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A1 Team
Malaysia
joined a cavalcade of Lola racing cars to mark the company’s 50th
anniversary on Sunday, with the team’s original A1GP car taking part in a
parade on the streets of Huntingdon, the Cambridgeshire town which is home to
the leading British race car manufacturers.
16 race
cars took part in the event, representing Lola’s iconic designs from the
past half-century to the current day. Heading up the parade was the all-new RML
MG-Lola LMP2 Coupe sports car dressed in its stunning red, white and blue
livery, which will be competing in next year’s Le Mans 24 Hours race,
followed by the 500 bhp Lola A1GP race car. Historic cars in the parade
included the Mk1, the first Lola sport car built; the Lola T92 that Sir Jackie
Stewart raced at the 1967 Indy 500; through to the sleek design of the Lola
T70.
Fairuz
Fauzy drove the striking Malaysian A1GP car in its famous yellow livery,
delighting the crowds with the revs of the Zytek engine and thrilling the
spectators with his smoking tyres. Around 10,000 motorsport fans filled the
streets for the parade and enjoyed a unique spectacle.
Fauzy
said of the experience, “I’ve never driven a race car through the
streets of a town, so it was a first for me. There were thousands of spectators
lining the road so I had to be very careful; they were so close to me. The
support for the event was phenomenal, and it was a privilege to be part of such
an historic event. Lola has designed and built some of the best racing cars and
played an important role in the history of motorsport over the last 50 years.
I’m sure that they will continue to introduce new and innovative models
which drivers like myself can enjoy racing.”
The
event began at the home of the original A1GP car. At mid day, Saeed Akthar,
Worshipful Mayor of Huntingdon, waved a Union Jack flag to officially start the
parade from Lola’s headquarters in Huntingdon. The unique collection of
cars then travelled a designated two mile route via the local ring roads,
finishing with the cars forming a spectacular ‘paddock’ in
Huntingdon’s historic market square. The event also provided the public
with a chance to get up close to some unique cars and collect the autographs of
Fairuz, Surtees and other motorsport personalities.
Martin
Birrane, owner of Lola Cars commented, “Given the nature of motorsport,
the majority of our work has to be done behind closed doors, so we wanted to
create an event that enabled the local community and motorsport fans to see
Lola Cars at close quarters. What better setting than our hometown to
celebrate a memorable 50 years in motorsport. It was a wonderful occasion - to
see such a colourful collection of Lola designs drive through the centre of
Huntingdon, whilst reuniting drivers such as John Surtees with cars they had
raced so many years ago.”
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