A new Classic: sun shines on reborn historic showpiece at Silverstone

You’d be forgiven for thinking the recent BRDC Classic was simply a rebranding of Silverstone’s marquee historic meeting, but the updates for this year went much further than just skin deep.

The Classic has been a mainstay of the Home of British Motorsport’s calendar since the first running back in 1990, and the original event – via either its Silverstone Classic or Silverstone Festival monikers – had experienced a rapid rate of growth across recent editions. Both for better and worse.

The new BRDC Classic was exactly that. New. This was no simple rehash of the same old, same old. This was a fresh start based on a complete rethink. Now under the organisation of the British Racing Drivers’ Club, which governs Silverstone, this event added fresh content while also scaling down certain areas that perhaps proved a hindrance to the main attraction – the racing.

While Classics/Festivals of old have boasted up to 15 different grids, over 500 cars, numerous displays, entertainments and a plethora of mainstream music acts – Busted, Olly Murs, Craig David, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, McFly, Sugababes, Rick Astley and more have all held sway on the main stage across recent years – this year’s edition proved that there is value in increased intimacy.

A total of 12 grids were in action, boasting 382 starters across the 21 races, with the track action feeling better spaced out and the paddocks more breathable. Motor Racing Legends’ now-customary tented paddock setup was a welcome addition, allowing the full breadth of the entry to be freely visible and accessible without cars hiding in individual awnings or garages, something that often afflicts the atmosphere of many modern events where cars are becoming ever-more cosseted away from spectators.

The new grids also felt premium. MRL debuted its new GP Icons powered by Goodyear and Endurance Icons fields, both boasting serious exotica. GP Icons caters for 3-litre Formula 1 cars from 1966 to 1985, bringing screamers such as Brabhams, Shadows, McLarens, Williams and even a few Surtees for two tightly contested races. Lukas Halusa’s Brabham got the better of Michael Lyons’ Hesketh by less than 2sec across both outings, but the 16-car entry proved both a big draw and an aural delight.

Likewise, Endurance Icons mustered 23 Le Mans legends, allowing machinery now more commonly found stood static in roped-off areas to roar again. Keith Frieser’s ex-Nigel Mansell Ginetta-Zytek 09S LMP1 proved something of a giant killer by holding off Niklas Halusa’s Audi R8 and Shaun Lynn’s Bentley Speed 8 across the two outings.

The Pre-’66 GT Sprint showcased the biggest field of the weekend, with 53 classics such as Shelby Cobras, Lotus Elans, Jaguar E-types, MGBs and more putting on a terrific show. Andy Wolfe and Julian Thomas fought off competition from David and Oliver Hart in the battle of the Cobras to win, with Mike Whitaker’s TVR Griffith splitting them for second.

The competitive nature of the revised on-track offering was highlighted by several thrilling finishes. Johnny Mowlem and Bonamy Grimes just held off Oly Bryant’s rival Lotus XV by 0.4sec in the opening RAC Woodcote Trophy & Stirling Moss Trophy race. Similarly, Jonathan Mitchell and Graham Davidson’s Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3s were split by the same margin as they fought to the line in the GT3 Legends opener. Closest of all was Martin Stretton and Alex Kapadia’s absorbing Derek Bell Trophy duel, with Stretton’s March 742 pipping Kapadia’s 762 by 0.3sec.

There were dashes of celebrity too, except this time they were fully focused on track rather than on stage. Sir Chris Hoy claimed a popular second place in the 2-Litre Sportscars race alongside Alex Brundle in a 50-year-old Lola T292. YouTuber and sim racer Jimmy Broadbent mixed an appearance in a Nissan GT-R GT3 with a Ford Mustang, finishing fourth in the HRDC Top Hat Pre-’66 Touring Cars alongside Brundle despite the ’Stang dropping to seven cylinders early on. McLaren F1 boss Zak Brown also found time to share a GT2 Ferrari (oh, the irony) with his son Max in Endurance Icons. They did stay on-brand with a McLaren for their GT3 Legends outings though – the MP4-12C GT3 being run by the United Autosports team Brown co-founded with Richard Dean.

The added flavour of numerous car club and supercar displays, funfairs, Iconic Auctioneers’ traditional sale and a revised live music offering proved just enough to compliment, rather than perhaps distract from, the on-track action. This was a more streamlined, more focused approach to celebrating historic racing at Silverstone.

Bigger isn’t always better, as the BRDC Classic so effectively proved.