Mercedes Benz is set to take centre stage at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed and showing off the brand’s racing prowess will be Formula One racer Lewis Hamilton.
The 2008 champion will be speeding around the 1.16-mile Goodwood track on Sunday June 19th in his Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 car. Alongside him will be an army of some of the most iconic cars in Mercedes Benz’s racing history.
These include a Mercedes Grand Prix racing car that formed part of a trio that scored a one-two-three for the team at the 1914 French Grand Prix. There will also be the classic W 125 and W 165 Silver Arrows on the track.
Spectators at the Hill climb can also expect to see some other rare delights from Mercedes Benz’s motorsport history. For example, the track will be graced by a 300 SLS dating back to 1957 as well as the eccentric wide-arch 500 SL rally car from 1981.
Of course, Mercedes Benz is bound to show off some of the most focused andsuccessful vehicles in its portfolio. These include the Sauber-Mercedes C9 and Penske-Mercedes PC 23 IndyCar from 1994 as well as the CLK-LM from 1998.
In terms of its most modern additions to motorsport, there will be SLS AMG GT3 racer and DTM Mercedes AMG C-Class coupe gracing the track. They will be joined by their roadgoing brethren; the SLS AMG Black Series and the A 45 AMG.
Of course, it seems only right that these powerful and precise cars should also have some highly skilled drivers getting behind their steering wheels. Joining Hamilton on the track will be Roland Asch, Anthony Davidson, Dario Franchitti, Johnny Herbert, Klaus Ludwig, Jochen Mass, Sir Stirling Moss, Sir Jackie and Paul Stewart, Bernd Schneider, Karl Wendlinger and Silver Arrows driver Hans Herrmann.
Yet there will be plenty more than just what’s on the track to keep people interested in what Mercedes Benz has to offer from June 26th until the end of the festival.
This year’s Central Feature, a sculpture created by Goodwood artist Gerry Judah, will be characterised by a theme of Mercedes Benz. It will officially be launched on the night of the Moving Motor Show on June 26th.
But there will be more than this in terms of what there is on static display from Mercedes Benz this year. Those with a taste for console games will be able to take a look at the Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo concept, which was first seen at the Los Angeles Motor Show last year and will be making its Goodwood debut. What’s more, visitors will get to try out the car for themselves – virtually of course. On the Sony Playstation 3 and Gran Turismo 6, they will be able to drive the car around the Goodwood Hill circuit.
Other gaming tech that they will be able to enjoy includes three Oculus Rift experiences. Visitors can see 360 degree footage of the Goodwood Hill, drive Silverstone virtually in the current generation of Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 W05 Hybrid or drift will Hamilton in an E 63 AMG S Estate.
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