Best of Britain showcased at 2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed

Goodwood, July 13-16 

The UK summer festivities do not end at the British Grand Prix, with the Goodwood Festival of Speed happening just a few days later. With legendary cars, famous faces and the barbecue smell at the height of summer, Goodwood showcases the best of Britain.

And it is a year of anniversaries for the Goodwood estate. Celebrating 75 years of motor sport at the circuit, this will also be the 30th edition of the Festival of Speed. As per usual, the Sunday hillclimb is the headline event which includes a whole range of bikes and cars, from the old grand prix machines to the modern day 21st century supercars.

Amid a jam-packed schedule, there will be a fitting tribute to Sebastian Vettel. The four-time Formula 1 world champion will be at Goodwood on both Saturday and Sunday, with a display of Vettel’s old race cars all weekend following his retirement in 2022. He will also tackle the hillclimb with multiple cars from his own collection, including Nigel Mansell’s 1992 championship winning Williams and Ayrton Senna’s McLaren MP4/8 from 1993.

The Festival of Speed will also honour 75 years of Porsche. As part of the showcase there will be daily displays of great Porsche cars in front of Goodwood House, alongside a special parade from the German company. Porsche will also become the first manufacturer to create the Central Feature four times – that whopping great sculpture showcasing a marque’s famous cars.

A century of the world’s most prestigious endurance race will also be celebrated with a huge collection of cars and drivers from the Le Mans 24 Hours. Of course, the regular crowd pullers will remain like the Forest Rally Stage, First Glance Paddock and Cartier Style et Luxe on what promises to be an incredible weekend. Some tickets were still available at the time of going to press but the event is also live streamed on the Motor Sport website.

RallyCross – World RX of Norway
Hell, Norway, June 17-18

Sébastien Loeb will end his five-year absence from Rallycross, with hopes to stop Johan Kristoffersson’s run of three consecutive titles. The five-time champion won all but two races last season and Norway will host the second round this year, in Rallycross’s second campaign as an all-electric series.

WRC – Safari Rally Kenya
Nairobi/Naivasha, Kenya, June 22-25

No other spectacle has drivers losing race time because of wildlife on-track. But that is the case for the Safari Rally, which goes through the beautiful countryside of Kenya. Drivers face 225 miles of gravel for the season’s seventh round, after a winning start for Toyota.

Formula E – Portland ePrix
Portland International Raceway, US, June 24

Formula E is to make its debut in the Pacific Northwest, after Brooklyn was dropped from the calendar. Racing on the same track as IndyCar, drivers face a 12-turn circuit with plenty of fast bends in the city of Portland, which will host the season’s third-to-last weekend.

Formula 1 – Austrian Grand Prix
Red Bull Ring, Austria, June 30-July 2

Red Bull has been a dominant outfit for the past two seasons now, and it will take that form into the brand’s home track. However, can Sergio Pérez spring another surprise and beat his team-mate Max Verstappen, who has won a joint-record three times in Austria?

WEC – Six Hours of Monza
Monza, Italy, July 9

Monza will follow-up the Le Mans 24 Hours to close the European leg of this season, before flyaway races to Japan and Bahrain. Toyota has dominated the start of this new era for WEC, and will be favourite to take victory at Monza where it last won in 2021.

More events

June 18 MotoGP – Sachsenring, Germany
June 18 IndyCar – Road America, USA
June 17/18 British GT – Snetterton
July 8-9 Extreme E – Sardinia, Italy