The Hungaroring Classic 2019 was staged 12-14 July at the 14-turn, 2.72-mile Hungaroring in Mogyorod, Hungary. Building upon the success Peter Auto’s debut event in 2017, which represented the first time an international historic meeting has been held on a Central European circuit, this year’s event featured 179 participants, 170 cars entered, 780 vehicle local clubs and 45,000 spectators who flocked to the track to watch and admire the cars in the nine races.
The Hungaroring left its mark in the history of Formula 1 by opening the gates of Iron Curtain 31 years ago. The Circuit has crowned two drivers in its 20-year history — Nigel Mansell in 1992 and Michael Schumacher in 2001 were able to win the World Championship title. Moreover, the Williams F1 Team and Scuderia Ferrari also secured the Constructors’ Championship at the Hungaroring, Williams in 1996 and Ferrari in 2001, 2002, and 2004. This year’s Classic was held 21 days before the Hungarian Grand Prix won by Lewis Hamilton.
The Hungaroring circuit is known as a bit of a roller-coaster because of its 16 corners that follow one another in quick succession. Its layout is slow, narrow and bumpy so driving skills make all the difference. These were the challenges that faced the 179 drivers and 170 cars entered in the seven racing grids: 2.0 L Cup; Sixties’ Endurance; Classic Endurance Racing 1 and 2; Group C Racing; the Greatest’s Trophy and the Heritage Touring Cup.
Off track, there was also plenty of action going on with the presence of 780 car clubs, mostly Hungarian, whose drivers made the journey at the wheel of machines rarely seen at Peter Auto events. These included Trabants, Wartburgs and DKWs made in East Germany and of course the traditional Ladas from Russia and provided a unique display at the Hungaroring circuit.
The Hungaroring Classic 2019 was a great success achieved with flying colours by the Peter Auto organisation teams who were able to count on the expertise of the local promoters, Tamás Rákosi and Balázs Szalay. The Hungaroring Classic was a bit of a gamble for Peter Auto. “Today, the quality of the cars entered in all the grids as well as the enthusiasm on the part of the public have only served to confirm our vision,” Patrick Peter.
Similar to the 2017 edition, Sports Car Digest also documented the 2019 Hungaroring Classic with the following images from the Hungaroring circuit in Hungary.
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Wow some fantastic cars, well-captured ! Love that BMW spouting flames.
Light must have been tricky, I’m guessing, as there seems to be a blue cast to many of these shots (at least on my monitor).
Nonetheless, thanks for sharing these.
Very nice pictures, would be even better with driver names.
what is that in the last picture on the 1st page?