Autosport International, The Racing Car Show, kicked off at the National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, on Thursday 12 January with two busy trade days before opening to the public over the weekend.

As well as nine halls, including the live action arena and the Autosport Engineering Show, a significant historics area emphasised the importance of this section of the UK’s burgeoning motorsport industry. The HSCC celebrated Formula 3 with a great line-up of single-seaters from the 500cc era onwards, headed by Stirling Moss’s Kieft and a Cooper driven by one Bernard Ecclestone. Silverstone Classic took a large stand to promote its next event, July 20-22, which included a Cobra, MGB, F5000 McLaren, Mondeo Touring Car and Porsche 962, while Autoglym displayed the ’56 Reims 12-hour-winning D-type. Poignantly, John Surtees’ 1972 Japanese GP-winning TS10 was there, raising awareness of the Henry Surtees foundation, which helps young people and those with accidental brain and physical injuries. Surtees, son of 1964 World Champion John, was tragically killed in 2009 at the age of 18 in a Formula 2 race at Brands Hatch. Den Motorsport’s array of beautiful new Mk2 Escort rally cars showed that there’s no let-up in demand for this near 40-year-old in historic events. Former rally driver Alec Poole’s Tour Britannia organisation launched Targa Britannia, to the same regularity/race format but for post-’75 cars and with the field limited to 35 so all cars can compete in the same race. The original pre-’75 Tour Britannia continues alongside.

Club Lotus brought the former Ian Walker Racing Gold Bug to celebrate the Elan’s 50th birthday this year, and also displayed a 15, plus the 1957 prototype of its first single-seater, the front-engined 12, in restoration, plus an ex-Ayrton Senna 97T. Elsewhere, a separate tribute to the Brazilian hero showcased some more of his winning cars, starting with the DAP Kart that took him to runner-up in the 1980 Karting World Championship and including the McLaren MP4 in which he orchestrated what many believe to be his greatest drive ever, winning the 1993 European GP at Donington in the rain. A display of British rally heroes in Hall 8 included everything from Paddy Hopkirk’s ’64 Monte Mini to Colin McRae’s 2001 Rally of Cyprus-winning WRC Focus.

But for us, the highlight was the beautiful 1968 Ford F3L, the centrepiece of a clutch of Alan Mann Racing cars to be sold at Coys auction, starting 3pm Saturday. The swoopy Len Bailey-designed sports-racer, designed to take over from the GT40, was unsuccessful in period, but Mann’s example has been resurrected in recent years and though not part of the auction had attracted ‘significant interest’ from two parties as a private treaty sale, said Coys’ Chris Routledge. Offers approaching £1m will be needed to buy it.

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