Goodwood is hitting many milestones this year, and to celebrate them it has announced 'Goodwood 75'. It will be a year-long celebration spanning motorsport events and venues with the goal of embracing the future of motorsport. The name comes from the most important milestone being celebrated: the 75th anniversary of Goodwood Motor Circuit being opened in 1948.
The other milestones being celebrated are the 30th anniversary of the first Festival of Speed in 1993, the 25th anniversary of the first Goodwood Revival in 1998, and the 25th anniversary of the foundation of the Goodwood Road Racing Club in 1998. The main events, the Festival of Speed and the Goodwood Revival will take place July 13-16 and September 8-10 respectively.
Goodwood's history goes back to Squadron Leader Tony Gaze, an Australian fighter pilot based at RAF Westhampnett during WWII. He was the first to suggest to the 9th Duke of Richmond that the airfield's perimeter track would make a great racing circuit. The Duke obviously agreed, and on September 18, 1948, the track was officially opened with the Bristol 400 to 15,000 spectators. The race featured 85 drivers, but the winner was none other than Stirling Moss himself in what turned out to be a life-long affiliation with Goodwood.
Racing stopped there in 1966, but in the early '90s, the eventual 11th Duke of Richmond desired to reopen the Circuit. This happened in stages and started with the creation of a road course event that turned into the first Festival of Speed in 1993. It grew to be wildly popular and pushed the Duke to continue to attempt to reopen the Circuit. This eventually happened in 1998, 50 years to the day since Bristol 400, and brought about the Goodwood Revival we know and love.
To celebrate 'Goodwood 75', the Festival and Revival are holding year-specific events like a Hillclimb that will feature cars and bikes from the event's 75-year history and a race around the circuit with cars from 1948. Lotus will be the featured marque at the Revival, bringing along a myriad of cars as it too celebrates its 75th anniversary.
On top of these festivities, the Festival of Speed and Revival are celebrating special events and people of their own. The Festival is commemorating the 100th anniversary of Le Mans and the Revival is celebrating Carroll Shelby on what would have been his 100th birthday (with hopefully plenty of Cobras and Mustang Shelby GT500s too).
The brand is also releasing a limited edition line of clothing in May and is encouraging fans and customers to tag their Goodwood-related photos with the hashtag #Goodwood75 to be featured on the brand's social media whether they're visiting the site or celebrating the brand from around the world. Many more events are planned, with more information coming out as the year goes on.
Speaking of the year ahead, the founder of the Festival of Speed and Goodwood Revival, The 11th Duke of Richmond said, "It's fantastic to be able to celebrate 75 years since my grandfather opened our wonderful Motor Circuit back in 1948. Today Goodwood motorsport is celebrated and cherished by millions around the world, which the whole Goodwood team is immensely proud of. We have a very special year planned for 2023 and I can't wait to celebrate with our fans as we reflect on our history but also look ahead to the next 75 years, and beyond."