Sauber F1 test driver Giedo van der Garde will step behind the wheel of an AC Cobra as he makes his debut at the Goodwood Revival later this year.
The 29-year-old will share the car with regular Revival front-runner David Hart in the RAC Tourist Trophy Celebration Race for closed-cockpit cars from 1960-1964.
It will be a departure from the usual machinery that van der Garde is used to, being a Formula 3 and GP2 race winner, as well as clinching the Formula Renault 3.5 title in 2008. Having tested and raced for the Caterham F1 Team, he moved into a test and reserve role with Sauber for 2014. van der Garde is no stranger to Goodwood, however, having driven Caterham F1 cars at the Festival of Speed in both 2012 and 2013.
“I’ve heard so much about the Goodwood Revival from friends and fellow racing drivers, but never been able to make it myself,” said van der Garde. “So to have the opportunity not only to come to such a world-renowned event, but also to race an iconic sportscar – the AC Cobra – with a good friend of mine, was too good an opportunity to miss. You can’t slide a modern Formula 1 car and still be fast, but the Cobra was made to go sideways, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
Hart, who owns the AC Cobra, will be looking to improve on his fourth place result in 2013’s Tourist Trophy, where he shared the car with World Touring Car race-winner, Tom Coronel. Meanwhile he will also drive a Lola T70 Spyder in the Whitsun Trophy for sports racing prototypes between 1961-66, a race which saw him take sixth in 2013 where it was held exclusively for Ford GT40s.
