Touring Car legend Steve Soper will compete in his first race for more than 10 years at this summer’s Silverstone Classic (26-28 July). The former works BMW and Ford driver will share a Ford GT40 with David Cuff in the World Sportscar Masters event.
Soper was forced out of the sport on medical advice following a heavy crash in the final round of the 2001 MSA British Touring Car Championship at Brands Hatch. Having recently undergone a three-hour operation on his neck, however, he has now been given the all-clear.
“After the accident I was told to totally change my lifestyle,” he said, “so that’s what I did. I stopped racing and concentrated on my BMW dealership in Lincoln. But last year I started getting pins and needles in my fingers, so I went back to see the specialist.
“He insisted I had an operation on my damaged neck [that] replaced three of my discs and two vertebrae with carbon cages. The surgeon tells me that my neck is now as strong as it was when I was 21 and therefore has cleared me to start competing again.
“I’m still a petrolhead and I find it difficult to be at a race meeting and not to be involved, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
