INTERVIEW: Trailblazer Maria Costello on the Hill, aspirations, and the next generation

And as it so often comes with being a pioneer, she is used to subverting expectations. She explains how, when the crowds come to eagerly look at her sidecar, “normally they're looking for the rider, which is me, and they're not expecting it to be a woman, so that's always a good conversation to have to educate them.

"They're interested in how fast it goes and what the passenger does on the side. It's great talking about side cars!”

Costello has been taking to the Hill over the course of the Festival of Speed in a 2014 LCR-Honda 600 F2, as part of Batch 4, and the class celebrating Grand Prix Motorcycles: 75 years of racing, which is her TT sidecar.

“I actually did two PB lap times and got my best-ever finish at the TT, which is fabulous. I've just come back from the Isle of Man, and I'm going to be joined by Alice Smith, who's going to be passengering me for the rest of this season. I'm really looking forward to working with her again.”

Having raced at the Isle of Man TT six times between 2002-2017, Costello is an experienced rider, which provides the perfect balance to her partner Smith, who is only 19 years old. Fellow sidecar rider Smith competes with the Gristwood and Toms racing team, and she met up with Costello at the Isle of Man TT, where Smith was the winner of the 3 Wheeling sidecar Race 1 at the 2024 Blackford Pre TT Classic back in May.

While Costello has completed our course on numerous occasions, this will be Smith’s first experience of the famed Goodwood Hillclimb. “What’s really cool about the Festival of Speed,” Costello said, “is that I get to take different people on my sidecar and share this fantastic experience with them, that's what's really joyous about sidecars. Getting to share Goodwood with somebody is even better.

“The whole experience is so special: going into the holding area, going down to the start, and then lining up ready to come up the Hill, going up to the top and getting to come back down again, that's all part of it. And you’re surrounded by legends on two, three, and four wheels. It’s a lot to take in.”

After all she has achieved in her career, Costello still has ambitions she’s looking to achieve – with a clear goal in particular: “to go faster at the Isle of Man. I’ve held the female lap record on two wheels, wouldn't it be great to hold it on three? That ambition has sort of been held back over the past few years, but I think maybe with the right passenger, it can work.”

Talking of passengers, if this week is anything to go by then it may provide an indication as to who Costello will be riding with going forward. “There will be an announcement soon regarding who I'll be working with, but I think it is a bit of a hint here this weekend, reading between the lines. I’ll be back to the Isle of Man next year, because I love that so much, too. I've still got a few things I still want to achieve there.”

While Smith will be joining her later in the event, Costello was accompanied for her first run up the Hill on Thursday by Hanna Rose. The duo were supported by Emmanuelle Clément, the only other female rider in the Batch. Clément and partner Todd Ellis are the current World and British sidecar champions, and the pair made their debut at the Isle of Man TT earlier this year.  

Looking to the future of the sport, Costello sees improvements regarding the presence female riders, pointing to visibility as a key factor in this. “It's a hard sport, but now that we see more women doing it, I think that will help get more people starting in time.”

Costello has blazed a trail for women in her field, and when she’s not racing, she spends her time encouraging others to do so.  A patron for several charities and foundations including the Women’s Sport Foundation and the Women On A Motorcycle group, it’s clear Costello is intent on not only inspiring but building a community.

The other major project she is involved in is her work with the FHO Racing team, founded by Faye Ho in 2021 after Ho had spent many years sponsoring riders and teams at the Macau Grand Prix and the Isle of Man TT. FHO sponsor two riders in the BMW F900 cup, Kate Walker and Jamie Hanks-Elliot. Costello serves as a manager and mentor, a role she relishes. “It’s absolutely an utter dream job for me working with the future of the sport.”

The Festival of Speed Hillclimb has provided the perfect platform for riders less familiar with the sidecar discipline to have an unforgettable experience, all under Costello’s trusty guidance. “I've taken lots of the female racing drivers up the hill, including one of my best mates who races motorbikes,” she said. “I've also taken Kate Walker [up the Hill]. She's a solo competitor, but loves the sidecar experience.”

When we spoke on Thursday morning Costello had not long since arrived but was excited to experience all the four-day festival has to offer. “The atmosphere – you can feel it already. There's been loads of people around the site asking questions, and I love that about it, that people can get right up close and personal. I think that's what makes it really special. I need to make sure I get some time to go and have a good look, for sure!”

Costello and her LCR Honda 600 F2 will traverse the Hill every day of the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed, and as she guides the next generation of riders and sidecar racers, we’re looking forward to seeing what else she has planned for this year.  

The 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed is underway, and you can watch every moment of the action on our live stream right here on GRR!

Main photography courtesy of Pete Summers