Alain Prost Stars at Goodwood Festival of Speed 2025
Goodwood confirms that four-time Formula 1 World Champion Alain Prost will electrify this year’s Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard as the Sussex estate honours 75 years of the Formula 1 World Championship. The iconic French racer turns 70 on 24 February and celebrates 40 years since his maiden world crown, choosing Goodwood to mark both milestones.
To honour that 1985 triumph, Goodwood selects the McLaren MP4/2B he steered to the title as the official poster star, and Prost will drive the turbo legend up the famous Goodwood Hill.
Nicknamed “The Professor” for his strategic brilliance and racecraft, Prost ranks among Formula 1’s greatest champions. He secured world titles with McLaren in 1985, 1986, and 1989, and added another with Williams in 1993, before retiring with a then-record 51 Grand Prix victories. Reliability woes and points-system quirks denied him additional titles in 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1988. In 1988, he even outscored Ayrton Senna 105–94, yet lost under the best-eleven-results rule.
The Festival also reunites Prost with the McLaren-Honda MP4/4 from that fabled 1988 season—the very chassis he guided to victory in Mexico, Monaco and France—courtesy of Audrain Motorsport.
Fans can watch Prost on the Hill on Saturday and Sunday during the Festival’s most extensive Formula 1 celebration to date. The 2025 event marks his third visit after appearances in 2012 and 2013.
Four-time World Champion Alain Prost said: “The Festival of Speed is a wonderful place to experience the culture and tradition of motorsport and the full history of motor racing, so I’m looking forward to seeing the celebration of 75 years of the Formula 1 World Championship. I can think of no better place to celebrate the history of Formula 1, and two very significant landmarks in my own life.”
The Duke of Richmond CBE DL said: “I am thrilled that Alain is returning to the Festival of Speed to celebrate his glittering career, and join us as we celebrate 75 years of the Formula 1 World Championship. No celebration of Formula 1 would be complete without him, and it will be great to see him back behind the wheel of at least two of his most iconic cars.”
Goodwood will reveal further details of the 75-year Formula 1 celebration, including additional cars, drivers, teams and balcony moments, over the coming months. The weekend also features a tribute to four-time WorldSBK Champion Carl Fogarty and showcases Gordon Murray Automotive’s striking Central Feature sculpture.