Like many of the established marques in motoring and motor racing Aston Martin has had many ups and downs throughout its time, any one of which could have easily put it out of business. This is especially so from its earliest days. What is fascinating is the course of history, or chain of events, that...
It was the race every manufacturer and driver wanted to win. Having created the Grand Prix de l‘Automobile Club de France in 1906, France hosted the single most important automobile contest in the world. Although the ACF retrospectively awarded its august title (not merely the French GP please note) to its epic road races back...
If you look around many of the historic racing paddocks today, especially those series that are at the top of the sport, you will see the highly polished truck of Hall & Hall. They regularly get an invitation from Lord March to attend both Goodwood events. The founder of the business is Rick Hall, whose...
Unless you’ve somehow managed to live completely “off the grid” for the past few months, by now you’ve likely seen the footage online of Jules Bianchi’s stomach-churning crash in the October 4th running of the Japanese Grand Prix. In short, on lap 46—in a driving downpour brought on by Typhoon Phanfome—Adrian Suitil’s disabled Sauber was...
Milan was in mourning the first time I visited the cathedral city, in the late spring of 1967. In fact, all of Italy hung its collective head in sadness at the loss of one of its favorite sons. “Bandini è Morto” declared the northern industrial town’s daily newspaper the Corriere della Sera, and many ordinary...
When I started racing in my home country, Japan, it was in a touring car—a bit of a “Mickey Mouse” car compared with the touring cars known in Europe, but it was a start. There were many experienced drivers in the series—The Fuji Freshman Series—I felt very inexperienced and a little out of my depth....
Twelve laps of Silverstone in a Maserati 250F leaves me in no doubt as to my greatest racecar. To have the honor of racing the car in what was the first historic race the 250F was allowed to compete was one of my best motor racing memories. Many of the greatest drivers, not just of...
Up to ten of the “continuation” “Knobbly” Lister-Jaguars are being made, and these are available in either full racing or road-legal versions. So far, nobody has ordered a road-legal car, which is a shame because the original was. After Archie Scott-Brown’s amazing 1957 season, with the works Lister-Jaguar (MVE 303), Brian Lister loaned it to...
Next summer’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion has been scheduled for August 13-16, 2015 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, and the race groups have been announced as listed following. Noteworthy is a category for Formula 5000 cars, the first time these thunderous open-wheelers have ever been invited to the Reunion in its 40-year history. The entry request process—conducted exclusively online at www.MazdaRaceway.com—continues through January 31, 2015. Each year, some 900 submissions arrive from across the country and around the world, with the owners hoping to be one of the 550 cars accepted based on authenticity, race provenance and the historical accuracy…
Porsche Cars North America and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca have announced that the fifth Porsche Rennsport Reunion will take place at the Central California racetrack October 9-11, 2015. The event, last held at the circuit in 2011, will provide a glittering showcase for significant Porsche racecars from the past six decades, along with the people who have designed, engineered, and driven them to glory in the world’s most important sports car races. The three-day program of on-track activities will be complemented by a Concours d’Elegance open to all invited race participants, and feature special activities celebrating six decades of Porsche…
For the 11th year, the Classic and Sports Racing Group organized its Charity Challenge at Sears Point in Sonoma, California, with proceeds benefiting the Speedway Children’s Charities of Sonoma. A record crowd enjoyed the festivities under hot and sunny skies, with many spectators adding an extra dimension to their experience by taking a lap around the track as a passenger in one of the competing racecars. More than 250 cars participated in the nine CSRG race groups, each enjoying two daily track sessions. The weekend featured a 21-car historic Grand Prix field from Masters HGP, with Sunday’s race victory taken…