Updated: What is Goodwood SpeedWeek? New demos and drivers announced | GRR
Goodwood has announced its first ever SpeedWeek event – an extravaganza of motorsport taking place in late October at Goodwood. But what does Goodwood SpeedWeek involve? Here’s everything you need to know.
What is Goodwood SpeedWeek?
The first ever Goodwood SpeedWeek will be a Festival of motorsport like no other. Combining the very best elements of the Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard, the Goodwood Revival and even Goodwood’s revived Members’ Meetings. Due to the restrictions in place to fight the coronavirus pandemic all three of Goodwood’s major motorsport events could not be held as we would like, so have been postponed until 2021. Goodwood SpeedWeek will serve to fill the gap in the motorsport calendar and fulfill your appetite for Goodwood motorsport. Also, because it is held behind closed doors, it gives us the chance to bring you new cars to the Motor Circuit, doing more incredible things than ever before. From the first Timed Shootout to take place on the Goodwood Motor Circuit, to cars leaving the circuit and using areas normally reserved for spectators or buildings.
Where will SpeedWeek take place?
Goodwood SpeedWeek takes place at the Goodwood Motor Circuit.
When is Goodwood SpeedWeek?
Goodwood SpeedWeek will take place on 16th-18th October 2020.
Can I go to SpeedWeek?
Sadly not. Due to the ongoing fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and the physical distancing restrictions put in place to help flatten the curve, Goodwood cannot allow spectators into the event as normal. Even if the government allowed mass gatherings of people, the social distancing restrictions would mean the event could not provide the usual high standard of experience our customers expect from Goodwood. We have chosen to take this as an opportunity though, creating elements of SpeedWeek that just would not be possible with spectators on site.
How can I watch SpeedWeek?
The three days of live action broadcast from Goodwood Motor Circuit will be combined with pre-recorded footage and interactive features, on a dedicated Goodwood streaming site, free of charge as well as on Goodwood’s social media channels – on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
What races will take place in SpeedWeek?
SpeedWeek will include elements from all of Goodwood’s major motorsport events. From the Revival all the major races you know and love will take place at SpeedWeek. These include the RAC TT Celebration for big banger GT cars, the two-driver touring car fight for the St. Mary’s Trophy, F1 races for the Glover Trophy (‘1960s) and Richmond & Gordon Trophies (1950s), a pre-war Grand Prix race for the Goodwood Trophy and the classic Can-Am vs. GT40 fight for the Whitsun Trophy.
From the Festival of Speed, SpeedWeek will host supercar debuts and new car reveals, and the classic Timed Shootout – for the first time taking place on the historic Goodwood Motor Circuit.
The Members’ Meeting donates the legendary Gerry Marshall Trophy, an awesome race for 1970s touring cars, the Goodwood Rally Sprint and the incredible S.F. Edge Trophy for pre-war Edwardian specials.
Goodwood will celebrate the life of one of our greatest heroes – Sir Stirling Moss – at SpeedWeek with a race dedicated in his honour. The Kinrara Trophy, which has become the standard first race at the Goodwood Revival since its debut in 2016, will be renamed the Stirling Moss Memorial Trophy for SpeedWeek and run into the dusk just like the Kinrara. It will be preceded by a parade in memory of the man they called “Mr Goodwood”, as the Duke of Richmond is joined by Lady Susie in the famous Rob Walker Racing Ferrari 250 GT SWB that Stirling piloted to victory in the 1960 Tourist Trophy.
Who will be presenting the SpeedWeek live stream?
Goodwood has pulled out all the stops with its presenters for the live stream, with four stars from television, Formula 1 and our own live streams. The broadcast will be led by broadcaster, X Factor host and radio DJ Dermot O’Leary, former Top Gear presenter and current Auto Trader video host Rory Reid, previous Goodwood stream presenter and Capital FM Breakfast Presenter Siân Welby and 2015 World Endurance Champion and nine-time F1 race winner Mark Webber.
How can I get involved with SpeedWeek?
Viewers and fans will be able to get in on the action from the comfort of their own homes, participating in competitions, polls, quizzes and votes, predicting the results of each race, creating their own digital ‘garage’, joining virtual paddock tours and much more, with winners, champions and prizes awarded along the way.
Are there any SpeedWeek competitions?
We’ll also be launching our SpeedWeek@Home initiative, bringing you right into the very heart of the live stream. As part of this we’ll be running two awesome competitions.
First we’re asking you to design your very own Festival of Speed Central Feature and bring it to life. We want you to create a Central Feature idea that reflects a theme or story of your choice – and then bring it to life and send us an image on social media. Entrants can use any resources and materials they wish, with extra points awarded for recycled or sustainable materials. The judges will be looking for a winning combination of clever design, innovation, creativity and a great story.
The second competition is just for the younger members of the family. We’re looking for a brilliant livery design to go on a classic Mini. We’ll provide a downloadable template for you to use for your creations, and not only will the winners see their entry on the live stream, the victor’s design will be used to wrap an actual Mini racing at the Revival in 2021!
More elements of SpeedWeek@Home will be announced over the coming weeks, so stay tuned for more!
Will there be any rally cars at SpeedWeek?
Yes! In fact, we’re holding our first ever set of rally stages at SpeedWeek, with the innovative layout of the event allowing us to create a series of Special Stages on both tarmac and gravel within the confines of the Goodwood Motor Circuit. Final details are still being worked out, but stages will begin as darkness descends on the evening of Thursday 15th October, concluding with two more stages the next day, Friday 16th October.
The “SpeedWeek Super Special” will bring together cars representing nearly half a century of the World Rally Championship, competing in separate classes and for outright victory. There will be Group 4 cars like the Lancia Stratos, Ford Escort RS2000 and ultra-rare Ferrari 308GTB, along with the car that changed rallying forever, 40 years ago, the Audi Quattro. Following these will be the monsters of the Group B era, cars like the Lancia 037, Delta S4, Metro 6R4, Audi Sport Quattro S1 and Peugeot 205 T16. Ushering in the modern era will be the Group A cars, the likes of the Subaru Legacy and Impreza WRX, Lancia Delta Integrale and Toyota Celica GT4. Finally, the very latest and quickest cars of the WRC will also be tackling the stages with representation from Ford, Subaru and Toyota amongst others.
The stage will also feature an appearance from the brand new Toyota GR Yaris, the 250bhp homologation special that precedes the new WRC Yaris.
You can read more about the SpeedWeek Super Specials here.
What road cars can I see at SpeedWeek?
As already mentioned the new GR Yaris will be seen in action at SpeedWeek alongside the rally cars on the rally stage. There will also be a series of debuts and supercar celebrations as part of the event, we’ll announce more details as we approach the event.
What drivers will be appearing at SpeedWeek?
We’ve started announcing drivers as of today (4th September) and with a pretty amazing first name for the list. Three-time Le Mans winner, Porsche Formula E factory driver, one-time F1 racer and RAC TT Celebration-winner Andre Lotterer has confirmed he will race at SpeedWeek. Alongside Lotterer from the world of Le Mans racing will be Romain Dumas, five-time winner Emanuele Pirro, and Mr Le Mans himself, the legendary Tom Kristensen.
Also confirmed to take part in the weekend is four-time IndyCar champion and three-time Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti, 2013 BTCC Champion Andrew Jordan and TV presenter and Le Mans podium finisher Tiff Needell.
As well as incredible racing drivers, we’ve also begun to confirm stars from other disciplines who will take part in the weekend, with the first of or drifters announced in the form of Steve “Baggsy” Biagioni, bringing he incredible LS-powered Nissan GTR.
Current F2 commentator and Le Mans racer Alex Brundle has confirmed his attendance at SpeedWeek, as well as fellow Le Mans stars Alex Lynn, David Brabham, Guy Smith and Neel Jani. Touring car stars Matt Neal, Colin Turkingto, Tim Harvey and Gordon Shedden.
Goodwood House Captains Anthony Reid, Nic Minassian and Jochen Mass are all confirmed to race over the weekend as well as ex-F1 racer and Sky pundit Karun Chandhok.
Where can I find out more about Goodwood SpeedWeek?
You can find out more about Goodwood SpeedWeek here.
Photography by Drew Gibson and Malcom Griffiths.
Will there be any demonstrations at SpeedWeek?
Yes! Three demos have been announced for Goodwood SpeedWeek. The first, celebrates 70 years of F1 with a demo filled with the most important cars of its history. From the Maserati 250F of the 1950s through the legends of Lotus and Cooper in the '60s, McLaren in the '80s and '90s to the present day with Brawn and more.
Also celebrating an anniversary will be Porsche, which first won Le Mans 50 years ago. Goodwood will reverberate with some of the greatest Porsche Le Mans cars, from earliest sportscars to the very latest ultra-high-tech 919 Hybrid. Not only will it be spectacular, but on Sunday it is set to finish the weekend by displaying as the sun goes down, an incredible way to finish off the weekend.
The final demo will celebrate the relationship between TWR and Jaguar with a demonstration of the awesome XJR cars, from the early XJR8s right through to the howling V12s of the XJR12 era it is going to be unmissable.