cars through the 1950s to
1976 will offer echoes of GPs past. There are four F1
races on the schedule, split into the following eras:
pre-61 front-engined F1 and F2 cars; 1.5-litre F1 cars
from 1961-65; and a pair of races for 3-litre F1 from
1966-72 and 1973-76.
The 1970s Formula 3 cars that proved so popular
in 2014 step aside this time for earlier-generation
drum-braked Formula Juniors from 1958-60. The nod
to the traditional Monaco support race forms part of
the category’s ‘Diamond Jubilee’ celebrations. A sports
SPRING
car race, for front-engined mid-1950s racers, will also
recall the only Monaco GP run for two-seaters in ’52.
Two years ago, our own Andrew Frankel made
his Monaco debut in this latter race, driving a highly
original ex-Stirling Moss Jaguar C-type (above).
It’s an experience Andrew will always cherish –
beyond his original expectations.
“Ever since I started racing more than 20 years ago,
there has been a list in my head of places where I
simply had to compete,” he says. “The old
Nürburgring, Spa, Le Mans, Goodwood and so on.
Monaco was never on it. It seemed a place of style,
not substance, a slow track that rewarded precision
more than courage. Which just goes to show that a
little knowledge is often a whole lot worse than no
knowledge at all.
“It’s not a nice track to learn. With all those tight
turns it’s difficult to get it to flow, especially if you’re
in someone else’s multi-million pound motor. But
when you know enough to begin to attack the lap,
suddenly it all comes together. As is often the case, the
most famous corners such as Casino Square,
Mirabeau and Loews are the least interesting. But the
run along the sea front through the tunnel to the
swimming pool is epic, and Tabac one of the best
corners on any circuit in the world.
“To the amateur pedaller, one of the biggest
challenges is simply not being distracted: as you slide
out of Massenet it really doesn’t do to be checking out
the supercars parked outside the Hotel de Paris. So for
me the real impact of racing at Monaco only came
after the fact, after I realised what a superb driver’s
circuit it really is. Now I know that to head down the
road through Ste Dévote, up the hill and away, history
oozing out of every wall you pass, is one of the
greatest privileges any driver, amateur or professional,
can ever be afforded.”
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HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
MAY
13-15
SPA CLASSIC
PIERRE-YVES RIOM/PETER AUTO
Peter Auto is one of Europe’s leading organisers of
historic racing, with a splendid portfolio at some of the
finest circuits. An annual spring visit to Spa is one of the
season’s highlights.
For most historic racers Spa-Francorchamps is right at
the top of the list and the daunting Ardennes track never
fails to deliver.
In May, Peter Auto will field a full complement of
categories, topped by the outstanding Classic Endurance
Racing. Up to 100 1970s Le Mans-type cars across two
grids will be a certain highlight, although Group C and
the burgeoning Heritage Touring Cup will be just as
spectacular.
www.peterauto.peter.fr
MAY
18-22 MILLE MIGLIA
MERCEDES-BENZ
In the modern era, it is hard to comprehend the event that
the Mille Miglia was in period. Run 24 times between
1927 and 1957, this was an outrageous 1000-mile road
race around Italy.
The end of the event was inevitable when 13 people,
including nine spectators, died during the 1957 event. The
memory and spirit of the Mille Miglia live on, however, in
this contemporary regularity rally.
The route from Brescia to Rome and back mirrors the
original, and enthusiastic spectators line the route to see
cars of the type that competed in period. San Marino,
Siena and the Futa Pass are just some of the landmarks.
www.millemiglia.org
MAY
For two days of access-all-areas historic racing on the
Silverstone Grand Prix circuit, the HSCC’s International
Trophy meeting has to be one of the deals of the season
for spectators.
This is not an event that purports to rival the
Silverstone Classic, for they are very different beasts. But
the International Trophy offers both drivers and fans two
days of racing from huge grids on the excellent historic
version of the Grand Prix track.
The programme includes all the usual HSCC favourites,
including Historic Formula Ford, Formula Junior and the
Guards Trophy, enhanced by a race for the new Pre-80
Endurance Series and the GT and Sports Car Cup.
www.hscc.org.uk
JEFF BLOXHAM
JEFF BLOXHAM
21-22 HSCC INTERNATIONAL TROPHY
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MAY
SPRING
MAY
28-29 MASTERS HISTORIC FESTIVAL
The sound of a Cosworth DFV engine at full
stretch around the Grand Prix loop at Brands
Hatch is a truly wonderful sensation. Once
again, the visit of the Masters FIA Historic
Formula 1 Championship to Kent is a highlight
of the season.
The varied, undulating track was at its
pomp in the era of the Cosworth DFV and six
of the circuit’s 12 British GP winners were thus
powered. The FIA series for cars of the 1970s
and early 1980s, dominated by Cosworth cars,
is in rude health heading into the 2016 season
and about 25 cars can be expected at Brands
over the Whitsun Bank Holiday weekend.
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The Masters FIA Historic Sports Car
Championship is another winning package,
with a clutch of Lola T70s taking on a raft of
opponents at a track where the best 2-litre
cars are well in the hunt.
Gentleman Drivers GT and Pre-66 Touring
Cars are strong supports, but two new races
should really add to the appeal. To mark the
50th anniversary of Can-Am racing, the
Can-Am 50 Interserie Challenge will draw out
a gaggle of monsters and the new Masters
Three Hours should deliver a strong pre-66
grid of sports and GT cars.
www.mastershistoricracing.com
17/02/2016 17:29
HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
JUNE
10-12
SIMON ARRON
The renamed Cholmondeley Power and Speed is like a
motor sport garden party in rural Cheshire and the 2016
edition will build on the success of eight previous events.
While the action on the challenging sprint course delivers
competitive motor sport, all sorts of counter-attractions
take place in the sky and on the water within the grounds
of Cholmondeley Castle.
The car entry typically starts with some vintage
machinery, topped by the fire-breathing Bentley Napier of
Chris Williams, and then runs through the decades to the
modern era.
The theme for 2016 is ‘Supercars past, present and
future’, which is likely to extend the popularity of the
traditional supercar class.
www.cpop.co.uk
JUNE
17-19
MONZA COPPA INTEREUROPA
JUNE
BROOKLANDS DOUBLE TWELVE
As a celebration of Brooklands’ celebrated heritage, the
annual Double Twelve is now firmly established on the
classic calendar.
The Double Twelve is organised in partnership with the
Vintage Sports-Car Club and incorporates a sprint for
pre-war cars on the Mercedes-Benz World circuit as well
as a driving test and concours d’élégance for almost 150
cars. The famous Brooklands Test Hill is in use for a
competition to complete a weekend that offers something
for everyone at the birthplace of British racing.
The Double Twelve takes its name from the twin
12-hour races of the 1930s, when a planned 24-hour race
could not be run due to local opposition.
www.brooklandsmuseum.com
JAKOB EBREY
SIMON ARRON
For sheer atmosphere and sense of racing heritage, few
venues can rival the Autodromo Nazionale Monza. The
parkland track to the north of Milan is not far short of its
centenary year, as it first hosted racing in 1922.
Each June, the Coppa Intereuropa meeting offers
historic racers a chance to add Monza to their schedule
and 2016 will mark the 63rd running of a famous event.
The title dates to 1949 and was first used for a
three-hour touring car race but now embraces a weekend
that is topped by races for Historic Formula 2 and Lurani
Trophy Formula Junior.
www.monzanet.it
18-19
ERIC SAWYER
CHOLMONDELEY POWER AND SPEED
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JUNE
SUMMER
JUNE
24-26 GOODWOOD FESTIVAL OF SPEED
Some of the most powerful cars and bikes
ever built will take centre stage at the 24th
running of the Goodwood Festival of Speed,
when ‘Full Throttle – the pursuit of endless
power’ is the key theme.
Sometimes imitated but never topped,
the Festival of Speed has been at the height
of its game for more than two decades and
continues to draw a sell-out crowd to the
grounds of Goodwood House in Sussex.
No cars have yet been announced for
2016, but the motif points to monsters such
as the 1000bhp Porsche 917 Can-Am car,
Group B rally cars, pre-war Silver Arrows
from Mercedes and Auto Union and 1500bhp
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F1 cars from the height of the turbo era.
Other celebrations will cover the 100th
Indianapolis 500 and the 50th anniversary
of the creation of the Can-Am category,
while the event will also pay tribute to the
40th anniversary of James Hunt’s 1976
world championship title with McLaren.
For fans, the chance to mingle with some
of the sport’s greats makes it an unmissable
weekend. Legends of the past and stars of
the present are on hand in a relaxed
environment and a gaggle of current F1
drivers show off modern day Grand Prix
cars in style.
www.goodwood.com
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HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
JULY
3
SHELSLEY WALSH
CHARLIE WOODING
Any event at Shelsley Walsh is a highlight of the motor
sport season, but the annual vintage and PVT event
organised in conjunction with the VSCC is rather special.
The world’s longest standing motor sport venue
continues to thrill drivers and fans alike with its frenetic
1000-yard rush up the side of the Teme Valley. It is a
climb that rewards precision and gusto in equal measure
and, once a year, this hallowed strip of asphalt is turned
over to the vintage brigade.
While the atmosphere in the paddock and start area is
special, a stiff climb up the hill opens up glorious views at
this most British of motor sport events.
www.shelsley-walsh.co.uk
JULY
HSCC BRANDS HATCH
1-3
JULY
DONINGTON MASTERS FESTIVAL
2-3
The Masters Historic Festival at Donington Park was a
fresh addition to the schedule last season and some
low-key club racing categories supplemented several
Masters staples. For 2016, the event will grow in stature
with the notable addition of the Masters FIA Historic
Formula 1 Championship.
In a programme similar to the Brands Hatch event five
weeks earlier, Donington will also feature the Masters FIA
Historic Sports Car Championship, Gentleman Drivers
GT and Pre-66 Touring Cars as well as the Can-Am 50
Interserie Challenge and the new Masters Three Hours for
pre-66 sports and GT cars.
www.mastershistoricracing.com
JEFF BLOXHAM
For 26 years the HSCC has run a major race weekend on
the Grand Prix circuit at Brands Hatch and that will
continue in 2016, albeit under a new name.
The traditional Super Prix will be replaced and, to
mark the HSCC’s 50th season, the meeting has gained a
third day. That allows for an expanded race programme.
In addition to the HSCC domestic championships, there
will be races for Historic Formula 2, the Pre ’80
Endurance Series, Super Touring Trophy and Jaguar
Heritage Challenge. An HGPCA grid of pre-1966 Grand
Prix cars will add to a cracking line-up.
www.motorsportvision.co.uk
JULY
8-10
LE MANS CLASSIC
The biennial Le Mans Classic is another stand-out event
in the historic racing calendar, as amateur drivers get to
compete on this most famous track. Up to 400 cars will
race, each of a type with a period Le Mans pedigree.
In the now well-established format, six groups
spanning 60 years of Le Mans history will each race
several times in a 24-hour period – including in the
dark of Saturday night.
New for 2016 is the inclusion of a seventh grid for
Group C cars from 1982 to 1993. The Porsche 962s and
Jaguars will contrast dramatically with Bentleys and Alfa
Romeos from the race’s earliest years.
www.lemansclassic.com
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JULY
JULY
9-10
SUMMER
CHATEAU IMPNEY HILLCLIMB
hotel providing a magnificent backdrop.
Until 1967 the Droitwich venue hosted an
annual event on the access road, but it
was not until 2015, with the property now
owned by the enthusiastic Spollon family,
that the event was revived.
At the heart of the event is the new hill,
twice the length of the original, and the
revival was met with widespread acclaim.
Spectators were well accommodated and
the weekend ran remarkably smoothly.
On track, the overall winner and new
hill record holder was young Jack
Woodhouse in his Formula Junior Lotus
22, with a best of 42.42sec. That is now
the target for the 2016 event, which will
again be centred on classes covering 200
pre-67 cars to reflect the first chapter in
the venue’s motor sport history.
www.chateauimpneyhillclimb.com
JEFF BLOXHAM
By any measure, last year’s inaugural
Chateau Impney Revival Hillclimb was a
roaring success. After a gap of nearly half
a century, motor sport returned to the
grounds of the spectacular Worcestershire
hotel and a huge investment, both in
financial and workload terms, was
rewarded with a great event.
The 2016 hillclimb will build on that
success to offer two full days of on- and
off-track activity with the French-style
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HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
JULY
16-17
SHELSLEY WALSH CLASSIC NOSTALGIA
JEFF BLOXHAM
Many venues now have nostalgia events, but none has the
heritage and history of Shelsley Walsh. Since 1905,
competitors have tackled the 1000-yard climb in rural
Worcestershire to make it the world’s longest established
motor sport venue.
Each July, that heritage is celebrated over the Classic
Nostalgia weekend when cars from the Shelsley story
take to the hill. Included are some Shelsley Specials, cars
built primarily for use at the venue before and after the
Second World War.
Adding to the sense of occasion are classic cars in the
car park, one or two star guests and some rare and
unusual cars taking part in demonstration climbs.
www.shelsley-walsh.co.uk
JULY
21-23 EIFEL RALLYE FESTIVAL
McKLEIN
In the world of retro events, nothing in the rallying arena
can match the Eifel Rally Festival, which draws more than
40,000 fans to the area around the town of Daun in the
Eifel Mountains.
Featuring 150 carefully selected cars from an
oversubscribed list, the event features two and a half days
of closed-road asphalt special stages near to the host town.
Daun itself becomes a massive rally village for the event.
As 2016 marks the 30th anniversary of the final year of
Group B rally cars these monster machines will take
centre stage, and some of the leading drivers from the era
will also be out and about.
www.eifel-rallye-festival.de
JULY
The Ennstal Classic in Austria is a stand-out event for
those who want to drive their classics in the midst of
some of Europe’s finest scenery. The four-day festival is set
in the mountains around Grobming.
More than 200 pre-73 cars will tackle two full days
of regularity rallying, starting with a 250-mile event
on day one and then a 300-mile rally on the second day.
Estimates suggest that up to 100,000 people are likely to
line the route.
At the same time, pre-82 competition cars can take part
in the Race Car Trophy demonstration event, which is run
at venues close to Grobming and accommodates a wide
range of sports-racing cars and single-seaters.
www.enstall-classic.at
SILVERSTONE
MARTIN HUBER/ENNSTAL CLASSIC
27-30 ENNSTAL CLASSIC
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JULY
SUMMER
JULY
29-31 SILVERSTONE CLASSIC
Nothing can rival the Silverstone Classic in terms of size. The
three-day historic racing festival has the biggest entry,
the most racing and the widest range of off-track activity
at any such event.
However, the Classic is not just about size; it is also about
quality. Some of Europe’s leading historic categories will be
on the programme including Masters FIA Historic Formula 1,
which is likely to field up to 40 Grand Prix cars of the 1970s
and early 1980s. FIA Masters Historic Sports Cars and
Group C add further to the quality, but the real jewel for
2016 is the double-header to mark the 50th anniversary of
the first Can-Am race. Event boss Nick Wigley has an
ambition to get 50 of these monster sports-racing cars on
the grid, but even 30 would make an incredible spectacle.
Another major new feature will be ‘Tin Top Sunday’ when
a clutch of touring car races take centre stage on the event’s
final day. As well as regulars such as the Super Touring
Trophy and U2TC races, the day will include the revamped
Heritage Touring Car Challenge for the cars of the 1970s and
1980s and a ‘big banger’ race for US V8s of the 1960s.
www.silverstoneclassic.com
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HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
AUGUST
5-7
PETER McFADYEN
Are there any better places to be on a summer afternoon
than Prescott, with a paddock full of vintage machinery?
Each August, the Vintage Sports-Car Club takes over
the Gloucestershire hillclimb for three days of competition
at a venue that has hosted motor sport since the summer
of 1938. So popular is the annual VSCC event that it now
spreads to three days, with a stand-alone event on Friday
before more than 200 cars compete over the weekend.
Of course, a big part of this weekend is the line-up of
spectators’ cars parked in the orchard adjacent to the
start. That gathering alone makes the trip worthwhile.
www.vscc.co.uk
AUGUST
JEFF BLOXHAM
6-7
AUGUST
12-14
ERIC SAWYER
VSCC PRESCOTT
CROFT NOSTALGIA FESTIVAL
It does not have the cachet of Goodwood or the scale of
the Silverstone Classic, but the annual Nostalgia Festival
at Croft, North Yorkshire, is a real hit.
The only event of its type north of Oulton Park, the
August weekend is a must for a whole region of fans.
Extensive collections of military vehicles add to a winning
package, ditto lots of period dress.
On track, the action is all about categories from the
HSCC, topped by favourites such as Historic Formula
Ford, Historic Touring Cars, Guards Trophy and Historic
Formula 3. Track demonstrations and air displays also
contribute to a very successful weekend.
www.croftcircuit.co.uk
NÜRBURGRING OLDTIMER
First established more than 40 years ago, the Nürburgring
Oldtimer Grand Prix can rightly claim to be the first of its
kind in Europe. The 2016 edition marks the 44th running
of Germany’s biggest historic racing festival.
Top billing goes to the Masters FIA Historic Formula 1
Championship, while the Historic Grand Prix Cars
Association has races for front-engined and pre-61
1.5-litre F1 cars and the Jaguar Heritage Challenge has an
away weekend.
The main action takes place on the modern Grand Prix
circuit, but the three-hour Classic Marathon runs on the
14-mile Nordschleife on Friday afternoon.
www.nuerburgring.de
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AUGUST/SEPTEMBER
SUMMER
AUGUST
27-29 OULTON PARK GOLD CUP
ERIC SAWYER
Oulton Park is a very special place, with a highly varied track nestling in Cheshire
parkland to offer a tremendous driving challenge. It is a venue that truly sorts
those who can from those who can’t.
First opened for racing in August 1953, Oulton has a rich heritage of major races
and one of the most prestigious of all was the Gold Cup. Now firmly established as
a major historic race weekend, the Gold Cup will be back to rude health in 2016.
The core of the meeting remains a full weekend of racing from the Historic
Sports Car Club but, despite some tremendous racing in changing conditions, the
2015 programme lacked a headline act.
That issue has been squarely dealt with for 2016 thanks to the welcome return
of the Historic Grand Prix Cars Association with a pair of races for rear-engined
Grand Prix cars. The double-header will revisit the glory days of the Gold Cup,
when drivers such as Jim Clark, Jack Brabham and John Surtees won in F1 cars.
Further quality is offered by visits from the Super Touring Trophy and the Jaguar
Heritage Challenge. With the whole event underpinned by popular HSCC classes,
including Formula 5000 cars in the Derek Bell Trophy, this is a first-class line-up.
www.motorsportvision.co.uk
SEPTEMBER
JEFF BLOXHAM
2-4
ZANDVOORT HISTORIC GRAND PRIX
In terms of wish lists for racing drivers, Zandvoort is right
up there with tracks such as Monza and Dijon. It is thus
little wonder that the Dutch track’s Historic Grand Prix
has become firmly established in just four years.
Since securing permission for a weekend of historic
racing at a circuit with major noise issues, the event has
blossomed and 2016 is likely to attract an even bigger
crowd than the 50,000 of 2015.
A return from the Masters FIA Historic Formula 1
Championship relives the golden days of the Dutch Grand
Prix, while Historic Formula 2, FIA Masters Historic Sports
and Lurani Trophy Formula Junior are other star turns.
www.historicgrandprix.nl
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HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
AUGUST
17-21
PEBBLE BEACH &
ROLEX MONTEREY
“Are you doing Pebble Beach this year?” It’s a common
question in classic car circles for an annual automotive
highlight that, like Le Mans, Goodwood or Monaco,
needs nothing beyond the name of a geographical location
to explain what it is.
To be accurate, it’s officially the Monterey Classic Car
Week, but that’s by the by for car people. Pebble Beach
will suffice. But how do we best describe it?
Calling it an event seems a little too pedestrian. It’s not
confined to one day, or even one weekend, or to a single
venue. Instead, it’s probably best described as a
‘happening’, made up of a series of illustrious automotive
gatherings, stretched over the course of a week, that are
bound by their location on the glorious California
coastline south of San Francisco.
The climax is the Concours d’Élégance on the 18th
fairway of Pebble Beach’s famed links golf course, as 200
pristine cars and motorcycles are paraded in front of the
judges on the Sunday afternoon (August 21). Historical
accuracy, technical merit and, of course, that indefinable
quality that is style are what the panel is looking for from
vehicles that will be grouped in classes that this year
celebrate featured marque Delahaye, Chapron coachwork,
BMW’s centennial, the 50th anniversary of Ford’s first
victory at Le Mans and Bizzarrini.
Happily, there’s a moving element to this show, too.
Owners of the Concours cars are also invited to take part
in the Tour d’Élégance, which traces part of the
picturesque 17-mile Drive that weaves among the
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AUGUST
Concours is key, but there’s
more to Monterey Classic
Car Week than standing still
ROLEX/KIMBALL STUDIOS
Rick Parsons (Lola
T332C) leads F5000
rivals through Laguna
Seca’s signature
Corkscrew during the
Monterey Historic
Californian mountains and valleys. A stop at pretty
Carmel-by-the-sea is a particular highlight for
spectators who gather on Ocean Avenue.
For those who seek a longer drive, the Pebble Beach
Motoring Classic offers all the open-road pleasures of
a genuine American road trip. The Classic kicks off
Pebble Beach activities long before the auctions and
shows, beginning on August 8 in Seattle, Washington
state. Thirty pre-1968 motors set off to take in 1500
miles of the wonderful Pacific north-west coastal road,
reaching Pebble Beach on Wednesday August 17. A
gentle tour rather than a race, then.
Beyond the Concours, it’s the incredible prices of cars
sold at auctions that usually dominate the headlines at
SUMMER
the end of the week. All the heavy-hitters in the classic
car auction world hold sales, including Bonham’s at
Quail Lodge, Gooding and Co, Mecum, Russo &
Steele and not forgetting RM Sotheby’s, which achieved
eye-watering results in Monterey in 2015. The company
achieved a staggering $172.9 million worth of sales at
Pebble Beach last year, the highlights including a 1998
McLaren F1 that made $13.75m. As for the sale of
cars with Prancing Horses on their noses, there seems
no end to their desirability. RM’s examples included a
1964 Ferrari 250LM that made $17.6m and a 250GT
Berlinetta Competizione that won the 1956 Tour de
France in the hands of its owner Alfonso de Portago.
That was another $13m seller.
Will these sales be exceeded in 2016? There’s no
reason to expect otherwise.
But for all the opulence, razzmatazz and
extravagance, the highlight of Pebble Beach for most
readers of this magazine will be the associated race
meeting 20 minutes inland from Monterey. Laguna
Seca could perhaps be described as the Brands Hatch
of the US, a much-loved circuit with bags of character
and a signature corner like no other on the planet: the
fabulous, plunging Corkscrew.
The Rolex Monterey Motorsport Reunion is the
closest the US gets to a Goodwood Revival. This year
its programme of races offers classes for sports and
GTs, Formula 1 cars from 1967 to 1984 and, most
notably Can-Am cars in the beloved category’s 50th
anniversary year. Parades pepper the racing with that
BMW centennial the theme once again.
If the glitz of Concours isn’t your thing, there’s a
welcome alternative down the CA-68.
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HISTORIC RACING GUIDE
SEPTEMBER
9-11
CREDIT SUISSE IN
CONTROL AT THE REVIVAL
Credit Suisse is well established as one
of the world’s biggest supporters of
classic motoring and historic racing. But
if we were to choose a symbol of its
presence in ‘our world’, there would
surely be only one: the Credit Suisse
Race Control building at the Goodwood
Motor Circuit. The bank has been a
partner of the Goodwood Revival since
2009, but it was in 2013 that it
committed to a seven-year title
sponsorship of the iconic Race Control,
situated in the prime location next to
the start/finish line. An extensive
restoration to combine premium
interiors with suitably period features in
keeping with Goodwood has made it a
popular destination for drivers during
the Revival weekend. The pre-race
briefing and Sunday evening prizegiving are held here, as is the nowtraditional Credit Suisse Historic Racing
Forum featuring star personalities who
offer the media special insight into the
world of classic motor sport.
GOODWOOD
REVIVAL MEETING
Some call it theatre and others have referred to it as a motor
sport theme park, but there are two undeniable constants:
the Goodwood Revival Meeting is an annual sell-out and
provides racing as good as any you will see all year.
This year’s Revival is particularly significant, for it will
be the 19th since Goodwood reopened to racing in
September 1998. The circuit will thus have been active
during the ‘Revival era’ for as long as it was in its original
heyday, 1948-1966.
On the surface the venue looks relatively unchanged
since then, but behind the scenes a huge amount of work
has been done to comply with modern safety criteria
without compromising Goodwood’s period look or feel.
Indeed, those who worked there first time around point
out that it actually looks much smarter than it used to…
It was during the early 1990s that circuit owner Lord
March first evaluated the possibility of bringing Goodwood
back to life as a racing circuit, rather than just a test venue
and host of occasional sprints. When Motor Sport broke
the news of Goodwood’s likely reopening (April 1994),
March said: “For me it’s critical that the track should be
the same as it was. We want to retain as many of the
original features and as much of the character as possible.
“The pit entry will have to be moved back towards the
chicane, we know that. As it stands it would be too
dangerous for racing.
“We won’t be having any Armco but will use earth
banks protected by substantial tyre walls. The MSA has
been very supportive and has approved the system.”
The Goodwood Revival roster
changes subtly by the year, but
the spectacle never diminishes
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SEPTEMBER
By that stage approval had been agreed in principle
for nine racing days per annum, although there were
still a few hoops to negotiate and March hoped his
dream might become reality by 1996. In the end it
took a little longer, but it was worth the wait.
Since 1998 a number of rules have been firmly
enforced to ensure a certain ambience, so only
pre-1966 vehicles are permitted in the parking areas
closest to the circuit perimeter. Period dress is
encouraged, though not enforced, but blazer and tie
(or cravat) are mandatory – along with the correct
pass – to gain access to the central paddock. So large
is the entry, though, that many competing cars are
parked outside and accessible to all.
For all that the racing is restricted to cars from
a certain period, the programme changes subtly
from season to season. Annual staples include the
RAC TT Celebration race, a Sunday afternoon highlight
featuring evocative GTs, and the St Mary’s Trophy for
saloon cars (traditionally 1950s one year, 1960s the
next, although this season it will be for Austin A35s
alone). One central theme of this year’s event will
be a tribute to the late Sir Jack Brabham, who 50 years
ago clinched his third F1 world title – and became
the first driver to win one at the wheel of a car bearing
his own name.
It’s not just the machinery that commands
headlines, but the calibre of drivers at the helm.
Brabham himself raced at the Revival during its early
SUMMER
days and there have been more recent cameos from
retired F1 stars such as Jean Alesi, Martin Brundle,
Gerhard Berger, Mark Blundell, Jochen Mass, Arturo
Merzario and Jackie Oliver, Le Mans 24 Hours
legends Tom Kristensen, Henri Pescarolo and Derek
Bell, Indy 500 winners Dario Franchitti and Kenny
Bräck, rally heroes Rauno Aaltonen and John
Haugland, leading sports car racers Darren Turner,
Nicolas Minassian and Oliver Gavin, touring car
greats Steve Soper and John Cleland, versatile veteran
Antony Reid and many more of their ilk.
Nor is it just cars. The Goodwood Revival is one of
very few UK meetings to combine action on four
wheels and two, to which end world champions
Wayne Gardner and Kevin Schwantz have both
appeared in recent years, alongside former GP racer
Jeremy McWilliams and others of similar pedigree.
There are ample off-track diversions, with jazz
bands, air displays (starring the gorgeous thrum of
Supermarine Spitfires), countless trade stalls and a
period Tesco, complete with retrospectively packaged
wares (not all of them purchasable).
It’s a busy event, particularly in the areas around
the chicane and paddock access tunnels, but it’s easy
to escape the madding crowd. Motor Sport’s preferred
technique is to commence the day at the first righthander, Madgwick, and then move on every couple of
races. The lap measures 2.37 miles, but it’s an easy
stroll over the day’s course – and tractor-drawn
shuttles provide free lifts from corner to corner,
although finding a spare seat can be tricky. Around
the far side of the circuit, the dipping left-hander at St
Mary’s is one of the most spectacular viewing points
– despite which the crowd there tends to be much
more thinly spread.
Wherever you stand, you’ll have the glorious South
Downs as a backdrop – a perfect location in a world
where suspension movement is king.
Let’s do the time warp again…
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SEPTEMBER
16-18 SPA CLASSIC SIX HOURS
dominated by Ford GT40s across the
past decade and that’s how long Kiwi
Roger Wills had been trying to win it
before finally achieving his goal last
year. In the style of the modern
Le Mans 24 Hours, this is a race that
gets under people’s skin and some
drivers build their entire seasons
around this one race.
Yet the glorious spectacle of 100
pre-65 sports, GT and touring cars
racing into the night at Spa is only part
of this event, for a stellar race line-up
completes a mighty weekend and takes
in Historic F1, HGPCA and much more.
www.roadbook.be
JEFF BLOXHAM
If there is one event that takes the
kudos of the biggest historic race of the
season, it is the Spa Classic Six Hours
in September.
Not only is it top of the pile in terms
of prestige, it has the biggest single
grid of the season and typically delivers
the toughest race as it runs from 4pm
into the darkness of Saturday evening.
Throw in the notorious Ardennes
weather, which delivered a mid-race
thunderstorm of biblical proportions in
2014, and the stage is set for the
toughest test of man and machine in
the historic racing calendar.
This is a race that has been
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SEPTEMBER - DECEMBER
OCTOBER
14-16
AUTUMN
ESPIRITU DEL JARAMA
ERIC SAWYER
For 2016, this end-of-season programme on the Iberian
Peninsula has a new look. Building on the success of
previous race meetings at the Circuit de Catalunya
Barcelona, the focus will now switch to Jarama, north of
Madrid. The famously twisty track last hosted the
Spanish Grand Prix in 1981, marking the final F1 win for
Gilles Villeneuve, but has remained in regular use and will
now host the final event of the Masters European season.
Star billing will go the deciding rounds of the Masters FIA
Historic Formula 1 and Historic Sports Car Championships,
with support from a range of domestic categories.
www.mastershistoricracing.com
NOVEMBER
10-13
The annual November historic weekend at the famous
Daytona track will revert to its previous format for 2016,
following two years as a 24-hour event in the style of the
Le Mans Classic. The round-the-clock event will next be
repeated in 2017.
Meanwhile this year, leading US organiser Historic
Sportscar Racing will run a full and varied programme for
its 11 classes. Not only does HSR cover cars dating back
to the early 1950s, it also brings the story far more up to
date than its European counterparts. GT, prototypes and
single-seaters of the last decade all have a place with HSR.
www.hsrrace.com
F&R RASTRELLI
NOVEMBER
3-6
RAC RALLY OF THE TESTS
Although the title is new, the Rally of the Tests is firmly
established on the calendar as the premier event of its
type. Now with the support of the Royal Automobile
Club, the Rally of the Tests recreates the RAC Rallies of
the 1950s before the rally moved to forest special stages.
The 2016 edition will run from Bournemouth to
Chester via Bristol and will include more spectatorfriendly venues than ever before, thus allowing more fans
to see about 80 cars of the Fifties and Sixties being put
through their paces.
As ever, the competition will centre on special tests,
regularity sections and night navigational sections.
www.heroevents.eu
DAYTONA HISTORICS
DECEMBER
1-4
SEBRING CLASSIC 12-HOUR
In the style of the retro events at Le Mans and Daytona,
Sebring joins the classic circus in December with its
own event to celebrate the famous 12-hour race at the
airfield track.
Inspired by the success of Daytona, the Sebring Classic
will also celebrate the venue’s aviation heritage. Groups of
cars from the Sebring story, which started in 1950, will
race several times across a 12-hour period.
Sebring is a real challenge and noted for being bumpy,
with large sections of track still running on concrete
runways built for Second World War pilot training on
what was originally known as Hendricks Army Airfield.
www.hsrrace.com
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