A parade of Ferrari F40 sportscars was one of the special features of the main day of the inaugural Mugello Historic Festival last weekend, a brand new event for historic cars, which also included the opening round of this season's Shell Ferrari Historic Challenge.

Over twenty historic Formula 1 single-seaters turned up at the Scarperia circuit to take part in the first running of the Mugello Historic Festival, a unique new event on the calendar for car fans who had around 200 cars to see on track and in the paddock. Many of those cars on show or in action had written some of the most unforgettable pages in the history of international motor sport and include Jackie Stewart´s Tyrrell, Keke Rosberg´s Williams and James Hunts´s McLaren. On top of that there were F1 cars from Lotus, Brabham, Minardi, Ensign and Osella to name but a few.

Last weekend, the Mugello circuit also hosted the opening round of this season's European Shell Ferrari Historic Challenge, for historic cars built by the Maranello company. The cars which must be in possession of a "Technical Accreditation Document" from Ferrari, proving their original provenance, are divided into categories, depending on type and date of manufacture and compete in different grids. The 2007 version of the series, which since 1999 has also been open to Maserati cars, boasts a special atmosphere in the paddock, where period dress is de rigeur. The series runs over five rounds.

A stunning parade of Ferrari F40s was one of the main features of the main day (Sunday) of the inaugural Mugello Historic Festival. The F40 Trophy, was a special regularity event that preceded the parade on the Tuscan track. This Trophy along with the parade opened the celebrations for the twentieth anniversary of this prestigious Prancing Horse model and in the coming months will also be part of the Ferrari Days at Silverstone and Hockenheim.
 

A further event in North America is also planned to commemorated the F40's anniversary. Meanwhile, after setting off from the Fiorano track and making a spectacular pass through Florence, the F40s made their final approach to the Mugello International Circuit on Sunday via the famous Futa Pass, one of the most spectacular sections on the Mille Miglia. The winner was Eric Prinoth, the Italian Champion among the gentlemen drivers competing in the Shell Cup, part of the Ferrari Challenge Pirelli Trophy, which uses the F430.

As for the races, in the Shell Ferrari Historic Challenge, there was a win for the 1960 Ferrari 256 F1/FL of Tony Smith in Grid A, for cars with drum brakes. Paul Knapfield's 1980 Ferrari 512 BB L; took first place in Group C, for cars with disc brakes. Completing the card were races for the FIA Trophy Lurani (an extremely rapid and fascinating Junior Formula), the World Sports Cars Masters and GT and the Sports Endurance Masters with cars completing an endurance race. The Mugello festival also staged races in the Orwell Supersport Cup (For Prototypes and Can-Am cars built prior to 1976) and the Club Europe F2 series. The next round of the Shell Ferrari Historic Challenge is scheduled for the weekend of 10 June in England, at Silverstone Circuit.