Many of the residents and homeowners of Marbella are car enthusiasts, and a good proportion of them own luxury and super sports cars. For this reason, you will see an impressive concentration of top marques such as Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini, Pagani, Rolls Royce, Bentley, Land Rover, Mercedes, Porsche and BMW on the local roads, and especially in places such as Puerto Banús and the New Golden Mile.
There is a specialist service industry built around this, including luxury car dealerships, garages, tuning experts, valet services, top-end rentals and also enthusiasts’ clubs, as well as go-karting tracks for youngsters. However, for the ultimate experience there is only one reference: Race Resort Ascari.
One of the most exclusive private circuits in Europe
This is no exaggeration, for this private race track is quite simply one of the finest of its kind in the world. You would be hard-pressed to find anything as impressive, elegant and beautifully situated as Race Resort Ascari, a state-of-the-art motor racing circuit surrounded by mountains in a valley just east of Ronda.
This elegant country town is located in the hills, a little over half an hour inland from Marbella. The route up into the mountain range is a scenic experience in itself, and upon reaching Ronda you enter a large, fertile plain ringed by mountain peaks. Here, about ten minutes east of the town, the racing complex occupies an old military firing range where owner and creator Klaas Zwart has created a state-of-the-art circuit using a succession of his favourite bends, straights and chicanes.
It speaks of the perfectionism of this Dutch engineer and industrialist that Race Resort Ascari is both perfect as a racetrack and surrounded by beautifully cared-for pristine nature. The tarmac is perfect too, and maintained to perfection, while the complex also features top-notch pits and garages, an elegant clubhouse with restaurant, lounge, terrace, pool and lawn, as well as an exclusive small guest hotel.
Members and their guests are free to bring their own cars, have them prepared and serviced, receive professional racing instruction, and also use the race resort’s own collection of BMWs, Lotus sports cars and Radical track racers. There are even former F1 racing cars, and they can all be admired in the fantastic garage, which as it has been partly built into a rockface has all the glamour and sci-fi value of a Bond venue.
For those fortunate enough to own luxury and especially sports cars, Race Resort Ascari provides the ultimate experience and the place to put your motoring gem through its paces in an environment of sheer beauty and luxury. Memberships and garaging-servicing, as well as racing team services, are available and among the best to be found anywhere in Europe.