THE organisers of Cars & Stripes, the first ever all-American auto festival at Rockingham, are inviting owners of Indy Cars and Champ Cars to get in touch if they’d like to display their car at the event or run it around Rockingham’s high-speed 1.48-mile oval.  

To be held on Summer Bank Holiday (Monday 31st August), Cars & Stripes will stage on-track parades, and static displays featuring a wide variety of American vehicles, including a NASCAR racer, muscle cars, hot rods, custom cars, custom bikes, and trucks.  Cars & Stripes will also host the inaugural Rockingham 100 - two heats and a final totalling 100 laps of the UK’s only banked oval for race-bred Pickup Trucks. 

Rockingham Chief Executive, Peter Hardman, said: “In our first automotive celebration of all things American, we would love to see and hear an Indy Car or Champ Car going around Rockingham’s oval once more. It’s 13 years since these machines last raced here, and it would be fantastic to be reminded of the spectacle.  If there are any Indy Car or Champ Car teams or owners out there who’d like to be involved in a great day, either by showing their cars in a static display or running them on track, I’d love to hear from them.”

The lap record at Rockingham, Europe’s fastest motor racing circuit, was set at 215.397mph in 2001 by the Lola-Ford Champ Car of Tony Kanaan. That year’s Rockingham 500 was won by Gil de Ferran and the following year’s by Dario Franchitti. America’s premier single-seater series subsequently withdrew from Europe and its place as the annual season highlight at Rockingham was taken by Britain’s most popular motor racing series, the British Touring Car Championship.

The Classic Corvette Owners Club, Viper Owners Association, and National Street Rod Association have all confirmed they are bringing cars to Cars & Stripes, with the involvement of more clubs and other attractions to be announced soon.  

Indy car owners and car clubs are invited to contact Will Thomas on 01536 270143 or email will.thomas@rockingham.co.uk.