Silverstone Classic 2012: Ferrari F40 tribute Rated by many as the ultimate road-going Ferrari, the F40 was launched 25 years ago. To celebrate, the Silverstone Classic from July 20-22 will feature a demonstration of at least 50 examples of the twin-turbocharged, V8 supercar produced to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Ferrari road car production. This world record gathering, organised by the the Ferrari Owners' Club of Great Britain, is the latest special birthday celebration announced for this summer's Silverstone Classic powered by the AA. Nigel Chiltern-Hunt of the Ferrari Owners' Club of Great Britain said: "Our original aim was to get at least 25 of these Ferraris together and, as I have contacted owners, I have been gratified that so many want to be part of the celebration - so much so that we now have more than 50 F40s registered for the event with more still to come. A parade of those F40s present is planned for the Sunday and it undoubtedly will be the largest gathering of F40s ever seen anywhere in the world and will certainly beat the club's own previous record of 40 F40s seen at the Silverstone Classic in 2007. Introduced in 1987 to honour Ferrari's 40th anniversary, the mid-engined F40 was the final car commissioned by Enzo Ferrari. With a dramatic ultra-lightweight body designed by Pininfarina (featuring many carbon-fibre and Kevlar panels as well as plastic windows) and propelled by a twin-turbocharged V8 developing 478bhp, performance was nothing short of phenomenal. Indeed the F40 was the world's first 200mph production road car. Just 1,315 F40s were produced in Maranello between 1987 and 1992. A host of other car clubs have announced their own celebrations at this summer's three-day Silverstone Classic festival. These include 50th birthday celebrations for the AC Cobra, Lotus Elan and MGB, as well as the UK's first BMW Z-Fest to mark 60 years of the BMW Car Club GB. "Silverstone is the perfect place for Ferrari to be celebrating this important milestone in the incredible F40's history," said Nick Wigley, event organiser. It was, of course, at Silverstone in 1951 that Ferrari achieved its first grand prix win and, since then, the circuit has witnessed countless more Ferrari victories, most recently when Fernando Alonso won last year's British Grand Prix. With such a rich sporting history, it's no surprise that so many fabulous Ferraris star in many of the major races staged at the Silverstone Classic. Now the promise of a record number of Ferrari F40s is another major attraction. It's a truly mouth-watering prospect that no supercar enthusiast will want to miss. Full details of the 2012 Silverstone Classic powered by the AA - including information on 'Early Bird' ticket offers and a comprehensive selection of on-site camping facilities - are available via the event's official www.silverstoneclassic.com website.