Race Retro opened its doors for its 15^th anniversary at Stoneleigh Park last weekend under a new organising team, offering a fresh new look, with the halls and sheds all dressed smartly in black and more feature cars than ever before over the three-day event. If you didn’t make it up to the event here is a quick round-up of what you missed:

As usual there was plenty of motorsport action out on the Live Rally Stage, with special guests including rally legend Ari Vatanen, Le Mans endurance hero Tom Kristensen, and former Motorcycle World Champion ‘Fast’ Freddie Spencer.

One of the show’s best new features was the new Motor Sport Hall of Fame Live, featuring an exhibition of historically important race cars from a 1957 British Grand Prix winning Vanwall, raced to victory by Sir Stirling Moss and Tony Brooks, to the latest Bentley GT3 racer that had come straight from pre-season testing.

The exhibition above sat neatly  alongside the greatly improved Motor Sport Live Stage – bigger and better than ever before – where a constant stream of interviews took place to a packed audience, including Tom Kristensen who climbed back into his Bentley overalls to be photographed alongside the Speed 8 in which he won the Le Mans 24-hour race in 2013. I saw Fast Freddie Spencer, giving a preview of his forthcoming book chatting to a packed audience.

Jim Clark’s Lotus 33 R11 was unveiled for the first time in public for over 40 years as part of a launch for the Jim Clark Trust’s crowdfunding appeal. Jim’s cousin Doug Niven spoke of the plans to open a new Jim Clark Museum in 2018, asking for support to make the fantastic new development a reality.

The 50^th anniversary celebration of the Cosworth DFV was fun, featuring cars such as the incredibly rare Tyrell P34 six-wheeler, the Cosworth 4WD, the Lotus 49B, and James Hunt’s McLaren M23.  The display was curated by engine designer Mike Costin, who founded Cosworth with Keith Duckworth.

Silverstone Auctions hammered away 76% of lots to the tune of £5.7million, over £1 million more than 2016. Notable Competition Car sales included the 1989 Aston Martin AMR1 Group C race car that went to a new home for £530,000, and the 1961 Emeryson F1 Climax FPF that saw the hammer down at £174,380.

There were also big numbers being spent in the Classic Car sale with a 1974 Ferrari Dino 246GT selling at £439,875, Jensen Button’s 2005 Ford GT at £264,375, and a 1983 Lamborghini Countach LP500S at £378,950.

The winner of the inaugural Pride of the Paddock award couldn’t have been more fitting, given it was presented by Ari Vatanen. Ian Thompson’s exceptional replica of the Peugeot 205 T16 rally car that Vatanen drove in period was chosen by the visitors and even signed by the man himself. The runner up was Marcus Ridley’s 1966 Ford Mustang.

Lee Masters, Acting Show Director of Race Retro said: “We have had incredible feedback from visitors with a tremendous response to our new elements, especially the stunning display in the Motor Sport Hall of Fame Live. Exhibitors also reported strong trading with 60 per cent rebooking for 2018 already. Planning for next year starts now!”

The next Race Retro will be held on 23-25 February 2018. For the latest updates as well as all the highlights from 2017’s event, visit www.raceretro.com