GT3 Legends at Silverstone

I attended the first race meeting of the GT3 Legends created and curated by Jarrah Venables in collaboration with the Motor Racing Legends series. Jarrah is also running the Enduro Racing Legends alongside a field of cars hosted by Peter Auto that race around the world This was the first race to showcase what we can look forward to in 2025.

A grid of historic GT3 cars from 2006 to 2012 but allowing cars run up to 2015 specification is separated into three classes:

C1 are cars from 2006 - 2009

C2 are cars from 2010 - 2012

C3 are cars from 2013 -2015

With a grid of 23 cars and a 50 minute race with a pit stop, you can expect some noisy wheel to wheel racing.

Below are my photos and clips from the event.

A static display in the paddock.

BMW Z4 GT3.

Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3.

McLaren MP4-12C GT3.

Audi R8 LMS.

BMW Z4 GT3.

First lap at Copse Corner.

After the No.51 Ferrari F458 GT3 of Jonathan Mitchell went wide at Copse, John Minshaw driving the No.63 BMW Z4 GT3 took the lead.

Wayne Mars in the No.60 Dodge Viper GT3 taking a wide line around Copse with the No 23 Audi R8 LMS driven by Frederic Laurant and Julian Thomas taking the inside line.

Shaun Lynn driving the Nissan R35 GT3.

Richard Cook driving the No.72 BMW Z4 GT3 leading Roald Goethe in the No.85 Lamborghini LP560 GT3 and Chris and Freddie Lillingston-Price in the No.561 Lamborghini Gallardo LP6500 GT3.

Matt Holme and Andrew Jordan driving the No.1 Chevrolet Corvette.

Robert Oldershaw driving the No 52 Aston Martin DBRS9.

Richard Meins driving the No.17 BMW Z4 GT3.

Wayne Mars driving the No.60 Dodge Viper GT3.

Johnathan Mitchell driving the No.51 Ferrari 458 GT3.

Chris and Freddie Lillingston-Price driving the No.561 Lamborghini Gallardo LP6500 GT3.

Nick Maton and Jack Tetley driving the No.24 Lamborghini Gallardo GT3.

Marcus Oeynhausen-Sierstorpff driving the No.2 Audi R8.

Paul Phillips and Nigel Greensall driving the No.89 Porsche 997 GT3 R.

Richard Meins driving the No.17 BMW Z4 GT3 is looking to put a lap on Roger Whiteside and Harry Barton driving the No.100 Morgan Aero Supersport GT3.

Shaun Lynn driving the Nissan R35 GT3 is being chased for position by Johnathan Mitchell driving the No.51 Ferrari 458 GT3.

Massimo Vignali driving the No.45 Audi R8 GT3 is holding off the challenge of Simon Evans driving the No.75 Porsche 997 GT3.

Christopher Goddard and Richard Dougal driving the No.144 Ferrari 430 GT3.

Simon Evans has now passed Massimo Vignali.

Roger Whiteside and Harry Barton driving the No.100 Morgan Aero Supersport GT3.

Richard Cook driving the No.72 BMW Z4 GT3.

Frederic Laurant and Julian Thomas driving the No 23 Audi R8 LMS.

Jason Wright driving the No.3 Ferrari 458 GT3.

Roald Goethe in the No.85 Lamborghini LP560 GT3.

John Minshaw driving the No.63 BMW Z4 GT3.

Simon Evans driving the No.75 Porsche 997 GT3.

John and Gary Pearson driving the No.33 Ferrari 430 GT3.

Max Lynn driving the No.36 Audi R8 LMS.

Lights ablaze on the Lamborghini

And the Corvette.

Roald Goethe in the No.85 Lamborghini LP560 GT3 is being challenged by Johnathan Mitchell driving the No.51 Ferrari 458 GT3.

Matt Holme and Andrew Jordan driving the No.1 Chevrolet Corvette putting a lap on Richard Meins driving the No.17 BMW Z4 GT3.

As this race was not broadcast anywhere I will give you the winners in each class:

Overall and C3 winners were Matt Holme and Andrew Jordan in the Chevrolet Corvette.

C2 winners and second overall were Nick Maton and Jack Tetley in the Lamborghini Gallardo GT3.

C1 winners were Roger Whiteside and Harry Barton in the No.100 Morgan Aero Supersport GT3.

This was a fantastic race that had a lot of action.

I spoke to Jarrah after the race, he has high hopes for the series next year. Jarrah told me he is expecting much bigger grids for the 4 race 2025 season so I advise if you can, go to one of them, if not, hopefully they will be broadcast online. 

For further information please visit:

https://www.motorracinglegends.com/ 

 Follow Jarrah Venables on Intsragram:

https://www.instagram.com/jarrahvenables/#

Follow GT3 Legends on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/gt3legends/?hl=en

A Car Chase Heroes Drive at Brands Hatch Part 3

My last drive of the day is the Ariel Atom 3. As you can see, there is not much to this car and it was made with track days in mind.

The Ariel Atom first appeared in 1996 as a university project. This prototype was called Lightweight Sports Car (LSC). In 2000 the first Ariel Atom appeared 24 years later the Ariel Atom is still in production and has gone from strength to strength. This car is basically a chassis, engine, gearbox, suspension, steering and 4 wheels

This car weighs 462 kg's and has the 2 litre Honda i-VTEC 6MT engine that produces 245 bhp, has a top speed of 140 mph and will go from 0-60 in around 2.7 seconds. It also comes with a 6 speed manual gearbox and is rear wheel drive.

This car is a climb in and lower yourself into the seat. I also took a change of shoes for this car as I have size 13 feet so my usual walking trainers would have far too big so I opted for smart shoes as they are a bit narrower overall. This car also requires a crash helmet with the visor down as there is no windscreen.

Me prior to getting in.

As you can see the dash is very compact but has everything you need for this car to be road legal.

To start this, a key goes into the outside to activate the electrics, you push a toggle switch upwards to activate the fuel pumps, shake the gear stick to make sure you're in neutral, press the clutch down and then press the start button. The engine fires into life and settles into a quiet idle.

I put the car into first, bring the clutch up gently and the accelerator down and make my way out of the pits.

Once on track at Paddock Hill Bend the acceleration becomes apparent as my stomach disappeared as I drove up Hailwoods Hill going up through the gears and caught up with me at Druids as you break and change down. On through the lap and gaining in confidence as this car is much quicker than the 250 TR I had just driven.

On the second lap coming out of Druids, I come a little unstuck as I have trouble locating the correct gear although after a couple of attempts the correct gear is selected and I'm back on my way around the lap.

This car is quick to accelerate and handles beautifully in the corners, its easy to see how this is a popular track day car.

Given there is no windscreen you soon find out how strong your neck is when met with the wind and air coming towards you.

I found out post drive the best way to change gears in this car is with two fingertips, its much less clumsy than using my ham fists.

This is another car that you need to fully focus on what you are doing as it is very rewarding when you get it right.

All to soon my time was up but this story has a slightly different ending as I got out of one Ariel Atom, I jumped into another one as a passenger.

My driver was Gemma, she has a brother who is currently driving in the World Endurance Championship (WEC). Gemma is a professional race driver who is also aiming for the WEC and I was about to find out how huge a gap there was between the enthusiast (me) and the pro (Gemma).

I was strapped in and told no matter what to keep my feet crossed and my arms crossed and to hold onto the seatbelts. 

 As we left the pit lane it became apparent that Gemma was all business, as we hit the full speed white line my senses were scrambled. 

 We arrived into Druids for the first time it felt like my balls were in my neck and that my head was going to explode, Gemma threw me and the Ariel around like a rag doll.

 The speed and skill she has is extraordinary, overtaking everything in her path, be it a Ferrari, a Lamborghini everything looked like it was sat still.  

 With the speed Gemma was driving at when you try and focus on something it is constantly shaking due to the nature of the car. 

 I'd been around Brands Hatch in 3 different cars and I thought I was getting better and quicker until Gemma demonstrated the true reality. Yes I had improved on my knowledge of the track and gotten quicker but Gemma is leagues ahead.

 Just as I was getting used to being thrown around Gemma pulled into the pits. I wished her the best of luck on getting to the WEC and went to find a quiet area and a drink of water to settle down after what had been the ride of my life.

 With 3 cars driven and a passenger ride I need to talk about the track itself. Brands Hatch, what a track. It's become my favourite track to watch motorsport at due to the trackside views and the racing that is hosted there, now having driven it I feel enlightened. Now I understand better the 30 meter elevation having walked it as a spectator and driven up it. I appreciate tight corners and how rewarding it is to have a good lap there. I also now understand what the drivers go through on a lap of Brands Hatch and how they feel when they complete a race. Hopefully one day I will drive the full circuit. Only time will tell.

Now, if you have read this far, Car Chase Heroes need your help.

5 of their cars have been stolen from the Norfolk area, below is a photo of their Facebook post from September. So far only the Volkswagen Golf has been recovered. If you have any information regarding the whereabouts of these cars, please contact Car Chase Heroes or the police. 

For further information about Car Chase Heroes, please visit

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/index

For further information about Brands Hatch, please visit

https://www.brandshatch.co.uk/

 

A Car Chase Heroes Drive at Brands Hatch Part 2

 

My second car of the day would be a 1957 Ferrari 250 TR Recreation.

From every angle, this car is stunning. Yes its a recreation, sadly I don't have a cool 20 million sat around to buy a real one. So for now, this will do. This car was originally equipped with a 3 litre V12 engine that produced 300 bhp that give a top speed of around 168 mph. This came with a 4 speed all synchro gearbox and drum breaks. So lots of power but questionable stopping power. Ferrari won the World Sportscar Championship with this car in 1958, 1960 and 1961.

Getting......climbing into this car is interesting as it has no doors. you have to go over and in where the door would be, but once in it its comfortable and the view down the bonnet is epic. It's fitting that I get to drive this car around the Indy Circuit as it's roughly the same age. Sadly I can't find any information stating that these cars raced at Brands Hatch in the period.

The chap next to me was the legend that is @TinTopsUk or Nick Underwood in real life. If you have Twitter/X please give him a follow.

The first thing he did was to relax me by making me laugh. In all of the drives I have done, I've never had any of the instructors do that and it automatically put me at ease.

Once ready, Nick handed me the key. Turn the key one click, push in and then another two clicks and the engine comes to life. Put the car into gear and we make our way to the pit exit.

So to state the obvious, this car is not as quick as the 599, but it's no slouch, it's still fast enough to make you feel you lose your stomach up Hailwoods Hill. There's no power steering here so the steering feels more alive. And the breaks.....they work but you break sooner before the corner than you do in the 599.

Making my way around the Brands Hatch in this car is great fun, there is enough horsepower to make you smile, the engine noise is great, you have to keep the steering in the right direction and get your breaking points correct. To summarise this is a drivers car and it will reward you and make you smile.

All too soon it would be time to pull into the pits and give the keys back but the last thought I had was if I get to choose one car drive memory to take with me when my time is up, it would be this one.

I've done lots of driving experiences over the years and it will take a lot to top this. I welcome any suggestions, recommendations or offers.

     

Now, if you have read this far, Car Chase Heroes need your help.

5 of their cars have been stolen from the Norfolk area, below is a photo of their Facebook post from September. So far only the Volkswagen Golf has been recovered. If you have any information regarding the whereabouts of these cars, please contact Car Chase Heroes or the police. 

For further information about Car Chase Heroes, please visit

https://www.carchaseheroes.com/index

For further information about Brands Hatch, please visit

https://www.brandshatch.co.uk/

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