Donington Historic Festival returns for ninth year

Donington Historic Festival will return for the ninth year this weekend featuring cars from the 1920s right up the 1990s.

Cars in action include single-seaters, touring and GT cars, Le Mans-style prototypes and sports cars.

Historic racing action

Hundreds of historic racing cars will be competing across the weekend. The oldest cars will take part in the ‘Mad Jack’ Pre-War Sports Car race on Saturday afternoon. This contest features a number of sprightly machines built prior to 1941, with iconic marques such as Alfa Romeo and Bentley battling it out.

The Nuvolari and Ascari Trophy races for pre-1961 Grand Prix cars featuring Grand Prix cars from the 1930s to 1960, including the type of legendary single-seaters that first made Donington Park famous, while the popular Formula Junior category – the historic equivalent of modern-day Formula 4 – will be showcased with races for both front and rear-engined examples.

Classic Touring Cars will again be a big feature of the event, with several races for 1950s and 1960s machines right up to cars built before 1991. Races include the U2TC for pre-66 under two-litre Touring Cars, HRDC Touring Greats for pre-1960 cars, HRDC Coys Trophy and the Historic Touring Car Challenge with Tony Dron Trophy.

Sports and sports-racing car action will come courtesy of the Jaguar Classic Challenge, Stirling Moss Trophy, Royal Automobile Club Woodcote Trophy, Pre-63 GT, and the GT and Sports Car Cup for pre-66 GT and pre-63 sportscars. Meanwhile, a mixture of sports and touring cars will do battle in the HRDC Allstars contest on Sunday morning.

Off-track highlights

In addition to three sensational days of action on the circuit, there is a huge programme of festivities taking place across the venue.

One of the key attractions is a Formula One car display, featuring an ex-Ayrton Senna Toleman and a Benetton driven by Michael Schumacher in 1992 and 1993. Other F1 cars include a Hesketh, Osella and a Honda from the Japanese manufacturer’s foray into the sport in the late 2000s. Many of these will be taking to the circuit for demonstrations throughout the event.