With the A24 show opening its NEC doors to the public over the weekend, the emphasis on the Motorsport UK display stand switches to encouraging newcomers into all sectors of the sport.

On Saturday the focus is on promoting accessible, yet exciting and affordable, entry-levels of competition.

Front and centre of the stand will be Motorsport UK’s innovative StreetCar initiative. Launched in May 2022, StreetCar unifies 12 different disciplines of the sport under one banner, and demonstrates that the sport can be enjoyed by all. Run by friendly local motor clubs up and down the country, AutoSOLOs, Trials and Cross Country as well as Rally events such as Navigational Rally, Scatter Rally and Targa can all be participated in in a standard road car, with no extra safety equipment and using only a free Motorsport UK RS Clubman licence to compete.

A road legal Mini displayed among the purpose-built racers on the Motorsport UK showcase may look a little out of place but it illustrates just how easy for anyone to experience the heart-pounding thrills of competitive driving with an everyday car sitting on the driveway.

The Mini on the A24 stand promotes the user-friendly StreetCar scheme and, for Saturday show-goers keen to find out more, there will be plenty of advice available from those running the programme, or you can visit the StreetCar website Home – Streetcar – Motorsport in your everyday road car (streetcarmotorsportuk.com)

Providing a little stardust, Saturday will also see the winners of the 2023 British Rally Championship presented with their awards on the main stage at 14:00. Past title winners include Colin McRae, Richard Burns and Elfyn Evans – last year’s champion Adrien Fourmaux has now stepped up to the premier league FIA World Rally Championship and will be hoping to emulate those former champs.

Offering further interest and excitement for rally fans visiting the NEC, the new-look 2024 Probite British Rally Championship has its very own display stand at A24. It is located close to the Motorsport UK stand in Hall 3.