F1 car to race again after Sywell project
Employees from a Northampton company which restores former Formula 1 cars will line up alongside world champion Lewis Hamilton and other motorsport stars at the Goodwood Festival of Speed next weekend.
Dawn Treader Performance, based at Sywell Aerodrome, restores cars which have raced in Formula 1 and the Indy Car series in the US, as well as at Le Mans, for private collections and demonstration purposes.
And now they will take their latest project, a 1990 Leyton House Formula 1 car, to one of the country's biggest motorsport events, where it will race alongside McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and Le Mans 24-hour racer Bruno Senna.
Director Patrick Morgan explained how he tracked down the famous machine. He said: "I spent two years looking for this car. I have my own collection and I always try to find cars that have captured the public imagination. The Leyton House is a good example of an underdog car which was very successful for a couple of races.
"As a team we have spent 2,500 hours restoring it. It hasn't run in 19 years and Goodwood will be its first outing."
Mr Morgan, who has worked with Indy Cars in the US as well as being heavily involved with ensuring the Mercedes Formula 1 engine's reliability up until 2003, said he was looking forward to meeting Hamilton, who will be at the wheel of the 1988 McLaren, originally driven by the world champion's racing hero, the late Ayrton Senna.
Mr Morgan said: "Many years ago I worked for the company that supplied the software for his go-kart and even though he was only about 10 years old it was clear that he was incredibly talented.
"This is the sixth year in a row we have been invited to Goodwood and it's a great privilege to attend such a prestigious event. The atmosphere is always fantastic and there's nowhere else in the world you can see such a collection of rare and valuable cars. It's a real celebration of motor racing and something we are very proud to be part of."
Email to a friend
Print this page- BREAKING NEWS: Tributes paid to Niamh Curry as brave five-year-old loses battle against cancer
- BREAKING NEWS: Pensioner dies after collision at Northampton shopping centre
- Man tied to tree and beaten on Northampton Racecourse
- BREAKING NEWS: Seven-year-old boy dies following house fire in Northamptonshire
- Northampton binmen at ‘breaking point’
- Northampton binmen at ‘breaking point’
- Staff strike at Northampton school over academy plans forces closure
- Saints’ stadium plans get support as long as traffic issues solved
- Eastern European pupils helping school standards across Northampton
- Vow to crack down on anti-social behaviour across Northampton’s eastern district
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Northampton
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 21 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
