The Masters Racing Series has unveiled plans for the first major historic racing festival of the 2008 European season, 'Grande Passione' at Donington Park over the weekend of 19/20 April 2008.
Building on the hugely successful inaugural event of 2007, the weekend will feature races for some of the most evocative and valuable Grand Prix and sports cars from 50 years of motor racing history.
Headline races will include races for Formula 1 cars from the Historic Grand Prix Car Association and Grand Prix Masters, with cars spanning the early 1950s through to the late 1970s. In many cases, these are the actual cars raced by heroes like Stirling Moss, Mike Hawthorn, Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart and James Hunt.
Although many of these cars are rare, extremely valuable and irreplaceable, they are raced with passion and determination and three events for former Grand Prix cars will be at the heart of the weekend's racing.
However, the on-track action is not confined to single-seater racing cars. Another of the highlights of the weekend will be the inaugural race for the exciting new Proto 70s Series from the Masters organisation. The brand new series is all about the sports-prototypes that raced at Le Mans in the 1970s, and a wonderful field is being assembled including several cars powered by the all-conquering 3-litre Ford Cosworth DFV engine.
In keeping with the Italian flavour of the weekend, a grid full of classic Ferrari sportscars will contest a pair of races for the Pirelli Ferrari Formula Classic. With cars ranging from the glorious 250GTO through to the more recent 308GTBs, this is a great addition to the race line-up.
On Saturday evening, a 90-minute race into the dusk will make a wonderful spectacle as the Gentleman Drivers GT and Sports Endurance season kicks off. A grid packed with beautiful pre '65 cars will include all the classic marques like Jaguar, AC, Aston Martin, Maserati and Ferrari.
With more races for sports cars of the 1950s and 1960s, the race programme will make 'Grande Passione' the perfect start to the European historic racing season.
But the on-track action is only part of the story of this event. In 2007, the 'Speed Street' paddock layout was a big success, allowing fans unparalleled access to the cars and drivers. 'Speed Street' returns in 2008, along with a raft of off-track attractions to make this a must-do event. Trade sales areas, can club displays and a dedicated FM radio station covering the event will all add to what is set to be an un-missable weekend.
'Grande Passione' is organised by Grand Prix Events Ltd, an organisation created by the Historic Grand Prix Car Association, the Masters Racing Series and private bank Arbuthnot Latham and Co.
For more details, please visit the website at gpeuroseries.com, where a short video of the 2007 event can be downloaded.
