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PORSCHE ASSEMBLED 3 DECADES OF ICONIC RACECARS FOR 80TH STAGING OF THE GOODWOOD MEMBERS’ MEETING

Published: 2023-04-28 12:19:33 Last Updated: 2023-04-28 12:59:05

Celebrating its 80th Members’ Meeting, the Goodwood Motorsport event saw the Porsche brand take centre stage as the German automaker celebrates its 75th anniversary, the 60th anniversary of the 911 as well as giving a nod to LeMans for its 100th anniversary. To make the most of this historic event, Porsche showcased an amazing lineup of iconic Porsche cars and racecars, including no less than 19 racing 911s spanning three decades of competition. The event started with a sunny spring Saturday, as visitors enjoyed nose-to-tail racing and high-speed demonstration runs. The highlight of the event was a parade of those 19 racing 911s from different decades making for some rather amazing imagery. The parade was a unique celebration, showcasing the diverse history of the 911 in its many competitive guises, including the Martini-liveried 911 Carrera 2.8 RSR, which won the Targa Florio and finished fourth overall at Le Mans. Porsche increased capacity in its race-honed flat-six, and the imposing 1974 911 RSR 3.0 was the result, also seen on the day, along with the iconic longtail 935/78. Other veterans of Porsche’s long history at Le Mans were seen in the 993-generation 911 that was campaigned by customers throughout the second half of the 1990s. Four 911 (993) GT2 R versions were the perfect support act for the last of the Museum’s exhibits for Goodwood in 2023: the 911 GT1 '98.

Former factory driver Neel Jani was one of the guest drivers invited to take part in the Porsche parade and he found himself behind the wheel of the Moby Dick Porsche 935, the Swiss driver who hustled the 919 Hybrid to its second overall victory at the 24 Hours in 2016, was delighted to have been a part of such a special occasion and overawed by his first experience of the 935/78’s 845 hp. “This is still the 911 with most horsepower ever built,” says the 2016 WEC Drivers’ Champion, “and you really feel it when that turbo kicks in. You have to make sure it’s in the correct gear and keep the revs up, and when the power arrives it’s surprisingly smooth. But it’s also never-ending! Hats off to the guys who drove that flat-out at Le Mans.” Thanks to over 50 years of non-stop competition, the Porsche 911 in all its forms lays claim to being the single most successful GT car to have turned a wheel in anger. The 80th Goodwood Members’ Meeting served as an invaluable reminder, to drivers and spectators alike, of the sheer breadth of that racing lineage and the passion and enthusiasm that continues for a car brand that has been winning races for well over half a century. It’s events and displays like this that have helped Porsche become one of the coolest and aspirational automotive brands in the world. Now we’ll have to see what Porsche takes to the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Take a look at the YouTube video from a couple of years ago showing off a whole contingent of Porsche racecars, old and new, in action at the 2020 Goodwood Speed Week. There looked to have been an even bigger presence along with even better cars at even better displays at the recent 80th staging of the Goodwood Members’ Meeting. This is the kind of thing that has all the Goodwood events on the bucket lists of automotive fanatics around the world: All the Porsches! | Goodwood SpeedWeek 2020 | Goodwood Road & Racing

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