The 2025 Goodwood Revival Is the Closest You'll Get to Using a Time Machine

See More RacingMike Shaffer / SubaruThere aren’t many places left untouched by modernity, but the Goodwood Revival is one of them. Even its sister event, the Festival of Speed Hill-Climb, is loaded with all manner of new metal mingling with the vintage stuff. But not the Revival. The Goodwood Revival is about one thing and one thing only: celebrating postwar motorsport by watching these cars go wheel-to-wheel on a track that hasn’t changed since the 1950s.Before we dive in, here’s a little history to get you up to speed. The Goodwood estate has been around in some form since the late 1600s. Like many vast expanses of English land, it was converted into a Royal Air Force base during World War II. The landowner, the Duke of Richmond, turned the perimeter road into the Goodwood Motor Circuit following the war’s conclusion.See More RacingAndrew Krok|Car and DriverIn subsequent years, Goodwood would go on to host Formula 1 races, endurance races, and other events before its closure in 1966. The problem, as always, was the inexorable march of time; cars were growing ever faster, and the owners didn’t want to modernize Goodwood’s track. Racing returned for the first time in 1998 on the same track layout as back in the day and is mostly limited to vehicles from that era.Everybody—and we mean everybody—dresses up in attire from the circuit’s original periods of operation. You’ll find RAF brass commingling with U.S. Army rank-and-file alongside a gaggle of mod-dress hippies. The Revival may also be the single most tweed-dense event on the planet every year.Put on your Wellies (you’ll need ’em when it rains) and let’s take a walk around the Revival grounds to see what gives this event some of the most impeccable vibes of any car event in the world.See More RacingMike Shaffer / SubaruSee More RacingMike Shaffer / SubaruThe RacingThe Revival’s racing is spread across an entire weekend, broken down into multiple classes. The Freddie March Memorial Trophy brings together the 1950s sports cars that would’ve competed in the Goodwood Nine Hour endurance race, such as the Jaguar C-type and Aston Martin DB3S. The Goodwood Trophy turns the time machine back a bit, focusing on prewar and postwar Grand Prix cars. All the money pours onto the track for the Stirling Moss Memorial Trophy Race, which covers bedroom-poster GT cars like the AC Cobra and the Ferrari 250 GT.There are some oddball races in here, too. The Chichester Cup rounds up front-engined Formula Junior cars from the late 1950s. The Whitsun Trophy throws 1960s prototypes into the mix, a 25-minute reminder that you should’ve brought earplugs as Ford GT40s do their best to induce tinnitus. The St. Mary’s Trophy brings together 1950s sedans, and this year, two American titans (a Ford Thunderbird and a Ford Fairlane) absolutely embarrassed a field of much smaller Austin A40s in the first half of the race.See More RacingMike Shaffer / SubaruThe Settrington Cup is easily the cutest race of the year, though. The only vehicle allowed is the Austin J40 pedal car. Some of the competing J40s have been with their respective families for decades. The race takes place on the track’s main straight, where “drivers,” all between four and 11 years old, compete to take the checkered flag.Except for recovery vehicles and other safety-related roles, modern vehicles are not allowed on track. When’s the last time you saw a Jaguar E-type pace car?See More RacingAndrew Krok|Car and DriverThe Goodwood Revival brings out many drivers from across the various corners of global motorsport. Tom Kristensen, a Danish driver who holds the record for the most victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, hustled the aforementioned Ford Fairlane this year. Jenson Button, meanwhile, took the wheel of a 1952 Jaguar C-type. IndyCar fans will most certainly recognize the names Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon, while longtime Car and Driver readers may take notice of onetime C/D editor Mark Gillies. Gillies, who recently retired from his public relations role at Volkswagen, wheeled his way to victory in the Goodwood Trophy race.The way these drivers manhandle the vehicles they’re racing surely causes most modern collectors to shatter the pearls they’re clutching. Once the green flag drops, it’s real-deal, honest-to-goodness, wheel-to-wheel mayhem. Some drivers lift a little more when the rain starts to fall; others welcome the chaos it brings, red flags and all. While there’s plenty of runoff in certain areas, contact with a tire wall is always just one mistake away. These folks are keeping panel beaters and vintage insurers in business. Given that the vehicle’s owner must pay to participate, it should come as no surprise that there is a lot of money being thrown around here.Visit the PaddockMike Shaffer / SubaruVisit the paddockMike Shaffer / SubaruThe PaddockBut the track isn’t the only thing worth your time at the Revival. Between races, there’s no better place to be than the paddock. It’s not often that you get to stand a hair’s breadth away from some of the greatest marques in racing history. This isn’t a car show, though. Most of the paddock buzzes with mechanics and owners ensuring their vehicles can run at full clip for 30 minutes, something that is far from a guarantee. If there’s a race coming up, make sure you keep your head on a swivel; cars are constantly being pushed or driven through the paddock. Thankfully, there are many staff members around to ensure your foot doesn’t end up under the bias-ply tire of a Lola-Chevrolet.Visit the paddockMike Shaffer / SubaruThe visceral nature of vintage motorsport is on display in the paddock. The rainbow sheen of motor oil reflects off the asphalt. Two rows over, Jim Clark’s Lotus starts up with such violence that your ribs vibrate like tuning forks. The smell of hydrocarbons carries on every breath. This part likely is not great for your health, but we’ll contend it’s probably better than sucking on the fumes from a neon green vape with a touchscreen. But you won’t find any of those smokable computers in the paddock. As common sense suggests, it’s a non-smoking area.See the parking lotAndrew Krok|Car and DriverSee the parking lotMike Shaffer / SubaruThe Parking Lot We can hear you saying it already: “The parking lot?” Yes, the parking lot. Sure, if you venture farther out, you’ll find the usual collection of pedestrian sedans and crossovers. But right outside the Revival grounds is a special parking lot for vehicles of some degree of note. And this year, there was a wild collection of stuff for car geeks to fawn over.It’s a beautiful mishmash of four-wheeled drool generators. A whole row of Rolls-Royces spanning four different decades? Sure. A Ferrari parked between a Land Rover Defender and a BMW 2800CS? Why not. A freakin’ Honda City Turbo II? Yep, there was even one of those in the lot this year.See the parking lotAndrew Krok|Car and DriverA few cars really stood out, though. This includes a ratted-out Porsche 356 that looked like it survived several direct hits during the Battle of Britain. One AC Cobra was clearly having a blast in the rain-soaked grounds, as evidenced by the fact that it was absolutely caked with mud. A yellow Ford Mustang “suffered” the same fate.This is what makes the Goodwood Revival such a special place. Whether rain or shine, enthusiasts the world over travel to this former RAF airfield to celebrate the fact that humanity has deemed these cars worthy of surviving into the modern age. It’s one of the last places on Earth that allows you to peek behind the curtain of time and get a taste of what postwar racing was all about.See the parking lotMike Shaffer / Subaru
Source: caranddriver.com