Festival races for glory

F1, Can-Am, TransAm, cowboy boots and Richard Petty –– it could only be Goodwood…

Key theme for the 2006 Goodwood Festival of Speed will be 100 Years of Grand Prix Racing. Under the banner ‘racing for glory’, cars spanning a century of GP racing will take to the hill on July 7-9 as past and present stars of the sport enjoy the event’s garden party atmosphere.

At least seven current F1 teams will have cars in action, while the earliest car will be a 1906 Mercedes that has not been seen running for two decades. Four Auto Unions and three Mercedes ‘Silver Arrows’ of the 1930s will provide a spectacle on the hill, while other landmark cars in action will include a Vanwall, Lotus 49, an AAR Eagle-Weslake and the Cooper T43 in which Stirling Moss won the 1958 Argentinian GP for Rob Walker.

Current F1 drivers confirmed for the Festival include Jenson Button, David Coulthard and Rubens Barrichello, while the organisers hope to get Fernando Alonso to drive at the Festival for the first time.

Other celebrations include the 100th anniversary of the Targa Florio, which will feature Nino Vaccarella, Vic Elford and Jacky Ickx driving appropriate cars. Forty-year celebrations for TransAm and Can-Am will include performances from Bob Tullius (Jaguar) and Hurley Haywood (Audi) along with a rare ex-Danny Sullivan March 817 Can-Am car (see page 105).

Former World Rally Champions Colin McRae, Petter Solberg and Marcus Grönholm will take to the freshly extended rally stage as tributes are paid to Richard Burns and Michael Park. Rally cars from four decades will also be in action.

Finally, making his Goodwood debut will be NASCAR legend Richard Petty. “It’ll be good to see cowboy boots in Goodwood House again,” said promoter Lord March.