Schumacher Formula One Car For Highlands

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Schumacher Formula One Car For Highlands

Lunchtimes will be more than just food and drink at the three-day Highlands 101 meeting in November.

The Benetton Formula One car that seven times World Champion Michael Schumacher drove into fifth place in the 1991 Italian Grand Prix at Monza, to claim his first ever F1 points, will be a lunchtime star at the Highlands 101 race meeting in early November.

Scheduled for November 8, 9 and10 the meeting is the first at the new $30 million facility near Cromwell in Central Otago and features the final rounds of the spectacular Australian GT Series, the final round of the South Island Production Series and the inaugural round of the new, one-make Toyota 86 Series.

The meeting is a first for New Zealand motorsport in many ways, the first meeting at Highlands, the first appearance in New Zealand for the Australian GTs and the first long distance race for GT cars.

Sunday the 10th sees the staging of the Highlands 101 — 101 laps of the “Grand Prix” prix circuit for the fastest 42 cars irrespective of class.

This means New Zealanders will get to see a field filled with exotica like Ferrari, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Audi, Porsche and more, contesting the race which Highlands owner Tony Quinn wants to become an annual event and New Zealand’s equivalent of Bathurst.

The meeting promises three days of action filled racing, but even the lunchtime breaks will see fans cramming the fences.

Making its first New Zealand appearance will be the Benetton 191 Cosworth that Michael Schumacher, in just his second Formula One race, collected his first ever world championship points in.

After making a spectacular, but short-lived start in the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix driving a Jordan, Jordan wanted Schumacher for the rest of the season but they were slow with the paperwork and Schumacher arrived at the next event as a Benetton driver, replacing Roberto Moreno.

This was the Italian Grand Prix at Monza and Schumacher’s drive into fifth place launched an unprecedented career and seven World Formula One titles.

The Benetton has been bought by Tony Quinn and will make lunchtime appearances on each of the three days of the Highlands 101 meeting with Australian race driver and engineer Brent Francis driving.

The sight and sound of this car around the stunning Highlands circuit will live with fans forever.

Prepared by Allan Dick for Highlands Motorsport Park, Sandflat Road, Cromwell.

www.highlands.co.nz

ENDS

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