Royal Automobile Club Race Series of the Year; GTSCC to Race on Three Current F1 Circuits
The GT & Sports Car Cup’s recognition as Royal Automobile Club ‘Series of The Year’ for 2020, announced on the evening of January 28, is a wonderful springboard on which to launch its successor. We are delighted to reveal that Europe’s premier showcase for Pre-1966 Grand Touring and Pre-1963 Sports Racers will race on three challenging circuits, all of which host rounds of the Formula 1 World Championship.
Following the recent announcement that the first rendezvous of 2021 for GTSCC competitors, sponsors and friends will be at the HSCC Silverstone’s International Trophy event on May 22-23, it is exciting to reveal that our programme will be completed by a debut at Germany’s 49th AvD-Oldtimer-Grand-Prix on August 13-15 and returns to Castle Combe’s Autumn Classic on Saturday, October 2 and Portugal’s Algarve Classic Festival on October 29-31.
Introduced in 1973 as the Nürburgring Show, brainchild of noblemen and car fanatics Hubertus Graf von Dönhoff and Kurt von Hammerstein, the event is the world’s longest-established Historic festival. “We are no strangers to this charismatic gathering having taken the Italian Historic Car Cup series to the ’Ring in 2011, and it’s brilliant that Hubertus Dönhoff has invited the GTSCC,” said Flavien and Vanessa Marçais. “The exclusive opportunity to exercise your cars on the hallowed Nordschleife, adjacent to the F1 track on which we race, is a very privileged bonus.”
Castle Combe, where our race was a gripping highlight of its 70th Anniversary calendar last October, celebrates another landmark this year. We are proud to have been invited back to Great Britain’s popular west country venue’s 10th Autumn Classic event. Following 2020’s monsoon, everybody’s fingers are crossed that this edition will be considerably drier!
Our Iberian finale on the magnificent Autodromo Internacional Algarve is always one to look forward to. Renowned for its flowing corners, dramatic climbs and majestic swoops, the demanding circuit has always rewarded spirited driving in cars of ‘our’ era. Its location, close to coastal Portimao many fantastic restaurants and golf resorts, provides a hugely popular and relaxing place to wind down at the end of the season. Beloved by the historic fraternity for more than a decade, last year it was deservedly accorded Portugal’s first F1 World Championship Grand Prix since 1996.
“We are beyond thrilled at the GTSCC being named a winner in the prestigious Royal Automobile Club Historic Awards for 2020. The series has been built with dedication and passion over the past 14 years, but this one is for you. It recognises the exemplary driving standards, car preparation and sportsmanship exhibited at Thruxton and Castle Combe last year, two extraordinarily memorable races which enhanced the brand’s reputation for delivering the finest competitive and social experiences.”