Motorsport Vision

General information

MotorSport Vision was founded by former F1 driver Jonathan Palmer, John Britten and Sir Peter Ogden, and the company purchased a number of famous race circuits in the UK in 2004: Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, Snetterton and Cadwell Park.

Work and investment to modernise the tracks began immediately, with extensive upgrades taking place across all venues and in most aspects of the business. Subsequently, international racing returned to Brands Hatch with a large and diverse selection of events taking place at the Kent venue including the FIA World Touring Car Championship, the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport and the DTM (German Touring Cars). The circuit continues to play host to many major events including the American SpeedFest and the Blancpain GT Series, in addition to home-grown festivals such as Festival Italia and Deutsche Fest, plus all the major national motor racing championships, including Truck racing.

Oulton Park, considered the most picturesque circuit in the UK, was revitalised and under MSV’s guidance big meetings have thrived at the Cheshire track, particularly the British Touring Car Championship, which attracts the biggest crowd on the calendar, two rounds of the British Superbike Championship and the Gold Cup classic car meeting, dubbed ‘the Goodwood of the north’.

Snetterton has arguably undergone the most comprehensive transformation, with extensive track improvements in 2011 to create a new infield section, which increased the length of the circuit to 3 miles, and new panoramic spectator banking, offering fans unparalleled views of the racing action. Lincolnshire’s Cadwell Park continues to be a premier challenge for bike racing in the country with a variety of events being held on the sinuous track. Its annual August edition of the MCE British Superbike Championship (MCE BSB) is frequently the best-attended round.

In 2006, MSV formed MotorSport Vision Racing (MSVR), providing a complete car and bike racing organisation capability to the MSV group. MSVR is considered one of the most important and respected racing organisations in the UK. The club prides itself on offering the highest levels of efficiency, value and enjoyment for its competitors, and organises all international car races across the group, whilst administering more than 25 championships and series. It also ran the UK’s first electric car race – the London ePrix in Battersea Park. MotorSport Vision's in-house trackday division, MSV Trackdays (MSVT), formed the same year, has grown to become one of the UK's biggest trackday operators, and organises car and bike events for all levels of experience.

MSVR’s portfolio of 20+ race series expanded for 2008 to include the organisation of the British Superbike Championship, the world’s premier national bike championship. MSV owns both the commercial and organisational rights to the series, which has thrived under the leadership of MSV CEO Jonathan Palmer and Series Director Stuart Higgs.

From 2009 to 2012, MSV operated the FIA Formula Two Championship, an international single-seater series aimed at providing young, talent drivers with the opportunity to compete in top-level racing on a competitive budget. The pioneering BRDC Formula 4 Championship was then formed in time for the 2013 season, enabling drivers to take their first steps on the motorsport ladder in an affordable and equal environment. The championship evolved to become the BRDC British F3 Championship shortly before the start of the 2016 season.

The MSV group also encompasses PalmerSport, the world’s leading corporate hospitality driving event, which offers guests the opportunity to drive a collection of high performance sports cars and open-top racing cars to their limits at MSV’s Bedford Autodrome complex of circuits, which opened in 1999.

In 2015, MSV completed the freehold purchase of a substantial former military airbase in north-east France, which it will develop into a major international motorsports complex.

MSV has an excellent relationship with BMW UK, its vehicle partner since 2009. BMW provides a fleet of BMW M4s for its driving experiences at Oulton Park and Brands Hatch, and a further 10 cars for its PalmerSport event at Bedford Autodrome. BMW also provides the essential safety vehicles for use in race meetings at Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, Snetterton and Cadwell Park.