As time progresses, the concept of historic racing naturally pushes forwards. Etched into our individual psyche, we all have a notion of what constitutes historic. A dawning realization that the classes of motorsport which predate our own existence are indeed historic, but those race cars we grew up idolizing, are to younger and newer fans of motorsport, nothing but dusty relics of a bygone age.
With the demise of the GTE class, and subsequent adoption of the LMGT3 as the replacement in the World Endurance Championship, the relevance of GT3 as a class spec has never been more in the limelight. Whilst the raw brutality of GTE was never in doubt, the dwindling number of manufacturers committed to the ruleset meant that a chance was inevitable. In its final years of competition, only Corvette, Aston Martin, Porsche and Ferrari were represented, with 2022 being the last year where factory backed teams ran. Following the shakeup to the top tier of endurance racing with the inception of the Hypercar class, replacing the LMP1 Hybrid class, and the spiraling costs associated with it, the wildly popular GT class was the next to see a dramatic change to the formulation.
The GT3 class and regulation set has become well established in the 20 years since its inception. Originally designed as a more cost effective rule-set to sit below the pre-existing GT1 and GT2 racing classes, embracing a more BOP based approach, allowing a much wider entry of pre-existing one make series, and cars from manufacturers who did not conform to the stricter GT1 and GT2 categories, GT3 became synonymous with sports car racing, and exemplified the pinnacle of performance cars, with the Porsche 911 GT3 being one to proudly wear the badge of honor.
The Peter Auto European series has long been a supporter of the evolving classes in historic racing, and are widely recognised as the leaders in the European historic resurgence. Working alongside the driving force of Jarrah Venables, the man behind the Endurance Racing Legends series, which finds a home for GT and sports prototype race cars of a type which raced in the 1990s and 2000s, the Endurance Racing Legends series has been warmly embraced by motorsport fans on the continent, where icons of endurance racing, such as the Bentley Speed 8, Aston Martin DBR9, Panoz Esperante GTR-1 and Porsche 911 GT1 compete over a superbly curated calendar, which famously includes the Le Mans Classic.
On the back of a number of successful years of Endurance Racing Legends, a new venture to expand upon the roaring success of these more modern iterations of the classic endurance racing classes, we see the presentation of the all new GT3 Legends class, organized by Jarrah Venables and Motor Racing Legends, a predominantly UK based racing organization which oversees eight historic racing classes. This superbly thought-out GT3 Legends series, which took to the Silverstone GP circuit for the first time, as a prelude to their planned 2025 season, which will see four races, both in the UK and Europe. With a huge number of eligible cars in Europe, from the wide range of series that utilized this ruleset, it is hoped that 2025 will see a burgeoning entry list, building on the already rich grid which took to the track at Silverstone. Similarly, with the more modest operational costs, and owners likely including a younger demographic, it may well be that a new draft of historic racers join the circuit in coming years.
As the doors opened on the Silverstone circuit, a healthy grid for the inaugural GT3 Legends grid lay in wait, lurking behind closed garage doors. Split into three categories, C1 for cars which competed between 2006 and 2009, C2 for cars which competed between 2010 and 2012, and C3 for cars competing between 2013 and 2015. As was hoped, a superb entry saw no less than ten manufacturers represented over the three classes, with a field of close to 30 cars present. In addition to seasoned historic racers such as Andrew Jordan, Nigel Greensall and Shaun Lynn, a number of less familiar names adorned the entry list, hopefully a sign of things to come, breathing new life into the historic racing scene.
Practice saw wet track conditions after a night of heavy rain, with the Chevrolet Corvette of Matt Holme and Andrew Jordan setting the quickest time, ahead of the Ferrari 458 GT3 of Jonathan Mitchell and Porsche 997 GT3 R of Paul Phillips and Nigel Greensall, who also led the C2 class, with Robert Oldershaw leading the C1 class in the beautiful Aston Martin DBRS9. Conditions were very tricky on a damp track, but with the rain forecast to stay away for the duration of the day, things would only improve as drivers got more comfortable in their cars.
There was barely time to pull into the pits, before the field headed back out onto track for qualification. Jonathan Mitchell the toast of the field in the Ferrari 458, having shown good pace all morning. Jon Minshaw brought the BMW Z4 GT3 onto the front row of the grid, with the gorgeous Audi R8 of Marcus Oeynhausen-Sierstorpff placing third.
After a gloomy morning, brightened only by a superb selection of historic race cars on track, following the early practice and qualifying sessions for the GT3 Legends, the afternoon brought dry conditions on track and a welcome portion of sunshine to welcome the inaugural grid to their first race. As was hoped, superb battles throughout the field, with the resplendent sight of GT3 cars tackling one of the best circuits to race these powerful machines at, delighted fans and extolled the virtues of this evocative era of GT3 racing. The Corvette of Holme/Jordan took the very first GT3 Legends race win, crossing the finish line ahead of the Lamborghini Gallardo GT3 of C2 class winners Tetley/Maton, with Marcus Oeynhausen-Sierstorpff claiming the third step on the podium in his Audi R8. The C1 class win was taken by the pairing of Pearson/Pearson in a Ferrari 430 GT3.
A superb first outing at Silverstone paves the way for continued success in 2025, as the GT3 Legends grid prepares for four outings in the coming year, with races proposed in the UK and Europe for the first full year. Under the masterful stewardship of Jarrah Venables, and on the back of a successful first race, it is likely that the ‘historic’ side of GT3 racing will blossom in coming years, alongside the continued relevance of the LMGT3 class in contemporary racing.
