Racing and Competition

The 32nd running of the MG Classic meeting, the longest running event of its kind in New Zealand and one of the biggest in competitor numbers, will be at Manfeild this weekend. Still known by many as “The Whittakers” because of the brand’s long association in the earlier events, this year’s meeting has attracted more than 200 competitors who will race in a record nine different categories covering open wheel, sports cars, and saloons.

Dr Andy Palmer will trade his business suit for a race suit this weekend when he takes on the challenge of competing in a 24-hour motor race. The Aston Martin President and CEO will race in the Hankook 24 Hours of CoTA (Circuit of the Americas) in Austin, Texas on 11-12 November. Naturally, Palmer’s car of choice is the Aston Martin Vantage GT8, the very same car that won its class at the Nürburgring 24 Hours earlier this year. He will share driving duties with Paul Hollywood, John “The Voice of Le Mans” Hindhaugh and Peter Cate.

Aston Martin Racing has claimed its 50th victory since its inception in 2004, after winning the eighth round of this year’s FIA World Endurance Championship; the 6 Hours of Shanghai. After taking the GTE Am pole position yesterday, the #98 V8 Vantage GTE of Paul Dalla Lana (C), Pedro Lamy (P) and Mathias Lauda (A) converted their advantage to victory, claiming a maximum 26-point haul from the weekend. In what was a trouble-free run throughout the entire six hours, the trio collectively amassed a gap of over one lap by the chequered flag.

British based racing car manufacturer and championship organizer, Ginetta, is set to launch its LMP1 car at Autosport International in January. A regular to the show, Ginetta announced its entry into the LMP1 marketplace in January 2017, committing to a production run of ten chassis and targeting sales to a trio of two-car teams for the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). The Leeds-based company has already secured its first orders, announcing Manor and TRS, as well as an as-yet-unnamed second team as customers for the 2018/19 WEC season, including Le Mans 24 hours.

Aston Martin Racing will be looking to cement their position as GTE Am title challengers this weekend, as the 2017 World Endurance Championship reaches the penultimate round of the season this weekend in Shanghai, China. Victorious last year at China’s leading race circuit, the team’s #98 V8 Vantage GTE Am entry of Paul Dalla Lana (C), Pedro Lamy (P) and Mathias Lauda (A) will be looking to repeat that feat. Currently poised just one point behind their rivals, the trio will be looking to reverse the order by Sunday.

For our Video of the Week this last Wednesday of October we are going to let the famed British brand dunhill do the duties. When dunhill first laid plans to enjoy the ultimate Flying Scotsman Rally experience, there was only one man they could turn to for the job – William Medcalf. Supported by dunhill, The Flying Scotsman Rally is Britain’s premier vintage car rally that comprises three days of open-road motoring against the most picturesque backdrops in the north of the UK. And William Medcalf has one of the greatest competitive histories at the event.

MINI USA is once again proud to congratulate amateur racer Craig Wilcox on his continued success in the Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo Series and the Tire Rack SCCA Solo Nationals. Wilcox, of Blue Springs, Mo., finished as the Year-End Points Winner in the ProSolo Series Championship and finished second place in the Solo National Championship in September at the Lincoln Airpark in Lincoln, Neb. It was the sixth time Wilcox finished as the Year-End Points Winner in the ProSolo Series. Wilcox has also been crowned the Prosolo Series Champion four times in the past five years as well as four Solo National Championships with ten podium finishes over his racing career which began in 2003. The longtime MINI owner continues to race his 2012 MINI Cooper S Hardtop, which doubles as his day-to-day primary vehicle. The 2017 season kickoff event […]

This week our video comes by way of Scotland and features the immortal Austin Healey. This event may have taken place four years ago, but I think you will agree that the cars look as good today as they did then, or even 50 years ago. Coming to us from the Austin Healey Club in the UK, the footage is actually from 2013 when Crieff Hydro in Scotland hosted over 250 Austin Healey cars and their owners at the 4th European Healey Meeting. The above video was taken at the Knockhill Circuit in Dumfermline, Fife, which played host to the event’s Auto Test. Fastest time of the day went to Oliver Chatham’s 3000 Mk1, which completed the 1.3-mile course in 37.7 secs. The Austin Healey Club is a group of 1,600 enthusiasts dedicated to preserving the Austin Healey Marque and […]

Aston Martin Racing is set to take on the 7th round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, as the series visits the spectacular Fuji Speedway in Japan. Despite the race set to the backdrop of Mount Fuji, there’ll be no time to savor the surroundings, as the British outfit continue to pursue 2017 title glory in all championships.

Our Video of the Week for this second week of October comes all the way from the 2017 All MG Collier Cup race at Watkins Glen, NY, put on by the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA). So buckle up and take a ride with Mike Barstow in his MGTD. The “Collier Cup” took place during the U.S. Vintage Grand Prix which was held from September 6 through 10. More than 400 vintage and historic race cars competeD in 11 vintage race groups. The race groups showcaseD many well-known marques, including Lotus, Porsche, Shelby, Alfa, Ferrari, Corvette, MG and Jaguar. Running as a part of this event this year ASs the Trans-Am Series presented by Pirelli.

The MINI JCW Team and MINI USA completed their second full season competing in the Street Tuner class of the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge series with a hard-fought final race of the season on Friday at Road Atlanta. The team qualified P9, P10 and P11 after an early morning qualifying session on Friday. The #73 MINI JCW driven by Jones and Pombo had a strong day, starting 10th and quickly climbing through the field to put the team in seventh place. With under 10 minutes left in the race, a caution came out to pack up the field which gave Pombo a great opportunity to gain position before the checkered flag. As the field prepared to take the final restart, the third, fourth and fifth place cars collided. Pombo maneuvered through the wreckage to emerge in 3rd place.

Yet another thrilling season of motorsport has come to a close for Morgan and Wolverhampton University as the 2017 AR Motorsport Morgan Challenge ends with the final round of the year at Snetterton. Each of the Morgan race cars is now back in their respective garages and workshops, ready for winter enhancements, rebuilds, and the occasional test. The 2017 season is the second year of Morgan’s partnership with the University of Wolverhampton that began in 2016, the on-going collaboration has seen the two companies combine resources both on and off the race track.

Elliot Paterson has claimed his second AR Motorsport Morgan Challenge Championship, at the wheel of a new Morgan ARV6. The Scottish racer dominated this year’s championship, wrapping up the series with 2 races to go. He was officially crowned champion at the final Morgan Challenge race of the season at Snetterton last weekend. Paterson finished ahead of fellow Revolutions Morgan racer, Tim Parsons.

Our video of the week this go-round comes from Goodwood. In it, Patrick Blakeney-Edwards gives an in-depth look at one of the favorite Goodwood Revival cars: the 1928 Frazer Nash Saloon dubbed the “Owlet”. It’s an all-consuming experience to race and with an updated engine, and it was one of the craziest cars to be thrown around Goodwood. Thanks to Goodwood for not only a great event that was great entertainment, but for the amusing video.

Silverstone on Saturday, September 30th saw the 2017 AMOC (Aston Martin Owner’s Club) Racing season sign off in style with bumper grids and great racing. A dramatic combined Intermarque and GT Challenge race saw Richard Cook and Harvey Stanley battle hard for their win, while Rob Hollyman dominated in the Intermarque but third was enough to give Bob Searles the Individual Championship title. The AMOC ‘50s Sports Cars including the Vredestein JEC XK Challenge opened the day’s racing and on lap one the Cooper Bristol of John Ure slipped by poleman Dan Crowton’s Lotus at Luffield to take the lead and later the win, Crowton losing out again a lap later as the Cooper Monaco of Tony Ditheridge, up from fifth on the grid, moved into second with the MGA of Max Cawthorn moving into third.

Bentley Motorsport has won the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup with Bentley Team M-Sport at a rollercoaster final round in Barcelona. The team entered the championship finale as Endurance Cup leaders with a 16-point advantage over its nearest rival, thanks to a win at the Paul Ricard 1000 km and a second place finish in the prestigious 24 Hours of Spa.

Adding to the list of race wins and podiums already secured in the first year racing with customer teams around the world, the McLaren 570S GT4 has now achieved multiple championship success over the past two weekends. Customer teams contesting the Pirelli World Challenge (PWC) GTS series, GT4 European Series Northern Cup, Swedish GT Championship and the British GT Championship have taken debut titles for the McLaren Sports Series model. The maiden title for the 570S GT4 came while competing in California, USA, where GMG Racing secured the PWC GTSA class title with a race to spare at the season-closing weekend at Sonoma Raceway. GMG driver George Kurtz held a 51-point lead in the class standings heading into the weekend and he secured the championship in his rookie season by finishing Saturday’s sprint race. His results throughout the season had […]

Aston Martin and Red Bull Racing have further strengthened their Innovation Partnership with the announcement that the Formula One team will compete as ‘Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’ from 2018. The successful partnership, that has already produced the sold-out Aston Martin Valkyrie hypercar, will yield future products and an exciting new Advanced Performance Centre that will open on the Red Bull Racing campus in Milton Keynes later this year. The British luxury carmaker will also evaluate the opportunity to be involved in the team’s power unit from 2021 after being asked by the FIA to join discussions on future engines for F1TM.