Pre War Sports Announced for Silverstone Classic
The Silverstone Classic has announced the return of the charismatic Pre War Sports to their schedule to July’s meeting, the series runners contesting two 40 minutes with a mandatory pit stop and optional driver change. The Pre War Sports Car grid was a regular entertainer in the event’s early years but hasn’t featured on the packed bill at the World’s Biggest Historic Motor Racing Festival since 2009. However, with organisers keen to highlight the long-running event’s glorious past – as well as provide visitors with even more motor sport history to savour – the grid rejoins under the evocative ‘Mad Jack’ banner.
Named in honour of Richard ‘Mad Jack’ Shuttleworth, winner of the first Grand Prix staged at a road circuit in the UK back in 1935, the Motor Racing Legends-run Mad Jack Pre War Sports Car race will be one of the major crowd pleasers on Saturday’s action-packed schedule. It will also be the first time that the latest version of the Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit will host many of the most dramatic and entertaining sports cars from the pre-World War 2 era. These will include mighty 8-litre Bentleys, Type 35 Bugattis and Alfa 8C Monzas along with equally esteemed Aston Martins, Altas, Alvises, BMWs, Frazer Nashes, MGs, Talbots and Sunbeams.
“There are some other really interesting cars out there, too, that we are hoping to attract to Silverstone,” confirmed Duncan Wiltshire, Chairman of Motor Racing Legends. “These pre-War cars were always an integral part of the Classic and it’s fantastic that they will be back in what’s clearly going to be a memorable 25th birthday bash come July.”
“The presence of both Pre War Sports Cars will add yet more variety and colour to this year’s Classic,” enthused Nick Wigley, Event Director. “While sports racers from the Twenties and Thirties may not be among the fastest on show, they will certainly be among the most dazzling and dramatic – everyone loves to watch the drivers as they wrestle to control machines that are big on power and small on grip.”
This addition to the programme and that of the recently announced Guards Trophy series for the HSCC have partially been achieved by the amalgamation of the two Historic Grand Prix Cars Association fields into one massive grid. This will now showcase an incredible spectrum of Grand Prix racing history stretching from early Bugattis and ERAs of the Thirties right through to the game-changing rear-engined Brabhams, Coopers and Lotuses of the Sixties.
