The final round of the Motor Racing Legends Pre-War Sports Car Series 2004, held at Spa September 17\u201318, was narrowly won by Hubert Fabri and Adrian Stoop in their 1933 Alfa Romeo 8c Monza. Victory came only after a nail-biting battle with the similar 8c Monza owned by Bill Ainscough and ably driven by James Baxter. \u201cWe had three or four exchanges with the other Monza,\u201d said Baxter who, having never tackled Spa before, had learnt the circuit by bicycle the previous day. \u201cI\u2019d get him under braking at the Bus Stop and then he\u2019d pull away on the straights. It\u2019s the best view you\u2019ll ever get of an 8c Monza dancing around under power\u2014right up its backside in a race.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 3rd place overall, and clocking up a class win, was the 1934 Talbot Alpine Sports of Desmond and Gareth Burnett. In the early stages of the one-hour, two-driver race the Talbot had been dicing for the lead, and outright winner Hubert Fabri cited his car\u2019s superior power as the deciding factor in his eventual victory. Fabri was quick to compliment the Talbot drivers: \u201cWe had the power advantage but through the twisty bits the Talbot handled better\u2014and the drivers are better than me,\u201d he claimed with due modesty, reflecting the gentlemanly spirit of this series.<\/p>\n
Other class winners were Chris Chilcott and Sam Stretton in their 1926 Frazer Nash Fast Tourer, and Norman Barr\u2019s 1929 Stutz Blackhawk, driven by John Guyatt and Colin Warrington. The pair finished just ahead of George and Bill Holman\u2019s huge 1928 Stutz Black Hawk, all the way from the U.S., whose distinctively deep engine note could be heard reverberating up the hill from Eau Rouge.<\/p>\n
\u201cPower proved a definite advantage in this race,\u201d said series organizer Duncan Wiltshire of Motor Racing Legends. \u201cSpeed through Eau Rouge is critical, because whatever you\u2019re doing at the top of that corner dictates the speed you\u2019ll be pulling all the way up to Les Combes.\u201d<\/p>\n
This was the final round of the 2004 Motor Racing Legends Pre-War series which has this year held events at the N\u00fcrburgring, Assen and Spa. Next year, this European series for \u201cproper\u201d historic sports cars, running in road trim with wings and lights, will run an extended series of five events at major European circuits, with at least one round in the U.K.<\/p>\n
Further information can be found at www.motorracinglegends.com or contact Duncan Wiltshire at Motor Racing Legends, Hillstone Barns, Brook Street, Hargrave, Northamptonshire, NN9 6BP, UK. Tel: +44 (0)1933 624002; fax +44 (0)1933 624003; e-mail enquiries@motorracinglegends.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The final round of the Motor Racing Legends Pre-War Sports Car Series 2004, held at Spa September 17\u201318, was narrowly won by Hubert Fabri and Adrian Stoop in their 1933 Alfa Romeo 8c Monza. Victory came only after a nail-biting battle with the similar 8c Monza owned by Bill Ainscough and ably driven by James Baxter. \u201cWe had three or four exchanges with the other Monza,\u201d said Baxter who, having never tackled Spa before, had learnt the circuit by bicycle […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":104,"featured_media":704541,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[260,13063],"tags":[432,15234],"class_list":["post-460320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-car-events","category-vintage-car-racing","tag-events","tag-events-vintage-racing"],"yoast_head":"\n