Tuesday 22nd November 2021

BOOK REVIEW  By Ken Davies 

MG Maestro Challenge 

Essential reading for those involved in this championship - indeed all motorsport enthusiasts. Former Austin Rover apprentice Pablo Raybould thoroughly enjoyed his time in the MG Maestro Challenge and needed no persuasion to compile this painstaking biopic covering five seasons of the championship, including each event, driver and car. The depth of detail is truly amazing as is the amount of time and research invested by the author, which cannot be underestimated. Of his six books to date, this is absorbing and must have truly been his labour of love.

Introduced for the 1986 season, the innovative MG Maestro Challenge was conceived by Austin/Rover Group to market their 2-litre, five-door 'hot hatch' - codename LM10. The championship set out to discover the most versatile driver in a miscellany of competitive events. Run under a set of strictly enforced technical regulations controlling a field of identical cars, the series flourished for five years and developed a strong esprit de corps between competitors, many of whom were already successful in race, rally and speed motorsport disciplines.


When the series was first announced, seasoned clubmen were sceptical of the competitive potential of the 2-litre EFi MG Maestro, due to its lackluster 1600 predecessor. However, these doubts were soon dispelled when fitted with ARG’s Group N competition handling and safety kit, which transformed the saloon into a well-balanced and quick car. Engine power peaked at 115bhp, taking the Maestro 0-60 in 8·5 seconds, a second quicker than VW’s Golf GTi, with a top speed of 115mph, all delivered by a five-seater. In fact, between events, many Challenge Maestros demonstrated their versatility on the roads of the UK doubling as family commuting hacks.

ARG’s extensive UK dealer network was encouraged to get involved and offered generously discounted cars, with the manufacturer investing in media promotion and hospitality at some high-profile championship rounds. To enhance the series even more, Austin Rover fielded two celebrity cars for professional drivers and journalists, thus also providing a benchmark for regulars. Celebrities included Damon Hill, Gary Brabham, Tony Pond, Jeff Allam, Malcolm Wilson, and Barrie ‘Whizzo’ Williams and, to add further gravitas, the 1987 MG Maestro champion was Unipart F3, Touring Car and Le Mans star driver Tony Dron, who is also an award-winning journalist.

For five seasons, 1986-90, the Esso and then Mobil-sponsored Challenge carved a niche for itself in British motorsport, successfully developing a close-knit community of drivers and teams who competed against each other throughout a busy season on a variety of high-quality and tough events. There was a great spirit of camaraderie, but make no mistake, there were no easy wins and the book chronicles a grim record of collateral damage inflicted to ARG’s robust cars in this uber-competitive arena, even involving the cream of Maestro drivers who were driving at 10/10ths.


At this point your reviewer would declare an interest, as a former MG Maestro competitor 1987/8, nevertheless I still discovered fascinating facts I didn’t know from events completed over 30 years ago. In fact, this entertaining book was difficult to put down and now forms an indelible record of a memorable chapter in UK motorsport.

Written and published by Pablo Raybould, this hot-off-the-press, high quality, hardback book is generously illustrated with a wide variety of images from enthusiastic collaborators, including teams and drivers. The absorbing 210mm x 300mm 445-page book also contains priceless anecdotal material from Rick Smith, who facilitated the championship, as well as former ARG executives and engineers, many of whom also competed with gusto.

MG Maestro Challenge
Written by Pablo Raybould
Available by contacting pabloraybould@blueyonder.co.uk or 07768 377706
Price £50.00 plus £9.00 UK P&P