GRR

Video: A lesson in how to go from last place to first

03rd April 2020
Laura Thomson

Blue skies, topless classic racing cars and a rutted tarmac circuit – it’s the pinnacle of life before lockdown.

Join driver Brad Newman in his E-Production 1965 Austin-Healy Sprite, as he makes his way around Willow Springs Raceway back in March 2018. Competing in the Sunday Flag Race of the Vintage Auto Racing Association’s High Desert Challenge (quite a mouthful, isn’t it?), Newman starts the race at the back of the pack.

But what unfolds in this 23-minute video is nothing short of miraculous, with Newman displaying his deft driving skills, and working his way through the pack, from dead last to first. He makes light work of the fast, open Californian circuit, prompting some viewers to question whether he’s the only driver actually racing.

In the process, he passes dozens of equally-capable cars, proving that it’s the man not the machine that takes the top prize. Of course, his finely fettled car probably helped…

Welcome to Goodwood Elevenses, a mid-morning helping of motoring-related amusement to help break up your day. Watch the last video: Onboard the hottest of classic Daytona hot laps in a 1964 Cobra

  • Video

  • Elevenses

  • Austin-Healey

  • Sprite

  • Onboard

  • Willow Springs

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Historic

Video: A lesson in how to go from last place to first

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