A parade of more than 1,200 Porsche 911 sports cars took to the Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit in July month – a world record number – as the Silverstone Classic celebrated the 50th anniversary of the iconic coupe. The plan to produce a parade of 911 x 911s was almost immediately exceeded when the celebrations were announced, with registrations building hugely in the months leading up to the event. Rather than settling for the initial target, the Porsche Club GB and Silverstone Classic organisations squeezed an incredible 1,208 examples of the 911 on to a packed circuit – creating a breathtaking sight in the process.
The sensational spectacle, which raised funds for the Hope for Tomorrow cancer charity, was led by a number of famous Porsche personalities as tens of thousands of fans looked on. Mark Porsche, son of 911 designer, Ferdinand Alexander ‘Butzi’ Porsche, and great-grandson of the marque’s original founder, Ferdinand Porsche, got proceedings under way and he was joined by a number of the sports car manufacturer’s most successful racing drivers.
Former F1 driver and five-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell MBE joined in the occasion, along with Richard Attwood – winner of the 1970 Le Mans 24 Hours for Porsche – and fellow ‘legend’ and race driver John Fitzpatrick. Porsche owners and enthusiasts made up the remainder of the colourful convoy culminating in the remarkable world record number, which spanned virtually every possible derivative of 911.
The parade comprised the most famous 911 models from past and present, including legendary Carrera, RS, RSR, GT, Speedster, Targa and Turbo variants. A number of distinctive race and rally versions of the 911 also featured in the cavalcade.