2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed
The sun was out on Sunday, when MotoGP legends past and present took to the track at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the final day delivering unforgettable memories, including Ducati’s first MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner and fellow legend Mick Doohan.
Sunday was the big one at Goodwood, with Bagnaia heading the heroes of the now, joined by teammate Enea Bastianini, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Brad Binder, GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3’s Augusto Fernandez and Raul Fernandez, who was out with Aprilia Racing and grinning from ear-to-ear soaking in the atmosphere.
Then came the Legends. Stoner was back out on his 2008 machine and took to the Hill alongside Bagnaia in a truly seminal moment.
And with them, as well as the full flotilla of 2023 riders, came something special: Giacomo Agostini, Kevin Schwantz, Wayne Gardner, Randy Mamola out for LCR Honda Castrol, Kenny Roberts Jr, Alex Crivillé, Freddie Spencer… in one of the most spine-tinglingly exciting groups of riders ever to have headed up The Hill at once. And that wasn’t even the full group!
Kevin Schwantz
“Goodwood is always such a great experience. The weather’s taken a little bit away from it today, you know the ride up is a bit more fun when it’s dry! But still, the experience of being here, the house and driveway, all the people, the fans, there’s so much going on and there are so many special people here, whether it’s guys I’ve raced against, new generations of racers, previous generations to me. And so many four wheel guys, all kinds of really special people and it’s a real honour to be here. It’s a pretty special year for all of us, and it’s my 30th anniversary of my Championship.
“I get to get back on my old bike, I was just talking about it with my crew chief. Some of the races we did, ‘92, ’93, ‘94, he was my crew chief, and getting back on that bike you start to think about some of the stuff we did on it. Some of the great accomplishments, some of the great failures, the crashes, just all the different places that racing has taken us throughout the years. The experience of starting the Grand Prix season… I think in ’88 we had 12 or 13 races, to 15 or 16 when we finished. And so many places throughout the world we got to see, people we got to meet. And fans all over the world.”
The batch also shared the Assembly Area with the likes of F1 icon Sebastian Vettel, driving his own Williams-Renault FW14B taken to the 1992 crown by Nigel Mansell. Four-time Champion Vettel also did the demo using sustainable fuel as he joins the ranks in advocating for sustainability in motorsport, something high on the agenda for MotoGP as the sport switches to minimum 40% non-fossil origin fuel from next season, rising to 100% by 2027.
After that run in the morning that saw some of the cream of the two and four-wheeled worlds assemble, the final action of the day headed in a different direction for MotoGP as the 2023 riders and the Legends all gathered in the Assembly Area once more. This time, the destination was Goodwood House and the balcony, Doohan suited and booted for the occasion.
Mick Doohan
“It’s always a spectacular place here, it’s great for everyone to come here. It’s great to reunite with a bunch of the older guys, like myself, and then also the younger generation, see some of the new bikes and the old bikes. There are a lot of people, very knowledgeable motorsport enthusiasts here from all walks of life. From team bosses in F1 to the hierarchy in the manufacturers, and a bunch people who love all motorsport, be it MotoGP or F1 or other types of racing. It’s great to be here, I was here last year with Wayne Rainey, Kevin Schwantz, Kenny Roberts… and to come back now. But I think it’ll be a while before I come back again and it’ll make it worthwhile!”
Parking their machinery out front and backed by the MotoGP theme music for an extra flourish, riders all headed inside the house and up to the balcony for a few interviews and to wave to the crowd. Stoner, Spencer, Roberts Jr and Augusto Fernandez all took to the mic to address the fans waiting below, and with that the action at the festival came to a close with a deserved round of applause and cheers.
Stoner then decided he’d have one more ride up, taking the reins of the 500 cc Pepsi-liveried Suzuki and sealing the event as a truly unique mix of motorsport, machinery, athletes, icons, championships and champions.
Casey Stoner
“I’ve been coming here since 2006, I think it’s my fifth or sixth time here. So we’ve experienced this many times! For me, it’s an incredible event. There aren’t many places in the world that you can come to one area and see so much history as well as all the new products. And not only that, you get to see most of the cars and bikes all going up The Hill and actually being started, not just on display. I think it’s a fantastic event with so many people under one roof – well, there’s no roof. In one place! As a fan, I would definitely be coming to this event.
“It’s a bit slippery when it’s wet but overall it’s a great way to give the crowd something they normally don’t get to see. To see the range of bikes from the 1900s all the way through to what we have currently and the latest MotoGP bikes. It’s a really special event for it. Same with the cars! It can a little tricky, this track, but overall it’s always enjoyable and it’s great to catch up with friends.”
After an incredible weekend with a difference at Goodwood, it’s time for the world’s most exciting motorsport to remind everyone how fast they are at full gas, as they saddle up from an exhibition event to one of the fastest and fiercest Grand Prix venues in the world: Silverstone.
Make sure to tune in for the Monster Energy British Grand Prix in just a few weeks as the classic track hosts MotoGP from the 4th to the 6th of August!
Riders talk the 2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed
Pecco Bagnaia
“It was great, it’s maybe the greatest event I’ve ever been to in terms of passion for motorsport. So very happy to see so many people around the hillclimb, I really enjoyed seeing the cars and bikes from all the years, so very happy. I’d like to see many of them come to Silverstone to see us, and when we’re full gas in reality it’ll be even more fun.”
Giacomo Agostini
“I’m really happy to be here again after 25 years I’ve been coming. It’s nice, many people, and many riders, cars and motorbikes… the exhibition is fantastic because people want to come here. It’s incredible. And it’s nice to meet the young riders, and with all the older riders, it’s like a big party!”
Enea Bastinianini
“It’s more than my expectations, it’s fantastic and I’ve seen a lot of cars and bikes, and a lot of legends. It’s so cool. The asphalt doesn’t have a lot of grip but we haven’t got to push, it’s so nice to be here for the first time and we enjoyed it! The fans here, the British fans are so cool. Silverstone is really close, the first weekend of August, and I’m really excited for the race. Let’s see as well because I’ll be at 100%, which is so important.”
Brad Binder
“It’s been really cool, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time here the last few days, it’s been so cool to see the new bikes and cars, the present and past, an incredible experience. I’m just so stoked to be here! The amount of people here is incredible, and they put on a fantastic event. It’s so cool to have the opportunity to see F1, MotoGP, Le Mans, everything all in one place. It’s awesome. I’ve met a lot of different people since I got here.”
Freddie Spencer
“It was really good, especially considering yesterday we couldn’t run. These kinds of events are so important, I was talking to Pecco and the riders about this yesterday… it’s an opportunity for us to get in front of an entire motorsports crowd, as equals, with the other Championships and that’s so critical and important. To come here and be here, today it’s incredible. I’ve been coming here off and on since 1997! Getting back on the 500 is like going home for me. Three cylinders! It’s great and the collectors of the bikes are amazing, the fans are amazing. It’s so nice, I’m in my gear and to see the different generations here is really cool.”
Raul Fernandez
“It’s amazing, what an event! It’s the first time I’ve seen a lot of cars like this, bikes like this, I’m in love seeing the Doohan bike, Schwantz’ bike, for me it’s like a dream. And the cars, so many I’ve seen on TV when I was younger. It’s amazing. I’ve enjoyed it like a kid, it’s a great experience and being here with Aprilia is even nicer. Sometimes when I see Doohan, Criville, or Casey, it’s like a dream!”
Augustuo Fernandez
“It’s my first time here, I’ve watched on TV but couldn’t imagine how it was live. And I’m enjoying a lot, lots of fans. They’re all looking forward the Silverstone race, I’m forward looking to this race, it’ll be important and I can’t wait to race there after a long wait over summer. I can’t wait for Silverstone!”
Pol Espargaro, GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3
“It’s short! Going up it’s short but it’s so enjoyable to ride the bike, and see the technology of the moment and the oldest ones, the motorbikes and the cars, it’s super nice. It’s great to catch up with fans after those months at home, recovering from the injury from Portimao, but I want to be back to normality again! No more time talking about the injury, I understand people want to know when I’ll be back, but I really want to come back, to get back to normality, start to work with the team, get the speed back and fight with these guys! I’m waiting for it.
“Just to hear the engine, open the throttle and feel… how strong is this engine! It’s just insane. It’s something where you lose this feeling when you’re at home for so much time. I’m training on 1000cc bikes that everyone can buy, and the difference is huge. Massive! You understand how much when you’ve stopped for some months and you jump back on this kind of bike. It’s something crazy. I’m looking forward to getting back up to speed and enjoying it again with my GASGAS guys in the box.
“The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya gave me a spot to ride and I really enjoyed it. It’s not on the MotoGP, but it’s a bike I can train on and more or less feel how I feel before I jump on the MotoGP bike, and really the feelings were good! For sure missing a lot of things, but as I said it will take a little bit of time when I come back but I’m really looking forward to getting back on the MotoGP bike.”
Goodwood Festival of Speed catch-up with Kenny Roberts Jr
Kenny Roberts Jr
“It’s my first year here, me and my family arrived in England yesterday and drove down last night. It’s my first time here today, and I didn’t look at any videos or google it… so we arrived, and it’s amazing! I couldn’t have imagined how big it is, and how involved it is. I know, for my two kids and my wife to come with me is a lot, but I couldn’t have imagined all this, to have to organise it!”
How’s the family enjoying it?
“It’s always a learning experience for the kids… so when I’m like, ‘when I tell you this, it’s cause we’ve done it’. So it’s hard to say ‘I want to go to London and go on a two storey bus’, I’m like… ‘that’s eight hours!’ But when they see this, it’s a whole different side of life. We’ve done this for 15, 20 years, travelled all over the world… and when we had chance to stop, America is huge and we’ve been able to raise the kids and travel around the US. Now they get to see Europe for the first time. They’ve been to Japan, Palau, the 48 lower states. They like the way people speak proper English here! They’re enjoying it and it’s fun.”
The run and the bike:
“I was trying to find neutral and first and second, we’re going to make some changes. You know every rider, we have to make changes and blame everything on the bike! But the the gearing we’re going to make a little shorter, and tomorrow I know the direction a bit so it’ll be a little more fun! I just hope the weather’s nice.”
On talking to the current riders:
“It’s the same language. The technology they have now, compared to us, limits them in ways we were limited from tyres, chassis, the feel from the bike. We weren’t so precise with computers and understanding, but we knew there was limitations from the rider. They now can recognise the limitations and attack one area… so let’s say now you concentrate on front tyre pressure, how do you get around that problem. We didn’t know about a lot of that. When we had one day or one session from the next with conditions hotter that we didn’t understand… now they can say ‘this is why’. We had to just rely on the rider. So we were the computer back in the day! If we were given information we didn’t quite understand, it was difficult to find out what was happening.”
