Across the season tremendously close and sporting racing has been at the core of the club’s programme and from its racing portfolio eight champions have been confirmed for the championships registered with Motorsport UK.

Andrew Hibberd has enjoyed an outstanding season and is a double champion after winning the Historic Formula 3 Championship in his Brabham BT18 and the UK Formula Junior Championship in his Lotus 20 and Lotus 22. Hibberd has been one of the most prolific winners with the HSCC this season and is a worthy champion in both categories.

In the Historic Formula Ford 2000 Championship young Samuel Harrison has enjoyed a superb season to win his third single seater championship title in three years in the Reynard SF79 on loan from Adrian Reynard. Harrison was able to fend off a determined challenge from out-going champion Graham Fennymore during a fine year of racing.

In Historic Formula Ford 1600 young Spencer Shinner was a most worthy champion after a great season in his Merlyn Mk20. Shinner travelled from Cornwall for each of the events and becomes the latest in a list of promising young racers to first make their mark in Historic Formula Ford 1600.

Meanwhile, in Classic Formula Ford 1600 prolific HSCC champion Benn Simms added another title to his impressive tally with an exemplary campaign in his Jomo JMR7 to seal the overall title in one of the oldest cars in the championship.

Both Road Sports championships were keenly fought and in the Historic Road Sports Championship for the cars of the 1960s it was Frazer Gibney who emerged as champion during the final round in his Lotus Elan. Meanwhile, in the 70s Road Sports Championship Howard Payne overcame mid-season gearbox problems to take the title in his Lotus Europa after a fine campaign.

Finally, in the Guards Trophy for sports racing and GT cars it was father and son Robert and Ben Tusting who emerged as worthy overall champions in their Lenham P69 after battling with the Chevron B6s and B8s during another excellent season.

The HSCC congratulates all 2024 champions and those who made it a truly competitive season across eight well supported championships.

The hugely popular annual event at the Wiltshire circuit is a key date in the historic racing calendar but, sadly, the 2024 edition was struck by bad weather, notably on Sunday when heavy rain made track conditions challenging.

However, the track was dry on Saturday afternoon when the opening Historic Formula 3 Championship round was held and it delivered one of the races of the weekend as Andrew Hibberd in his Brabham BT18 fended off Peter de la Roche in his Alexis Mk17 by just a tenth of a second after a glorious race-long battle. The two friends and rivals raced wheel-to-wheel for lap after lap, and even though de la Roche only nosed into the lead briefly, the result was always in doubt as Hibberd extended his impressive winning sequence in the championship. A little way back, Ross Drybrough completed the podium with Mark Carter and Simon Armer rounding out the top five.

On Sunday, conditions were rather different after heavy rain early in the morning. This played into the hands of Hibberd who used his Hoosier wet weather tyres to good effect to rush off into the distance and win by a healthy margin. De la Roche struggled for grip in the conditions and finally conceded second place to Carter’s Chevron B15 while Drybrough was a little way back in his Merlyn Mk14A. The two victories set Hibberd up for the final event of the season at Dijon, when he will be favourite to seal the championship crown.

The joint Historic Road Sports, 70s Road Sports and Historic Touring Car grid was superb, with 37 cars lining up at the Wiltshire track. Conditions were very testing for the opening race as Julian Barter (TVR 3000M) and John Williams (Porsche 911SC) made the running. However, Williams was caught out by standing water at Camp corner and slid into the barriers, bringing out the red flag so Barter was confirmed as race winner on the basis of six laps. Fraser Gibney just held off Adrian Russell for second overall and best of the Historic Road Sports, while a mighty performance from Steve Platts took his Singer Chamois up to fourth overall and first of the Touring Car contingent.

At the end of the afternoon, the Road Sports grid returned in slightly drier conditions but still on a very slippery track. Barter was able to stretch away for a resounding victory, while Williams starred with a fighting recovery drive from the back of the grid, passing over 25 cars, to drop into second place in the rapid but now slightly battered Porsche. Gibney and Russell were again almost inseparable, with Gibney taking third and the Historic Road Sports division by just four tenths of a second. Platts dropped in the overall order a little on the drier track, but still finished ninth to be best of the Touring Cars after another tremendous performance.

Unfortunately, the contenders in the Griffiths Haig Trophy only had one race as the delays during Sunday forced the cancellation of their second race at the end of the afternoon. Up front, Tom Waterfield was unstoppable in his Cooper T39 and won at a canter on a treacherous circuit. Malcolm Harrison ran second in his Cooper Bristol and Tony Bianchi managed to keep his Farrelac Allard on track despite the lack of grip to round out the overall podium just.

With a busy programme of racing from some excellent grids, great weather, lots of attractions both on and off track and a bumper crowd, the Croft Historic Festival was a success on all levels. On track, the HSCC categories delivered fine grids and close racing as championship battles headed into their closing stages.

The HSCC would like to record its gratitude to all the volunteer officials and marshals who supported the event and helped make it such a success, and also to the hard working management team at Croft for delivering an excellent weekend for all visitors.

On track, Benn Simms was the star of the weekend as he clinched three Formula Ford 1600 victories in his Jomo JMR7. Simms set the seal on the SDC Classic Formula Ford Championship with two clear victories, and then added a third win in the non-championship Northern Lights Formula Ford race, which rounded out a busy weekend for many of the Classic and Historic Formula Ford racers.

In both Classic races, Simms stretched clear of a strong pack as Andy Gosling led the chase in the opening race. However, Gosling had to work hard to fend off the challenge of Swiss visitor Gislain Genecand in his Crossle 16F.

In the second race, Simms went away and Gosling lost several places due to confusion over light signals as William Liston came through for his best result to date in his Royale RP24, just holding off Craig Currie (Crossle 30F), Rick Morris in his Royale RP29 and the recovering Gosling.

Historic Formula Fords were out in strength for two rounds of the Barnett Racing Engines championship and there was a clear double win for series returnee Callum Grant in his Merlyn Mk20. In a busy weekend, Genecand bagged second in both races and was close to Grant in the second race. Neil Hose, Christian Goller and championship leader Spencer Shinner were all in the mix.

Finally, on Sunday afternoon the Northern Lights Formula Ford 1600 race brought competitors together from both championships for a non-championship race and Simms made it three from three, even though he was struggling in the final stages with failing transmission and Genecand was able to close in over the final laps. Grant was forced to miss the race with engine issues and so it was Gosling who moved up to take third place.

It was a fine weekend for the Historic Modsports and Special Saloon Series with a 22-strong field marking the biggest grid yet for the series. After a popular grid walk on Saturday lunch time, Jack Harper moved his Triumph Spitfire ahead in the opening race when Andy Robinson spun his mighty Ford Falcon out of the lead. From a midfield start, Joe Ward had a great race to bring the ex-Gerry Marshall ‘Baby Bertha’ up to second place.

On Sunday, Ron Cumming brought his AC 3000ME back into racing after a long gap to race on an invitation basis and was able to pull clear as Ward took another second place to make certain of the Peter Baldwin Trophy for the best of the Special Saloons. The trophy was presented by Peter’s widow June, who had travelled up from Cambridgeshire for the event. Others to feature near the front of the pack included Andrew Willis in his mighty Austin A30 V8 and the rapid MG Midgets of David Morrison and Stephen Watkins.

It was a mixed weekend for Historic Formula Ford 2000 Championship leader Samuel Harrison who went clear in the opening race as Graham Fennymore chased hard and Ben Glasswell completed the podium.

However, on Sunday both Harrison and Fennymore failed to finish. Harrison was sidelined by suspension issues and Fennymore by a carburettor problem and so Glasswell moved through to score his first race win with a handy margin over the battling trio of Richard Coleman, Stephen Glasswell and Andrew Storer.

Both Road Sports Championships featured excellent grids for double-header events and in the historic division, which shared a grid with the Historic Touring Cars, Rupert Ashdown (Lotus Elan) and Mark Godfrey (Lotus 7) claimed a win each. A strong 70s Road Sports field was always headed by John Williams in his Porsche 911SC and Will Leverett in his Lotus Elan and there was an appropriate result as they scored a win each after two excellent races.

Finally, the Guards Trophy provided another victory for father and son Robert and Ben Tusting in their very effective Lenham P69. They were able to move well clear of the Chevron B8 of Ted Pearson and Callum Grant, while Benn Tilley was a class winning third in his Lotus 23B.

The Gold Cup 2024 edition was as good as any as the weekend celebrated the 70th anniversary of this famous event and delivered fine entertainment for a typically strong crowd at the popular Cheshire track.

As well as a series of guest races from other promoters and clubs, five HSCC categories were at the heart of the event and it was the Derek Bell Trophy that thrilled the fans as a wonderful field of powerful single seaters went into battle.

Notably, a strong field of mighty Formula 5000s were at the core of the races and it was Michael Lyons who set a standard that no one else could rival as he returned to the cockpit of his Lola T400 for the first time in two years. Lyons set a scorching pace and was dominant as he won both races, but behind him it was all action and on Saturday as many as five cars battled for the runner up slot. Neil Glover, Mark Dwyer and Dave Banks in Formula 5000s battled with the Formula 2 March 742 of Graham Ridgway and the older Formula 5000 Crossle 15F that John Murphy was driving brilliantly at his home track.

After a tremendous spectacle, Dwyer worked his Trojan T101 up to second from Glover while on Sunday it was Brands Hatch winner Steve Ross who got his McRae GM1 home second as he came back from a testing accident on Saturday.

Another strong field of Historic Formula 3 cars arrived for a double header for the Historic Gold Cup, and it was Andrew Hibberd who won twice more to make it four in a row. On Saturday a light rain shower made conditions tricky in the early laps when the race restarted after a multiple car accident on the pits straight, thankfully with no injuries. Once re-started with light rain falling, Michael O’Brien forged ahead in the Tecno as Hibberd struggled for grip on very worn front tyres.

However, as the track dried the gap came back a little, but then changed completely when O’Brien hit a clutch problem and struggled to get the clutch pedal back off the floor. The time lost allowed Hibberd to sweep ahead for victory with the Tecno taking second before Enrico Spaggiari ran third in his Lotus 41X. He was being chased by the ex-Tim Schenken Chevron B9 of Jake Shortland until a misfire sidelined the Chevron while a late moment for Christoph Widmer allowed Francois Derossi through into what became fourth. On Sunday, in a shortened race, O’Brien retired as Hibberd won again while Spaggiari just pipped Peter de la Roche to the line for second.

Both Historic Formula Ford 2000 races ran on Saturday and delivered another brace of wins for Samuel Harrison, who moved closer to the 2024 title with his performance.

Harrison led the opener from the start and was able to just out-distance Graham Fennymore who then retired from second with a throttle problem. Later in the day, with light rain falling, Fennymore cut the early pace. However, as the track dried out Harrison was able to come into his own and move ahead for another victory. Fennymore claimed second, as Ben Glasswell took second and then third as the best of the rest.

Two Formula Junior races formed rounds of the Silverline UK Formula Junior Championship and in both cases Horatio Fitz-Simon had to start from the back in his newly restored ex-Paul Hawkins Brabham BT6 after a fuel issue early in qualifying.

In the opener, Fitz-Simon charged through the capacity field to finish third as Sam Wilson shook off the early challenge of Clive Richards for a commanding victory. On Sunday, Fitz-Simon once more started at the back of the grid but drove a storming race to cut through the pack and grab victory from Wilson at the end of an enthralling race.

Two races for a bumper field of Road Sports wrapped up the HSCC race content and it was series newcomer Connor Kay who claimed a double win in his TVR Tuscan. In the opener, as light rain made conditions tricky, Kay battled with the Morgan Plus 8 of Elliot Paterson before easing clear after John Williams spun his Porsche 911SC. Williams then recovered to third, just ahead of the Lotus Elans of Adrian Russell and Jim Dean. Kay had an easier time on Sunday when Paterson retired the Morgan and so the TVR was able to race clear of Williams and Dean while Neil Wood was the best of the concurrent Historic Touring Cars.

Another notable feature of the weekend was a fitting tribute to Alan Minshaw, who died recently at the age of 88. The local racer was a huge fan of Oulton Park and a whole gaggle of cars driven by Alan in his 50 year career of racing formed a fitting display and then took part in a demonstration on Saturday lunchtime.

Notably, his son Jason drove the stunning Maserati T61 ‘bird cage’, while BMW M3, DAF 55, Chevrolet Malibu and Chevron B8 were other cars to feature in the tribute to a very popular racer.

With four races for Formula Ford 1600, there was always going to be plenty of close action and the double headers for Classic Formula Ford and Historic Formula Ford did not disappoint.

In the SDC supported Classic Formula Ford Championship there were two wins for Benn Simms in his remarkable Jomo JMR7, despite a tremendous challenge by Callum Grant in particular. In the first race, Grant mounted a major challenge until a rare error at the chicane pitched his Merlyn Mk20 into a spin and allowed Simms to go clear. In his wake, Andy Gosling battled through into second and Grant was able to salvage third as he recovered from his spin.

At the end of the weekend, the second race was full of action and drama with up to five cars making a fantastic lead battle. Once again, Simms and Grant made the pace and there was nothing in it for much of the race. But when it mattered Simms was ahead by just 17 hundredths of a second in a fantastic finish.

Neil Hose topped a trying weekend to bring his Merlyn Mk20 into third from Chris Porritt after a late incident at Redgate delayed Rick Morris and eliminated Matthew Wrigley and Gosling.

Not to be outdone, the Barnett Racing Engines backed historic category also delivered some sensational racing and in the first race of the weekend it was young Spencer Shinner who underlined his rising star status by beating his rivals in a blanket finish.

The ever improving Christian Goller, Wrigley and Ross Drybrough were all within a second of Shinner over the line and for much of the race it had been Wrigley who really took the fight to the young Cornishmen. Wrigley got his reward in the second race on Sunday once Shinner dropped back a little in the leading pack. It was an inspired Cormac Flanagan who came up to battle with his good friend Drybrough over second and the Alexis finally grabbed the place after some wheel to wheel action.

The new HSCC Touring Car Legends series made an encouraging debut with a quality grid that was headed in both races by the flame throwing Nissan Skyline R32 of Ric Wood. In Saturday’s sprint race, Daniel Brown headed the chase of Wood in the family Ford Sierra RS500 but on Sunday Brown posted a late retirement in the car he shared with his father Sean when it cut out and refused to restart. Instead Mike Manning came through to second in his RS500 after a big effort to rebuild the car following an accident at Castle Combe.

A bumper grid of Historic and 70s Road Sports and Historic Touring Cars delivered a fabulous spectacle and victories for John Shaw’s Morgan Plus 8 and John Williams in his Porsche 911SC. They were the class of the field with Shaw topping the Historic division and Williams heading the 70s contenders. Best of the touring cars on Saturday was Neil Wood in his Ford Anglia and then at the end of Saturday afternoon Wood again topped the division as Williams got the better of Shaw in the overall contest.

The two Derek Bell Trophy races delivered a wonderful spectacle as mighty Formula 5000s and nimble Formula 2 and Atlantic cars went into battle. In the opener, Christian Pittard was able to make an escape in his Chevron B28 as Mark Charteris took a few laps to find a way around the Chevron B37 of Neil Glover who was battling a rare handling imbalance.

Once through into second Charteris and his March 782 rocketed away after Pittard and closed the Chevron down, but just didn’t have enough laps to make an attack and was half a second behind over the line. Paul Campfield challenged Glover for third and Mark Dwyer wrapped up the top five in his ex-Jody Scheckter Trojan T101.

In a re-started race on Sunday, with Pittard absent due to other commitments, Charteris got away clear from the start and was never troubled as Glover saw off Campfield and Robin Lackford came up to be the best of the Formula Atlantics in his GRD 272.

A tremendous Guards Trophy grid featured both quantity and quality although the race was curtailed a couple of laps early after a lot of oil was dropped from the Chevron B16 of Daniel Pickett.

Steve Nuttall made the early running in his Chevron B8 but over the race distance it was the Lenham P69 of Robert and Ben Tusting that came to the fore. Any chance for Nuttall to make a late challenge was lost to the red flag. David Forsbrey wrapped up the top three in his Chevron B8 while Nick Fennell and Michael O’Brien were class winners in Fennell’s Lotus 23B.

Historic Formula Ford 2000 honours were ultimately split between Graham Fennymore and Samuel Harrison as their title battle continued. Harrison had a disaster in qualifying when his engine let go on only his third lap. But a deal was quickly done with Benn Sims to fetch Benn’s rebuilt engine and it was fitted just in time for Harrison to join the grid. He battled up from fifth and dived ahead of Fennymore at Redgate, but it was a move that was later deemed inappropriate and Harrison collected a five-second penalty to put him back behind Fennymore in the amended results. Ben Glasswell and Ollie Roberts were next up once Jordan Harrison lost the rear wing from his Lola T580.

On Sunday, Harrison started down in 17th place due to his second fastest lap in qualifying but stormed through the field in spectacular style and was aided by an early safety car that bunched the pack up. Once released, Harrison went from fifth to second in short order, and then deposed Fennymore in the closing stages to complete a remarkable weekend. Glass well and Jordan Harrison wrapped up the top four.

Alex Morton was the class of the front engined Formula Junior pack and went well clear in his Condor S2 as Chris Astley led the pursuit in his Elva 100. Meanwhile in the rear engine race, which was interrupted by a safety car, Sam Wilson just had the upper hand over Clive Richards when it really mattered with Andrew Hibberd chasing hard in his Lotus 22.

Finally, the Griffith Haig Trophy season opened with a small but select grid of drum brake sports cars and in the first race it was Chris Keen who took control in his Kurtis 500S despite a determined Chase by Malcolm Harrison in his Cooper Bristol T25. Later in the day, Gareth Evans took over the Allard J2X raced by the unrelated Simon Evans in the opening race and was able to narrowly fend off Keen with a tyre-smoking display in the mighty Allard.

Each year the HSCC heads east to rural Lincolnshire for two days at the spectacular three-dimensional circuit. Cadwell Park is one of the finest and most challenging circuits in the UK with a glorious parkland setting and warm spring weather added to a great weekend away for everyone involved.

As ever, the HSCC says a huge thank you to the volunteer marshals and officials who ensured a busy weekend ran smoothly despite one or two incidents, including a significant oil slick early on Sunday morning.

It was a weekend of double winners and all eight grids featured a double victory for the driver in best form in that particular category. Samuel Harrison was mighty in Historic Formula Ford 2000 and won twice in the Reynard SF79 on loan from marque founder Adrian Reynard. However, it was never easy and on Saturday it was Ben Glasswell who really took the fight to Harrison as Graham Fennymore tucked in behind to make it a three way contest.

Unfortunately, Glasswell just put a wheel wide at Charlie’s Bend and spun into the barriers to end his race. That elevated Fennymore to second, but Harrison had things under control. On Sunday, Harrison did it again and won by a useful margin from Fennymore as Glasswell took the final podium place in his repaired car.

John Williams was in great form in 70s Road Sports and went into the opening race hoping to pull off a demon start to get his Porsche 911SC ahead of the Lotus pack. His prayers were answered when fellow front row qualifier Howard Payne (Lotus Europa) had a shocker of a start and dropped many places. Williams was clear by the first corner and was able to stretch clear as Payne set about recovering lost ground and fought back up to third before latching onto the tail of Mark Leverett’s Lotus Elan on the final lap. Despite a big challenge, Leverett defended and held the place to the flag. On Sunday, Payne got away better but dropped back from the Porsche and ended the race in second and clear of Leverett’s Elan.

The Formula Junior pack was split into front and rear engined grids and it was Alex Morton who was the class of the front-engined pack in his Condor S2 to win comfortably in both races. On Saturday, a great battle raged for second as Justin Fleming, John Sykes and Graham Barron disputed the place with Lola, Merlyn and Gemini respectively. That was how they finished after a thoroughly entertaining contest. On Sunday, Fleming was able to pull clear, but was still some way back from Morton at the flag.

There was a rare result in the rear-engined Formula Junior qualifying session as four Lotus 20s packed the top of the times, possibly for the first time for several decades, with Andrew Hibberd heading impressive newcomer Nathan Metcalfe, Nick Carlton-Smith and Martin Aubert. Unfortunately, Metcalfe was destined not to start after a bump late in qualifying.

Hibberd was able to stretch clear in the opening race from Carlton-Smith and Aubert and then did it again on Sunday, although Carlton-Smith was much closer at the flag with Alan Schmidt moving up to third in his Brabham BT6.

John Milicevic rejoined the Historic Formula 3 field to head an encouraging grid for the Justin Haler Memorial Races in his Brabham BT21B. On Saturday Peter de la Roche worked the Alexis Mk17 up to second and hassled Milicevic in the closing stages before retiring. That left Ross Drybrough to come through to second from Jason Timms. Milicevic had an easier time on Sunday with Drybrough a little way back, but clear of the battling Mark Carter (Chevron B15) and Richard Wise (Tecno).

The Historic Road Sports and Historic Touring Cars joined together to make a nice grid of cars and it was John Shaw who was the class of the field in his Morgan Plus 8. Jonathan Stringer saw off Fraser Gibney to be second in the opener as Neil Wood headed the Touring Cars in his rapid Ford Anglia. Shaw won again on Sunday as Gibney got the better of Stringer this time around to take second. Wood was again the best of the Touring Cars from Adam Cunnington’s Lotus Cortina.

Benn Simms and Callum Grant came back to Historic Formula Ford for the chance to race at Cadwell Park and had two memorable battles in the pair of races. As Callum celebrated his 29th birthday, there was no big present from Benn as the Jomo headed the Merlyn by a third of a second at the end of each race after two typically close and sporting contests. Spencer Shinner rounded out the podium on Saturday, but only by a whisker as Chris Porritt almost pulled up alongside on the rush to the line. There was more of the same on Sunday although Shinner had a little more in hand over Porritt after 13 laps.

The Historic Modsports and Special Saloon series delivered a double win for Myles Castaldini in his Davrian Mk8 after he was able to resolve a qualifying misfire and set a cracking pace. David Morrison went with Castaldini in his rapid MG Midget and was just four seconds adrift after 20 minutes on Saturday.

With Morrison absent for Sunday’s second race, it was Andrew Willis and Steve Watkins who led the chase of the flying Davrian. Willis had the wonderful Ford V8 Austin A30 wound up well to finish only three seconds adrift with Watkins in hot pursuit in his MG Midget.

On a dry but cold weekend, a full 20-race programme ran very smoothly with representative grids, including welcome guest races from the Darlington and District Motor Club Sports/Saloon Championship and the Monoposto Championship.

Having recently sold his Formula Ford 2000 Reynard, Simms is focusing his effort for 2024 on the Jomo Formula Ford and he used the car’s slippery shape in the windy conditions of qualifying to put it on pole ahead of the later cars. The opening race had an early safety car and then a red flag but through it all Simms steered a calm and steady course to edge away from the battling pack behind him.

Simon Toyne wriggled his Lola T200 through to second place after the restart but had Andy Gosling’s Van Diemen and Rick Morris in the Royale RP29 on his tail. They were both fortunate to still be running, as Gosling had spun into the Esses in the first part and Morris had to take to the grass to avoid contact. Chris Porritt brought his Titan Mk6 up to complete the top five after Mike Gardner retired with damage to his Crossle 32F.

On Sunday, Simms did it all over again to wrap up a fine weekend. Gosling ran a clear second with Morris third while bouncing back after retiring from the opening race was Gislain Genecand who claimed fourth in his Crossle 16F. Simms was delighted with the result but acknowledged that he may not have things as easy next time out.

Toyne was also a key player in the opening Barnett Racing Engines Historic Formula Ford race later on Saturday afternoon and was able to stretch clear for a commanding win in the rapid Lola. His escape was made easier as a glorious four-way battle raged for second place.

Young Spencer Shinner, series newcomer Neil Hose, Cormac Flanagan and Ross Drybrough were all in the thick of the action in a wonderful battle, which was only resolved late in the day when Hose had a quick spin at Russell and Shinner edged a few yards clear of battling friends and rivals Flanagan and Drybrough.

With Toyne, as usual, not racing on Sunday Hose was able to score a deserved victory on his first weekend in the championship, but only by a tiny margin over Shinner at the flag.

A bumper grid of 70s and Historic Road Sports delivered a great spectacle on each day and Saturday’s race was one of the best of the weekend. The Morgan Plus 8s of Simon King and Richard Plant went head-to-head and it was an absorbing contest as they battled through late race traffic. King just made it to the line as Plant tried to out-gun him on the run from the final corner and they were close to side-by-side over the line. It was decided in King’s favour by a scant 15 hundredths of a second after more than 20 minutes of flat out battling.

Antony Ross, best of the 70s pack, was chasing hard in his TVR 3000M at the flag and was ideally placed to move ahead on Sunday when the two Historic Road Sports Morgans were absent.

Ross won the second race with a handy margin over Historic contender Frazer Gibney (Lotus Elan) and John Williams from the 70s pack in his Porsche 911SC. A little further back, Howard Payne was delighted to chalk up two finishes in his Lotus Europa after a troubled season in 2023.

Honours were shared among the Historic Formula Ford 2000 contenders with Samuel Harrison scoring an impressive victory on Saturday in the car on loan from Adrian Reynard. Harrison held the gap to defending champion Graham Fennymore at around a second and a half at the flag, with Ben Glasswell just heading Jordan Harrison for third.

However, on Sunday, it was Fennymore who took control despite the close attention of Glasswell. Harrison picked up a damaged radiator and was forced to retire so some way back from the leaders, Andrew Storer claimed the final podium position ahead of Adrian Reynard himself.

Only racing on Saturday were the Historic Formula Junior Championship contenders, and it was Nick Fennell who took charge in his Lotus 27 for a convincing victory. Andrew Hibberd in his Lotus 20 spent the early laps running in close formation with his father Michael in their Lotus 22, with Nic Carlton-Smith joining in with his newly rebuilt Lotus 20. Eventually, Andrew H edged away for a clear second and Carlton-Smith bagged third from Hibberd senior who just fended off the impressive Pierre Guichard in the Lynx T3 at the flag.

The Chase Equipment Historic Modsports and Special Saloons pack looked really good and with more cars to come the series continues to build momentum. Joe Ward wheeled out the magnificent ‘Baby Bertha’ Vauxhall Firenza to score a double win. In the first race on Sunday it was Ray Rowan who led the chase in his Sunbeam Stiletto with Tony Davis (Vauxhall Firenza) and Myles Castaldini (Davrian Mk8) battling for third.

Later the day Ward did it again and with Rowan retiring the Stiletto it was Davis, who came through for second from Andrew Willis in the mighty Ford V8-powered Austin A30. Sadly, the Triumph TR7 V8 Le Mans project of Kevin Jones hit more dramas and only completed a lap or two of qualifying.

Running for 50 minutes on Sunday afternoon was the opening round of the Guards Trophy and it was Scottish Borders driver Dan Balfour who took a commanding win after going solo in his Chevron B8. Balfour won by just over a minute from the Lenham P69 of Robert and Ben Tusting and they, in turn, had to work hard as less than two seconds covered second to fourth place cars at the flag. Westie and Sam Mitchell chased hard in their Chevron B8 and had David Forsbrey in his B8 running them very close.

It was even closer in the GT category as the Lotus Elan 26Rs of Bruce White and Nick Powell finished just 56 thousandths of a second apart after an absorbing contest. It was another great battle during a full weekend on the 200 circuit at Snetterton.

Heading into the Club’s 57th season, the HSCC will run a range of race meetings at prime UK circuits for its members competing in a diverse portfolio of championships and series.

As ever, the HSCC caters for a fantastic array of period machinery, ranging from sports and GT cars of the 1960s through single-seaters and right up to its new series of Touring Car Legends for Group 2 and Group A touring cars from up to the 1990s.

As before, the HSCC is proud to be the race organising club for the Silverstone Festival at the end of August and will continue to play a significant role in this fantastic celebration of period race cars. Similarly, the HSCC will be the race organising club for the Oulton Park Gold Cup at the end of July when several HSCC categories will feature on the bill. At the end of the season, the HSCC will be the organising club for the annual Walter Hayes Trophy.

The season starts, as before, at Snetterton in East Anglia in April before switching to Cadwell Park in May. In early June, a very popular two-day event will run at Donington and then in mid-July, the HSCC will be at Brands Hatch on the fantastic Grand Prix circuit for the Legends of Brands Super Prix. The Croft Historic Race Weekend moves forward into August to give a better spread of dates in the busy calendar and the season then concludes at Silverstone for the traditional Finals Meeting in mid-October. In addition to its own race meetings, the HSCC is likely to play a role in providing races for several other events, including the Thruxton Historic in June and the Castle Combe Autumn Classic in September.

“We’re very pleased to unveil our 2024 race calendar,” said CEO Andy Dee Crowne. “We’ve listened to our racing members and have endeavoured to provide the dates and the venues that they want, with a well-spaced calendar.”

2024 HSCC provisional calendar:

20-21 April             Snetterton

18-19 May              Cadwell Park

8-9 June                 Donington Park

13-14 July              Brands Hatch GP

26-28 July              Oulton Park Gold Cup

10-11 August          Croft

23-25 August          Silverstone Festival

12-13 October        Silverstone National

2-3 November         Silverstone Walter Hayes Trophy

There was no better racing than in the final two races for the Historic Formula Ford Championship. Though the title was already secure, Callum Grant really wanted to add the Paul Simms Memorial Trophy to his 2023 tally and that’s just what he did, with two superb victories after two race long battles with Benn Simms. Benn obviously would have liked to clinch the trophy in memory of his late father but was delighted to present it to Callum after a pair of fiercely competitive but respectful and sporting contests.

Saturday’s race finished with the cars split by eight hundredths of a second, while Sunday’s race offered Callum the slightly bigger margin of a quarter of a second after Ben outbraked himself into Brooklands late in the race. In their wake a mighty battle raged in both races for third place and on Saturday it was Chris Porritt who wriggled his Titan Mk6 to the front.

On Sunday, as many as eight cars battled furiously for third and it was Matthew Wrigley who just got to the front ahead of Spencer Shinner and Cormac Flanagan, after a glorious race that showed Formula Ford at its very best.

Another double winner was Michael O’Brien in Historic Formula 3 and he earned the trophy presented in memory of his late mother Julia by taking the Speedsport Brabham BT21B to two more wins on the back of Samuel Harrison’s dominance of the season long championship. On Saturday, the similar car of John Milicevic ran O’Brien close in the early laps before the GT racer edged away. Further back, Jason Timms saw off Ian Bankhurst for third.

On Sunday, O’Brien was able to escape from the start and by mid-race Milicevic had to watch his mirrors for Peter de la Roche in the Alexis Mk17 with a repaired gear linkage after a non-finish on Saturday. Timms, Simon Armer and Andy Jarvis rounded out the top six.

Historic F3 wasn’t the only winning that O’Brien did on Finals day for he then jumped into the Lotus 27 of Nick Fennell to take both rear-engined Formula Junior victories. On Saturday he went clear as Cam Jackson and Sam Wilson battled for second once Horatio Fitz-Simon was caught out by a brief shower of rain and spun. Horatio recovered to fourth, but it was not enough to keep him in the running for the championship.

On Sunday, O’Brien again went clear as Wilson and Jackson battled up the order to take a second and third from Fitz-Simon. Meanwhile two more class wins for Nic Carlton-Smith in his Kieft ensured that he retained the overall Formula Junior title despite a season that, at times, proved challenging.

Samuel Harrison was another star of the weekend as he made his Historic Formula Ford 2000 debut in one of Adrian Reynard’s cars. In a re-started race on Saturday, Harrison took victory by nearly five seconds from Graham Fennymore as Marc Mercer rounded out the podium. On Sunday there was an early red flag after a lot of oil went down at Beckett’s and led to some spins. Harrison then battled ahead of Fennymore and looked to be building a small margin only to have the Reynard stick in fourth gear for the final two laps, which allowed Fennymore to sneak ahead by seven tenths of a second as Mercer closed up in third.

A bumper grid of 70s and Historic Road Sports made a fine sight for an extended 25-minute race and Kevin Kivlochan gave himself work to do with a rather tardy start in the Shelby Cobra. However, he battled through to take over from the battling Morgan Plus 8s of John Shaw and Oliver Pratt.

Meanwhile, in the 70s division, John Williams worked his Porsche 911SC up to fourth overall with a little in hand over the Lotus Europa of Howard Payne, who gave himself an early handicap by missing second gear off the line.

The Guards Trophy race on Sunday afternoon opened with the Lotus 23Bs of Michael Hibberd and Benn Tilley both in the gravel at Beckett’s and out of the race on the first lap. Meanwhile, father and son Robert and Ben Tusting finally worked their Lenham P69 to the front of an absorbing contest but had only a second and a half in hand over the Chevron B8 of David Forsbrey after 53 laps. Dan Balfour got his B8 up to third overall, while James Dodd went solo in the family Ginetta G16 to take fourth despite running less suitable tyres. In the GT category, Harry Barton emerged on top in his TVR Griffith with a chunk in hand over the Lotus Elan of Horatio Fitz-Simon.

Back in single seaters there was an Aurora Trophy double for Neil Glover in his mighty Chevron B37. On Saturday, the Formula 2 cars of Mark Dwyer and Brian Morris led the pursuit of the mighty F5000 but both retired mid-race on Sunday and so it was Matthew Wurr who made it a Formula 5000 one-two on Sunday in the ex-Peter Gethin McLaren M10B. In the concurrent Classic Formula 3 contest, David Thorburn took his Ralt RT3 to a weekend double but it was hard charging Ben Stiles who bagged the Classic F3 title from the URS Classic FF2000 class in his Van Diemen RF82.

The front-engined Formula Junior pack had their own pair of races and it was local legend Ray Mallock who won twice in his U2 Mk2. Andrew Hibberd chased Mallock and they had a fantastic battle on Sunday, which Mallock only won by four tenths of a second. Unable to live with Mallock and Hibberd’s Lola Mk2, Alex Morton took a brace of thirds in his Condor S2 but it was not enough to keep him in the hunt for the overall Formula Junior title.

SDC Classic Formula Ford victories fell to Joseph Ahrens in his Royale RP26 and Jake Shortland in the rare Lola T440. Both races delivered excellent battles from a bumper field of Classic Formula Fords and on Saturday it was Shortland who took second from new champion Ben Tinkler.

On Sunday, Tinkler was just 19-hundredths of a second behind the Lola as they flashed over the line after 17 wheel-to-wheel laps with Callum Grant tucked in behind in the Van Diemen RF80 of Simon Langman. Grant had started the opening race from the pit lane but worked up to sixth place and then ran in the lead pack on Sunday to finish third in an impressive debut for the rebuilt car.

The shared grid of Historic Touring Cars and Historic Mod Sports and Special Saloons had a double-header on Sunday and it was the thundering TVR Griffith of Oliver and Nigel Reuben that won twice. Oliver romped away in the opening race but later in the day his father Nigel took over and had a much closer contest with Joe Ward in the mighty ‘Baby Bertha’ Vauxhall Firenza. There was just over a second in it at the flag while Andrew Willis starred in third with his monstrous Austin A30. Neil Wood topped the Historic Touring Car pack in his Ford Anglia as Bill Sollis and David Ogden battled for the runner up position.