Castle Combe Circuit is the place to be to spot the next Formula One star over the weekend of June 19 and 20.
That's when the John Guest Speedfit British Formula 3 and GT Festival make its annual visit and judging by the names seen at previous events, Grand Prix lovers are sure to be watching their future heroes.
Three years ago, spectators at the Wiltshire venue saw Takuma Sato and Anthony Davidson battle it out in the British Formula 3 Championship. Whilst it was Davidson who won both races from Sato, it was the Japanese who went on to become a full time F1 driver, currently one of the most talked about men on the grid after his recent stunning performances in the BAR.
Davidson is also highly likely to be on our screens next year, following some highly impressive testing performances, also for BAR coincidentally. His second fastest time at Monaco made many sit up and take notice and a Williams drive is already being mooted by some.
This year Nelson Angelo Piquet, current leader of the British Formula 3 Championship, is the man most would tip to make the leap to F1. With the help of his father, former triple World Champion, Nelson Piquet, the youngster appears to have the necessary qualities to make it to the top.
Nelson Senior says the British F3 championship (backed by Melksham-based AVON Tyres) holds good memories for him. "I had a wonderful time in the British series. It was the first time I had control of my own team, and I spent a lot of the season trying not to buy a transporter, as I did not have any money left! I learned a lot about the setting up of a car, running for the first time with slicks and wings and having to fine-tune a car to each individual track. It was so important to my Formula One career. It was me who introduced tyre-warmers to Formula One, having developed them in F3."
Unfortunately for young Piquet, Castle Combe was one of the few tracks he did not perform particularly well at in his debut season last year. Nevertheless, with a year's further experience under his belt, his rivals, such as Adam Carroll and James Rossiter, will still see him as their main opposition.
The weekend is not just about Formula 3 though. The British GT championship is always a big draw too, with event sponsor John Guest also sponsoring driver Mike Jordan in the GruppeM Tech 9 Porsche GT3 RS, as driven by current championship leaders Tim Sugden and Jonathan Cocker.
As if F3 and GTs were not enough, there's a full programme of support races. The Carlube TVR Tuscan Challenge has been delighting the crowds at Castle Combe for years, the thunderous machines making an awesome sight as they mount the sweeps and crests of the 1.85 mile circuit. Local interest comes from Salisbury's Richard Stanton in his DeWalt/Racesport entry.
The Caterham R400 Challenge will also have two races, the feature of both likely to be the closeness of the competition in the evenly matched cars. More sports car action comes from the AVO Ginetta Championship which Stewart Linn is currently leading.
Formula 3 is not the only single seater entertainment either. As well as the circuit's own Melton Concrete Products Formula Ford 1600 Championship, there's a round of the UK Formula Ford Championship. Gloucester based, Kevin Mills Racing, which made its name in the Castle Combe series has two entries in the national championship, one of which is for Chippenham's Robert Sunderland.
The Kevin Mills team still features prominently in the local series too. Its drivers, Tim Reynolds and Nick Jones are front runners, Reynolds, from Chippenham, lying third in the overall standings and second in class, Jones from Chepstow, leading the Pre '90 section and fourth overall.
Bradford on Avon's Ed Moore is at the top of the heap though in his sophisticated Van Diemen RF01, whilst other significant locals include Andrew Jones from Castle Combe, Bob Higgins from Bath and Saltford's Steven Jensen.
The National Mobile Windscreens Saloon Car Championship sees Mark Wyatt heading the points for Class A in his pristine Vauxhall Astra 2.0 litre, fellow Bristolian Nick Mizen keeping him honest in his Rover Turbo.
Calne's Tony Hutchings is another A class runner with an Astra.
The up to 1800cc class b has Midsomer Norton's David Mears in joint first place with his trusty Peugeot 205 Gti, whilst class c is the domain of Cardiff's Tony MacWhirter.
The Special GT championship race sees the return of Wootton Bassett's Rupert Crook in the Moonraker Forklifts Jade Trackstar 3.5 V6, with Cirencester's Robert Nash in a 2 litre Lola Hart, Chippenham's Russell Spence in a Radical SR3 Supersport,Westbury's Shane Marshall in a Mallock Mk28,and last winner, Tetbury's David Krayem in the Stealth.
The weekend gets under way on Saturday with practice from 08-30. The first race on Sunday is at 9.25 am.
Admission prices on Saturday are £8 for adults, with OAPs £4 and children and Paddock transfer free. Sunday's charges are £18 for adults, OAPs £9 with children 'FOC'. Paddock transfer is £5. An advance two day pass is available for £22.
More information available on the Castle Combe event line on 09003 405418 or on-line at www.castlecombecircuit.co.uk built by Racecar
