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Judging the Awards

The judging process is central to the prestige and integrity of the Royal Automobile Club Historic Awards.  With the exception of the Club’s Lifetime Achievement Award, category nominations have been invited from all corners of the United Kingdom's historic motoring scene, in accordance with the relevant category guidelines. 


The Awards are judged by a handpicked panel of independent experts consisting of some of the most highly regarded individuals in their respective fields, each with specific in-depth knowledge of their assigned categories, making a win one of the most sought-after accolades in the motoring world.


Each category has its own bespoke, specialist judging panel, headed by a Lead Judge who is an expert in that particular field. Each Lead Judge has appointed other members to its jury, ensuring each category is assessed rigorously by those best-qualified to do so. The  Lead Judges are listed below, along with the Jury members.

Lead Judges

Sarah Bennett-Baggs, Editor, Auto Addicts

Alastair Clements - Editor-in-Chief, Classic & Sports Car

Alastair Clements - Editor-in-Chief, Classic & Sports Car

Sarah Bennett-Baggs is the Lead Judge for the Personal Endeavour category.

Sarah has been fully submersed in the automotive and motorsport industry since 1995.  An active historic motorsport competitor, Sarah publishes Auto Addicts, a bi-annual printed journal and online hub and is Editor of Historic Motorsport TV

Alastair Clements - Editor-in-Chief, Classic & Sports Car

Alastair Clements - Editor-in-Chief, Classic & Sports Car

Alastair Clements - Editor-in-Chief, Classic & Sports Car

Alastair Clements, Lead Judge for the Motoring Spectacle category, joined Classic & Sports Car magazine in 1999 as editorial assistant. A passionate enthusiast of cars of all ages, types and values, over the past 20+ years he has held just about every role on the title – as well as spells on Autocar, Practical Caravan and Practical Motorhome – and became Editor-in-Chief in 2017. 

Steve Cropley, Editor-in-Chief, Autocar

Alastair Clements - Editor-in-Chief, Classic & Sports Car

Steve Cropley, Editor-in-Chief, Autocar

Steve Cropley, Lead Judge for the Outstanding Journalism category, has been testing and writing about cars for nearly 40 years, half of that time at Autocar. He joined the staff of Car magazine in 1978 and became editor in 1981. In 1989 he launched his own magazine, Buying Cars, which was bought two years later by Haymarket Media Group, where he has worked ever since.

Vanessa Marçais - Historic Motorsport Organiser

Vanessa Marçais - Historic Motorsport Organiser

Vanessa Marçais - Historic Motorsport Organiser

  As a historic motorsport competitor and event organiser, Vanessa Marçais, Lead Judge for the Young Achiever category, has vast experience of being on both sides of the pit wall. She also sources and acquires sports, sports-racing and Grand Prix cars for private collectors, organises and runs the GT & Sports Car Cup and is a Curator for the Concours of Elegance.

Damien Smith - Motorsport Journalist

Vanessa Marçais - Historic Motorsport Organiser

Vanessa Marçais - Historic Motorsport Organiser

 Lead Judge for Competitive Event, Damien Smith has been a motorsport journalist for 30 years. A former editor of Motor Sport and editor-in-chief of Autosport, F1 Racing and Motorsport News, he has trawled paddocks from Monaco to Pembrey, Indianapolis to Lydden Hill – and just about everywhere else in between. Today, he is a freelance contributor to Motor Sport, Autosport, Classic & Sports Car and more, and is also the motorsport editor for Autocar. 

Peter Stevens - Designer

Allan Winn - Director and CEO of Brooklands Museum 2003-15

Simon Taylor, Journalist

Peter heads up the Motoring Art jury. Among his best known road and race designs are the McLaren F1 road car, the 1999 Le Mans-winning BMW, the Lotus Elan and Esprit, Jaguar’s XJR-15, the Subaru Impreza P1 road car as well as the World Rally Championship-winning Subaru Impreza WRC. During his career, Peter has worked with many of the worl

Peter heads up the Motoring Art jury. Among his best known road and race designs are the McLaren F1 road car, the 1999 Le Mans-winning BMW, the Lotus Elan and Esprit, Jaguar’s XJR-15, the Subaru Impreza P1 road car as well as the World Rally Championship-winning Subaru Impreza WRC. During his career, Peter has worked with many of the world’s leading automotive companies, including Lamborghini, BMW, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Nissan, Rolls Royce, MG-Rover and Subaru. 

Simon Taylor, Journalist

Allan Winn - Director and CEO of Brooklands Museum 2003-15

Simon Taylor, Journalist

Lead Judge in the Restoration category, Simon Taylor joined Autosport straight from university and was editor by age 23. As Publisher and then Managing Director of Haymarket Magazines he launched What Car?, Classic & Sports Car and F1 Racing. For 20 years he was BBC Radio's motor racing commentator before joining ITV's F1 commentary team. 

Allan Winn - Director and CEO of Brooklands Museum 2003-15

Allan Winn - Director and CEO of Brooklands Museum 2003-15

Allan Winn - Director and CEO of Brooklands Museum 2003-15

Lead Judge in the Museums, Collections & Exhibits category, Allan Winn has been driving and competing in old motor cars for 50 years and is currently rebuilding his 1929 3-Litre Bentley. He is a regular judge at Pebble Beach and other concours, a past Director of the VSCC and an active race marshal.

The Jury

Tiggy Atkinson

Richard Barnett

Richard Barnett

 Tiggy is the Operations Manager at Curated by Pendine, a car collection management service located at Bicester Motion. Tiggy has worked in the automotive world since 2010.  Roles have included seven years with Bicester Heritage, where she shaped their events business, launching the Scramble events & Director of Memberships for HERO-ERA b

 Tiggy is the Operations Manager at Curated by Pendine, a car collection management service located at Bicester Motion. Tiggy has worked in the automotive world since 2010.  Roles have included seven years with Bicester Heritage, where she shaped their events business, launching the Scramble events & Director of Memberships for HERO-ERA before heading up their estates division. Tiggy continues to champion motoring initiatives close to her heart; supporting women in our sector, mental well-being in our industry and providing opportunity for young enthusiasts.  

Richard Barnett

Richard Barnett

Richard Barnett

Richard Barnett has been interested in cars since he was two years old and his entire working career has involved cars in one form or another, from selling motoring books to being a media spokesman for the SMMT. He has been Classic Car Weekly’s auctions’ editor for the past 12 years. 

Peter Haynes

Richard Barnett

Danny Hopkins

 Peter has worked with RM Sotheby’s since the business launched in Europe in 2007. He previously worked for Caterham Cars, Ford and Peugeot and was a Road Test journalist for Autocar in the late  1990s. He comes from a family of classic car collectors, worked as a race instructor at Goodwood and is a keen historic motorsport competitor.

Danny Hopkins

Danny Hopkins

Danny Hopkins

Danny Hopkins is a PPA award-winning journalist and award-winning magazine editor. He has edited Practical Classics magazine for 12 years. He has restored numerous classics himself, his most recent project being an 8 year revival of the Jensen Interceptor II originally owned by Sir Hugh Fraser. Before entering the world of classic car jou

Danny Hopkins is a PPA award-winning journalist and award-winning magazine editor. He has edited Practical Classics magazine for 12 years. He has restored numerous classics himself, his most recent project being an 8 year revival of the Jensen Interceptor II originally owned by Sir Hugh Fraser. Before entering the world of classic car journalism Danny was a professional actor and playwright with West End credits to his name. 

Bruce Jones

Danny Hopkins

Paul Lawrence

Bruce spent a dozen years at Autosport magazine, working in all branches of motor sport before he swapped the editor’s towering in-tray for freelance life. Bruce then spent time writing numerous motor racing books and patrolling the Formula 1 pitlane before adding commentary to his quiver and has since focused on both sportscar racing and the burgeoning historic scene.  

Paul Lawrence

Danny Hopkins

Paul Lawrence

Paul Lawrence is a motorsport journalist specialising in historic motorsport. He's equally at home on a rally stage or a race circuit and also covers hillclimbs and trials. With nearly 50 years' experience in the sport, Paul spends between 60 and 70 days a year at events.

James Page

Jeremy Vaughan

Lizzie Pope

James Page is a former editor of Classic & Sports Car magazine. A freelancer since 2017, he now contributes to the likes of Octane and ASTON, and edits the magazines of The International XK Club, The E-type Club and the Midland Automobile Club. He has authored three books for Porter Press International, with a fourth due to be released in early 2021. 

Lizzie Pope

Jeremy Vaughan

Lizzie Pope

Lizzie is Classic & Sports Car's Associate Editor, geek, Mustang owner and rallyist, heads up the Innovation category. After almost a decade delighting in the three-pointed star at Mercedes Enthusiast, and a brief foray into the world of caravans, she's back in her classic-car happy place, when not buried in a map on a rally. Peter Stevens

Jeremy Vaughan

Jeremy Vaughan

Jeremy Vaughan

Jeremy Vaughan became Head of Motoring for the Royal Automobile Club in 2017. He spent more than 25 years at Haymarket Media Group, where he published magazines such as Autosport, Classic & Sports Car, Autocar and F1 Racing. He has a passion for all things motoring and motorsport, having competed in historic rallying and even a round of the World Rally Championship in Australia.

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