Historic Vintage Races & Events 2012

BMW 3.0 CSL 1975
Photo Courtesy of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca

7.11.12 Monterey, California, USA:
BMW will be celebrating 40 years of M Power at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion MONTEREY, Calif.

Head of BMW North America, Ludwig Willisch will pilot a 1975 BMW 3.0 CSL 430-hosepower team car campaigned by BMW North America in 1975 and 1976 at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion August 17-19 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Shelby Cobra 1964

5.14.12 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, California:
Record Number Of Original Shelby Cobra Competition Cars Accepted At Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion Review 2012

The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion once again took place at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on August 16-19. This reunion of historic race cars has a long history. It has taken place since 1974. This year the Shelby Cobra was the automotive marque given special recognition. Cobras rallied from far and wide.

A field of 550 historic race cars divided into 17 groups took to the race track Laguna Seca in spirited competition. Saturday's feature race listed 45 Cobras as entries. Competitors hailed from 10 nations with US entrants numbering 547. The US entries came from 28 states with the largest contingent of 348 from California.
For compleate story by Michael Rockich: Enter Here

AvD-Oldtimer-Grand-Prix 2012
Nürburgring, 2012
10 - 12 August 2012
Nürburg Germany
Enter Here

If one likes any of the following: Racing, Beautiful Cars, Racing History, Excitement, then The AvD-Oldtimer-Grand-Prix at the Nürburgring during 10 - 12 August 2012 is the place to be.

This is the 40th anniversary of this world class event. An audience of more than 60,000 is expected and with its starting field of outstanding cars you have one of the largest and most popular vintage car racing events in the world.
Image Credit:AvD-Oldtimer-Grand-Prix; Nürburgring

Le Mans Classic 2012
Le Mans, France
July 6-8, 2012
Enter Here

The best way to experience the Le Mans Classic is to get there early on Friday. And buy your tickets ahead for paddock access. Before the craziness of the weekend fully descends you can stroll the tracks and the stands without control once you pass the entry points.

As the american muscle is the theme this year, the cobra's are out in force, and a force to be reckoned with, they pass with more of a seat pounding thunder than anything else, a great big noise and nothing gets between them and straight down the track, too bad about there being corners though.

In 1983 F1 regulations banned six-wheeled cars, and four-wheel-drive, ending the development of six-wheeled experiments such as the Williams and March.

If you visit the paddocks as the drivers return, you may be surprised to see legends in the flesh ... Derek Bell, a factory Porsche driver, along with Belgian's favorite Jacky Ickx ...

Goodwood Festival of Speed 2012
Goodwood Estate
Chichester, West Sussex, UK
28 June - 1 July 2012
Enter Here

Guest Drivers for this years Goodwood include Moss and Surtees, Button and Hamilton, Stewart and Andretti, Solberg and Fogarty and will be available to meet the fans.

For the first time ever, anywhere in the world, three infamous six-wheeled cars will be together. The Tyrrel P34 1976, March 2-4-0 and Williams FW08B were built to explore designs to reduced drag, increased grip and improved ground effects.

In 1983 F1 regulations banned six-wheeled cars, and four-wheel-drive, ending the development of six-wheeled experiments such as the Williams and March.

TAG Heuer is staging a unique and remarkable photographic exhibition dedicated to the legendary French racing driver, Alain Prost, at the 2012 Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Prost became closely associated with TAG Heuer early in his F1 days while driving for the TAG-sponsored McLaren team and received three of his four World Championship victories.

Alain Prost's outstanding career in Formula 1 resulted in 51 victories, 33 pole positions and 106 podium finishes between 1980 and 1993. Prost joined TAG Heuer in 2011 as ambassadors and one of his first, major roles has been to assist The Earl of March in curating this inaugural Festival of Speed photographic exhibition.

More than 100 images, many of them never before been seen in public, will be on display. Full Press Rrlease Available Here - pdf

Jesse G. James, descendant of notorious mid 1800's US Wild-West Bank Robber, Jesse James again appeared at Goodwood's Festival of Speed with his Baja-style Trophy Truck and wowed the crowds with his antics.

PROLOGUE:

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-26
Image Credit: Goodwood, Motor Sport Press; Jo#235EFC

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes scheduled Jenson Button And Lewis Hamilton for The 2012 Goodwood Festival Of Speed
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, and two British Formula One World Champions, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton, are confirmed to be driving at the 2012 Goodwood Festival of Speed on 29 June to 1 July, 2012.

Jenson and Lewis as Festival of Speed regulars, know well the demanding 1.16-mile Goodwood hillclimb, so all viewers can expect the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-26, F1 and the McLaren MP4-12C supercar to driven to full and memorable effect.

The Vodafone McLaren Mercedes F1 team is just one of seven current Grand Prix teams expected to attend the Festival this summer. The teams will also include the Red Bull Racing team, with their reigning F1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel and team mate Mark Webber.

Jenson will be at Goodwood on Saturday 30 June, with Lewis running the Hill on Sunday 1 July

6.19.12 Goodwood, UK:

The Goodwood Festival of Speed is the very best place to find the latest and fastest supercars from around the world.

Michelin a sponsor of the Supercar Run provides a dynamic environment to see and hear the very latest new models in action while as they make their UK debuts. With cars like the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Vitesse, Infiniti EMERG-e, Bentley Continental GT V8, Maserati GranTurismo Sport, and many others, this is guaranteed to be a must-see-event.

Lotus will be focus of the central feature at the 2012 event

Image Credit: Tim Surman Photography 2012

5.11.12 Goodwood UK:
The 2012 Goodwood Festival of Speed will have Martin Donnelly, the 1990-season driver of the only V12-powered Lotus 102 Formula 1 car, race, at speed, up the challenging Goodwood hillclimb for the pleasure of the spectators. Full Story Here

5.22.12 Goodwood UK:
Festival of Speed to attract majority of the current season's Formula 1 teams and drivers, with at least seven of the 2012 F1 teams now confirmed.

Adrian Newey, the Formula One technical guru, will be the star attraction at his home track of Silverstone for this race.

Exspected this year are Vettel, Button, Hamilton and Webber, and Past Grand Prix masters Alain Prost, Sir Stirling Moss, Sir Jackie Stewart and John Surtees.

The world of rallying brings drivers such as Juho Hanninen, Thierry Neuville, Jan Kopecky and Skoda UK Motorsport's 2011 IRC Champion, Andreas Mikkelsen to perform on the Forest Rally Stage.

Historica Racing Festival
Castle Combe Circuit
Castle Combe, Chippenham, Wiltshire, England
April 9, 2012
Enter Here

The Historica Racing Festival is a one day event that provides five races featuring cars and drivers from the Historic Racing Drivers Club.

The grids will have 1960's cars with Touring Cars, Historic GTs and sports cars. Included in the day are opening rounds for Saloon, FF1600 and Sports and GT championships.

Masters Serries Goodwood 2012
Goodwood Estate
Chichester, West Sussex, UK
April 10-11, 2012
Enter Here

Masters Historic Festival Brands Hatch 2012
Brands Hatch Circuit, Fawkham Longfield Kent DA3 8NG
May 26-27, 2012
enter here

Formula One and CanAm machines
Although the focus this year may of been from F1's history, with a special F1 demonstration on the Sunday, this was far from the only racing. Sports cars from the '50s, '70s touring cars and endurance Prototypes thundered around the Kent countryside for this trip back in time.

The weekend pits the CanAm cars against early GT cars like the GT40. But its the thundering Cooper Monaco with its 5300cc engine with Chris Jolly at the wheel that will be out in the lead battle, followed by the McLaren M1B's.

The full Brands Hatch GP circuit was used for the weekend,

Sonoma Historic Motorsports Festival
Infineon Raceway
Sonoma, California
June 2-3 2012
Enter Here

The 2012 Sonoma Historic Motorsports Festival is billed as "Moments in Time A Celebration of the History of Motorsports".

The theme is around the 1950s-1980s era when auto racing began to be established as an international world-class spectator sport.

The Grand Marshal is an 87-year-old US based racer, out of Southern California, named Bill Pollack, who raced an Allard J2 to first place at the first Golden Gate Park Road Races in San Francisco in 1952.

Silverstone Classic
Silverstone Circuit
Towcester, Northamptonshire, UK
July 20-21, 2012

This year was the return of the super fast Group C endurance racing cars with two feature races will set the tone. Three Formula 1 and Grand Prix grids with over 100 GP cars spanning the fifties to the eighties are just part of the grid. Over 100 GP cars spanning the fifties to the eighties, Formula Junior, and 50's sports cars were also be on the track.

California Mille 2012
1000 miles throughout Northern California over 4 days
May 2012
enter here

The run leaves the Fairmont Hotel and travels across the Golden Gate Bridge and through the California Gold Country Hills to Incline Village just over into Nevada at the north end of Lake Tahoe. The route then goes around the Lake Tahoe area and dives back into Nevada stopping at the Reno's National Automotive Museum.

Back in California, heading for the coast, the tour drives through the Northern Central Valley and into the world famous Napa Valley Wine Country. The route moves into the costal hills and ends back at the top of the wine region at Calistoga, for the end of the 4th day. Old Cars. Back roads. Sunshine. California!