You would be hard pushed to find two more contrasting environments in the world of motorsport. The friendly paddock of pre-war categories here in the UK may bear little resemblance to the grandiose yet “cut-throat” Formula 1 conclave, but it is at these far more humble club events that you can now find one of F1’s more flamboyant team owners of recent years.
Vijay Mallya spent 10 years at the helm of the Force India F1 squad (nee Jordan, now Aston Martin) and is relishing being away from the corporate surroundings of the pinnacle of the sport. “This is a different world to Formula 1,” he says having just raced a 1939 BMW 328 at last weekend’s Donington Historic Festival. “It's so much more relaxed, so much more fun driving all these different cars.”
