Sicily trop for 'Nash Gang

During the first two weeks in May, 25 Frazer Nashes will take part in a commemorative trip to Sicily with Tony Brooks as guest of honour. The event will include laps of the full Targa Florio road circuit, and has been instigated by John Aldington, whose family built Frazer Nash cars from 1928-57.

The ‘raid’ celebrates the 50th anniversary of Franco Cortese’s 1951 Targa Florio victory in Count Lurani’s Le Mans Replica Frazer Nash. For Brooks, it is a return to the scene of one of his most famous victories. In 1955, he made his Formula One debut in the non-championship Syracuse GP in a Connaught and scored the first F1 win for a British car and driver for 32 years. Brooks has not been back to Syracuse since 1957.

Joining the trip will be the 1906 Fiat of Graham Rankin, which is identical to the car in which Felice Nazzaro won the 1907 Targa Florio. Rankin is intending to use the trip as a recce fora planned visit in 2007 to celebrate the centenary of Nazzaro’s win.