It was just after midnight on a Saturday back in June when art editor Damon Cogman and I stood up on the steep hill that looks down on Steilstrecke, the right-hander that precedes the short blast into the famous Karussel hairpin. We were panting a little, having pushed our bikes up the grassy slope, but as we took a breather and turned to look down on the track, we knew the effort had been worth it. The magnificence of the Nordschleife, at night, during the madcap annual 24 Hours, is something to behold.

Memories of that night – complete with the fireworks, the higgledy-piggledy campsites, the heady aroma of beer and barbecues, the drunken Germans in various states of dishevelment – will always stick with me. And they came flooding back once again when we chose the cover shot for the October issue, taken 40-odd years earlier from exactly the same place on that hillside. Out here, away from the modern Grand Prix circuit, the Nürburgring hasn’t changed at all.

The trip to the 24 Hours was intended to offer some inspiration for this latest issue of the magazine. Well, that was the excuse anyway. In reality, you don’t need to go there to feel the spirit of the place. The glorious photographs from the archives and the heroic – and often mentally unhinged – stories the circuit has thrown up over the years catch the imagination every time. With the help of Vic Elford, who gives us his guide to the great track, we hope we’ve tapped into that magic in the October issue.

Fittingly, given that some of his greatest days behind the wheel came at the ’Ring, Jacky Ickx joins Simon Taylor for lunch this month. Simon has been chasing Jacky to add to his roster of interviews for years. Each time he spoke to Jacky, the urbane Belgian would always reply politely that he’d be delighted to meet Simon for lunch – but tying him down to a date and place proved challenging.

Fortunately, Simon is persistent! Eventually, Jacky invited him to his wonderful home for a lunch cooked by his wife. We always knew this one would be worth the wait, and so it has proved.

Other highlights of the issue include a fantastic McLaren M1B vs Lola T70 Spyder track test, a revealing interview with Indy 500 winner Dan Wheldon and Nigel Roebuck’s insightful view of the Sky/BBC deal for Formula 1 TV coverage in 2012.

Looking ahead, we’re delighted to reveal details of our next reader evening. Following our highly enjoyable viewing of the Senna film in the company of Jo Ramirez earlier in the year, this time we’re delving into the sports car world – and for me, this one is extra special.

Truth in 24 is a fly-on-the-wall documentary following Audi’s successful attempt to win the Le Mans 24 Hours in 2008, in the face of a strong challenge from Peugeot. The film, which was never commercially released in the UK, is obviously a few years old now, but Nigel Roebuck and I only saw it for the first time earlier this year. We were both blown away by the film.

As an insight into life within a modern racing team, I’ve never seen anything as good as this. It shows the oh-so-human side of the Audi racing machine that is usually hidden from view behind the sheen of perfection they like to project. Personally, I think it’s at least a match for Senna as a must-see racing film.

Readers will watch the documentary in the company of Audi’s star drivers Tom Kristensen and Allan McNish, plus race engineers Howden ‘H’ Haynes and Leena Gade. ‘H’ ran Tom, Allan and Dindo Capello’s car to victory in that ’08 race and steals the show in Truth in 24, as we follow his story from the pitwall (I won’t give any more away here…). Leena was ‘H’’s number two back in ’08, but has stepped up since then and engineered the winning R18 in this year’s 24 Hours at La Sarthe.

The quartet will join Nigel Roebuck and I after the film for what promises to be an entertaining forum, as we discuss all things Le Mans and gain further insight into what it’s like to live and race within the crack Audi team. We will, of course, open up the discussion to the floor to take any questions the audience might want to ask.

The event takes place on Saturday October 8 at the stunning Audi quattro rooms, just off the A4 in London. Tickets cost £145, although there is a special price for subscribers of £125 – that’s a 14 per cent discount.

To book, call the office on 020 7349 8472 or e-mail at readersevents@motorsportmagazine.co.uk. If you are not a subscriber, you will be eligible for the special price if you take out a subscription when you book tickets.

The readers’ evening, run in association with Audi UK, will offer a golden opportunity to meet two legends of sports car racing in a fabulous setting. It should be a great evening.

A week earlier, on Saturday October 1, you can also join us at Brooklands for the Bill Boddy Tribute Day. The event, organised by former deputy editor Clive Richardson and the Brooklands Museum, will bring together a collection of cars associated with WB’s life and career, plus some special guests, too. What better place to honour our late founder editor? For a discounted admission price for magazine readers, e-mail info@motorsportmagazine.co.uk

I hope to see you at either – or even both – events.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

As months go, this was one we’ll never forget. The pages were flowing and the deadline was looming as usual when we heard Bill Boddy had died. We’d had some warning that the sad day was coming, but still it shook us all. WB, our founder editor, was 98 years old. As someone said, that’s a lot of laps and it was a more than a decent stint. But he was so vital to this magazine for so long, and to the whole automotive world for that matter, that his passing was always going to hit us hard, no matter how old he might be.

Bill had already filed his stories for the September issue, which goes on sale this week, and we thought it fitting to run them as usual. Elsewhere, we cleared some space and deputy editor Gordon Cruickshank set to work polishing the obituary he always knew we’d have to publish one day.

For Gordon, this was a busy and difficult time. Thankfully, he’d already finished his fabulous cover story on taking a factory semi-Lightweight Jaguar E-type and Stirling Moss’s famous Ferrari 250SWB to the Scottish highlands, for the (significant) pleasure of modern Jaguar design guru Ian Callum. Now he prepared to pay his respects to WB, the man he had worked for and with for 30 years. As we passed The Bod’s final pages, we both paused for a moment. It felt odd that we’d never be doing this again.

You might have read obituaries in the UK’s broadsheet papers, but if you’ve read Motor Sport for some time and the WB initials mean anything to you, please do take the time to read our tribute. Gordon, you’ve done him proud.

The cover story took a lot of organising and there was a collective sigh of relief when it all came together so beautifully. The idea sprung from our old 20 Questions road car column, which ran last year. Ian Callum had been quizzed, and when asked what would be his dream drive, he replied 250SWB on the fantastic roads surrounding Ullapool.

A few weeks later, Gordon received a message from his friend Clive Beecham who happens to own the 250SWB – the Rob Walker Moss car that Stirling twirled so effectively around Goodwood and such during 1961. Clive said to Gordon, “if Ian would like to do it, he can”. It was an offer Ian was not about to turn down – even if our scheduling meant a clash with the launch of his new Jaguar C-X75 supercar, itself a significant day in the history of his beloved employer.

In this E-type 50th anniversary year, we knew this was the perfect opportunity to get a Lightweight involved. Comparing the two standout GT cars of this – and any other – generation just seemed obvious. Oh, and I guess I don’t really need to tell you this, but Ian had a ball…

Fortunately for Gordon, he didn’t have to write everything in the issue. Our regular team also pitched in with some great stories. Editor-in-chief Nigel Roebuck reflects on a great British GP and the Indy 500 celebrations at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, and also discusses modern F1 with a typically forthright Niki Lauda; Andrew Frankel delivers an exclusive track test in the super-rare and very special Mercedes-Benz W165 Silver Arrow (see below); and Simon Taylor meets saloon and sports car ace John Fitzpatrick for lunch. I remember squelching around a sopping Brands Hatch in 1983 watching him win the 1000Kms in his J David Porsche 956, sharing with Derek Warwick. It was the last big win of an amazing career, and when he met Simon the stories flowed thick and fast.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Fitz caps a special issue of Motor Sport. But it’s WB who, for me, has made it one that will always be a landmark. An era is at an end.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Imagine if James Hunt was still around today, I mused to Martin Brundle at Daytona a few weeks ago. “Well, if he was I’d be out of a job!”, the BBC’s new lead commentator fired back.

The truth would probably be somewhat different. Hunt, who died of a heart attack at the age of just 45, would have struggled to hold on to a high-profile media role in the modern world. Richard Keys and Andy Gray would have had nothing on Master James! Had he lived, he’d have said something outrageous long ago and would probably have been handed his cards after a short and very nasty tabloid campaign against him. After this, I like to think he would have settled down into his new role as an outspoken, politically incorrect star columnist here at Motor Sport… and how refreshingly outspoken and irreverent those columns would have been. Such a shame he was taken from us all so early.

Hunt was a brilliant, instinctive broadcaster during his time sharing a mike with the long-suffering Murray Walker from 1980-93, in much the same way that he was a brilliant, instinctive racing driver. He shot from the hip and carried lasting prejudices (yes, poor Riccardo Patrese), and that attitude would not have sat well in this sensitive age. Can you imagine the froth that would have been generated on the web forums if Hunt was broadcasting today? They’d have loved him and lynched him.

For me, Hunt was all the greater because of his imperfections (He once turned me down for an autograph at a Brands Hatch Grand Prix because he was late for the celebrity race. Somehow, I didn’t mind  – because it was him. Even as a kid I was aware of his reputation for timing, so found the polite but firm ‘no’ and the mad rush he was in very amusing).

He took his racing intensely seriously, to the extreme of vomiting before the starts and so on, because he knew only too well how dangerous was his chosen vocation. But at the same time he refused to take life seriously away from the races – which is exactly why he agreed to pose for Patrick Lichfield’s cheeky photoshoot that adorns the cover of the April issue.

Nubile young ladies on the cover of Motor Sport? Sacrilege! Mr Tee (Motor Sport’s former proprietor) must be spinning… But if there is an image that sums up the man our writer Eoin Young struggled so hard to like, it’s this one. All that’s missing is a bottle of something strong and a fag in his mouth. Like James, we don’t like to take life too seriously here at Motor Sport, and we couldn’t resist. Especially as it highlights once again how different our world is today compared to the 1970s. Can you imagine Jenson Button taking part in such a photo shoot? (I can actually – but I don’t think McLaren, Vodafone etc would like it much! Imagine the airbrushing…)

Eoin was James’s original – and very reluctant – biographer. His personal impressions of a man who he came to know well, and eventually like a great deal, are fascinating. For those of us who only knew him as an image in photographs or as a voice on television, they are truly revealing. Incidentally, Eoin lives back in New Zealand these days and we were alarmed to hear this week of the dreadful earthquake that has devastated Christchurch. We were relieved to hear that Eoin was unhurt, although he has suffered damage to his property. From everyone at the magazine, and I’m sure all of you who read it, we send you our best wishes, Eoin.

James Hunt pops up again elsewhere in the April issue, his serious racing side highlighted within Rob Widdows’ entertaining Dispatches column on an eye-opening trip to Monaco with Hesketh Racing, and also within this month’s riveting Lunch with Murray Walker. Now, you won’t be surprised to read that Murray was typically eloquent when Simon Taylor met up with him recently. But even for Murray, this one is special. Despite suffering from a heavy bout of ’flu, he saved his best form for Motor Sport. I’ve never read a more frank and insightful piece on a man who is always a great interview.

We also look ahead to the forthcoming F1 season, with a bumper preview featuring Nigel Roebuck in discussion with Sir Jackie Stewart, a definitive explanation of the new rules – including those gimmicky moveable rear wings – and a study of the overtaking debate by former Renault technical boss Pat Symonds. Since we went to press, the Bahrain GP has been cancelled, of course, so we’re down to ‘only’ 19 races beginning in Australia on March 27. Within our issue, Jackie Stewart has some strong words on the circuits that F1 visits today and the changes that he believes are needed to inject a greater challenge into the sport. We quite agree.

You can also read our verdict on the new McLaren MP4-12C road car, find out more about Mini’s return to world rallying and catch up with comeback kings Martin Brundle and Mark Blundell during their impressive return to the cockpit at the Rolex Daytona 24 Hours.

Before I close, I should mention that our founder editor Bill Boddy celebrated his birthday this week. On February 22 WB turned 98 years old. His stories continue to file into our inbox for each issue and the magazine simply would not be the same without him. Happy birthday, WB, from all the team at Motor Sport.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

While reading Simon Taylor’s account of his Lunch With… Alex Wurz I was briefly transported back to New Zealand and the Peter Jackson series in which the Austrian played a spectacular part.

Arriving in Auckland just before Christmas 1990, I had been signed up by TV New Zealand for its coverage of the series which was then the highlight of the season Down Under. These were the days of cigarette sponsorship and the tobacco company had put a considerable wedge of dollars into promoting events for Formula Atlantic, Formula Ford and assorted touring cars. Essentially, it was local heroes Kenny Smith and Craig Baird (below) versus The Rest of the World, the latter camp including European racers Julian Westwood, Harry Nuttall, Guy Smith and Matt Aitken in a team run by Graham Lorrimer – and, of course, a teenager called Alex Wurz who was up against local champion Ashley Stitchbury among others.

On Christmas Day we had a barbecue, just one of the joys of leaving the English winter behind. Supplied with a new Toyota coupé I then set off for the races, the first of which was at Pukekohe, a fast and challenging little circuit on the North Island. Coming from Britain the circuits were a bit of a shock to the system. Safety standards were, shall we say, a little unsophisticated, and the facilities were basic, reminiscent of Brands Hatch in the ’60s. But the sun shone, the crowds came and veteran Kenny Smith went toe to toe with the 21-year-old Baird, as they did all season.

Double NZ champion Stitchbury set the pace in Formula Ford. Wurz reckoned him to be one of the quickest drivers he’d ever seen, but the young New Zealander tragically died far too young after a racing accident in Australia some years later. It was clear that Wurz had talent, and he was certainly the tallest, but he was on the wild side, crashing too often to feature in the final results. His command of English was minimal, meaning that he was not at the top of the TV interview list, although his different coloured boots were much filmed and photographed. By the end of the series, however, he stood out as one to watch.

Seeking some advice on the local racing scene, I went to see Denny Hulme (below) at his home near Tauranga where I found him mowing his orchard. We spent all day talking about his extraordinary career and he decided he should come to one of the races. That day was an education. He was perfect company, his mischievous humour and no-nonsense approach making for some scathing comments on the antics of some of the competitors. The former World Champion suggested that one or two would be still be looking for the apex as long as they lived, and that the circuit didn’t seem to have changed that much since he raced around it in bare feet.

In the British camp Westwood made a good impression, returning home to some good results in F3000, while both he and Nuttall (who later inherited the Nuttall Baronetcy) spent many happy hours competing with Baird for the prettiest ladies in the paddock. Baird, who later tested with Dick Bennetts’ F3 team in England, found time to win the first of his back-to-back Formula Atlantic titles.

Meanwhile, Kiwi superstar Scott Dixon was still three years away from his first single-seater race.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Steve Soper never used to be the friendliest of racing drivers. The first time I met him was at the Sebring 12 Hours in 1999, when he was racing a BMW V12 LM sports prototype for wealthy amateur Thomas Bscher. As first encounters go, it wasn’t the best.

As a child of the 1980s, Soper had always been a bit of a hero to me. Here was a Brit who’d been schooled in the rough-and-tumble world of British saloon car racing, taking on – and beating – the cream of Europe in the exotic DTM. We’re used to it these days, thanks to the likes of Gary Paffett and Paul di Resta, but Soper’s exploits abroad back then marked him out as special. Whenever he returned to the BTCC, as trouble-shooting team-mate to Tim Harvey in 1992 and full-time with the crack Schnitzer squad the following year, he carried an air of authority and intimidating quality. Everyone knew Soper was an A-list draw, the man they all wanted to beat.

He continued to carry some of that power into sports cars, but at Sebring in ’99 things had not gone well. The story goes that team manager Dave Price got on the radio to warn him of a full-course yellow, that someone had gone off. “I know,” said Steve. “It’s me.” He’d smacked the BMW into the concrete wall at the final corner.

Now, as Autosport’s race reporter I had to go and ask him what had happened, cursing that I hadn’t introduced myself before the race. I approached him with plenty of trepidation, only too aware of his prickly reputation – plus it’s never a good time to talk to a driver when they’ve just stuffed it.

“Steve,-I’m-Damien-Smith-from-Autosport,-glad-to-see-you’re-OK,-can-you-tell-me-what-happened-please?” I blurted. He didn’t even look at me. “I crashed,” he replied flatly, then turned on his heel and stalked away. Oh dear. So much for bringing the reader that exclusive one-on-one insight.

I told him about our unfortunate encounter recently when we met at a BMW dinner where the marque launched its new UK ‘Classic’ arm. “I’m sorry about that,” he said with a wry smile. “I wasn’t always the easiest of racing drivers to deal with.”

He’s different now. Today, he sells cars for BMW as a respected dealer, and he has definitely mellowed. You can still sense the old intensity below the surface, but he is engaging, friendly and clearly very relaxed with his legacy as one of the great touring car legends. He said he’d be happy to help if we had any feature ideas for the magazine – so we took him up on it!

At a cold and windy Brands Hatch in November, BMW helped us gather three classic racers from three very different eras: the modern 320Si which races in the World Touring Car Championship, a Bigazzi M3 from the heart of Soper-era DTM and a fabulously botoxed CSL ‘Batmobile’ from the 1970s. We then teamed Steve with Britain’s modern-day BMW tin-top hero, triple World Champion Andy Priaulx – who came straight off a plane from Macau – to join him for our test and compare notes.

As you can read in Gordon Cruickshank’s excellent story in the March issue, Soper and Priaulx have a bit of shared history and get on well. They thoroughly enjoyed swapping mounts for the day – and trying something completely different in the form of the Batmobile. So two genuine stars of the touring car world who together span over 30 years of frontline action, three of the finest Munich ‘road rockets’ and Britain’s best-loved race track: it’s a heady mix.

Elsewhere in the March issue, Adam Cooper pays tribute to another touring car ace, Tom Walkinshaw – who of course went on to greater acclaim as the man who made Jaguar a force once again at Le Mans, and helped Michael Schumacher to his first F1 world title at Benetton. Tom died of cancer in December and Adam’s profile of this complex man frames his career in perfect perspective.

Ed Foster meets Dany Bahar and Claudio Berro, the men behind the revolution currently taking place at Lotus; Simon Taylor has lunch with two-time Le Mans winner and, er, BMX World Champion Alex Wurz; Rob Widdows interviews veteran team boss Mike Earle; and I get to meet the charismatic – and eccentric – Italian hero of the 1970s, Arturo Merzario. Reuniting motor racing’s very own ‘Marlboro Man’ with the car he raced for Frank Williams in 1974 and ’75 was a real treat, if a little nerve-wracking…

Finally, if you usually skip over my Matters of Moment editorial (and I don’t blame you if you do!) you might miss the chance to enter a special competition. So allow me to tell you about it here. We’re offering five tickets (plus a guest each) to our exclusive Motor Sport Hall of Fame event, to be held at the Roundhouse in London on February 15. The evening is sure to be one to remember, so click here to answer a simple question and give yourself a chance of being there on the night. Hopefully, I’ll see you there!

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Where is the best place to chew the cud on the 2010 Grand Prix season? In the office? Too dull – naturally, it’s where we talk motor racing every day. A plush restaurant? That’s Simon Taylor’s territory, surely! So how about the local pub? Now that’s more like it!

The Chelsea Ram is Motor Sport’s regular watering hole, and the perfect place to blot out the realities of economic meltdown and a freezing British winter to concentrate on what really matters. And no, I don’t just mean beer.

To give our pub debate some structure – and thus ensure our natter was actually of some use for the magazine’s pages – we picked on the major themes of the season and began talking. You won’t be surprised to hear that editor-in-chief Nigel Roebuck led the discussion and made the best stab at putting the season past into some sort of context, while Rob Widdows, Ed Foster and yours truly chipped in here and there. There are worse ways to spend a couple of hours and we enjoyed looking back at the past year in Formula 1, the result forming the backbone of the January issue, on sale now. Do let us know if you think the beer was talking too much!

Deserving World Champion Sebastian Vettel graces the cover, but the young German’s image will be vying for attention with a very special giveaway this month. We’ve compiled an audio CD of our podcast ‘chat shows’ that have been gaining a growing audience on our website over the past year, and it’s free with the January issue. The list of guests we have pulled in to join us in 2010 is a role call of the great and the good: Mario Andretti, Brian Redman, Damon Hill, Patrick Head, Christian Horner, Sir Stirling Moss, Tom Kristensen, Jochen Mass, Bobby Rahal, Martin Brundle, Emanuele Pirro and Richard Attwood all feature in this ‘best of’ compilation. Each time we pressed the record button, the stories flowed and all the guests got into the true spirit of things here at Motor Sport: in other words, saying exactly what they think on any given subject.

We hope the CD is an added bonus to complement another varied issue of the magazine. Other features this month include Simon Taylor’s lunch with David Hobbs – a man who drove a huge variety of great racing cars during a 30-year career on both sides of the pond; Eoin Young’s memories of meeting Jim Clark for the first time at the Wigram Trophy meeting of 1961; a fond recollection of the F1 team that raced in ‘British Racing Brown’ – the privateer heroes at Hexagon Racing; and a fascinating inside story on NASCAR from an old hand of F1.

I should also mention that we bid farewell to our special guest columnist this month. For the past year Bobby Rahal has brought us snapshots of his fascinating and varied life in racing, for which we thank him and wish him all the best for a successful 2011. Tune in next month to welcome our new guest columnist, who will bring his own unique perspective to our pages as we head into a new racing season.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Sixty years ago, the world was still recovering from the ravages of a world war. But it’s always remarkable how quickly people return to normal life after such devastation. By 1950, Grand Prix racing was already very well re-established, even if the cars (and most of the drivers) dated back to the immediate pre-war era. As a new decade began, the time was right to launch the first World Championship.

At the Bahrain Grand Prix last month Formula 1 acknowledged its heritage by celebrating the diamond anniversary of the World Championship in fitting style. All the living World Champions bar two (Kimi Räikkönen and Nelson Piquet) congregated at the desert circuit, along with a collection of fabulous cars from the past 60 years. Such a gathering is unlikely to ever happen again.

As F1 marks the anniversary, we at Motor Sport have decided to do the same. We’ve chosen this, the May issue, because it was on May 13 1950 that Silverstone hosted that landmark Grand Prix, the first to carry the weight of World Championship status.

To celebrate, we pooled some of the best motor racing writers to tell the story of 60 glorious years of GP action.

Doug Nye kicks things off with an overview of the 1950s. Now, as he says in his article, Doug was only a young child when the World Championship was born, but he was always a “good listener”. There is no better authority alive to look back at the decade of Fangio, Hawthorn, Moss, Mercedes and so on.

Into the 1960s, and Eoin Young takes up the story. The Kiwi was smack in the middle of it all back then, working with his mate Bruce McLaren and as a respected journalist, among other things.

We chose Alan Henry to tell the story of the 1970s. AH built his formidable reputation in the decade of flares and fuel shortages, enjoying friendships with the likes of Ronnie Peterson and Niki Lauda.

Our own editor-in-chief Nigel Roebuck covers the 1980s, an era as volatile as any he has known in the sport. It was the decade of the ‘superpowers’ – Villeneuve, Prost, Senna, Mansell and those magnificent turbos. For Nigel, the memories are recalled with a clarity as if they were yesterday.

Seasoned newspaper journalist Maurice Hamilton steps up for the 1990s and regular Motor Sport man Adam Cooper brings the story right up to date with the most recent decade. The ‘magnificent six’ put 60 years of F1 history into context just perfectly.

To complement the story of the decades, Simon Taylor lunched with the man who has started more Grands Prix than any other (except Rubens Barrichello, who took the lead in the longevity stakes two years ago). Yes, it’s Riccardo Patrese. He’s a true Italian gent, who tells us of his racing life, from enfant terrible to respected veteran. Former editor Simon Arron also makes his first appearance in our pages since 1996 to bring us the story of those Bahrain 60th anniversary celebrations.

It’s been a pleasure and a treat putting this issue together. There was a palpable sense of excitement in the office as each of the decade features landed and we began to build the pages. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed making it.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Is this the greatest grid we’ve ever seen in 60 years of Formula 1? That’s a key question we couldn’t resist asking within our 2010 Grand Prix season preview, the cornerstone of the April issue of Motor Sport.

Now, I know better than anyone that making ‘greatest ever’ claims risks the wrath of many readers! So let’s be clear here: we’re not saying the 2010 is the greatest ever – we’re just asking the question! It should at least provoke some debate…

What isn’t in doubt is that this is the most anticipated F1 season for many a year – because of the strength of the line-up. Schumacher in a Mercedes versus Alonso in a Ferrari versus Hamilton and Button in McLarens versus Vettel and Webber in Red Bulls, not to mention true strength in depth throughout the supporting cast… We can’t wait for Bahrain on March 14.

As always in Motor Sport, we have one eye on the past as we look to the future, which is why we’d like to know how you think the grid compares to the great years of F1. Which is your favourite F1 season and which years featured the strongest line-up of aces? Do let us know what you think.

One decision for our season preview issue was particularly easy this year: who to put on the cover. Michael Schumacher isn’t exactly as well loved as some era-defining drivers from the past, but it cannot be denied that his comeback captures the imagination of anyone with even the slightest interest in F1. “So how will Schumacher get on, then?” is the question I’ve most been asked in recent weeks by anyone I’ve met who finds out what I do for a living, mostly from people with little interest in the sport, too.

In our preview, Adam Cooper has spoken to Schumacher’s closest aide to get the background story on the comeback of the century. Sabine Kehm has worked with Schuey for 10 years and she offers a fascinating insight into the sequence of events that led to the big return. The preview also features editor-in-chief Nigel Roebuck in typically entertaining and forthright discussion with Martin Brundle, Anthony Rowlinson on that ‘greatest ever’ grid and that man Cooper again on the new rules that will change the face of the races in 2010.

Away from modern F1, Simon Taylor meets Derek Warwick for lunch in Jersey, Eoin Young profiles Louis Klemantaski – one of the sport’s greatest photographers (and I’m safe on that hyperbole) – and design legend Tony Southgate brings us tales of Shadow, from his forthcoming autobiography.

All this, plus a review of our inaugural Motor Sport Hall of Fame, an event that promises to become an established curtain-raiser for many racing seasons to come.

Enjoy the issue.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

The Lotus name returns to Formula 1 this year. Neither Tony Fernandes nor Mike Gascoyne are pretending this new team has any direct link to Colin Chapman’s great squad, but still the use of the Lotus badge is seen as controversial in some quarters. After all, the legacy is a huge one to live up to and anyone who goes racing under the auspices of “Britain’s Ferrari” (as Johnny Herbert so correctly describes the marque) accepts great responsibility.

We have our own reservations about the use of the name by an all-new squad, but would those most closely associated with Team Lotus feel the same? We asked Paul Fearnley to find out as part of our celebration of Lotus in F1, the centrepiece of the March issue of Motor Sport. The verdict? Well, read the magazine to find out!

As part of the Lotus special, editor-in-chief Nigel Roebuck recounts his personal memories of Team Lotus and explains why the team means so much to him. Meanwhile, lucky Andrew Frankel gets behind the wheel of the F1 car that first inspired him: Mario Andretti’s Type 79, the ‘wing’ car that stormed the 1978 World Championship. And Rob Widdows meets Fernandes and Gascoyne to hear about the revival of Lotus in F1.

From a personal point of view, this issue felt like a long time coming. In fact, it seemed as if it would never end! Hopefully that should come across when you read it (in a good way) because there is plenty between the covers.

Highlights include more from the 1970s, as dep ed Gordon Cruickshank witnesses a very cool reunion: Andy Rouse and the British Leyland Jaguar XJC tin-topper, the epitome of that romantic motor racing standard – the glorious failure! Then it’s that man Frankel again as we remember the Tour of Britain, which attracted stars from stage and track – plus the odd Radio 1 DJ…

Finally, I must mention Simon Taylor’s latest ‘Lunch with’ interview. He met March co-founder Robin Herd for what would prove to be an entertaining bout of reminiscence, but in a venue with a twist. You’ll find out what I mean on page 74.

The April issue is already well underway, and so far it’s coming together nicely. In fact, I’d better get back to it! In the meantime, we hope you enjoy the March edition and do let us know your thoughts on the return of Lotus to F1.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Few people would be taken seriously after making such a statement. Comparing Lewis Hamilton to Jim Clark? Dangerous territory. But if anyone has a right to mention both in the same breath it’s Sir Jackie Stewart. It’s fair to say he knows what he’s talking about.

The three-time World Champion joins Nigel Roebuck in the April issue of Motor Sport to preview the forthcoming Grand Prix season, and does not shy away from bold claims, particularly about Hamilton’s potential. As ever, Stewart chooses his words carefully. He doesn’t state that the reigning World Champion is the equal, and certainly not better than his much-loved old friend. But he has no hesitation in making it clear what Lewis might become – that he “could be another Jim Clark”. Wow.

That’s a great deal for Hamilton to live up to. Clark is revered for good reason. But if Hamilton continues to perform as he has in his first two years as a Grand Prix driver, in time he will be too. Stewart’s words ring true.

No surprise there. Stewart might be 36 years retired as a racing driver, but his love for the sport remains undiminished – and despite what certain high-ranking officials in the sport might say, so does his instinctive understanding of racing in the modern era. Which is exactly why Nigel chose to preview the season with him once again. In our experience, Sir Jackie’s thoughts have always proved uncannily prescient.

The car on the cover of the April issue is one that will stir the blood of any sports car fan of the 1980s. The gorgeous Martini Lancia LC2 Group C car took the fight to Porsche and Jaguar during a wonderful era of endurance racing. We travelled to Germany, to Jan B Leuhn’s dealership, to photograph the car, while Gary Watkins tells the story of a fast but fragile beauty.

Simon Taylor’s ‘Lunch with’ series is always a treat, and this month is no exception. Eddie Jordan isn’t to everyone’s tastes, but he sure brought a lot of colour and excitement to Formula 1 during his time as a team owner. Now he is back as a BBC pundit and talks to Simon about his incredible past and his enthusiasm for the sport today.

All this, plus the introduction of a new irregular series by Doug Nye, Andrew Frankel’s test of the stunning Audi R8 V10 and the usual eclectic mix of the past and present, makes up what I hope you’ll agree is another great issue of the fastest growing car magazine in the UK (it’s been confirmed our readership figures for 2008 were up by 12.6 per cent – as usual, Motor Sport bucks the trend!).

Happy reading.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

The start of a new Grand Prix season is always a time for optimism. One tends to look forward to what lies ahead, not back on what has passed – which is just as well considering the events of 2007 in Formula 1.

But for all the sad controversy of the spy scandal, there was a lot to excite and inspire on track last season, and there’s the potential for more of the same this time around – hopefully without the off-track distractions.

In this month’s issue we focus on the F1 season with a bumper preview that includes profiles of all the teams and drivers. Meanwhile, Nigel Roebuck talks to Sir Jackie Stewart about what to expect, and as ever JYS is thought provoking and frank in his opinions. Stewart’s a signed-up fan of Lewis Hamilton, but that doesn’t mean he’s certain that the bright young star of last year is going to have everything his own way this time…

Aside from modern F1, there is plenty in this month’s issue to keep you entertained for the next month. Gordon Kirby’s exclusive Roger Penske interview on The Captain’s early career as a promising driver is not to be missed, and neither is Simon Taylor’s latest Lunch with… His guest this time? Alan Jones. Entertainment guaranteed, then.

Putting together Motor Sport every month is a joy, but sometimes there are tough decisions to make. Here’s an example.

When we heard Derek Bell planned to race in the Daytona 24 Hours one last time in what would be his final appearance in international motor sport we thought it was a ripe topic for a feature. So I commissioned Rob Widdows to speak to Derek after the race to talk through how it went and reminisce about his good times and bad times at ‘the other’ great 24-hour enduro.

Rob duly carried out the interview and filed an entertaining story in typically double-quick time. Unfortunately, the article had lost its relevance. Poor Derek had missed out on racing because the Riley-Pontiac he was supposed to drive retired early on. Deeply disappointing for the three-time Daytona winner – and a little bit frustrating for us. Without the ‘hook’ of the story, I couldn’t justify running it in the magazine.

But we’ve pieced it together from the cutting room floor for you to read online instead. It was too good to waste, after all.

I hope you enjoy Rob’s article – and this month’s magazine, too.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine