The British are to be envied, but also admired. Enthusiasm is combined with a sense of tradition. And nobody can deny the islanders a rich motorsport history. Silverstone celebrated its 50th Grand Prix on the occasion of the Silverstone Classic. In 1948, a British Grand Prix was held for the first time on the fast circuit (approx. 100 km) north-east of London. Since then, the Silverstone circuit has been one of the most famous race tracks in the world.
On July 25-27, 2014, everything that has four wheels, is fast and sounds good was on offer in 22 races. The starting fields were well filled and of such a rich variety that some organizers on the European mainland were probably envious.
Flaming Group C racing cars
A highlight of the weekend were the two rounds of the Group C Racing Series, which brought together vehicles such as the Mercedes Benz C11, Jaguar XJR8, Porsche 962, Nissan R90, Lancia LC2 and sports cars from Gebhardt, Intrepid, Spice and Tiga, around two dozen in number.
After Katsu Kubota had initially taken the lead in the Nissan R90CK, Bob Berridge in the Mercedes Benz C11 soon took command and ultimately drove to victory with a flames-spewing exhaust and a 25-second reserve in the light of the setting sun.
In the second race on Sunday, Bob Berridge's Mercedes Benz C11 once again lived up to its role as favorite and won without ever having to relinquish the lead. Justin Law's Jaguar XJR8 came in a distant second, followed by Steve Tandy in the Nissan R90.
Door-to-door battles in the touring cars
With Sir John Whitmore as the namesake, it was already clear that the Ford Lotus Cortina would set the tone 50 years after Jim Clark won the British Touring Car Championship with the same make. And so it was in Saturday's race, although of course a whole series of Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTAs, BMW 1800 TiSAs and Morris Mini Cooper Ss were waiting for their chance to take the lead in the touring car competition.
A door-to-door battle between the fastest Ford Lotus Cortina cars unfolded right up to the obligatory pit stops, with only a breakdown on Gordon Shedden's car calming the scene. In the end, Richard Meaden/Grand Tromans were able to celebrate victory in their Ford, followed by Brown/Dutton in another Ford Lotus Cortina and Banks/Banks in an Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA.
Three times Formula 1
Lovers of historic Formula 1 vehicles were treated to a triple bill.
In two races, the participants in the FIA Masters Historic Formula One Championship competed for victory and defeat. The monoposti, powered exclusively by Cosworth 3-litre engines, raced actively from 1971 to 1985. In the first race, pole position holder Michael Lyons seemed to be heading for a safe victory in the Hesketh until a mechanical defect stopped him on the last lap. Ollie Hancock in the Fittipaldi F5A inherited first place, followed by Martin Stretton in the Tyrrell 012 and Christophe D'Ansembourg in the Williams FW07/C.
In the second race on Sunday, the enthusiastic spectators were able to observe more position changes on the track in just a few laps than in several races in modern Formula 1. Hancock, Stretton, Lyons, Hartley and D'Ansembourg overtook each other many times and it was only towards the end of the race, after a number of cars weakened, that Martin Stretton in the Tyrrell 012 came out on top, followed by Steve Hartley in the Arrows A4, who set the fastest lap, and Christophe D'Ansembourg in the Williams.
The Grand Prix cars of the pre-1966 era also competed in two races on Saturday and Sunday. These Trophy Races were overshadowed by the fatal accident suffered on Sunday by Denis Welch, a well-known figure in historic racing, in a Lotus 18. Welch was an English businessman who was very fond of racing and had his own race preparation company. His Lotus overturned and he was presumed dead instantly. Acquaintances were quoted as saying "he died doing what he loved best".
The first race was won by Jason Minshaw in a Brabham BT4, ahead of Fairley in a Brabham BT11 and Horsman in a Lotus 18/21. The second race went to the same people, except that Miles Griffith in a Cooper T51 took third place from Horsman.
The two races of the Grand Prix cars up to 1960 were clearly won by Peter Walker in a Lotus 16 and, despite being announced as the Maserati Centenary Trophy, the monoposti with the trident had no chance of winning either the first or second race. Nevertheless, Tony Wood was able to drive the Maserati TecMec to third place in both races, while Julian Bronson kept the Scarab Offenhauser in second place.
50 years of Ford Mustang
Two very special races were started with the "Mustang Celebration Trophy". They were dedicated to the Ford Mustang, which, as is well known, turned 50 years old.
However, the field included many Mustangs as well as other touring cars from the era, not least the famously fast Ford Falcon, which went on to take the win. Leo Voyazides won the first race ahead of Mike Gardiner, followed by Tom Roche in a Ford Mustang. The salt in the soup, however, was Gordon Sheddon, who kept his Ford Lotus Cortina close to the Falcons, but had to retire in the end due to technical problems.
Gardiner wanted revenge in the second race and it actually looked like he would win, but he missed out with a spin on the last lap, allowing Voyazides to repeat his success. Third place again went to Tom Roche.
Sports cars from the fifties to the seventies
Of course, there was no shortage of sports cars and GT vehicles.
In the Sir Stirling Moss Trophy for sports cars built before 1961, Jon Minshaw/Phil Keen in a beautiful Lister Jaguar Knobbly won by a clear margin ahead of Chris Ward in a Lister Jaguar Costin. Nick Leventis and Bobby Verdon-Roe in a Ferrari 246S took third place in the very well-staffed race, which was peppered with legendary sports car brands.
In the GT cars up to 1965, Sean McInerney in the TVR Griffith clearly came out on top in a race packed with Jaguar E-Types, Austin-Healeys, Cobras and Aston Martins, as well as MGs, Porsches, Morgans and Lotuses. Second and third place went to two E-Types.
In the FIA Masters Historic Sports Cars, the Lola T70 dominated the action.
Although there were some McLaren, Chevron, Cooper, Porsche and exotic cars such as the Wolverine, the Gipsy Dino P271 and other rarities, only the Chevron B19 was initially able to keep up with the speed of the fast T70s. When Martin O'Connell on the fast Chevron was stopped by an incident, the way was clear for Leo Voyazides/Simon Hartfield, followed by Jason Wright/Andy Wolfe and the journalist pairing of Chris Harris/Richard Meaden. The Ferrari 512 S, which Jamie Campbell-Walter skillfully moved back into the front ranks after a spin, was particularly attractive to the audience.
The Royal Automobile Club Woodcote Trophy, which was open to sports cars from before 1956, was reminiscent of the Le Mans races of the 1950s. Jaguar, Cooper, Maserati, Lotus, Allard, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Tojeiro, Kurtis, Austin-Healey, Frazer Nash, RGS Connaught, AC and Lister were the names of the brands in the field of over 50 cars.
The winners were Frederic Wakeman/Patrick Blaeney-Edwards in a Cooper T38 ahead of John and Gary Pearson in a Jaguar D-Type and Geraint Owen/Charles Knill-Jones in the brute Kurtis 500S.
The RAC Tourist Trophy for historic vehicles from before 1963 concluded the round of sports cars and GTs. Here, too, there was a colorful mix of small and large-volume GT vehicles, including exotics such as the Ginetta G4, the Jensen 541 R, the Morgan +4 Supersports, the Reliant Sabre Six and the Turner Climax Mk II. There were also several Lotus Elite, some Aston Martin DB4s, various Jaguar E-Types and a few Porsches. Jackie Oliver and Gary Pearson took home the winner's trophy after an impressive race, followed by James Cottingham in a Jaguar E-Type in second place and Matin Hunt/Patrick Blakeney-Edwards in an AC Cobra in third.
Non-stop entertainment
Four further races with formula cars and two more modern racing series rounded off the program.
The Formula Junior field of 52 speeding bumblebees was more than impressive.
Sam Wilson in the Lotus 20/22 was waved off twice as the winner. In the classic Formula 3, Nick Padmore won twice in a March 783, Martin Stretton took the middle place on the podium in his Martini MK 39, followed by David Shaw in a March 803B.
Stirling Moss, who has raced at Silverstone many times and recalled that he had probably never had an accident here, took part in two demonstration runs. First, he opened the field of 84 historic Grand Prix cars to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Grand Prix. He was accompanied by David Brabham, among others, who sped down the start-finish straight side by side with the old warhorse in his Brabham BT 24.
After the first demonstration run, Sir Moss was able to continue the drive in the Maserati 250 F, as he now led a field of around 200 classic and modern Maserati sports and racing cars to celebrate the 100th birthday of the brand from Modena. Alfieri Maserati was among the drivers.
The English once again showed how to celebrate historic motorsport.
