2023 marks the 75th anniversary of one of the most legendary names in motorsport history—Goodwood. Unsurprisingly, the organization is keen to celebrate, but such a momentous occasion calls for more than just a few candles on a cake and some balloons and streamers.
That’s why Goodwood says that it plans to celebrate its 75th anniversary throughout 2023, at all three of its major events: the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the Goodwood Revival, and the Goodwood Members’ Meeting. All three events will be known very simply as “Goodwood 75” throughout 2023, and will focus on looking both backward and forward from this unique point in time.
For seven-and-a-half decades, Goodwood has brought the finest vehicles, racers, and motorsports enthusiasts together. Goodwood 75 will take its time in honoring every single one of those years, as well as contemplating the next 75 years ahead, and what experiences are yet to come.
It all started in 1948 when Squadron Leader Tony Gaze—an Australian fighter pilot who was stationed at RAF Westhampnett during WWII—suggested that the track around the airfield would be an absolutely perfect racetrack. Luckily for both him and motorsport history, the ninth Duke of Richmond, Freddie March, concurred and the Goodwood Motor Circuit officially opened on September 18, 1948.
Up through 1966, Goodwood saw the cream of the Formula One crop battling it out on track, from Jack Brabham to Juan Manuel Fangio, Graham Hill, Jackie Stewart, Jochen Rindt, John Surtees, and more. By the early 1990s, the 11th Duke of Richmond was eager to rekindle the flame and reopen the circuit. That’s why, in 1993, the Festival of Speed kicked off its run—and saw over 25,000 attendees show up to attend the festivities in its first year.
By 1998, Goodwood Revival had joined the party—as did the GRRC members’ club. Finally, in 2014, Goodwood began to host Members’ Meetings once more, signifying a new dawn for Goodwood. To celebrate both its birth and its rebirth, Goodwood has several plans in the works for its three major 2023 events.
The Goodwood Members’ Meeting will honor the first cars that ever raced at Goodwood with the Tony Gaze Trophy. Meanwhile, the Goodwood Festival of Speed’s theme for this year will be “Goodwood 75,” with a dedicated Goodwood 75 hillclimb for motorbikes and cars from the last 75 years, each split into their respective eras: The Racing Years (1948-1966), The Testing Years (post-1966), 30 Years of the Festival of Speed (1993-2023), Racing Returns (1998-2023), and last but certainly not least, The Next 75 Years.
Finally, in September, 2023, the Goodwood Revival will host a gathering of the cars that originally started it all in 1948. Don’t be surprised to see a tribute to Carroll Shelby, who would have turned 100 in 2023—and who was certainly an indelible part of Goodwood circuit racing history.
If you have memories and experiences to share from Goodwood, be sure to tag them #Goodwood75 on social media. Goodwood organizers are gathering tagged memories to share at the official events this year, so don’t forget that hashtag if you want yours to be included in the festivities.
