Classics line up for dusk run at Silverstone Classic

BEAUTIFUL sports and GT cars from Ferrari, Maserati and Alfa Romeo will take centre stage at the 2010 Silverstone Classic  when a spectacular ‘dusk race’ dedicated to pre '74 Italian cars runs later this month.

The sensational field for the Italian Historic Car Cup on the evening of July 25 will include examples of some of the finest Italian racing sports cars of the 1960s and 1970s, including the Ferrari 512M, Ferrari 312PB and Alfa Romeo T33. Cautious estimates put the total value of the grid at more than £20 million.

These incredibly rare and valuable cars will be racing for 75 minutes to finish just before sunset at 8pm, and the dazzling race will bring the curtain down on the day's packed racing programme before attention turns to live music concerts.

Series organiser Flavien Marcais says that he has been stunned by the quality of entry received for the race. "We have magnificent sports cars from the 1950s and 1960s as well as later sports-racing cars from Ferrari and Alfa Romeo," said Marcais.

The entry is a showcase of the finest automotive works from Italian designers and engineers, with cars from smaller manufacturers like Iso Grifo, Bizzarrini and Abarth as well as the big three of Ferrari, Maserati and Alfa Romeo.

No less than 11 different models of Ferrari are entered and GT cars of the 1960s will include the classic Ferrari 250 GT and 275 GTB, with the 275 GTB being the most popular model in the series despite individual car values being measured in hundreds of thousands of pounds.

There will also be a collection of Maseratis from the 1950s, including the 250S of Marc Devis and the 300S of Tony Smith. From the 1960s will come classic Ferraris like the 250LM in the hands of hard-charging brothers James and Jeremy Cottingham. Other 1960s GT cars will be the Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ and Giulia TZ and the rare Simca-Abarth 2000.

Star drivers include Liz Halliday from America, the most successful female racer in the history of the American Le Mans Series, and she will be at the wheel of her father's treasured Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ. Racing one of the beautiful Ferrari 300 P3/4s will be former GT ace and reigning FIA Historic Formula One champion Bobby Verdon-Roe, while 1970 Le Mans 24-hour race winner and former Grand Prix driver Richard Attwood will drive a Ferrari 206SP.

Among the later GT cars, versatile historic racer Steve Tandy will handle the timeless classic Ferrari 365 GTB/4, best known simply as the Daytona. Tandy plans to race up to three cars during the Silverstone Classic weekend.

The category for the later sports-racing cars, which will surely deliver the overall race winner, has several of the evocative Ferrari 512s, the Ferrari 312PB, – including the 1972 car of Ronnie Peterson and Jacky Ickx - two Abarth-Osella PA1s, an Abarth SE 021 and as many as three examples of the evocative Alfa Romeo Tipo 33.

GT ace Michael Caine will race one of the Abarth Osellas and has the potential to match the pace of the more powerful cars.

"The Saturday evening race is always a key part of the Silverstone Classic weekend, with a wonderful atmosphere before and during the race," said event director Nick Wigley.

"The sight of these incredible cars at full stretch on the Silverstone Historic Grand Prix circuit will be one of the highlights of the event. No classic car lover can fail to be stirred by the sight of Italian sports cars of the 1950s and 1960s. There is such a passion and sense of excitement about classic Italian cars and it will be a fantastic spectacle."

The Silverstone Classic is held over the weekend of July 23-25. Tickets are available in advance via the ticket hotline on 0871 231 0849 or from the official event website www.SilverstoneClassic.com.

Adult entrance: £30 Friday; £40 Saturday; £35 Sunday or three-day ticket £80. Children aged between 6 and 16: £5 per day. Those aged five and under: free. Ticket price includes car parking, grandstand seating, paddock access and live music.