Why less can mean more for club racing calendars

The past month has been a very busy one for national motorsport. Alongside a packed schedule of events with championships reaching conclusions, there has also been a flurry of announcements. From new series, new promoters, new cars and new initiatives, there is plenty going on. 

But the most common news to emerge in recent weeks concerns 2026 calendars. There was once a time when many clubs revealed schedules in November or December. Not anymore. The pressure for dates means they must all act fast, or risk being left with the unwanted scraps, and hence organisers have been unveiling draft calendars months earlier than in the past.

And there has been a common theme among many of these announcements: the schedules have shrunk a little. Unless you have been tucked away in an ivory tower, shielded from the stagnating UK economy, the nation’s tough financial position has unsurprisingly had an impact on national motorsport.

From the top levels, like British GT, to more humble grassroots series, many organisers have been grappling with a reduction in entries amid the hard times. One way they can try to reduce the monetary burden on competitors is by having fewer events. It is a tactic British GT has adopted after suffering a significant grid size shrink this year.

But its promoter SRO is not alone in thinking less could mean more. “We do feel next year is going to be a bit tight financially and therefore we’re going to go down from eight to seven weekends,” says Mini 7 Racing Club commercial manager Colin Peacock.

“We’re also not going to any faraway rounds, no Croft or Zandvoort. We’ve got all of our favourites and we’re racing with BTCC at Thruxton in July, going to the Mini Festival and we’ve got Castle Combe.”

The Classic Sports Car Club is another to have reassessed its number of race dates for 2026. Club managing director David Smitheram admits he was too ambitious this season amid the tough task of predicting competitor demand over a year in advance when making bookings.

“We gave too many days to our members and that diluted grids,” he says. “We’ve done 17 days in 2025, typically we have 14 or 15, so we’re now returning to the same number of days.”

Legends will be on the bill at the British Touring Car Championship Donington Park opener

But a key element of CSCC calendar announcements over the years has been innovation, and that remains the case. Alongside some of its popular regular fixtures, the club is also making a wholescale return to Spa, offering a couple of two-hour enduros at Donington Park – something Smitheram says has been considered for well over a decade – and is organising the first-ever night races at Knockhill.

“I’m constantly trying to think of something new,” he explains. “I think Knockhill’s going to be probably the most exciting venue you could do a night race at because of its up-and-down nature. You’re going to drop down Duffus Dip and the spotlights are just going to light up the bottom of the dip and, going up the other side, you’re going to light up the sky.

“It’s going to be pretty exciting. We will have a series of day races and then a pair of night races – one for classic cars and one for modern cars.”

The Historic Sports Car Club is also planning a special event next year as it celebrates its 60th birthday. The club will return to where it all began back in 1966 with a two-day August Castle Combe meeting.

If others follow in British GT’s, the M7RC’s and CSCC’s footsteps and have fewer fixtures, it brings many benefits

“It’s our heritage – we hope to fill it with cars of the type on which we started,” says HSCC CEO Andy Dee-Crowne. “We’re hoping for D-types and Frazer Nashes to celebrate that.” 

One of the very first calendar announcements, back in May, came from the British Touring Car Championship. And with a new junior support series not now due until 2027, there is a chance for more guest categories to appear after this year’s rather sparse timetables.

Legends will be at the Donington Park opener, for example, while Caterham has secured four slots, three for its top-tier Seven UK championship and a first BTCC appearance for the 310R division.

As more clubs reveal plans, it’s important for everyone to take stock. If others follow in British GT’s, the M7RC’s and CSCC’s footsteps and have fewer fixtures, it brings many benefits. It decreases pressure on stretched volunteers and can help coalesce competitors around fewer, better-subscribed meetings. If every category had just one fewer round, the effect would be transformative. Sometimes less really can mean more.

This article is one of many in the monthly Autosport magazine. For more premium content, take a look at the November 2025 issue and subscribe today. 

Mini 7 Racing Club is down from eight to seven weekends, with no ‘faraway’ rounds