An unplanned trip to the Silverstone Classic yesterday gave us some welcome sights in witnessing racing cars from both Aston Martin and Aston Martin Racing through the ages.

From racing examples from its DB2 era taking on the full Grand Prix circuit at Silverstone came more modern examples of cars directly associated with Aston Martin Racing - a DBR9, a Lola Aston Martin LMP1 prototype and two examples of the grandad to todays brand new Vantage GTE in the form of the Vantage GT2.


The four AMR built cars were all competing within the Masters Endurance Legends Series, a series that has taken these cars previously only seen within their respective private collection back onto the race tracks of Europe to be raced how their designers had intended.

The Strakka Racing DBR9 was back on track with then driver and now owner Nick Leventis behind the wheel whilst the former JWA and Villois Racing GT2's were being raced by others - Tom Kimber Smith in the latter. The Lola P1 was being entered by its current owner Christophe D'Ansembourg - all cars now regular attendees in the Masters Series.


Without going into too much detail of their two races over Saturday and Sunday, it wouldn't be amiss to say that class and overall successes werent too far away in any of the three classes in which they ran nor to say that the characteristic wails of their respective engine designs fully captivated the attending audience.


Over in the National paddock amongst the mainly Formula Junior entry we found one person who has helped to sculpt their national GT racing culture and another who is very instrumental in the designs of todays Aston Martin road cars.


Jac Nelleman, a partner of Jan Struve's Young Driver programme took great delight in sharing the reasons for his attendance at the event in the form of the Formula Junior car that he helped his father build back in 1959. With the car having been within the family ever since and having already entered every major Historic event around the world Silverstone was to be the swan song event for him and his Alfa Dana car.

If ever you get the chance to chat with this man, best draw up a couple of chairs and a coffee as you won't be disappointed.


Finally, and with the man who brings everything back to the present day was bumping into the Chief Creative Officer at Aston Marin Lagonda in Marek Reichman with his Cooper Formula Junior car. Chanced upon in the National paddock by accident we thought that the chances of their being two people with that name being slim and indeed once we found him he also gave us a large period of time in his race build up to speak with us.

Obviously enjoying his recent spate of racing events both at home and at Le Mans (in both the AMR Festival and the Classic) his obvious enthusiasm on Sunday for historic racing wasn't enough to secure him a decent finish after damage sustained on the opening lap ended his day before it had really begun.


His comments on the irony of following one or two of his recent creations (the events Safety cars being provided by Aston Martin in the form of a DB11 and Vantage) whilst aboard a pre 1960 formula car was refreshing!!

All in all it was a good day out!

For those looking for somewhere to go in the UK this weekend, it seems that amongst the thousand or so cars entered into the Silverstone Classic there will be a handful of Aston Martin Racing jewels.

With the full entry list being fragmented between various organising bodies it appears that there will be at least four runners in the Masters Endurance Legends races ranging between a GT1, two GT2's and a Lola DBR1-2.

Strakka Racing's Nick Leventis is due out aboard (presumably) his own #61 Aston Martin Racing DBR9 that he once shared with Darren Turner and Peter Hardman - the original creator of Strakka. Leventis will share the car this time with historic racing guru Sam Hancock.


In the GT2 class, Colin Sowter again competes aboard his former JWA European Le Mans Series entered car together with Tom Kimber-Smith and (possibly) Paul Whight abroad the latter's former Barwell prepared British GT entry


Rounding off the obvious Aston Martin Racing entries will be Christophe d'Ansembourg and his #008 Lola Aston Martin AMR 1-2.

All four cars are entered in Thursday's private test at the circuit ahead of the main events spread across both Saturday and Sunday and all of this doesn't event include any other car that may just happen to be around the paddock and display areas at the circuit!

Photo credits - British GT / ELMS