Mallory Park at 70: How a Quiet Leicestershire Estate Became One of Britain’s Most Iconic Circuits
There are racetracks that feel like infrastructure, and there are racetracks that feel like personality. Mallory Park sits firmly in the second camp. It’s short, it’s intense, and it has a rhythm that rewards bravery while punishing daydreaming. And in 2026, Mallory hits a major milestone: 70 years since the hard-surfaced circuit officially opened in April 1956.
If you’ve ever watched a bike rocket into Gerrards with that “this is either genius or a future insurance claim” body language, you’ll understand why Mallory matters. It’s a place where spectators can see everything, and riders can’t hide anywhere. That’s exactly what has made it a cornerstone of British motorsport for seven decades.
Before there was tarmac: Mallory’s unusual beginnings
Mallory Park’s story doesn’t begin with racing cars or superbikes. It begins with land, history, and a sequence of reinventions that could only happen in post-war Britain.
During the Second World War, the site became RAF Kirkby Mallory, a satellite landing ground, before closing in 1947. In the years that followed, parts of the estate and its facilities changed hands and purposes, including a period where the outline of what we now recognise as Mallory’s famous oval was shaped by pony trotting activities in the late 1940s.
Then came the moment that matters to us. With the horse-racing plan struggling and various clubs hiring the land, motorcycle sport found a foothold. The circuit hosted grass track motorcycle and sidecar racing in the early years, helping to establish Mallory as a natural arena for speed long before it had a permanent hard surface.
1956: the big leap from field to proper circuit
The turning point arrived when Clive Wormleighton bought the estate in 1955 and pushed for a permanent, hard-surfaced circuit. The tarmac circuit was constructed in 1956, with contemporary accounts putting the cost at around £60,000—serious money for the era, and a very clear signal that this wasn’t a hobby project.
Mallory’s official opening as a hard-surfaced course is strongly associated with 26 April 1956, marked by demonstration laps from local Grand Prix driver Bob Gerard in a Cooper-Bristol and Maurice Cann on a Moto Guzzi.
That detail matters because it perfectly foreshadows what Mallory became: a circuit that belongs to both cars and bikes, but which has always had motorcycling in its bloodstream.
Why Mallory feels different: the layout that creates legends (and excuses)
Mallory’s “main character energy” is baked into the track map. At roughly 1.35 miles (2.173 km) in its car circuit form, it’s one of the shortest permanent circuits in the UK—yet it drives like a place twice its size because everything happens at high speed and in full view.
Two corners define the experience:
Gerrards is the long, fast right-hander that seems to last forever. It’s named after Bob Gerard, the very man who helped open the circuit, and it remains a corner that separates the committed from the cautious.
At the other end is Shaw’s Corner (the Hairpin), a tight 180-degree bend that is frequently described as one of the tightest corners in UK circuit racing.
This combination—flat-out flow into a corner that demands hard braking and discipline—creates what Mallory does best: close racing. It’s also why riders love it and coaches quietly fear it.
Over time, chicanes and alternate configurations have been used for certain bike events, and the “Superbike Circuit” variant is slightly longer than the original car layout.
The golden era vibe: when Mallory became a must-win venue
By the late 1950s, Mallory wasn’t just “a circuit.” It was an event. The Mallory Park Race of the Year began in 1958, and over the decades it became known for attracting big names and prestigious entries—exactly the sort of meeting that turned a provincial circuit into a national talking point.
That’s the thing about Mallory: it punches above its postcode. When a circuit is short and the action is concentrated, it becomes a magnet for spectators and a pressure cooker for competitors. There’s a reason people still talk about Mallory meetings with the kind of fondness normally reserved for first bikes and last chances.
Surviving the hard years: ownership changes and noise limits
Mallory’s history also includes the classic British motorsport storyline: “This place is brilliant… now try keeping it open.”
In the early 1980s, there were serious concerns about the circuit’s future. The site changed hands, and by 1983 racing was continuing under new stewardship, with events organised by established clubs helping keep the place alive.
Then came the pressure that so many UK circuits know too well: noise and operating restrictions. In the mid-1980s, a Noise Nuisance Order restricted usage, illustrating the constant balancing act between motorsport heritage and local acceptability.
That Mallory kept going through all of this is part of its identity. It isn’t just a track; it’s a stubborn piece of sporting culture that refuses to be tidied away.
2026: the 70th anniversary celebrations
Now to the point of the party. Mallory Park’s 70th anniversary is being marked in a way that makes perfect sense for this circuit: by leaning into bikes, history, and spectacle.
The headline is the 1000 Bikes Revival, a major event scheduled for Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th July 2026, positioned as a centrepiece of the circuit’s 70th anniversary year. The event is explicitly framed as reviving the spirit of the much-loved Festival of 1000 Bikes, which previously drew huge crowds and big-name participation.
Multiple outlets have reported the event launch in partnership with Live Promotions, reinforcing that this is meant to be a flagship weekend rather than a quiet nod.
And here’s the clever bit: the anniversary year isn’t just one weekend. Mallory’s own listings show a packed 2026 calendar, including notable dates such as late April events close to the original 1956 opening window—exactly the sort of detail that will make longtime Mallory regulars smile knowingly.
Why Mallory’s 70th matters to motorcycling
Some circuits are famous because they’re huge. Mallory is famous because it’s honest. It doesn’t flatter you with long straights and excuses. It compresses everything: speed, braking, bravery, mistakes, and redemption. From grassroots club racing to headline motorcycle meetings, it has delivered 70 years of “don’t blink” racing in a setting where the crowd can actually see what’s going on.
The 1000 Bikes Revival is a particularly fitting celebration because it doesn’t treat history like a museum display. It treats it like a living, noisy, oil-scented thing that should still be started, ridden, and enjoyed. That is Mallory Park in one sentence.
If you’re the kind of rider who believes the sport is built as much by circuits as by champions, Mallory at 70 isn’t just an anniversary. It’s proof that some places are too good to fade out quietly.