The fact last week's London Classic Car Show was held at the ExCel London, which was built on the site of the Royal Docks and is now owned by the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company, says it all.
The ExCel has a proud past. It hosted Miss World in 2014 and Olympic ping-pong in 2012. The classic car show is a step up on that awe-inspiring list. It really is the world's most user-friendly motor expo.
Next month at Goodwood, Bonhams will be selling one of the world's great race cars, the ex-Gerry Marshall-Peter Brock 1977 Spa 24 Hour class-winning and second overall 1977 Vauxhall Firenza Magnum 2300 Coupe.
Marshall was famous for going fast sideways and Brocky was not famous for anything in the northern hemisphere until that race. The rain in Spa that year fell mainly on the track. Brocky and Gerry were losing ground. What do real larrikins do? Ignore sponsor Dunlop and put Michelins on the back. There were 60 starters and only 27 finishers. B and G were pipped only by the BMW 530i driven by Jean-Claude Andruet and Eddy Joosen. In the 24 hours, the "Spa Magnum" covered 3884km, averaging more than 160km/h.
Anyway the car spent a long time in a barn and ended up 10 years ago with classic car owner and racer Adrian Goding. A snip at $200,000.