This year's edition of Estoril Classics is approaching, and tickets are already on sale for an event that this year has some new additions to its menu, but which retains its signature dish - Formula 1.
The traditional date for the most important classic car event in Southern Europe is approaching, with this year's edition scheduled for the 4th, 5th and 6th of October, and the public is expected to once again fill the paddock and grandstands of the Autódromo do Estoril.
As has been the case since its first edition, Formula 1 will be the programme's headliner, with the 7th edition of the Classic GP featuring cars that competed in the top category until 1986.
But at this year's event edition, the eighth, fans will be treated to another 'plate of Formula 1' as, in addition to single-seaters from the era when Ford Cosworth engines reigned supreme, there will also be a display of Grand Prix cars from the 1990s.
In this way, Portuguese fans travelling to the Estoril circuit during Estoril Classics will be able to see Formula 1 single-seaters from three different decades - the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.
A period in which cars like Lotus, Williams, Brabham, McLaren, etc., and drivers like Niki Lauda, James Hunt, Nelson Piquet, Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, etc., marked the world of Grand Prix racing.
Like any haute cuisine restaurant, Estoril Classics will have a tasting menu to fulfil the palates of the most demanding fans, and there will be other dishes to satisfy the most selective motoring fans, with Peter Auto as the 'chef' in addition to Race Ready.
Over the course of three delightful days, there will be more novelties such as the new Touring Car race - the Classic Touring Challenge, for Touring Cars up to 1965, which will include Mini Cooper, Ford Cortina, Ford Falcon, Alfa Romeo GTA, and which will be separated from the Heritage Touring Cup, which accepts Turismos up to 1986, bringing back memories of the "Ford vs BMW" duels.
Portugal has a strong tradition of endurance racing, so the return of the Prototypes and the GTs of other eras are dishes not to be missed. The palate will be diversified with races from Classic Endurance Racing, for the Lola and Chevron, and Endurance Racing Legends, which brings us the LMP1s and GT1s from the late 1990s and early 2000s. The sophistication of the 1960s will be ensured by the Sixties' Endurance, a competition in which the Jaguar Type-E takes on the Lotus Elan and AC Cobra, and the Gentlemen Challenge, where elegance and exoticism are found in the form of the Porsche 904, the various versions of the Ferrari 250 and other 'pieces of art' that are more common in museums than on the track.
The biggest Iberian competition for classic cars, the Iberian Historic Endurance, will have the ability to bring together Grand Tourismos and Turismos, up to 1976, in the same race, with the Ford GT40, Alfa Romeo GTAm or Porsche 356 being a special signature dish, promising excitement in all categories, with the public able to cheer on the Portuguese Gentlemen-Drivers who face the many foreigners who attend the race.
This year, in response to the strong turnout expected from motorsport fans, there will be two food courts, one at Turn 1 and the other in the centre of the paddock. The races can be followed on a giant screen and there will be several merchandising shops where you can buy the desired souvenirs.
Despite an exquisite, sophisticated and haute cuisine menu, ticket prices for the paddock are very affordable, with the daily ticket costing 20 euros for Friday and 35 euros for Saturday and Sunday. The three-day pass is just 50 euros, while children up to the age of 16 have free access to the paddock as long as they are accompanied by an adult.
Tickets can be purchased via the official BOL.pt website or at FNAC or Worten. As usual, the number of tickets is limited to the physical space of the paddock.
As has been the tradition since the first edition of Estoril Classics, access to Grandstand A is free, allowing all fans to sample part of the menu planned for this year.
Comments