Goodwood Revival Meeting September 18/19/20^th September 

A perfect synergy of Theatre & Motor Racing

The sobriquet 'Glorious Goodwood' was first hatched in the 1950's relating to the Sussex estate's long-established equine racecourse with panoramic views high on the South Downs. Then, in September 1948, the Duke of Richmond and Gordon repurposed the tarmac perimeter track of the WWII airfield at the foot of his estate into an automobile racing circuit that gained recognition in post-war recommencement of motorsport 1948-1966 and the phrase 'The right crowd and no crowding' was coined by the in-set who always frequented the most sought after circuit locations; Pits, Paddock and Staring Grid!

 Since motor racing recommenced at the 1993 Festival of Speed, 1998 Revival meeting and 2014 72^nd Members meeting, the Duke's annual suite of events has provided a magnet to international stars of motorsport and this year, seemed to attract more chic celebrities than ever, either participating, being interviewed or just hanging out. Sunday saw 5-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell, former F1 world champions Emerson Fittipaldi and Sir Jackie Stewart joining those competing including Jenson Button, Karun Chandhok, and IndyCar and NASCAR heroes Dario Franchitti Scott Dixon and Jimmie Johnson.

 These names are just a small number from a long list of VIPs, plus some of the most talented amateurs on the historic racing scene able to challenge established names in well-engineered cars. Advancements in damper technology, tyre design/compound, and engine/drive-train development now enables historic racing cars to lap faster than when new but thankfully, car, driver and circuit safety have kept pace!

 Sponsored by Dunlop, this year's Revival racecard contained 16 premier historic races encompassing cars that competed at the circuit prior to closure in 1966; Marque Sports, GT, Saloon, Sports-racers and the popular vintage category that raced with BARC at prewar Brooklands. Iconic race titles too recall the era; St Mary's Trophy for saloons, Chichester Cup formula junior and Sussex Trophy for world championship sportscars 1955-1960.

 The Stirling Moss Memorial Trophy race remembers a doyen of Goodwood who ironically ended his professional career in a high-profile accident at St Mary's corner Easter 1961. Now run for closed GT cars up to 1963, the race provided an epic fight between Ferrari 250GT mounted Dutch GT racer Yelmer Buurman and Californian domiciled Brit Horatio Fitz-Simon's nibble Lotus Elite, finishing in that order 11-seconds apart after an hour's racing.   

 Other cat and mouse encounters included the Lavant Trophy for 1950s Ferrari and Maserati sportscars which was a 3-way fight between Richard Wilson's Maserati 250S, James Cottingham's Ferrari 500 TRC and Frank stippler's Ferrari 250 MM, but Wilson soaked up immense pressure to retain that order after 25-minutes. The 2-part headline RAC TT Celebration race for GT cars and prototypes fell to Lukas Halus/André Lotterer in a 1961 low-drag lightweight Jaguar E-Type.

 Peripheral attractions included 80^th birthday celebrations for the classless Vespa scooter, circuit parades of cars marking 60 years since Jack Brabam won a F1 championship in a car bearing his own name, and a cavalcade celebrating 100 years of Italian supercar icon Maserati. Sponsored by Ralph Lauren, the Settringham Cup was the largest entry of the weekend with 67 Austin J4 pedal cars, made in Bargoed 1949-66 by ex-miners, providing its 4 to 11-year-old drivers with two pedal-power races. At the airstrip the historic aviation theme was maintained with a display of 20 stunning aircraft ranging from 1934 to 1955.

 Next year's Goodwood Revival is 17 - 19^th September 2027: Ken Davies © images Michael Stokes.