Launching on 7mate on Saturday July 19th, 4.30pm EST, Shannons Legends of Motorsport is a new twelve-part series in which Neil Crompton is set to bring the history of Australian Motorsport to life with rare and extensive footage from the ’60s to the ’90s and guests that make up the laundry list of Australian motorsport royalty.

“The Shannons Legends of Motorsport is a very exciting project for me. It blends wonderful historic imagery from Seven’s library with iconic racing cars plus the legends that drove them. Some of the material we’ve found is fantastic and in many cases, long forgotten and the back stories are fascinating” - Neil Crompton

Shot in front of a live audience, the series will look back at the biggest events in Australian motorsport history with behind-the-scenes insight from Neil Crompton and a legendary host of special guests including Allan Moffat, Dick Johnson, Kevin Bartlett, Fred Gibson, John Bowe, Allan Grice, Jim Richards, Larry Perkins, Mark Skaife and more.

It’s about the cars, races, crashes and people which contributed to Australia’s colourful, prolific and action-packed motorsport history. And that sounds brilliant!

Catch the first episode on 7mate on Saturday July 19th, 4.30pm EST, and check out the teaser below.

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Part way through the 2001 German GP, Olivier Panis and Jarno Trulli went toe to toe.

The result was one very memorable battle, held on a greatly missed Hockenheimring layout. It wasn’t a battle for first and second place, it wasn’t even a battle for third or fourth, but it was a tremendous bout none the less!

It’s one of our favorite battles in German GP history, and it’d be a shame if we didn’t take this weekend’s 2014 event as an excuse to share it around. Whilst neither Trulli or Pani were title contenders, they fought as if the championship was on the line. Great stuff.

Spoiler alert: History would see Trulli forced to retire after spinning off, whilst Panis went on to place seventh overall – a well earned seventh if we ever saw one!

MORE: Relive the 1969 German GP (video)

 MORE: A lucky escape at the 1959 German GP!

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It looks as good as it sounds, and sounds as amazing as it goes. This is the Lancia LC2.

The glory days of Lancia are often remembered for their championship winning rally machines the Stratos and Delta S4, however there was a time when Lancia built long wheelbase tarmac hugging sportscars, too.

MORE: Under the skin – Lancia Cutaways (gallery)

Hailing from an era of Sportscar racing dominated by Porsche, the Ferrari powered Lancia LC2 is a striking machine. Upon debut in 1983 it was actually quicker than the Porsche 956, often taking pole position only to be bested by their own reliability and tyre issues.

With a Ferrari-sourced 3L twin turbo engine, the LC2 was a marriage between a beautiful chassis and thundering driveline, and although it’s a shame that the car never realized the same level of success as Lancia experienced whilst racing Sportscars earlier in the 1980s, we’re glad it survives today for us to gawk over.

MORE: Ride onboard the Lancia LC2 (video)

These photos by Laurent Nivalle capture the beautiful lines and stunning colors of the Martini-draped Lancia LC2.

Full credit for these photos goes to the very talented Laurent Nivalle – take a look at his website.

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The German marque’s only outright 24 Hours of Le Mans champion.

It weighed just 900kg (1984lbs), featured an offset driving position and a 60 degree, 5990cc normally aspirated V12 engine with around 580 horsepower. It was the BMW LMR V12, and in 1999 it was the champion of Le Mans.

Some five years earlier, BMW had supplied the engine for the legendary McLaren F1 GTR – the car which won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995. The BMW LMR V12 however, would be the first (and so far only) BMW car to win the iconic event.

The drivers were Formula 1 competitors Pierluigi Martini (Italian) and Joachim Winkelhock (German), as well as Frenchman Yannick Dalmas, who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans a total of four times during his career – including the aforementioned 1995 victory driving McLaren for Kokusai Kaihatsu Racing.

Victory for BMW in 1999 was massive, however the BMW LMR V12 was far from a one-hit-wonder. That year it also won the 12 hours of Sebring, and three other ALMS races before the season was out.

Technology moves fast in motor racing, and by the time 2000 rolled around the competition was much stiffer. Furthermore, BMW had turned their focus to Formula 1, meaning that the LMR’s from the previous years were essentially rebooted and rolled out for endurance racing in 2000. Despite this, the LMR still managed to win in Charlotte and at Silverstone.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our piece on the BMW LMR V12, an amazing piece of machinery from an awesome period in Sportscar racing. Check out the rest of the gallery below. These amazing photos come from Road & Track – check them out.

Now for the videos…. firstly, let’s listen to that V12 scream! Many fans consider this to be one of the great sounding V12 engines, do you agree?

A cool short documentary on building, developing, testing (and training to drive!) the BMW LMR V12 (no English!):

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Darlington 1970 – The unthinkable happens.

Richard Petty suffered one of the worst accidents in his NASCAR career during the 1970 Rebel 400 at Darlington, USA. Many onlookers thought Richard to have been killed in the accident, and watching this footage makes it very easy to understand why. It is said that Petty suffered a dislocated shoulder in the crash, however we’re sure that there was more than just that on his hospital chart.

MORE: The 10 greatest Daytona 500 finishes of all time!

Richard Petty recovered and was discharged from hospital far earlier than any expected he would be, adding further to his legend.

MORE: Richard Petty reunited with an old friend at the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2014 (video)

The character of Richard Petty shines through in this article, printed a short time following the accident in Darlington:

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Piero Liatti knocked over some big names on that weekend in 1997 – Kankkunen, Makinen, Sainz and more.

Only his own team mate and 1995 World Rally Champion Colin McRae would best Liatti in Italy during the 1997 San Remo Rally – and even that came as the result of a 10 second penalty!

MORE: The rich rallying history of the Subaru Impreza

MORE: Colin Mcrae Subaru Impreza splashdown in 1997

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Porsche certainly know how to arrive in style.

Upon releasing this little video, Porsche boldly claimed that their motorsport victories aren’t remembered with dusty trophies, but rather by bringing historic racing cars out of storage and into the sun for a blast. Whilst it’s our opinion that trophies from yesteryear are pretty awesome too, we certainly do like to observe Porsche practicing what they preach at the Goodwood FOS (Festival of Speed).

MORE: Massive Goodwood gallery

This awesome little clip demonstrates the marque doing exactly that; shot at the recently held Goodwood FOS, it showcases a couple of the awesome machines the Porsche team brought along with them for 2014, whilst explaining what it is that makes doing so of such great importance.

MORE: Five memorable Goodwood crashes caught on video

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With the sad news of James Garner’s recent passing washing over the community. Let’s take a look back at the masterpiece we best remember him for.

Released to the public way back in 1966, Grand Prix remains a motorsport fan favorite film today. It told the story of Pete Aron, an American Grand Prix racer who drove for Japanese based Yamura Motors after losing his ride with Jordan-BRM following a crash at Monaco. The lead role of Pete Aron was played by American actor James Garner, who is remembered by many for his roles in movies such as The Great Escape, and The Notebook.

MORE: The making of Grand Prix

The auto racing fan, war hero and a Hollywood star passed away in California on the weekend, aged 86. Here at the offices of Motorsport Retro, we’re remembering James Garner by watching all over again Grand Prix clips, and recalling how great of a role Garner played. Rest in peace.

MORE: Behind the scenes of Grand Prix – The movie

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“If he wants to be sporting, then he must be prepared to race anybody, at any condition, at equal terms”.

Strong words fly as Ayrton Senna criticizes the way in which Alain Prost has negotiated a contract with Williams for the 1993 season. The story goes that Alain Prost had sat out the 1992 season after being sacked by Ferrari in 1991, before signing a deal with Williams for 1993 and winning the championship.

This video takes place after Senna has heard that Prost is coming back to Formula 1 to drive for Williams. He calls Prost a coward because he feels he’s done a deal to be in the best car, and perhaps because he felt at the time that McLaren’s new Ford engine for 1993 was going to be uncompetitive.

Ayrton ended up testing the Ford powered McLaren later on and completely changing his mind – the car was fast.

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Amazing photographs capturing quattro in action.

Few names in rally stir an equal amount of emotion as Audi quattro. They were the cars to beat during their 1980s heyday, and maintain the ability to bring on a fever amongst motorsport fans even in today’s world of hyper stimulation. It doesn’t matter how fast or highly developed racing cars have become in the years since the original Audi quattro rally machines bowed out of the race – a raw video of one of these things will still demand that the hairs on the back of your neck stand at full attention.

MORE: Onboard with Walter Rohrl in the Audi quattro

Back then, Audi quattro set a benchmark. Today, when it comes to the legends hall of rally machines, these cars sit firmly at the head of the table. They’ve been adopted into video games, become the focus of documentaries, and even served as the inspiration for competitors in brand new motorsports.

MORE: Blast along with the Audi quattro S1 in the 1000 lakes rally! (video)

You can take a look at the rest of the gallery capturing memorable moments in the history of Audi quattro just below. These photos come courtesy of Rallye Magazine.

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Ten things which took us completely by surprise.

If Le Mans Classic is on your bucket list, I have one word of advice: go. It’s a terrific event. You’ve probably already seen some great shoots of the fabulous cars that competed there this year. That was expected, but there were some things that took me by surprise. Here are 10 of them…

Story by John Young
The sounds of the night
Why wasn’t I told? The sound of race engines in full-cry cuts through the night air like you wouldn’t believe. V8s reverberate. Smaller engines scream and the sounds bounce off the walls. Le Mans Classic is all about the night. Plan to stay up late. Very late.

It pays to be a rock star among drivers
Derek Bell is a legend. He won Le Mans five times, first in a Gulf Mirage, and then in Porsches – the make I think of when I hear his name. So I was a little surprised when I saw a 1930 Blower Bentley with his name on its side. No, he wasn’t racing it this time, but he did at the 2012 event. Star drivers are invited to race star cars as long as they want to.

It pays to be a rock star. Period.
AC/DC’s Brian Johnson was there (of course). He was not only driving a Porsche 911RSR 3.0, he was driving it well (his co-drivers, by the way, included no less a talent than Jochen Mass). And Johnson pulled off a pretty impressive pass just in front of my grandstand seat on Sunday.

Back to the sounds of Le Mans
I always thought that the sound of a Cosworth DFV was about as good as it got. Or an Aston at peak revs. Or a 12 cylinder Ferrari. But I was wrong, because I’d never heard a Matra V12. I’d read about them over the years, and the rave reviews are right. It’s probably the best sounding race engine I’ve ever heard.

Has there ever been a pretty Panhard?
Aficionados for French cars will no doubt disagree. But Le Mans Classic – plus visits to two French motor museums – haven’t so much lead to a discovery as confirmed my preconceived beliefs. Panhard’s designers must have inspired the folk at SsangYong.

He with the fastest car doesn’t always win
In Plateau (or Grid) 6, for cars from 1972 to 1979, Jean Ragnotti fronted with the race winning Alpine Renault from the ‘78 event. It should have been a shoe-in, but the lightest of touches with another competitor seconds from the start of his last event brought his race to an end. To finish first, you first must finish.

I’m still in love
With the Ford GT40. They looked stunning from the day they were unveiled. They soon proved they were more than a pretty face by doing exactly what they were designed for and winning the 24-hour race. Age hasn’t dimmed their beauty. And in Plateau 4 (1962-65) Leo Voyazides proved they still go like the clappers. You should have seen him at about 11.00 on Saturday night. (Well, until the Safety car came into play, anyway).

Turning up inappropriately dressed is never a good look
Woops. You turn up underdressed or overdressed to a party or a wedding. It doesn’t matter which, it’s not a good look. Or you turn up to Plateau 6, surrounded by Porsches, Lolas, Chevrons and Alpine Renaults in your Dodge Charger or Ford Gran Torino. Yes, they really were there… but to my surprise, they were far from disgraced in the event. We all know what stops when the flag drops…

Jaguar versus Mercedes
After Plateau 2 (1949-56) qualifying, I strolled through the paddock. Parked side-by-side were seven Jaguars, C-Types and D-Types. Every one of them was being worked on frantically. Nearby stood a matt silver Mercedes 300SL, one of three entered. Nobody was lifting a spanner to it. But when the flag dropped, the C-Types had the last laugh, winning all three events.

If you’re not into pre-war stuff, keep an open mind
They race priceless old cars, without any form of rollover protection, and they race them hard. The superiority of the Talbot 105s had to be seen to be believed. Brave men and surprisingly rapid racing motor cars.

There’s one more thing I discovered. While 110,000 people attended the Le Mans Classic over the weekend, Le Mans is big enough to handle the numbers. It’s certainly something to consider when planning which events to attend.

Words: John Young

Images: Jayson Fong

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Image: RM Auctions, by Steve Etherington/ LAT

The year 2000 marked the start of a pretty good run for Ferrari and Michael Schumacher, and the F1-2000 was the car that set it all up.

This one, campaigned by Schumacher in his first championship-winning season with Ferrari, is heading to auction at RM Auctions’ upcoming Monterey sale, so now’s your chance to hop on board and find out what all the fuss is about!

“I think we’ve probably had the best car we have ever had at the beginning of the season since the present group has been working together here at Ferrari.” – Ross Brawn

Ferrari’s new F1-2000 went out swinging in the 2000 World Championship season, with Schumacher claiming victory at the season opener in Australia.

This particular car, chassis 198, was the team’s spare through most of the season, and it didn’t see action until race two. Michael ran wide during qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix and badly damaged the underside of his primary car, so he swapped to this one, qualifying third.

Come race day a mix of strategy, pace and timing saw Michael sneak ahead of Mika Häkkinen’s McLaren to go two-for-two and claim his second win of the season; this car’s shining moment.

The car found itself again in the limelight at Circuit de Catalunya for the Spanish Grand Prix. Schumacher qualified on pole, but suffered a problem with the refuelling nozzle in the pits, and then a slow puncture put paid to his chances of victory and he finished fifth.

Chassis 198′s final career outing was on the glittering streets of the Monte Carlo Grand Prix, where it broke a pushrod and retired.

Image courtesy RM Auctions / LAT

Having played an invaluable role in Schumacher’s 2000 World Drivers’ Championship, Ferrari’s first since Jody Scheckter in 1979 and the first of five on the trot, as well as Ferrari’s 2000 World Constructors’ Championship title, chassis 198 was rebuilt by the factory for F1 Clienti events. It’s a car with tremendous historical importance and which offers some on-track potential through Ferrari’s F1 Clienti program.

The Michael Schumacher Ferrari F1 2000 will head to sale on August 16, 2014, at RM Auctions Monterey sale. For more information, hit this link.

Via RM Auctions

Images courtsey RM Auctions

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The Peerless GT – An awesome little late 1950s British creation that you’ve probably never heard of.

Petrolicious videos are always a treat – they have perfected the art of telling engaging, human tales about the ownership of classic cars. This particular piece is an excellent example, noting the journey of Paul Cressey, his father Ron and their shared passion for historic motor racing.

Paul owns and drives this 1959 Peerless GT, whilst his father is known for running his own 1959 Corvette – sometimes in the same race as Paul. This video tells the tale of Ron, Paul and how the Peerless GT came to be in their lives, what it’s like to own, and what it’s really like to drive.

The Peerless marque only existed for three years, making the GT a pretty unique little machine. Whilst they’re no rocket ship by modern standards they’re certainly a bit of a fever machine – they’ve got the right shape, make all the right sounds and unquestionably ooze character. Enjoy this vid.

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This rare piece of video footage gives us an extraordinary look into the race-weekend mindset of the most loved Australian racing car driver to ever live. Peter Brock.

Peter Brock is a household name in Australia, he’s one of the most recognized sportsmen the country has ever known. This television profile and interview by TVNZ  presents a fantastic behind the scenes piece looking directly into his mindset on a race weekend. Shot at the 1987 Wellington 500, it taken during one of the most controversial and interesting junctions in Brock’s career – right in the midst of his split from Holden.

MORE: Terrific Peter Brock rallycross footage! (video)

It’s an in-depth, personal production which affords us a very interesting insight into the mindset of the legend in the lead up, and during one of his top level touring car events. Not only that, we get to hear him talk about his at times controversial private life too.

If you enjoyed this video, don’t forget to take a look at our ‘Ten of the Best’ photo gallery celebrating the amazing career of Peter Brock:

MORE: Ten of the best, Peter Brock

If you fancy winding the clock right back another eight full years from the piece above, check out this killer footage of Peter Brock in 1979:

MORE: Peter Brock blitzes Bathurst!

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Talk about a magic moment! This pretty well sums up the Paris Dakar 1989 rally.

Paris Dakar 1989

Ari Vatanen and Bruno Berglund getting a little loose behind Jacky Ickx and Christian Tarin during the 1989 Paris Dakar. The race would conclude with a famous one-two for the pair of Peugeot 405s, with Vatanen first and Ickx in second.

For us, this terrific photograph captures everything we’ve ever loved about Dakar.

MORE: Paris Dakar 1988 – The year the lead car was stolen (Video)

To take a look at and download the complete results, and post-race breakdown from the 1989 Paris Dakar Rally HERE.

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Brian Redman won the Targa Florio in 1970. Here he is practicing beforehand in a normal, road going Porsche 911.

English born Brian Redman is a clever man. In 1970 he was instrumental in his team’s victory at the Targa Florio, not only because he was very quick during his stint behind the wheel, but also because he planned his mid-race pitstop perfectly. Whilst in second place, Redman used his cunning to place the Porsche 908/3 that he was sharing with Jo Siffert in an ideal position right behind the leading Ferrari 512S. He knew his team were quicker in the pits than Ferrari, and his decision to play it safe and pit right behind them during driver changover saw Siffert sail past Ferrari before re-entering the track.

MORE: Targa Florio 1973 – The last of the real road races (video)

In this video, we’re given the chance to ride along with Redman whilst he squeezes in some practice during the lead up to the 1970 event. He’s driving what looks to be a regular road-going Porsche 911 convertible, perhaps planning out his moves for the race to come. It’s a very cool vid. Enjoy.

MORE: Onboard the Porsche 908/3 with Brian Redman at Laguna Seca (video)

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In 1996 Lotus released a mid-engined rear wheel drive sports car that was made out of plastic, stuck together with glue and defined by a stunning aluminium chassis. That car was the original Elise and nearly twenty years on it’s still utterly brilliant. Lotus track days are here.

Since then Lotus have gone from strength to strength building light, fast sportscars which are emblematic of Colin Chapman’s concept of ‘adding lightness’ and everything we love in classic motorsport – simple, unfiltered, fast and fun. They’re great on the road, but stick them on the track, take a few mates along with you and you have perfection.

Many modern cars try to be refined and insulate the driver from the experience of driving. They bury all the exhilarating things that the engine, chassis, steering, pedals and gear shift are hopping up and down excitedly to tell you.

From the classics through to the new Exige S, Lotus cars do the opposite. They make sure you feel, hear and smell everything that’s going on.

Interior : Lotus Elise

And there’s no better place to drink it all in than out on the track, where you can stretch your car’s legs, rev the engine to those wonderful pitches that are not safe or financially-feasible on the road, and tease out the most rambunctious limits of handling.

Thankfully, we’re blessed not only with great historic racing here in Australia, but great club racing as well, and Club Lotus Australia is one of the most active and friendly organisations we’ve encountered. Each year they put together a full competitive season, as well as track days, motorkhanas, social events and more. Enter, Lotus track days.

Lotus Exige S Roadster

The various Lotus Clubs around the country are open to, and enjoyed by, the full gamut of lovely Lotus machinery, and a friendly and inviting group of people. If you have a Lotus, get involved!

For more information on Lotus track days, head to the official Lotus Cars website here.

To book a test drive and experience all of this for yourself, hit this link, as well as this one to find the dealer closest to you.

Finally, to arm yourself with all of the relevant information that you’ll need when pitching to your significant other and to work out exactly which car you need and how many go-faster bits you can order it with, download a brochure here.

Post sponsored by Lotus Cars

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Image: Ayrton Senna Institute Showcase/Ducati

Bringing together the official products of the Ayrton Senna, Senninha and Ayrton Senna Institute brands, the Ayrton Senna Institute Showcase helps you to celebrate the man; the driver; the legend, while contributing to his dream of equality for the people of Brazil.

Not a store in and of itself, the showcase provides fans a way to purchase official merchandise through reliable channels. It also contributes to Senna’s love of Brazil by sending a portion of the revenue back to the Ayrton Senna Institute.

The huge range of merchandise makes the showcase a must-see for any Senna fan. Along with more everyday items like DVDs and photos, fans can find anything from beautifully-designed smartphone cases to Ducati’s 1199 Panigale S Senna; Senninha Fuji apples to Ayrton Senna credit cards.

Head to the official website here, and spend a few minutes browsing. You’re sure to find something awesome!

Via the Ayrton Senna Institute Showcase

Images via the Ayrton Senna Institute Showcase & Ducati

MORE: A personal account of Ayrton Senna – before F1

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This kid is going places, forwards or backwards, most probably in a go kart.

We like to spend as often as is socially acceptable celebrating the past here at Motorsport Retro, but this kid is the future and we would be doing our lovely audience a disservice if we failed to share this.

Watch as a talented young guy from Denmark demonstrates his mastery of the go kart – the precursor to many legendary racer’s careers. If he’s as fast out on the track as he is into the pits, we’re sure to see him pop up again sometime soon.

For those inquiring, this clip was filmed at Marielyst Go Kart & Paintball Center, unfortunately the name of the driver has not been released – we’ll update this post when it is.

Check out a couple of our most popular go kart related posts, featuring Formula 1 heroes:

MORE: Ayrton Senna vs Alain Prost – go kart battle! (video)

MORE: Amazing photograph captures McLaren and Brabham going toe to toe in a go kart duel

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Le Mans didn’t know what hit it when the Rover-BRM Gas Turbine car showed up.

Usually when we’ve got a clip to show you guys featuring the pure, raw sounds of an awesome historic racing machine we’ll ask that crank those speakers up and share with us the incredible sounds of motorsport’s yesteryear. This time we’re not going to do that, not because the Rover-BRM of the early 1960s isn’t a fantastic machine, but because its gas turbine engine is nothing short of ear-piercing.

MORE: Ride onboard the Howmet Turbine Car! (video)

In this video, the gas turbine Rover BRM can be seen warming up at Le Mans, 40 years after it was originally campaigned at the track by Jackie Stewart and Graham Hill. This exact car ran at La Sarthe in both 1963 and 1964, however in a special class of it’s own rather  than with the rest of the pack – it wasn’t until 1965 that it would find itself amongst a field of competitors.

MORE: Keeping BRM Alive (video)

The Rover-BRM was actually a solid performer come race day, finishing tenth overall (seventh in Prototype) despite having its turbine blades suffer significant damage early in the race when the setup ingested sand from outside of the racing line. The car managed an average speed of 98.8mph in the race whilst carrying the damage, compared to over 107mph whilst testing in 1963. Furthermore, a tip from a turbine blade snapped off later in the race, resulting in a massive explosion when it damaged one of the regenerators. We think the Rover-BRM did very well considering!

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