This weekends Goodwood Festival of Speed will see Damon Hill drive the Williams-Renault FW18 that he took to the 1996 Formula One World Drivers Championship. He will drive the car up the Goodwood Estate’s legendary 1.16-mile hill climb on Sunday.
Hill becomes the seventh Formula One World Champion to be confirmed at the event, with John Surtees, Sir Jackie Stewart, Emerson Fittipaldi, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button.
Current Williams Martini Racing Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa will also be in attendance at the event, and will also give spectators a view of the FW18 on the Saturday.
“This will be my first time back at Goodwood since 2003 when I drove the Ferrari F2002,” said Massa. “It will be nice to go back as there is always a great atmosphere at Goodwood and it’s a great event. I’m really happy to be able to get behind the wheel of one of the team’s historic cars.
“It will be fantastic to drive such an incredible car as the FW18. I’m also looking forward to driving in front of all the amazing fans that have a true love of all motor sports.”
Current Williams test-driver and GP2 race winner with Carlin Felipe Nasr will also have some time behind the wheel of the FW18 at the event. As well as the FW18, a current Williams Martini Racing show car will be on show, complete with a mock up of a team garage and trucks for the spectators to view. It is one of the first display events for the recently formed Williams Heritage, part of the Williams team that maintains and showcases historic racing cars from the teams’ past.
“The Goodwood Festival of Speed is a highlight of the motorsport calendar and it’s always fun to showcase Williams’ historic assets to thousands of highly knowledgeable fans,” said Jonathan Williams of Williams Heritage. “The FW18 is one of the most successful Williams cars, so to see Damon reunited with it will be very special and something that I’m sure fans will appreciate.
“With the establishment of Williams Heritage as a distinct division of Williams, the plan is to conduct a growing number of these events in the future and to showcase and support our past racing cars and technology for a new generation of fans.”
