Goodwood’s 2023 Revival event to host first all-synthetic fuel race

This year’s Goodwood Revival event will play host to the first-ever motorsport race where all vehicles are powered by synthetic fuels.

Taking place from Friday, September 8 to Sunday 10, the Goodwood Revival, which is situated near Chichester, West Sussex, features hundreds of classic vehicles which take on the challenge of racing around the historic circuit.

This year, the event looks to the future as a grid of 30 pre-1966 Porsche 911s head to the track for the ‘Fordwater Trophy’ with all entrants running on fully synthetic fuels. The race also ties in with the 60th anniversary of the Porsche 911.

Porsche has been a frontrunner in promoting synthetic fuels, with the German company recently commencing e-fuel production at a newly created site in Punta Arenas, Chile.

At the facility, water and carbon dioxide are combined to create the fuel. However, the operation is also powered by wind power, meaning that combustion-engined cars can be run in a close to CO2-neutral way when powered by the fuel. An initial pilot will see around 130,000 litres of synthetic fuel created at the site, though Porsche hopes to increase volumes up to 55 million litres by the middle of the decade.

The Duke of Richmond, organiser of Goodwood’s many motorsport events, recently told the PA news agency: “There is a whole thrust at Goodwood around sustainability – it has always been a major thing for us across the estate.”

The Revival is completed by a further 14 races across the weekend, including the Rudge Whitworth Cup which celebrates the centenary of Le Mans 24 Hours, and the Barry Sheene Memorial Trophy which sees motorcycles from the 1960s battle it out. Riders from British Superbikes, MotoGP and the Isle of Man TT all take part, too.