Tony Gaze’s HWM-Jaguar returned to the track he helped establish at the 2026 Revival

After serving with distinction in the RAF as a fighter pilot during World War II, Gaze redirected his penchant for adrenaline towards a career in motorsport. He drove an Alta Formula 3 in his early outings in 1951 before switching to an HWM-Alta for the following season — his entry in the 1952 Belgium Grand Prix made Gaze the first Australian to compete in a Formula 1 World Championship race.

HWM, meanwhile, was making its own history as the first British marque to find success after the war. The initial project of founders and fellow racing drivers John Heath and George Abecassis was a streamlined sportscar built on the chassis of a Sports Alta in 1948.

Their next car, the 1949 HW-Alta, was successful enough for a HWM to mount an entry into Formula 2 in 1950. The small scale of the operation meant that fewer than 30 cars carrying the HWM name were ever built, but among them was VPA 8, a Jaguar-engined model commissioned by Gaze in 1954.

VPA 8 was the second HWM-Jaguar to be made. The first was given the engine of a Jaguar XK120 by owner Oscar Moore, after the three early Alta engined cars were sold off for profit at the end of the 1950 season.

“In period, the way that Jaguar engines worked is they loaned them out to companies,” explained Theo, when we spoke with him and his father at the Revival, “so you didn't really own the engine in your car.” The 3.4-litre engine was the same as found in the C-Type — “a lovely, solid engine” Martin esteemed.

“We also have one of its original engines,” continued Theo, “but the engine that's running now is just a period block, which has been converted to a race engine. We haven't touched the engine for probably nearly ten years or so.”

HWM’s method was to fit these engines into a repurposed Formula 2 chassis and build a more streamlined body around it. The twin-tube frame was clothed in an aluminium shell while the suspension used wishbones and coils at the front, and torsion and a de Dion tube at the rear. Theo supposed this one was “probably a 1951 chassis.”

Tony Gaze’s first outing in the car was at the 1954 Reims 12 Hours with Graham Whitehead, where the pair finished seventh. Two years later, he won the Moomba TT at Albert Park and came third at the Ardmore Grand Prix and Argus Cup.

“It did the Imperial, it did the Goodwood Nine Hours,” recalled Theo. “I think it placed here [Goodwood] a couple times on Easter Weekend meetings. It did a Crystal Palace race and a couple of other period races in England. Then it went to Australia where it stayed for about 30 years.”

The car was sold to Lex Davidson but was crashed badly on the road by his mechanic and remained as a wreck for almost 40 years as a series of owners were each unable to complete a rebuild. In 1990, Julian Phillips began a six-year project to restore VPA 8, after which it was returned to the UK. Martin purchased the car in 2016 from Roger Buxton, who had kept its legacy alive. 

“It was quite a well-known car in historic racing,” said Martin, who prior to VPA 8 had been racing early 1950s cars with Bristol engines. “I just wanted to go to something a bit quicker, a bit more competitive. It just made perfect sense for us, it's kind of a ‘do everything’ car.”

He tested it before committing to the purchase, a drive during which for Theo it “very quickly [became] quite obvious it was a good handling car, quite an easy car to get a good lap time. For dad, as a step up from a Bristol-engined car, it was a really good next stage. And actually, it's ended up being a very, very competitive car.”

The Hunts have ensured this car continues to fulfil its purpose as a racer. It underwent an extensive rebuild by Blakeney Motorsport, who continue to prepare the car for competition, but a life of action meant it had suffered a handful of accidents through the years. “We've got some bent metal hanging on the garage wall which is more likely to be its original,” Martin shared, “but this is a fairly faithful recreation of what it would've had.”

Ten years into their ownership, this racing family have enjoyed some memorable results with the car, including at the 2026 Revival where Theo drove VPA 8 to an impressive second place in the Freddie March Memorial Trophy presented by Cazenove Capital — a race previously won by Martin in 2018.

Having passed down his passion for historic racing, Martin feels “very proud” watching his son race. “He's become a really fast and safe driver. We do have fun tinkering in the garage together, I'm very lucky that he has taken to it the way he has.”

“It's pretty awesome to be able to follow in his footsteps,” Theo said of his father. “Obviously it's very cool watching your dad race at Goodwood. I went to school just around the corner from here and dad's been racing at Goodwood since I was ten. Being trusted to drive and also being competitive in the race is pretty special. I’m thinking about lots of history here, but also our own family history.” 

Martin’s uncle was a pilot in WWII who also flew from RAF Westhampnett — “not the same squadron that Tony Gaze was in, but very much the same time. I'm pretty sure they would've known each other, but he didn't survive the war, so I'll never know. But I do feel that that connection is just another part of the story.”

Gaze’s HWM-Jaguar has a kangaroo emblazoned on its side, a detail he added to honour his heritage. Returning his car to the track he helped establish made its appearance at the Revival “extra special” for Theo.

It’s these connections to the past that make the Goodwood Revival so special, sharing a love for historic motorsport across generations. The achievement of the Hunt’s HWM-Jaguar at this year’s event was the perfect conclusion to a story that entirely encapsulates that sentiment, all while honouring one of the men to whom Goodwood owes its very existence.

Photography by Joe Harding.

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