Porsche 911s racing at the 2023 Revival | Fordwater Trophy

09th September 2023

Simon Ostler

The recipe promised close, thrilling racing and the reality lived up to it. When the flag dropped and a field of 30 Porsche 911s (and a handful of 901s) set off, they soon settled into close packs. Preceedings were curtailed for a time after Richard Tuthill's machine had an unplanned rendezvous with the tyre wall, but when the safety car peeled off the racing was back on. You could sense the confidence of the drivers growing with every passing lap, with plenty of sideways action and close-quarters cornering.

Official practice for the Fordwater Trophy had been predictably exploratory on part of the roster of drivers, who no matter their experience, took to Goodwood trepidant at the prospect of taming the original 911's famously pendulous posterior. Star drivers included 2009 F1 world champion Jenson Button, F1 legend Mark Webber, motoring journalist Chris Harris and nine-time Le Mans winner, Tom Kristensen.

2023's Fordwater Trophy is entirely new for the Goodwood Revival. Running in celebration of 60 years of the Porsche 911, the grid is made up of 27 original 911s from 1965, and three 901s from ’64.

As if having 30 Porsche 911s battling it out on the track, each of them will be driven by a pair of drivers, with a hugely exciting list of names scheduled to take part. We’ll see Tom Kristensen, Jenson Button, Mark Webber, Andrew Jordan, Matt Neal, Gordon Shedden and a handful of current BTCC competing in this 30-minute race.

The race scheduled to begin at 16:50 on Saturday. We can’t wait to hear the sound of 30 air-cooled flat-sixes hurtling away from the Grid, it’s going to be quite something.