2025 British Grand Prix Weekend Information

Other circuits have all played their part in British motorsport history but none more so than Silverstone, the home of British Motor Racing. The much-loved track delivers high excitement year on year to a passionate and knowledgeable crowd.

Silverstone’s story begins in 1943. RAF Silverstone was built at a cost of over £1 million, with 5 hangars and three intersecting runways. The area of land is situated in the village of Silverstone, near Towcester, and straddles two counties – Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire.

The runways were surrounded by a 3 mile perimeter track which would later serve as part of the race track. The base operated for two years as a training establishment during World War II and was home to a range of Halifax, Lancaster and Wellington bombers. It fell into inactivity in 1946.

Despite the hard times faced by Britons post-war, enthusiasm among certain groups for motorsport didn’t die. There was, however, no major race track in Britain. Brooklands had been handed over to the war’s aviation, as had Donington Park which now acted as a dumping ground for military vehicles.

It was in 1947 that the first race was held at the former RAF aerodrome. The first attempt didn’t go entirely to plan, however. An impromptu race meeting had to be abandoned as sheep invaded the track in what became known as the ‘Mutton Grand Prix’. Maurice Geoghegan ran over a sheep which was killed upon impact and the car was written off.

Silverstone’s central location was seen as an ideal location for international motor racing. In 1948, Silverstone held its first official Grand Prix – the RAC International Grand Prix. James Wilson Brown, a farmer, was employed by the RAC and in August 1948 he was given two months to transform the airfield into a fully-fledged race track.

100,000 fans witnessed Silverstone’s inaugural offering, as crops and piggery were bundled into the centre of the circuit and shielded by hay bales. As would become the custom at Silverstone, traffic jams plagued the weekend as fans made their way to the circuit. Luigi Villoresi was the victor of this race. The 1949 race at Silverstone was the first to be titled the ‘British Grand Prix’. It was run on a different track configuration, which was the full three mile perimeter road of the former airfield. It promoted flat out, high speed racing and can perhaps be considered as the birthplace of modern motorsport. It was run over 300 miles, with Toulo de Graffenreid taking the win after 100 laps.