British Palace to be centrepiece of 'genuinely different' new motorsport event

A historic event, won by 1976 F1 champion James Hunt when launched more than 50 years ago, is set to stage a remarkable return next year.

'Rewind Tour Britain', set for May 27-30, 2027, is a new multi-discipline three-day event that will combine aspects of circuit racing and rallying, as was the case when it was initially run in 1973, with Hunt emerging victorious.

The organisers, Motor Racing Legends and the British Automobile Racing Club, are adamant that the event "is not a revival in the nostalgic sense, nor a historical re-enactment, and neither has it been designed as a retrospective celebration".

Instead, it is "new" and is "a contemporary endurance competition inspired by a well-known format that once challenged accepted boundaries in British motorsport".

The 1970s Tour of Britain saw drivers from the worlds of circuit racing and rallying go head-to-head, competing in lightly modified family saloons on rally stages and circuits across the country.

The new format's objective will combine "a single, coherent event that combines circuit racing, rally stages and long-distance road competition into one uninterrupted sporting test, and to do so within modern regulatory, safety and operational standards".

The race will be run over 460 miles, incorporating four racing circuits, including Thruxton and Castle Combe, 12 closed-road rally stages, including hill climbs, and extensive public road sections, all on asphalt, with a special stage to be conducted at Blenheim Palace.

Up to 80 road-legal, production-based historic race and rally cars can enter, with each car crewed by two people for rally stages and road sections, while circuit races will be contested by a single driver.

Adamant that what has been launched is "genuinely different", Ben Taylor, CEO of the British Automobile Club, said: "Bringing racing and rallying together in one event is ambitious, but that’s exactly why it matters.

"The response shows there is real appetite for something that challenges convention while maintaining a strong connection to the past."

David Brabham, who has competed in a variety of events throughout his career, insisted the race has "something for everyone".

Brabham said: "This is exactly the kind of format that drivers want and love. It puts you up against people from different disciplines and forces you to raise your game. It’s a great platform to take each other on properly, and it’s going to be an amazing event."

Three-time British Rally champion Matt Edwards said: "The Tour of Britain is an event that has gone down in motorsport history with so many famous names as part of it, so it’s amazing to see it live again in a brand new format with a nod to the past.

"As a showcase for some amazing cars and drivers, it promises to be absolutely fantastic."

After Hunt's victory in 1973, British rally star Roger Clark won the following year, followed by another rally driver, Tony Pond, in 1975. A year later, it was Ari Vatanen, five years before he went on to become world rally champion.

After a 13-year lay-off, the event returned in 1989, and was won by multiple British Rally champion Jimmy McRae.