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8W is forix.autosport.com's motorsport history section and covers the drivers, cars, circuits, eras and technology that shaped the face, sounds and smells of motor racing.

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2016 Zandvoort Historic GP report
Down to the wire

For the first time in its five-year history, spectator figures were down at the ever-growing Zandvoort Historic Grand Prix. While that may have some clear causes, the fact didn’t take anything away from the programme, which was varied as usual, with a couple of wonderful surprises added into the mix, especially in the demo section. The undoubted highlight was the appearance of Mark Donohue’s ‘fastest car ever’, the amazing CanAm Porsche 917-30, driven by Dutch F1 and Le Mans legend Gijs van Lennep, who proved that even a septagenarian can still be as happy as a child.

Gijs van Lennep, Porsche 917-30, 2016 Zandvoort Historic GP

 

2016 Oldtimer Grand Prix report
Smaller can be a good thing too

Nick Padmore, Keith Frieser, Williams-Cosworth FW07C, Shadow-Cosworth DN1, 2016 Oldtimer GP

It was smaller than ever but that somehow gave it a cosy feel. For the first time in history the Oldtimer-Grand-Prix – once one of the two great summer fixtures in historic motor racing, alongside the Silverstone Classic – decided not to bother with the Marathon on the Nordschleife, containing the event to the GP circuit’s pit-and-paddock area and the historic paddock across the other side of what is often jokingly nicknamed the Ersatzring. Still, now a more usual-sized event using the popular Masters Historic Racing package at its backbone, it proved to be among the best of that kind.

 

2016 Monaco Grand Prix Historique report
F1 stars celebrate Monaco’s F1 history

The tenth-anniversary Monaco Grand Prix Historique attracted more drivers than ever with a claim to Formula 1 fame. Adrian Newey debuted his Lotus 49 while several former F1 drivers graced the entry lists of the two 3-litre races that traditionally headline this biannual highlight on the historic motor racing calendar. On his debut in historics, Alex Caffi was the star among them, consummately taking pole in the 1973-’76 race before storming to victory on Sunday. Having fluffed his first start, the Italian was lucky when the race was aborted due to a monumental gaffe with the safety car. On his second try, Caffi made no mistake and beat Katsu Kubota to take the first F1 victory of his career.

 <Mr John of B', Stuart Hall, Franco Meiners, Matra MS120B, McLaren-Cosworth M19C, Ferrari 312B2-009 'Spazzaneve', 2016 Monaco GP Historique

 

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