Anniversary
It has been a year of anniversaries at Goodwood in 2023, culminating with the 25th anniversary edition of the Goodwood Revival. This coincided with the 75th anniversary of the the Goodwood Motor Circuit. Opened in 1948 by Freddie March, the 9th Duke of Richmond, the track used the perimeter road of the RAF Westhamptnett airforce base on the Goodwood estate. When it was in use, it was the epicentre of British motorsport, hosting major national and international single seater and sports car races. Deemed too dangerous, racing at the high-speed circuit was suspended in 1966. Fifty years to the very day that the circuit had originally opened, racing was resumed by Charles March, 11th Duke of Richmond, in September of 1998. Having restored to the track to its original splendour, he created a time-warp event that quickly became one of the leading historic race meetings in the world.
Our photographers once again dressed for the occasion to capture the 25th Goodwood Revival with this 210-shot gallery as the result.

Into the sunset
After a day of timed practice sessions, Friday evening saw the first race of the weekend; the Freddie March Memorial Trophy. Named after the circuit founder, the two-driver, one-hour race for early 1950s sports cars was a tribute to the original Nine-Hour races of the period. In good Goodwood tradition, most line-ups consisted of the owner and a famous driver. During qualifying, the pole position was set with the Jaguar C-Type that was originally owned by Juan Manuel Fangio. It was shared for the weekend by Al Buncombe and its owner; one Jenson Button. With Buncombe at the wheel, the bronze C-Type immediately grabbed a healthy lead. That started to dwindle after Button had taken over due to an engine misfire, which eventually forced the 2009 World Champion to retire the Jaguar. By that time, Richard Bradley had already gotten by in the Maserati 250S he shared with Richard Wilson. Second was for the Jaguar-engined HWM of Gregor Fisken and Jake Hill. Winners last year, Fred Wakeman and Sam Hancock finished third after issues in practice meant that they had to start dead last.

One make races
Celebrating 60 years of the Porsche 911, the Fordwater Trophy was a one-make race for early, short wheelbase 901s and 911s in 2023. The 45-minute, two-driver race was clearly inspired by the popular 2.0-Litre Cup that has been part of the Peter Auto weekends for several years now. So quite a few of the cars were familiar with the owners joined by star-drivers. Among them was Porsche stalwart Patrick Long and also Mark Webber, who participated in his first race in seven years. Starting from pole position was the 911 of Matthew Holme and Andrew Jordan. 2.0L Cup regulars, the pairing scored a comfortable win, beating James Thorpe and Phil Quaife by 13 seconds.
Perhaps the most valuable grid of the weekend was the Lavant Trophy. Another one-make race, it was for Ferraris only. Setting the fastest time of all in qualifying was Rob Hall in the 250 LM owned by the Collier Collections at the Revs Institute. Racing against Emanuele Pirro in a 250 GT SWB during the opening lap, Hall got off line on the very greasy track and spun. A spirited drive saw Hall regain the lead and grab the victory ahead of Pirro and Alexander Ames in the unique 250 GT SWB Breadvan.

Demonstrations
In addition to the races, there were also two demonstration runs on each of the three days. These marked the 75th anniversary of Lotus and the 100th birthday of the late Carroll Shelby. Sir Jackie Stewart was also reunited with his Tyrrell 006 for a few solo laps to mark his third and final World Championship, which he won 50 years ago.
The Lotus parade featured many cars that were in the various races but also included several iconic models from the company founded by Colin Chapman. Among them was a reconstruction of the very first Lotus, which was an Austin Seven based special used for trials by Chapman and his future wife Hazel. In addition to the legendary John Player Special liveried Grand Prix cars, the unique turbine engined 56B was also out on track with Chapman's grandson Arthur behind the wheel.
The Carroll Shelby celebration parade was headed by the very MG TC that he had driven to victory in his very first race. Still owned by the Shelby family, it was driven by his grandson Aaron, who was appropriately wearing the farm overalls famously sported by the former chicken farmer. Aaron Shelby was followed around the Goodwood Motor Circuit by a colourful parade that included the very first production Cobra and two Le Mans winning GT40s.

Wicked weather
The RAC Tourist Trophy Celebration for 1960s GT cars is the traditional blue ribband race of the Revival. Run over one hour for two drivers, the TT Celebration was not only disputed by a choice of E-Types, Cobras but also by the one-off Lister Jaguar Coupe, a Porsche 904 and 906, and a Cheetah. Two qualifying sessions set the grid, which saw Romain Dumas and Fred Shepherd in a Cobra top the charts. They were joined on the front row by Shaun Lynn and NASCAR legend Jimmie Johnson in another Cobra, and Rob Huff and Richard Meins in an E-Type.
Even though it was the hottest ever edition of the Revival, the weather turned for the RAC TT Celebration. This was not for the first time, and has traditionally added a lot of spice to the race. This year was no exception with the race starting on a damp track. Getting off the line best was Marino Franchitti in Olly Bryant's Cobra. He built up an impressive lead, which was eliminated by a safety car period. Following the stops, the heavens opened, which resulted in several cars sliding off the road in the first corner. A red flag was brought out and after the race resumed, Bryant reclaimed the lead with the famous High Efficiency Motors Cobra. Benefiting from the very wet conditions, Andy Priaulx made the most of the better handling E-Type that had been started by William Paul. The former World Touring Car Champion worked his way up the order and claimed victory from 13th on the grid, ahead of the E-Type shared by Nicholas Minassian and Richard Kent. Bryant crossed the line in third.

Fabulous finale
The same treacherous conditions that caught quite a few seasoned drivers out during the RAC TT Celebration also affected the next two races; the Glover Trophy for 1.5-litre Grand Prix and the Sussex Trophy for late 1950s sports cars. The track was still very wet when the Glover Trophy started with Andy Middlehurst on pole position in his Lotus 25. This combination is a regular winner but the Lotus was not on sung during the race. Instead, we were treated to an entertaining battle between Andy Willis in a BRM P261 and Ben Mitchell in a four-cylinder engined LDS. Eventually, it was the V8-powered BRM that got ahead, by a mere 0.486 of a second when they crossed the line.
Lined up on the front row of a rapidly drying track for the Sussex Trophy were Olly Bryant and Roger Wills in Lotus 15s, who sandwiched Sam Hancock in a Ferrari 246 S Dino. Wills had the best start and he grabbed the lead. Pole-man Bryant was down to third after the opening lap. Also joining the battle for the top positions was Miles Griffiths in another Lotus 15. All four men had already tasted success at Goodwood during the previous editions, so all ingredients were present for a great battle. Briefly down to fourth, Bryant gradually fought his way up the order and eventually grabbed the lead by lap nine and scored a hotly disputed victory.

Final thoughts
Leave it to the Duke of Richmond and his talented team to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Goodwood Revival and the 75th anniversary of the Goodwood Motor Circuit in great style. Even the scorching conditions did not dampen the spirits. In addition to the great racing and demonstrations all the period correct entertainment kept the crowds entertained. An absolute highlight was seeing Jackie Stewart behind the wheel of his 1973 World Championship winning Tyrrell 006. It was also great to see Jenson Button and Jimmie Johnson go head to head in an Alfa Romeo Giulietta and Austin A40 respectively in the St. Mary's Trophy.
All this and much more can be found in our action-packed 210-shot gallery. The dates for 2024 have already be announced and if you want to experience the Revival in the flesh get your tickets before they sell out.