Eleven amazing single-seaters to see at FOS

BRM P261 – 1964 and 1965 bridesmaid

Even in a class of the fastest, there’s only ever one winner. For the BRM P261 of the 1964 and 1965 F1 seasons, it came closest without actually closing the deal. Twice a bridesmaid in the championship with the legendary Graham Hill driving. 

Brabham BT20 – ‘66 and ‘67 season winner

The Brabham BT20 is one of those legendary F1 cars that doesn’t quite get the airtime it deserves in modern times. It’s the car in which Jack Brabham drove to his third and final championship in 1966 and in which he became the soul driver to score a championship in a car and for a team bearing his own name. A Grand Prix great by every measure.

Tyrrell 003 – Stewart’s second championship

A pivotal car in the history of F1 and indeed the career of Sir Jackie Stewart, the Tyrrell 003 was a championship winner in 1971 very soon into Tyrrell’s existence as a constructor of its own. In spite of the team’s 30-year history, the 003 remains the Tyrrell Racing Organisation’s most successful platform. See it in person and in action at the 2021 Festival of Speed, with Sir Jackie’s son Paul Stewart and legendary F1 designer Adrian Newey driving.

Penske PC1 – the first Penske Racing car

One of the biggest motorsport celebrations at the 2021 Festival of Speed this year will be of the sprawling legacy of Roger Penske. From his origins as a driver, to the founding of Penske Racing, the man is a pillar of not only US but global motorsport. So it would be fitting to go and have a poke around the Penske PC1, the first in a long line of single-seat racing cars that would grace grids from CART and IndyCar, to Formula 1. The PC1, as it happens, is an F1 car that like most inaugural efforts, wasn’t all that successful. But you have to start somewhere.

Brabham BT44B – Gordon Murray’s first race-winning F1 car

Just ask Gordon Murray, one of the greatest road and racing car designers and engineers of all time. He was at Brabham for six years before his BT44B design would score him his first F1 win in 1975. A significant car in the history of both Gordon Murray and Brabham, that gives it honours in F1’s history as a whole. Watch Marino Franchitti drive the BT44B up the Hill at the 2021 Festival of Speed.

Lotus 79 – Andretti championship winner

While Penske is one of the all-time great American racing outfits and personalities, Mario Andretti is one of the all-time great American drivers. We’ll be celebrating him as a great all-rounder at the Festival of Speed, with a class of cars in which he once raced. Including, the legendary Lotus 79 he drove to his 1978 Formula 1 world championship title. An all-time great car and an all-time great driver. Did we mention that he’ll be driving it up the Hill at the 2021 Festival, too? Not one to miss. 

Brabham BT60B

There is precisely nothing all that special about the 1992 Brabham BT60B. Tidbits? It gave Damon Hill his first drive at the 1992 Spanish Grand Prix. Did it score any points throughout its career? Not a single one. By 1992, Gordon Murray had been gone a number of years and as such, Brabham had been on its last legs a number of years. Why on Earth is this a single-seater not to miss at Goodwood? Well, when was the last time you saw one run. Even successful racing cars struggle to find a life after their contemporary racing life is done. But this Brabham, a lemon as it was in period, lives on almost 30 years on and will be driven up the Hill by David Brabham. Plus, the more 1990s F1 cars the merrier. 

Penske PC-23 – loophole 1,000PS monster

Humble of origins as Penske was, few others could match the man and his machines at the height of their powers. The PC23 exemplifies that. This 1,000PS (735kW) monster rocked up to Indy with an ace in the hole, and a few lines highlighted in the rulebook which made that ace legal. Long story short, it was a hot rod and Al Unser Jr. sauntered off to the 1994 Indy 500 win, having lapped the rest of the field 16 laps previously. See the winning car in all its glory at the Goodwood this weekend.

Arrows A10-3 Megatron

Though more successful than that Brabham BT60 we mentioned earlier, the Arrows A10-3 Megatron is hardly an A-tier car. But forgettable mid-pack fodder is arguably cooler to see than the wreath hoarders, simply because you don’t see these less well-known cars wheeled out at every event. You definitely don’t see them driven flat-out, as this Arrows will be in the Timed Shootout. Yes, this is a turbo era car that uses that BMW engine capable of 1,000PS-plus in qualifying trib. Braaap.

Ferrari F2007 – Ferrari’s last championship win?

Of course, how can you have a list of single-seaters without mentioning the Scuderia at least once? Well, you can’t. Resplendent in red will be a Ferrari F2007, of the same type that Kimi Raikkonen piloted to his 2007 Formula 1 world championship title. Screaming 19,000rpm-revving V8? Check. Eight hundred horsepower? Check. Rosso Corsa? Check. Let’s go.

Mercedes-AMG F1 W10 – first Halo F1 car to run at the Festival

Finally, we round out our list of single-seaters not to miss at the 2021 Festival of Speed with a car that needs very little introduction. It’s the first ‘halo era’ F1 to feature here at Goodwood. It’s a Mercedes-Benz. That therefore means it’s of a championship-winning type. It’s the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 W10 of 2017, one of the most convincing designs the dominant Mercedes squad have yet fielded. See it in action on the Hill this weekend.

Images courtesy of Motorsport Images.