Nigel Mansell Returns to Goodwood Festival of Speed 2025
Goodwood announces that 1992 Formula 1 World Champion Nigel Mansell will return to the Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard as the event joins forces with Formula 1 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the World Championship.
The 2025 festival marks Mansell’s fourth appearance, and he will drive his 1992 championship‑winning Williams FW14B and the race‑winning Williams FW11—supported by Honda Collection Hall—the car that almost clinched him the 1986 title before a dramatic tyre failure at Adelaide.
Nigel Mansell’s career blends blistering speed, unshakable determination, fierce rivalries, towering highs and crushing lows. He triumphs over adversity with steadfast support from his wife Rosanne, and the couple recently celebrated their golden wedding anniversary. His attacking style and refusal to yield earned him passionate fans across Britain, Italy, where the Tifosi dubbed him “Il Leone”, and the United States, where he followed his 1992 F1 crown by winning the 1993 IndyCar World Series, briefly holding both premier single‑seater championships at once.
Fans still relive four of his greatest overtakes: Silverstone 1987, when he deceived team‑mate Nelson Piquet at Stowe after clawing back a 30‑second deficit; Hungary 1989, when he pounced on Ayrton Senna while lapping a backmarker; Mexico 1990, when he swept around Gerhard Berger through the flat‑out Peraltada to seize second on the penultimate lap; and Barcelona 1991, when he and Senna blasted down the pit straight wheel‑to‑wheel, inches apart, etching an iconic image into Formula 1 history.
Mansell entered Formula 1 in 1980 under the wing of Colin Chapman—Chapman’s final Lotus signing—and suffered profound grief when his mentor died suddenly in 1982. Without that backing, he lost favour at Lotus, yet after joining Williams, he claimed his maiden Grand Prix victory at the 1985 European Grand Prix at Brands Hatch. Between 1985 and 1994, he amassed 31 wins, retiring as Britain’s most successful Formula 1 race winner, a tally now bettered only by Sir Lewis Hamilton. His 14 pole positions in the dominant 1992 season remained unmatched until Sebastian Vettel set 15 in 2011 from 19 races; Mansell needed just 16 starts and might have reached 17 poles had the calendar stretched by three more rounds.
Since his 2006 Festival of Speed debut, Mansell has thrilled Goodwood crowds in milestone machinery, including the 1982 Lotus 91—Colin Chapman’s last Grand Prix winner—and, in 2022, his 1992 title‑winning FW14B. Goodwood has also showcased his cars; in 2023, Sebastian Vettel drove the FW14B on sustainable fuel to highlight his “Race Without Trace” initiative.
Mansell returns this July as Goodwood stages its most significant celebration of Formula 1’s 75th anniversary. He will join the Champions class alongside fellow world champions and former teammates Alain Prost and Mario Andretti, and organisers will reveal additional legendary names in the coming weeks.
“I’m looking forward to returning to the Festival of Speed this summer and celebrating 75 years of the Formula 1 World Championship. It’s been amazing to drive the Goodwood hillclimb in several of my cars over the years, and I can’t wait to do it all again!” says Nigel Mansell.
The Duke of Richmond CBE DL adds, “I couldn’t be happier that Nigel will return to the Festival of Speed this year, as we host our biggest ever celebration to mark 75 years of the Formula 1 World Championship. Nigel was more than just a legend of the sport; he was a hero, and celebrating Formula 1 without him would be unthinkable! As well as being one of the fastest, bravest, and most determined drivers of all time, he inspired a level of devotion amongst British fans that we had never seen before or since. We got a small glimpse of ‘Mansell Mania’ when he came to Goodwood three years ago, and I look forward to its return in July.”
