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Silverstone Welcomes Century of Entries
More than 100 cars representing 14 different countries have gathered on the entry list for the 2026 Walter Hayes Trophy. Contested around Silverstone's National layout on the first weekend of November, some of the best slipstreaming action in single-seater racing, across all sorts of weather conditions, can be found at Formula Ford's Walter Hayes Trophy.
Defending Champion Leads Dolan Roster
Defending winner Jason Smyth spearheads Team Dolan's contingent in a Van Diemen JL12. Smyth won the Walter Hayes Trophy in 2025 and returned to the cockpit after becoming the first driver to successfully defend the Formula Ford Festival crown. The son of 2010 Kent Festival winner Neville Smyth, he also claimed Northern Ireland's Martin Donnelly Trophy this year, finished ninth in United Formula Ford, and secured a podium on his second GB4 Championship start. Dolan's multi-car effort also features 2023 Walter Hayes Trophy victor Chris Middlehurst, who returns in a Van Diemen LA10 after a year out, and Aston Martin Formula 1 performance engineer Megan Gilkes, a former W Series racer and 2022 GB4 race winner. Middlehurst previously finished in the top five four times prior to his 2023 victory, having fought for the win again the following season before a detached plug lead halted his final.
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Multiple Winners Target Further Glory
Four-time winner Joey Foster leads the record books among entrants, driving a Firman RFR22 for Pirate M-Sports and Don Hardman Racing. Foster, the 44-year-old who previously managed Formula 2 racer Kush Maini, took Walter Hayes victories in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2022, competing with Cornish-built engines and carrying the Cornish flag on his helmet. B-M Racing fields two other past event winners: 2024 victor Rory Smith in a Medina Sport JL18 and 2019 winner Jordan Dempsey in a Medina Sport BH22. Smith enters after 45 seconds of track limits penalties dropped him from eighth to 26th in the 2025 final, while Dempsey arrives after finishing runner-up at the Formula Ford Festival in each of the last two years, having built up preparatory mileage through his United Formula Ford commitments.
Championship Winners and Regular Frontrunners
Newly crowned 2026 United Formula Ford champion Anthony Amato stands among the in-form contenders for Ammonite Motorsport in a Ray GR22. Amato arrived at Silverstone off the back of a Formula Ford Festival weekend where he was second in his heat and semi-final, missing out on matching that result in the final by just 0.02 seconds. He is joined in the paddock by former GB4 champion Tom Mills, who returns to the cockpit in a Spectrum 011C for the KMR Sport squad run by his father Kevin, having made a cameo appearance at Silverstone earlier this year. Swift Cooper enters back-to-back Castle Combe champion Luke Cooper in a Swift SC20, whose Walter Hayes Trophy performances have been at their strongest across the last two editions.
Strong International Contenders Assemble
International challengers feature prominently across the entry, with KMR Sport running a South African contingent that includes 2026 South African Touring Cars champion Julian Van der Watt, 2025 MSA4 title winner KC Ensor-Smith in Mygale SJ26 chassis, and two-time MSA4 series runner-up Mikel Bezuidenhout. Van der Watt claimed his national touring car title after recovering from severe injuries sustained in a 2023 crash. Continental entries also include French Trophee Kent champion Axel Castillou in a CC Racing Ray 92F, who also secured three victories from two rounds in France's Open Formula Series. Meanwhile, 1997 British Formula Ford champion and Festival winner Jack van der Ende returns with GT Motorsport in a Van Diemen RF78, targeting the Carl Hamer Trophy race for pre-1982 cars.
For wider junior single-seater coverage, see the expanded 2027 FIA FREC grid. FREC and the Formula Ford trophy use different cars and regulations.
Sources: The 2026 Walter Hayes Trophy spotter’s guide.
