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Herbert to race F1 Ensign at Masters Historic Silverstone round

Johnny Herbert will compete in Formula 1 machinery again at the British GP - driving an Ensign in the FIA Masters Historic support event at Silverstone

The three-time Grand Prix winner is to handle the Ensign N180B owned by former Force India deputy team principal and current McLaren Indy president Bob Fernley, and which has not raced since 1984.

Herbert left F1 in 2000, and last raced regularly with a Maserati in the International Superstars series in 2012.

He is scheduled to shakedown the rebuilt Ensign at Donington Park early next month.

"I haven't driven anything of that era on a track," Herbert told Autosport.

"I've driven a Lotus 72 up the hill at Goodwood, but that's it.

"It all came together, and I thought I'll give it a go.

"It's at Silverstone, and I'm there anyway.

"It's an old girl, and it would be nice to get her out again.

"I'll be trying to give it the beans, I won't be able to help myself.

"I'm looking forward to getting behind the wheel of a car from that era."

The car is the chassis with which Marc Surer finished fourth and set fastest lap in the 1981 Brazilian GP, and took sixth place at Monaco.

It was raced later that year by Eliseo Salazar, who earned sixth in the Dutch GP.

The car subsequently returned to the UK, where it ran it in the poorly-supported 1982 British F1 championship for Jim Crawford, who picked up three wins.

Later that year, Fernley took the car to the USA where Crawford raced it with sportscar bodywork In the CanAm series.

In 1983 Crawford won two races with it, and finished runner-up in the championship to Jacques Villeneuve Sr - younger brother of Gilles and uncle to 1997 Formula 1 champion, Jacques.

The car subsequently returned to the UK, and Fernley has kept it in storage ever since.

He is now having it restored and returned to the specification in which Crawford raced it in the British F1 series, in a red, white and blue livery with R.K. Textiles logos.

Fernley plans to enter it at Silverstone under the Team Ensign name, having been closely involved with Mo Nunn's team in its latter years.

"It was the first and only Ensign CanAm car," Fernley told Autosport.

"It was probably the most successful Ensign that we ever built!

"We returned it to F1 spec and it's been in storage in boxes since then.

"It's being rebuilt by my former chief mechanic, Ken Winning, who built the car at Ensign in the first place.

"We've still got some of the drawings.

"We've made all new bodywork moulds for it, we've rebuilt the wings, the tub has been checked over, whatever was missing has all been re-machined and done, so it should come out looking rather splendid, hopefully.

"Suitable for Mr Herbert!"

Fernley views the Silverstone outing as a tribute to his close friend Crawford (pictured below), who made his Grand Prix debut with a works Lotus in the 1975 British GP.

"I wanted to bring it back in the spec that Jim drove it - a little bit of sentimentality from our side," Fernley added.

"Johnny is the quintessential British racing driver, and don't forget he's suffered terrible injuries, the same as Jim did [Crawford suffered leg injuries after a crash in practice for the 1987 Indy500].

"I thought Johnny would be ideal, and he would love it. I don't think we could have picked anyone better for it."

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